[consularrider]

I managed to convert two unenlightend souls on my way home last night, one on the Mt Vernon Trail at Hains Point and one on 4 Mile Run just east of the W Glebe Rd split off. These were both on bikes, my primary target for lighting up. It’s too hard to get the attention of a runner going in the opposite direction, and I’m not quite ready to turn around and stalk them.

[consularrider]

Hey, it was better than the evening we were standing in the subfreezing weather at that corner last year!

[consularrider]

It looks pretty dismal out there right now, but mostly fog/mist, not rain. Radar looks promising for no more than drizzle.

[consularrider]

I was missing all the leaf build up in Four Mile Run this morning. Thanks Kathy.

Now if someone would only clean off east ramp of the I-395 overpass. I spun my rear wheel taking that turn on Saturday afternoon. I guess it’s my turn to ride with a broom.

[consularrider]

Dirt,

Do you have any recommendations for hands/wrists to make arm signals more visible?

[consularrider]

I can only see about ten on the Virginia end of the bridge with a couple of small signs. There is one blue light special. I can’t see much of the the DC end, but it looks like there are people standing on the upstream side of the bridge a little past midspan, can’t see the down stream side from my office building. However, traffic is moving easily, if slowly (a good thing!) across the bridge.

[consularrider]

This latest from dcist:

“…Occupy DC’s media team states that their march will not conflict with the afternoon rush, despite it being scheduled to last until 6 p.m. Meanwhile, a group called Our DC which is participating in a demonstration on the bridge itself says that protesters will be “staying on the pedestrian sidewalk” and that there will be “No blocking traffic!”…”

I think someone needs to let them know that occupying the “pedestrian” sidewalk will in effect block bicycle traffic unless they stay exclusively on the upstream side of the bridge. But then again, we have some forum posters who prefer to ride on that side…Guess it will be time to take the lane!

It’s 2:30 now and Key Bridge is its normal mid-afternoon self. The march should get underway anytime now. I’ll have to see what things look like when I get back at 4:00 from my next meeting.

[consularrider]

While the temperature might be a little chiller this afternoon, it should be clearing up by the time of the march. Depending on how this comes off, it may adversely affect travel to WABA’s happy hour. Maybe heading south and crossing on the 14th St Bridge will help get around the potential gridlock. Since I can see Key Bridge from my desk at work, I post an update later on this afternoon.

[consularrider]

If you like riding on wet leaves :p you should try the Bluemont to Walter Reed, my favorite ride to work in the morning. This beats out anything I’ve encountered on the Custis or the W&OD inside the Beltway. Many sections of it are totally covered with a thick carpet of leaves, but I skip the steep climbs up and down in Glencarlyn in the dark when the trail is wet.

[consularrider]

@samantha moffatt 10821 wrote:

I think its a 26″ frame, I like straight handlebars, not too fussy about the exact type of bike, as long as I can use it to explore some of the trails (they are paved or cinder?) –yes, I too had thought maybe a private person might be able to help me–Samantha

A 26″ frame is fairly large, are you well over six feet tall, or maybe you meant 26″ wheels? I’m 5’7″ and ride a 17″ or 19″ frame on a mountain or hybrid bike.

On the trail surfaces, almost all are paved. The CCT going east out of Bethesda towards Silver Spring is crushed stone. The C&O towpath is packed dirt with some gravel.

[consularrider]

I just replaced the original pads for my mechanical disc brakes on my commuter bike after 20 months and a little more than 11,000 miles of all weather riding. I’m still on the original pads (SRAM Rival side pull) for my road bike after 15 months and 5600 fair weather miles. On my old commuter with cantilever brakes, I replaced the pads a couple times a year (had switched to the salmon Kool-Stop).

[consularrider]

I’ll try and be there, but don’t know if I can leave work early enough to be of much assistance.

[consularrider]

DC, Arlington, Alexandria, and Fairfax County all have bike maps, both online and printed versions. You can usually get copies at WABA, BikeArlington, and other events in the area. I have also found them at the Metro Commuter Store in Rosslyn (but not always all of them). Both Montgomery County and Prince George’s County have online maps, but I have never run across a printed version, but I don’t spend much time in Maryland. I don’t see an overall map with the trails on the Prince George’s website. It doesn’t look like Loudoun County or Prince William have maps. Amazon sells some commercial maps geared towards cycling, but I haven’t looked at these in over ten years.

[consularrider]

Had dinner next door last night. Looks like they have a lot of work to do before the 18th.

[consularrider]

I’ve been using the Schwalbe Marathon Winter studded tires (a 26X1.75 on one bike and 700X35 on another) for three years now. These do not have deep knobby tread and as Dirt mentions they’re only ok in loose snow/slush conditions. If I had it to do over again (and I’m sure I will at some point), I think I’d go with Nokian Hakkapeliitta W106 which has slightly deeper treads. One thing I do like better about the Schwalbes is the refective sidewall strip since I ride after dark a lot. The first winter I had a spare set of wheels from another bike and I would switch them. Then I got a new commuter bike with different size wheels and have just pretty much left the studded tires on from the first sign of ice until sometime in March. Also, take a look at the Peter White discussion of studded tires.

[Author]

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