[Dirt]

I’m guessing that this is out of the question?

[Dirt]

I’d also add that it is a very nice ride! I miss heading that direction. I need to do that more often.

[Dirt]

The “dress for the destination” thing is interesting. I find it somewhat in conflict with the “Enjoy the journey” part. My journey is usually at least 15 miles. I realize that is not the norm for urban riding. It is a bit more prevalent in suburban riding. I find that there are between 20 and 30 days per year when I can reasonably dress for the destination and arrive looking as socially acceptable as a scruffy Sasquatch is capable of. Dressing for the destination for me usually means having clothes in my bag that can easily be changed into to make me look a little more like a human.

Footwear is always a problem. On a fixie (my chosen ride most days) I tend to consider clipless pedals a safety feature. It is difficult for me to do good emergency leg braking when I’m not held into the pedals fairly securely. It is also a health issue for me. I have foot issues that are aggravated by riding in street shoes.

[Dirt]

@dbb 118549 wrote:

That is a bit disturbing to hear as it is my understanding you are the person who is closest to doing every kind of cycling that there is!

I often times ride as though I was on a cruiser bike. I just do so on a drop-bar fixie. I’m more comfortable that way. My pedal-powered hovercraft will likely have drop bars on it.

[Dirt]

First off, Hi urbanish! Welcome to the forum. I’m happy that you’re here and that you brought your ideas and writing.

My work involves a lot of time watching people’s transportation behavior and trying to get people to think about making it safer.

People tend to ride the way they do not because they’re part of a category of cyclists. They behave that way because of how they think of the law and the rules of the road. It is the same way with drivers and pedestrians.

I’m certainly not perfect in ANY of my modes of transportation. I constantly work to be a little better though.

1) Enjoy the journey without being too focused on the destination. Smart way to live both on and off the bike.
2) I love that cruiser bikes exist. I find them completely useless for every kind of cycling that I do.
3) I generally find that dressing like a rodeo clown makes me the happiest. I cannot begin to express my happiness that I’ve been able to live in a way that allows me to do that every day to some degree.
4) There are good and bad ways to feel naked. For me, riding without a helmet is a bad way of feeling naked. If you feel differently, I’m good with that.
5) It doesn’t matter if you want to be a leader or not. How you live says a lot about you and people are watching, making judgements and basing their behavior on yours. If you behave like a concussed baboon when you ride a bike, in a car or while walking, people will treat you like a concussed baboon. If you behave lawfully and courteously while riding, driving or walking, people are still going to treat you like a concussed baboon because there are just too dang many people out there behaving like concussed baboons . D’OH!

Just kidding about that last part. I’ve found that being happy, courteous and behaving well makes it easy, more often than not, for people to be courteous and polite back. I also find that generally being mellow and accepting makes it so that people who behave like stinkers are less likely to annoy me.

Sorry for going on so long. That’s probably my longest post in a year. Obviously a topic that is near and dear to me.

Rock on!

[Dirt]

PAL Ambassador Wine and Cheese party is tonight! Stop by and join us! Should be fun!

[Dirt]

Kelley came up with this one:

Want to reach your
/destination faster?
/Share the road
/Avoid disaster

I love it! What are your ideas? We’re communicating with drivers.

[Dirt]

I’m confused.

[Dirt]

We yelled, but you didn’t hear us. Fun ride!

Georgetown-Roubaix

Rolling Thunder

Love, Pete

[Dirt]

[Dirt]

@PotomacCyclist 116399 wrote:

Richie Porte of Team Sky had a flat tire with just 7 km to go in yesterday’s stage. Fellow Australian Simon Clarke of Orica-GreenEdge helped out his buddy by giving him his wheel. Clarke is not a contender for the GC win, so he wanted to help a fellow Australian.

It was a calculated risk that Porte took. If he waited for his team car, he knew that he was screwed. If he took the wheel, there was a chance it might not have been enforced. He had the second best outcome out of that situation.

I will say that I like to see a few days when the breakaway stays away. Nice, gutsy finish to the stage today.

[Dirt]

I’m really torn with this. I love a big cycling event that gets people active and brings a sense of cycling community to Arlington.

I’m somewhat less thrilled at having hundreds of cyclists moving in packs and flying through red lights and stop signs at 20+ MPH with zero regard for basic traffic laws. I tried really hard to like this ride, but always felt like it was about the worst representation of what cycling should be in a community.

A ride of that size with virtually no regard for traffic laws or safety needs to be on a closed course.

[Dirt]

I’ll be at HDCC Wednesday morning from 7:30-9 with PAL vests and stuff for people who want to help with this project. See y’all at Best Buns in Shirlington.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]8484[/ATTACH]

[Dirt]

I’ve got 3 sets of Ortlieb panniers and they have totally lived up to everything they claim. Easy on and off and great waterproofing.

[Dirt]

For between $100 and $125 a local shop can get you a new wheel and install it.

Amazon.com can get you a wheel for between $60 and 80 of similar quality and you can install it yourself.

[Author]

Replies