[eminva]

All right, I’ve got to ask the opposite question . . . how do you know when your tires are worn out if you AREN’T getting flats? My tires have 3900 miles, show no bald patches like Pete’s photo, although they are sort of “flattening” in the middle like in Pete’s photo.

Thanks.

Liz

[eminva]

@PotomacCyclist 7084 wrote:

Many of those weaving drivers are probably talking or texting on their cellphones. Or websurfing on a smartphone.

Yes. If someone could devise an app that would make us show up on their screen . . . now THAT would improve our visibility!

Liz

[eminva]

I agree that you can slip in any type of tires, but in this particular stretch, there is that seam or gap between the squares of pavement running the length of the hill, and if you slip on metal or paint and get launched right into that trough, a narrow tire will get caught in it while a wider tire, I assume, would not. Since this has happened to me twice and once to the OP, it is not a far fetched scenario.

In addition to going slowly through this stretch, if I have to pass a pedestrian or swerve around an obstacle, I try to angle my bike in such a way that I am crossing any slippery surfaces (paint, manhole covers, etc.) at an oblique angle.

Be safe everyone!

Liz

[eminva]

So sorry to hear this! I hope your injuries heal fast and I am amazed that you went on riding with a broken arm. Sorry you can’t keep your streak alive.

Yes, yes, this has happened to me twice a bit further down that stretch in wet conditions (same tires as you) and both times I was able to recover and remain upright. It also happened to a neighbor of mine, so I don’t think you are alone by any means. I go very slowly through that section for several reasons: Those seams running the same direction as traffic, the large pedestrian volume coming from the apartment buildings and the numerous cross streets with inattentive drivers coming and going. This hasn’t prevented me from having it happen twice, although arguably I was able to recover because of the slower speed? I don’t know, but it is definitely not my favorite part of the commute.

Get well soon!

Liz

[eminva]

I think Mr. Kelley is setting a good example for his fellow commuters by taking a nice, leisurely pace. I’m going to claim to be doing the same, and hence, median speed from Vienna to Farragut Square area (via W&OD, Custis, Key Bridge and streets of NW DC) of 13.84 mph on the way in, and median speed of 12.89 mph on the way home (same route).*

*Based on Cyclemeter data since 7/7/11.

Liz

[eminva]

Okay, so maybe there aren’t 4500 bicycles per hour, but bicycles + pedestrians have to be getting up into four figures per hour, if not well into it, no? Given our greater vulnerability as well as sizable numbers, wouldn’t transportation planning be wise to take us into consideration?

If nothing else, put a red light camera on the right turning vehicles during the early walk signal — and possibly the inbound motorists that block the box on N. Lynn Street. Does Arlington have camera enforcement?

Liz

[eminva]

I stopped by the property management office, just to alert them to this mystery. I was told that this bike had been locked for an extended period to the wrought iron grating around one of the tree boxes outside the building and had to be removed. I guess the building engineer didn’t have the tools to sever the lock (which I’m told is still attached to the grating, though I didn’t see it when I went out to run an errand), so he cut through the bike to get it away. He placed it in the bike cage in case the owner returns for the bike.

I think they meant well, but there did not seem to be an understanding that this rendered the bike unusable. Oh well.

Liz

[eminva]

@CCrew 6716 wrote:

or he legit bought it off the street.

Legit? Off the street?

The street . . . of course, that’s where I buy all my computers, bikes, cell phones, watches, guns and sterling silver flatware . . . you get such amazing bargains, I can’t imagine why anyone shops anywhere else.

Seriously, good news so far. Hope they continue the investigation.

Liz

[eminva]

May I ask, what intersection? At the intersection of Shreve Road I often wait for cars to stop (or at least a driver giving me a signal to go), given the angle/poor sight lines coming over the hill, the heavy traffic on that road at rush hour and the speed at which the cars are moving.

(That said, if that was the intersection you are referring to, it wasn’t me holding you up this morning because I had one of those rare days where the intersection was completely clear when I went through this a.m.).

