[dkel]

Did I see Dirt on the W&OD zooming down the hill by Idylwood Park this afternoon? It could’ve been Santa…he looked pretty jolly…

[dkel]

I had a very pleasant commute to Vienna today, except that my water bottle froze. There were a few folks out, including a little girl practicing on her new unicycle! Very pro.

[dkel]

@KayakCyndi 72607 wrote:

I’ll be there and will looking for a convoy back out toward Falls Church post happy hour if anyone is interested.

I’ll tag along, too. Is it a no drop convoy? :p

[dkel]

I had my typical late, reverse commute from Falls Church to Vienna this morning, and was disappointed when I saw a single person by the Vienna Rec Center: I thought I could make it the whole way without seeing another soul. Compared to Saturday (yes, I worked Saturday), when EVERYONE was out in full kit, I had a quite solitary ride. I could get used to having the whole W&OD to myself… I’ll be working tomorrow and Wednesday as well (really!); maybe one of those trips will be completely deserted.

[dkel]

Thanks for posting the steps. One suggestion: contestants might want to register for the forum before filling out the Freezing Saddles application, so that they will have their forum username to put down on the application.

[dkel]

Now that underwater cycling seems such a known quantity, I suggest that any underwater cycling in BAFS has to be done outside. It’s really the only option in keeping with the spirit of BAFS. Question is: is it even possible to record Strava data underwater??

[dkel]

@rcannon100 72492 wrote:

3 of the people who clicked that they want to be on the slacker team, are not registered for Freezing Saddles.

Seems in keeping with the slacker theme…I’d call the whole thing a grand success!

[dkel]

@PotomacCyclist 72450 wrote:

I must also admit to infidelity this winter, in the form of more swimming[…]. Plus many of my winter bike workouts will probably be indoors, which wouldn’t count for this contest.

I know indoor rides are verboten for Freezing Saddles, but I, for one, would be willing to make an exception for any rides done IN the pool. Talk about rolling resistance!

[dkel]

@KLizotte 72446 wrote:

We’re a cult. We use the happy hours to recruit new members. Freezing Saddles is an initiation ritual.

You have been warned.

Eh. Nothing here surprises me anymore.

(LOVE this forum!!)

[dkel]

I’ll definitely be there for the happy hour: I’m dying to meet all you kooky people in person.

[dkel]

@JimF22003 72275 wrote:

What’s the story on the W&OD from say, Gallows west out to Ashburn?

I rode the W&OD from Falls Church past the Ayr Hill crossing in Vienna between 10:00 and 11:00 this morning. It was almost entirely clear, but it was damp throughout, which has me slightly concerned for my ride home late tonight. Can’t speak to the Reston to Ashburn portion of the trail.

[dkel]

@cyclingfool 72233 wrote:

Actually, it’s a race with well established rules, an entire pecking order, and even a Twitter handle.

http://www.itsnotarace.org/scr-rules/

Given my frankenbike, my FCN is a little difficult to ascertain, but I’m somewhere between 10 and 12. What’s yours?

Apparently I’m a 10. That’s is what I love about this forum: I learn something new every day! I will probably get nowhere with this game, though, because I have a reverse commute during off-peak hours, and during cold weather I hardly ever see anyone going either way. Makes it hard to pass people.

[dkel]

Fastest commute ever for me this morning.
Pros:
1) my fastest commute ever!
2) obviously I’m obeying rule #5 and/or #10

Cons:
1) it’s a commute, not a race
2) I had been looking forward to going for a longer distance commute today, but running incredibly late turned it into a shorter time commute. (That said, what can you do but turn it into a challenge? Now that I think of it, make that #3 on the Pros list.)

[dkel]

@acl 72065 wrote:

eh, to me he just sounds like a jerk. That’s not advocacy, that’s just in-jokes sneering at the out-group. Maybe half of the things on his list are legitimate concerns for people– and even when they aren’t, or are surmountable, making fun of people for being so stupid as to be concerned about it is not the way to win them over.

I see the jerk angle, but I was recently the person who spent more time entertaining fears about committing to a full-on bike commute than I did trying it out, regardless of how blissfully happy I felt when out riding on the weekends with my family. Commuting seemed hard! I do look back and feel pretty silly about all he things I viewed as deal-breakers for commuting (BTW, hair wasn’t one of them: I don’t even own a comb!), and now that I’m a few months into really doing it, I wonder if the author’s reverse psychology angle would have gotten me out there sooner (it was my wife’s encouragement that did get me out there). Ultimately, if the article attracts anyone to commuting by bike, I’d call it a success, and I’d like to think that it wouldn’t turn anyone off who was already considering trying it. Maybe I’m wrong.

I did give the original post a “like,” because I related to it.

[dkel]

Jan. 2 is a rare Thursday off work for me! I’m excited!

[Author]

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