[Dickie]

Ignored my Dr’s orders and took a ride today w/vertigo for the first time in 2015. Headed west through Clarendon and Ballston to the Fairfax Dr. Connector and onto the Custis, and then to the WOD. Clear all the way. The WOD was clear all the way to Brandymore castle and stayed clear until the Sycamore St. underpass. From there the trail got really dicey. I was on 32 knobby’s (no studs) and had to turn around to take 16th/Columbia the rest of the way. I stayed on streets until re-connecting with the WOD at Citizens bridge where I finally gave up. Looks as if the WOD is un-passable in Falls Church unless you have studs.

[Dickie]

If I’m over this sickness I’ll be there… so far 50/50. Will have a better idea come FCCII.

[Dickie]

Santa gave me vertigo and a severe cold, I apologize for being naughty all year.

[Dickie]

My real name is Dandy Dickie, I just dropped the Dandy for simplicity.

[Dickie]

Friday was an awesome day: Dirt gifted me a new flask to replace the one that shook out of it’s holder somewhere on the WOD last month. Consularrider took the liberty of filling it with scotch before delivering it to FCCII (which allowed us to spike our coffees). Then when I got home that night I found a package from Trailrunner who had sent me his old Oakley M-Frames for free to replace the ones crushed last weekend. You all rock my world and made this an awesome end to a grumpy week. Cheers!

[Dickie]

I am in possession of some fine clear lens cycling glasses that someone left at Java Shack this morning…. rumor is they belong to Vern. let me know how I should return them. Cheers

[Dickie]

@dplasters 102397 wrote:

Really? I have been very comfortable with about a 200 lumen light and I do all my riding in auto traffic. I always assumed the high lumen stuff was for people who have to actively light their own path since the trails had no street lights / ambient light.

Whatever keeps us all riding and safe.

Again, I think it’s so subjective and comes down to each person’s comfort level. I for one ride mostly on the trails (WOD, MVT, 4MR) but spend some of that time on Gallows, and through Ballston – Rosslyn. I prefer to run my lights brighter in traffic to stand out from the ambient and auto lights. Running lower power on the trails is enough for me. It’s also really easy for me to toggle between settings as my light is mounted on my bars at the stem.

[Dickie]

Yeah, it’s such a tough debate which is why I think it gets re-hashed over and over. For the most part the low powered lights don’t bother me at all, and I recognize that there are plenty of times it’s not possible to cover a light… as a few have mentioned (mounted on helmet, or a place that cannot be reached), and as stated before, I’d rather folks control their bikes first and worry about lights second. I also understand that many commuters are on and off the trails and intermittent times, so the higher powered lights are helpful when in auto traffic but not accessible to switch easily on the fly. All this to say my experience was more an observation, although I am sure a number of the folks I encountered could have helped the situation in some way. I have to believe they are just un-aware rather than not caring, at least thinking this keeps me positive and sane.

[Dickie]

I have been covering my light to on-coming cyclists for years now. I generally ride west in the mornings and east in the evenings so I’m in the minority and thus getting far more cyclists coming towards me than the other way round. I have noticed a dramatic increase in night cycling traffic on the WOD, 4MR, and MVT this year, and so an increase in lights. On last night’s 20 mile commute I decided to count:

29 cyclists crossed my paths (I covered my light each time)
2 covered their lights in return
3 cyclists were using high powered strobes
4 cyclists were using blinkies (2 were Cap Bikeshares)

… of the remaining 20 cyclists more than half had either lights pointed directly into my face, or were running 800 lumens (guessing) or higher, or both. I will continue to cover my light because It makes me feel like a good citizen, and it’s rare that I’m so blinded it becomes dangerous, but I am considering riding at 5:00 am and 3:00 pm to avoid the problem entirely.

[Dickie]

My favorite Christmas bicycle themed gift….. AND…Gratuitous plug: My wife’s posters from ArtCrank. She still has some remaining for $50.00 each. Limited edition, signed and numbered. PM me if you’re interested.

[Dickie]

@rcannon100 102344 wrote:

Yo! New people! Come to coffee! Java Shack after 7 pm until the yule log burns out

Yeah, so at this point I am pretty much just baiting Steve O’s “DISLIKES”

How about we say 7 am? Drinking coffee in the dark at Java Shack alone on a Friday night sounds pretty awful.

[Dickie]

Thanks for posting and I am so glad you didn’t suffer too many serious injuries. I hope you will find the motivation and courage to get back on your bike and continue riding as soon as you are feeling better. Also, welcome to the forum… here’s hoping you get to meet Laurence. I for one do not know of anyone on the forum with than name, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t here.

[Dickie]

I am so close… 7320 towards my 7500 goal. If I stay out of the ER this week I should make it… fingers (working ones) crossed.

[Dickie]

I rode through around 6:30am…… lazy buggers…. 10:30 is lunch time isn’t it? Have fun, wish I could have joined.

[Dickie]

@americancyclo 101561 wrote:

That left me hanging last night….

I know I know… spent the morning in the ER again with an infected finger from my drill incident, didn’t want to risk more damage. Sorry to leave you hanging in the wind.

[Author]

Posts