[eminva]

@Steve O 62385 wrote:

I heartily agree that a responsibly behaving cyclist shouldn’t hit the bollard.

Not to play devil’s advocate, but to illustrate another possible scenario, let me tell you about my experience. There used to be flexible bollards at the Sandburg Street crossing in Dunn Loring. As I was heading eastbound, I crossed the intersection and slowed to allow a jogger to pass the (very visible to me) bollard before I attempted to pass him. Just then, two very ELITE cyclists passed me in the face of oncoming traffic. They realized their mistake too late and quickly pulled back in front of me and the jogger. One clipped the bollard, which came off and went flying into my front wheel. To avoid hitting the jogger, I bailed into the grass. I was unhurt and the bike was okay (the bollard was a goner).

I’m just trying to make the point that responsibly behaving cyclists can be negatively impacted by bollards, too.

Liz

[eminva]

Bike and Roll is selling last years’ rental fleet:

http://bikethesites.com/Press-Releases/bike-and-roll-s-fall-2013-bike-sale

Looks like they have some kids’ bikes available.

Liz

[eminva]

@baiskeli 62049 wrote:

You mean salmoning?

Yikes, yes! I corrected the original post.

Liz

[eminva]

Hello —

On Friday (the day before my MTB adventure), my son and I went just north of Baltimore to check out the Torrey C. Brown Rail Trail (a.k.a. the North Central Rail Trail). We’ve discussed it here before.

It’s a really nice trail. The surface is crushed limestone and is as smooth as can be without being paved. Would be great for almost any type of bike. We were there on a Friday morning, but it was not crowded at all. We could ride side by side most of the time without disturbing anyone else. The trail continues for about 20 miles to the Pennsylvania border (where it connects to another trail; see link above).

Google Maps was overly optimistic as to the amount of time it took to get there, but otherwise it was a nice trip and a highly recommended trail a little farther afield than what we usually get.

Here are some photos.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3552[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]3553[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]3554[/ATTACH]

Liz

[eminva]

To the guy salmoning down Georgia Avenue, turning left to salmon down East-West Highway (at the corner with the construction site that has taken out both the sidewalk and one travel lane on each street):

May I suggest a WABA Confident City Cycling class?

Liz

[eminva]

Thanks, it was fun! I took photos, too, but they were not nearly as good as Kel’s. Here is one of her approaching the water crossing.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3548[/ATTACH]

I will spare you the photo of my thrice-busted up knee. :p

Liz

[eminva]

@ShawnoftheDread 61671 wrote:

I can’t wait until Liz quits this lawyering stuff and opens a bike shop.

@dasgeh 61672 wrote:

There are probably enough of us to open up a law firm/bike shop combo…

Not to burst anyone’s bubble, but one of the instructors was talking to a few of us during a break about the economics of owning or working in a bike shop. So that plan will only exist in the dream world, at least for me.

More interesting are retirement possibilities — the man sitting next to me in the graduation photo is retiring from his career in San Francisco and is opening a bike rental operation at the largest state park in California.

Liz

[eminva]

@eminva 55376 wrote:

Thanks, Pete!

One question: I have heard it said that you should replace your cassette whenever you replace your chain. I have also heard that if you replace your chain before it gets too bad you can extend the life of your cassette and don’t need to replace it with every new chain. Is there any accepted wisdom on this point, or do reasonable minds disagree?

Thanks.

Liz

Thanks — some of you answered my question above, but I asked the question again and got the definitive answer at bike school a couple of weeks ago [aside: I went to the Introduction to Bike Maintenance Class at United Bicycle Institute in Oregon; if anyone is interested in hearing about that, let me know and I will start a thread].

If a chain is checked assiduously and replaced before it gets too worn, the cassette does not need to be replaced with each chain. However, type of cassette, riding conditions, frequency of cleaning and mileage all contribute to chain longevity and there is no one-size-fits-all answer to how long a chain should last. For my part, I have a 10-speed cassette, ride in a bunch of crappy weather and ride 500+ miles/month on my main bike, so I’ll be changing chains a lot more frequently than I probably thought necessary. I have a chain checking tool and use it fairly often.

The instructor asked, “who told you you needed to change your cassette each time you change your chain?” He seemed astonished when I replied that it was one of our LBSs. Maybe the average customer waits too long and this is the default advice.

Thanks all.

Liz

[eminva]

@ShawnoftheDread 61276 wrote:

Ford’s house in Alexandria.

Or Ford’s Theater!

[eminva]

Rapha is having a sale.

Liz

[eminva]

@Tim Kelley 61172 wrote:

We’ve been kicking the idea of cable locks vs. u-locks around the office lately, and in our anecdotal experiences, we have rarely heard of anyone around here having their bike stolen if it has a u-lock on it. I’m sure it happens, just probably a lot less frequently Anyone have similar experiences?

IIRC, when my bike was stolen from the Ballston metro station in 2008, it, among others, was locked with a u-lock. I noticed a whole bunch of broken locks of different varieties (including u-locks) lying on the ground when I returned. I guess it was a “professional job” because they clearly had the capacity to take a lot of bikes at once and were prepared to deal with any type of lock.

Liz

[eminva]

@ShawnoftheDread 61033 wrote:

I’m anti-sticker on cars and bikes, unless done as tastefully as eminva’s mountain bike.

I got my mountain bike from Nashbar; it came without any decals or stickers whatsoever. So I did my own brandifying. These stickers are supposedly reflective, too. Behold:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3490[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]3491[/ATTACH]

Liz

[eminva]

@ShawnoftheDread 61033 wrote:

I’m anti-sticker on cars and bikes, unless done as tastefully as eminva’s mountain bike.

Will provide photo later tonight so you can see what Shawn is talking about.

I used to have a commuter with stickers, but it got stolen. The police officer was very interested in knowing what stickers it had because that would aid in recovery. Despite her claim, the bike was never recovered.

I have a pile of stickers — not sure whether to put them on a rack, on my laptop or on the theoretical cargo bike.

Liz

[eminva]

@Mikey 60981 wrote:

What time is everyone planning to get there. When I made the reservation I said people would show up between 5 to 7 but with the location out in Fairfax, I don’t really expect anyone to get there before 5:30 or 6pm. My wife will be riding with the kids and can be there at any time to hold the table. The question is how long do I want her to have to entertain 3 excited kids (who love the Green Turtle) before the other adults come.

If I leave work at 4 (far SE washington) – I should be at the GT by 5:45. Please let me know, I plan on calling the Green Turtle at lunch time.

Thanks.

I was going to try to leave early and get there as close to 5 as possible (with my gang). I agree, most people will probably arrive on the late side given the distance. Or am I only one who thinks 4 p.m. is the middle of the work day which means one is leaving “early”?

Liz

[eminva]

Crazy Ivana: “Are you all right? I’m sorry, I was in my own little world.”

Me: “Er . . . it’s all right. It’s so rare that I get to fall dramatically in the middle of the trail. Or to demonstrate my Rule 5 awesomeness to all who happen to notice my leg for the rest of the ride home.”

[Author]

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