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@mstone 144863 wrote:

You’ve come to the right place!

I guess I should have been more clear. To whom should I report the situation so that it is rectified properly?

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@dasgeh 144688 wrote:

Just one perspective: I never ride with music, but one time, I was waiting on a call, and wanted to make sure I heard the ringer. So I popped in earbuds. I tried just one, but it kept pulling the second out. So I put them both in. I could hear everything perfectly clear (and was able to hear the ringer, and pull over and take the call).

Don’t get me wrong, I HATE it when someone can’t hear what’s around them. But I’ve come around to two earbuds not being the worst possible accessory on a cyclist. Though I’ll admit, in my experience, a runner with earbuds is a sign they won’t be aware of anything.

So, you were not listening to anything through the earbuds until the phone rang? If that is the case, then the ear buds likely provided some reduction in sound level, which isn’t bad and allows you to hear just fine. If one is listening to music or something that takes even more concentration (like a conversation), which most runners are doing and more and more cyclists, then they are not able to hear as well because the sound (music) is so close and drowning out other sources. Some may recall years ago when Walkman first came out that folks were banned from using them in cars in many places because it distracted the drivers from every other sound and often all other cars. So none of this is new.

The bigger issue is whether they are concentrating on the sound in their ears or their surroundings. Many runners I know admit that with headphones in they are not really paying attention to anything other than the music and not tripping/head-on collision with something.

A person in a car without a radio is also not hearing a lot outside the car due to the motor and the sound-proofing many of the cars have today (how many do you see not really paying attention to the ambulance or firetruck coming down the road and start honking at those waiting for it to pass?).

As Judd implies, the drivers aren’t paying much attention to us all anyway. The same thing is the case with pedestrians on the trails, other cyclists, etc. Many people are in their own little world while outside and do not realize that they need to pay attention to their surroundings. And all of us have probably done this for at least a few minutes, but adding earbuds and music just makes it worse.

No real solution to this since banning earbuds won’t happen and people will always enter their own little world while on trails, at least part of the time (and often one goes out to “lose oneself”).

Sigh. Just keep an eye out for them all.

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@bobco85 144735 wrote:

Thanks! By the way, I put the music information at the bottom of every video description.

Ah, on the YouTube page. I was just looking at it from the forum page. Thank you.

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These are great! So is the music you use. Somewhere you need to credit that, some scores are really lovely to listen to.

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@KLizotte 144653 wrote:

I’m glad they are adding the cameras but why is a “warning only” period warranted? To give the commuters sufficient time to acclimate to having to stop at the lights? Really?! Thunk.

I think this is fairly standard – at least I know this happens elsewhere. I think it is to get drivers used to having to obey the law when they do not see a cop actually present. Unless they wish to pay a fine, which often doesn’t count against their license.

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@bentbike33 144608 wrote:

East of St. Ann’s downed tree blocks the eastbound lane.

Between the ponds a big downed tree blocks both lanes and extends off trail in both directions. If you can’t lift your bike pretty high, I strongly suggest a detour.

As I finished my ride, a county vehicle was slowly traversing the trail. I followed him to the tree at St Anne’s. I told him about the other two at the ponds (there is one that is leaning heavily by the western-most pond). I also just e-mailed the county so that they know what he is up against. He is glad that it wasn’t much worse.

While there are lots of twigs all over, there is a large leafy branch on 4MR in Bancroft park, but someone has mostly moved it to the side.

Lots of people were passing their bikes under the tree at the pond.

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First, glad to know that “your number” was not for a more serious outcome.

Second, to all, so police statistics on the safety of an intersection or generally how well people drive is based solely on whether there were injuries or not? This means that police statistics are extremely skewed and there are no good statistics on safety anywhere because lots of folks won’t call their insurance companies after such events. Great. So even for advocacy, numbers used are skewed – at least that fact can be used, “there were a minimum of 10 car on bike accidents…” since the actual number does not exist.

This does also explain the repeated question I received when I was in a car crash in Arlington (I had started bike commuting a few months later, partially because I was feeling less safe in a car given the driver hadn’t looked at all before attempting to change lanes through me). I called the police to have them come take a report and was asked “is anyone injured?” My response, “I am not sure yet.” I was asked that by the cop who arrived too, and replied the same way and added that I am too shaken up to know to for sure. Why did I do this? Many moons ago I was struck by someone running a red light (I was in my car). The cops were not called. I was shaken up and did not realize that I was injured (or that I should have called the police – the lawyer driver of the other car was very forceful) and I was lucky that there were witnesses willing to be witnesses. Luckily the injuries were not serious (although I likely had a mild concussion aside from bruises) and the witnesses were willing to tell both insurance companies that the other driver was at fault.

The moral? Call the cops and state that you do not know if there are injuries. Seriously. When shaken or full of adrenaline, you are not a good judge of injury.

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I think I found the actual document, https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-04-22/html/2016-08014.htm. According to that, they are looking for comments through 20 August 2016, and will accept late comments as possible. So, there is still time to comment!

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@KWL 143908 wrote:

What…is the air speed velocity of an unladen starling? You are such a birder geek.

Can it carry coconuts?

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@bentbike33 143907 wrote:

Good news! Arlington County has figured out a permanent fix for the Custis Moguls at the Bridge-to-Nowhere!

According to Webster “Bump” is singular. Did they add a sign before each mogul?

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@Tim Kelley 143866 wrote:

American Inline perhaps? http://www.americaninline.com/skateboardcampsvirginia.html

Well, time and location-wise, and the apparent summer camp feel, makes it likely this was the group of kids and counselors. I guess they all got to learn about crashes and the proper response to injury on a trail. The trail is safer for the kids than roads, at least car-wise, but crashes are still possible. And that was a big group for the trail. There were enough counselors for them to be in smaller groups so not taking up so much of the trail, and that could explain the group hanging out off the trail just before St Anne’s. I hope they were in smaller groups in general.

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@ginacico 143800 wrote:

I passed him just before the W&OD/Custis intersection, about 6:45am.

If we are Unicycle Dude spotting, he was returning later. I was headed east on the Custis and passed him as he completed the second of the two sisters heading west between 7:15 and 7:20. Very impressive. Those hills aren’t fun on two wheels.

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And when you are done with all those, you can try 41st N, by Chain Bridge (not marked on all maps, but the bike route for getting to Chain Bridge). This took me many, many tries to even bicycle up the hill, but as long as I am in a good gear, I can bike up the hill now (although I still do not do the little curvy bit at the top since it is often slick with leaves. Yes, really, that is the reason ).

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@LeprosyStudyGroup 143777 wrote:

Dunno if anybody else was curious or especially still cares, but I always wanted to see what’s on the other side of this tunnel and finally did this weekend.

It’s a fenced in, locked, abandoned parking lot. It doesn’t connect to anywhere. It’d be a cool place to build a skatepark or something useful to anybody.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]12219[/ATTACH]

I have seen cars parked in there during the week. Not many, but some. Perhaps overflow from the lot adjacent to the access road, but it does seem far to go.

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Bobco85, Thank you very much! That looks much better than before. They really must have cleaned it just after I went through there this morning.

So, now I know that (1) that is a VDOT intersection and (2) their web-based form does indeed get them to clean up the debris.

[Author]

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