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And somebody we know made The Washington Post!

Liz

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Oh wow, I’m very sorry to hear the news about a possible accident. I hope everyone is okay.

@Rootchopper 19528 wrote:

It’s ironic that the self-guided 50 States Ride has minimal support and is much more festive. (And a hell of a lot harder.)

I agree — but that is probably a self-selective group and a much smaller one at that. Still, when I did it last fall, expecting to be fully self-supporting, it felt like the course marshals were everywhere.

On a happier note, I should have mentioned earlier how great it was to see such a great turnout of not just us hard core cyclists, but so many casual cyclists and diverse in every way conceivable. I hope no one was injured seriously and that most people were able to enjoy their day pedaling the major thoroughfares.

Liz

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I was going to start a new thread, but might as well continue it here. I did think overall it went well and appreciate the efforts of the organizers and all the volunteers (I forgot to mention on the photo page I also saw consularrider). To say nothing of the various jurisdictions’ police departments. The weather couldn’t have cooperated better.

Aside from the unintended (I hope?) misrouting discussed above, the major downside (which probably contributed to the confusion discussed above) was an insufficient number of course marshals for an event so large, involving such a wide range of riders and riding styles. My son and I got separated at the point where we were narrowed down to single file (where there were metal plates on the other side of the road). After waiting for him at that loop by the Iwo Jima (hoping I’d catch him coming out if he’d gotten ahead of me or that he would catch up if he were behind), I couldn’t find anyone to report the lost child to. There didn’t seem to be any event volunteers around. Eventually I found a guy with a walkie-talkie (who was not in the green t-shirt, so he wasn’t obvious to me) and a park ranger who got me to a park police officer. I eventually met back up with my son at the Air Force Memorial pit stop. I was in full maternal freak out mode but it barely registered with my son.

I realize the family ride is very popular, but I kind of wonder if it works given how large this event has gotten. As it is, I would advise parents not to bring their kids unless: (1) they are attached to your own bike (baby seat, trailer, trailer cycle), (2) they are teens or older or (3) they have a cell phone on their person to contact you if you get separated. There were just so many pinch points it seemed like there were a lot of places families could get separated.

Assuming I am in town and available next year, I will volunteer for the event and would encourage others to do the same. I think it is a fabulous resource for our region and I would hate for it to become a victim of its own success.

Finally, does anyone know how to reach the event organizers? I assume they have heard about the routing issue, but I just want to make sure.

Liz

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@brendan 19505 wrote:

I’ve noticed the WABA events circle (the people I know from events and social rides in DC) and the WABA/BA Forum circles don’t seem to overlap all that much?

Maybe us older fuddies are the only ones still using forums instead of the social medias?

Brendan

Could be! As I was telling some people on Friday night, I missed a private message on my Facebook page — a reporter for the GWU newspaper saw the discussion of the National Bike Challenge on this forum, and wanted to interview me for article. I didn’t see the message for a month. Alas, I cannot keep up with the many forms of social media. I will cop to that.

Liz

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Turns out I can do the Dirt trick of photography while riding — I just need there to be no cars on PA Avenue.

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My son and me at the Air Force Memorial pit stop

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Almost back, passing the Kennedy Center on the Roosevelt Bridge

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Laurie, Greenbelt, Arlingtonrider and dbb at the finish!

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My new avatar is from this morning, me passing the White House.

Saw all the Bike Arlington folks, Mark Blacknell as well as the people photographed above.

Liz

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Brendan, I don’t know if this is what you are referring to, but I was on the 11 mile family ride with my son. When we crossed the Roosevelt Bridge, we were directed to the 50 West off ramp if we weren’t interested in riding on any part of the GW Parkway. Once on the exit ramp, those of us on the family ride actually had to cross oncoming bike traffic, which at the point we got there, were the frontrunners in the 25 mile race (and yes, I use those words intentionally) preparing to come back to DC. I had to get off my bike and yell at people to pause so the family riders could cross the stream of traffic.

I don’t know if this was a mistake in route planning, or if it was intentional, to have cyclists crossing each other. I also don’t know how it went later when more people were coming through in both directions, which may be when the backup occurred? There were NO course marshalls there when we went through. It was pretty scary.

I’ll write more later about the event generally (with photos), but bottom line, I think all of us need to volunteer to be course marshalls next year rather than riding.

Liz

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Thanks to everyone at WABA for a fabulous evening! Thanks to Ann for selling me the winning raffle ticket and for carrying my booty home for me (got it this morning, thanks).

It was great seeing forum folks. Hope to see you all again tomorrow.

Liz

—
I am here: http://tapatalk.com/map.php?3trzbe

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I am going and working the same shift as Ann. I love that the reminder email advised us not to show up for our shift drunk. I guess the rest of the volunteers are a good 20-30 years younger than me. Or have much more adventurous and less corporate lives.

I think I heard it was almost a sellout (or it was a sellout), so it should be a success. My husband and I went last year when it was in Crystal City. It is fun!

Liz

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@vvill 19447 wrote:

I’ve been trying to do a minimum of 1 mile/day just for the 20 base points.

Me too! I’ve been doing more of my Saturday/Sunday errands by bike than usual because I don’t do much leisure riding and I’m not commuting on those days. I guess they are already accomplishing their purpose with this challenge, eh?

Liz

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I’m reviving an old thread, but creadinger, did you ever get this figured out?

I had my bike in for routine maintenance last week and the mechanic noted the bar tape was chewed up and asked if I wanted it replaced. I said yes, but I guess they forgot to do it because it was the same ratty bar tape when I picked it up. I figured it was an omen that the time has come for me to learn this basic bike maintenance task. Now it is beginning to unravel and I suspect I must address this issue sooner rather than later.

So, my plan is as follows, how does it sound? Buy bar tape, watch a few Youtube videos a couple dozen times and have a bottle of wine at the ready. Am I forgetting something?

Thanks.

Liz

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Okay, here’s a topic about which I know something.

First of all, thank goodness you got timely medical treatment. That is serious business. Riding can at times take a back seat to, you know, staying alive.

Second, consider this: your overall conditioning and level of fitness are probably helping you recover much more easily and quickly than you would have had you not been in good shape. As hard as that may be to believe at the moment.

Third, I was off the bike for eight and a half months in 2009 while the medical professionals performed various forms of torture on me. I also managed to gain 20 pounds. I started back at absolute zero in terms of strength and conditioning. The good news is, you will return to form, but it takes patience as much as work. Some years weren’t meant to be high mileage years. But those will come in time.

Best wishes for continuing recovery.

Liz

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@DaveK 19300 wrote:

BikeDC is this weekend, so every single person on every Bike Arlington team had better get at least 25 miles this weekend.

My riding buddy is my 11-year old son, so we will be lucky to make it through the 11-mile Family Ride. The promise of rest stops with snacks should be a major enticement, though.

Liz

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Very sorry to hear this — as I replied the last time you posted similar news, this is disastrous and disruptive for athletes who have been training and preparing for a particular event.

I’m not sure the National Park Service action/inaction stems from any anti-bike vibe from local politicians. However, I think having a very high level advocate for triathlons and cycling in Adrian Fenty when he was mayor may have made them more favorably disposed to grant the required permits during his administration. It’s probably more the lack of high level attention than any perceived antipathy on the part of the current DC administration.

The athletic community needs to get organized and make their displeasure known through their local elected officials.

Liz

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My company’s team is Team Finra. We have 660 points on the National Leaderboard and 627 points on the Local Leaderboard (due to one member with points being outside the area, as the competition defines it). At the moment, we are in sixth place locally.

I realize too late that this is a competition not just for miles of cycling, but for most obsessively-compulsively logging miles of cycling. I know I saw at least one of my teammates coming in from commuting in to work this week, but she still has zero showing. To the best organized go the spoils!

Liz

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I bought this thing for $9.99 at Bed, Bath and Beyond:

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I use it to hang towels and spare clothes on the back of my door. If my cycling clothes are wet, I rearrange things and make space for them to dry out there, too. It would also work on a sidewall of a cube.

We also have a coat closet near our offices which no one uses. If I have a bumper crop of wet stuff (like in winter with layers of outwear), I hang it on hangers in there and leave the door slightly ajar. If you can find an unused closet anywhere in your office, that might be a good place to relegate potentially stinky items.

Liz

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