Otherwise, I can’t say this has happened to me often, but I guess I would wait a little while, then pull up next to them, then go when it was clear, according to my definition of “clear.”

Liz

[eminva]

@Dirt 6547 wrote:

It is a really fun ride. It is pretty long though. I missed it last year, but if they do the same route, it is about 62 miles. I really want to do it Karaoke style this year. You have to find and sing a song for each state. The thing I loved most about this ride was that so many people came out on their front porches and in their front yards and cheered us on.

Hopefully I’ll get to do it again this year. Have to check on the date.

Thanks very much, Pete.

Singing . . . hmmm. You might not want to hear that. I was thinking of making a photo montage of the street signs for all the states.

I found a map online for last year’s route, and it is long, with a decent amount of climbing, but I am familiar with most of the neighborhoods and at least I know where the hills are and how bad they are. The trick would be to avoid stopping and chatting with all my friends and relatives along the way. I am not as fast as you and 62 miles would take awhile if I am stopping to chat.

Liz

[eminva]

@Tim Kelley 6544 wrote:

That’s a great calculator.

As a weekend/recreational rider I’m a simple 0, but can go as high as a 15 as a commuter (with the norm being a 12) and that doesn’t even take the flip flops into account!

Tim, if you’ve got the child seat now, it is only going to get worse. I think they’ve been discontinued, but I used to have a Burley Piccolo when my son was young. It’s a brand of trailer cycle. We rode that to his school, I disconnected it and locked it up at his school, dropped him off and continued my commute downtown. I would pick it up on the way home (my husband having already picked up the kid on foot or in car).

Which is how my son earned his 2007 Bike to Work Day t-shirt.

Liz

[eminva]

@Tim Kelley 6541 wrote:

We should really have a way to distinguish ourselves as forum users when we are out and about. Maybe a secret hand signal or something. Anyone got any ideas?

Other than our Bike Arlington socks?

Maybe that flourescent bike pin like Congressman Blumenauer was sporting in that now famous interview, affixed somewhere visible to all?

Liz

[eminva]

@KLizotte 6525 wrote:

I had to look up the definition of MAMIL and came across this very funny article about them:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-10965608

I’m aiming to become a MAWIL!

Uh oh, upon further review, I miss the upper end of the age cutoff. Please amend my earlier response to substitute “old lady” for “middle aged lady” everywhere it appears.

I don’t know if this make me more smug or more ridiculous for my limited role in the morning and afternoon races.

Liz

[eminva]

Awesome, Tim!

I usually let them go by without a second thought. I prefer to contribute to their self-esteem so they can brag at the office about how many people they “dropped” on their way in this morning. Never mind that one was a middle aged lady.:o

I do have one rule though — I get passed a lot at traffic lights and big downhills. Sometimes I catch up and pass those guys a little further down the road because they are going slower than me. If the same rider passes me again at an intersection or on a big downhill, and I have the misfortune to catch up with them again, then goodbye, I do my MALIL version of what Tim did, and so far, I’ve never seen one of those guys a third time.

So yeah, I guess I do engage in some Cat 6 racing from time to time. Sorry.

Liz

[eminva]

I am also interested in hearing feedback — I went with the poor man’s (or cheap man’s) option. I have one of those old fashioned style bike computers on my handlebars (like the loser in the ad). I recently purchased the “Cyclemeter” app at the princely sum of $5 for my iPhone. I keep the phone in my pocket rather than on the bike. I’ve never broken a phone on my person in all my years of cycling (or cell phone use), although I don’t have access to the data during the ride
(but I do have the old computer).

Cyclemeter gives you all the benefits of GPS, but it does not give you cadence or heart rate (as far as I know). This is okay for me because I don’t really view myself as training for anything. But others might find that a significant limitation. Also, I assume when you download your Garmin data their website slices and dices the data in all different ways, whereas you have to do that yourself with the raw data with Cyclemeter.

Still, it gives me a nice little report after each ride with splits, which it also emails to my email address. Voila:

Finished Cycle: Jul 27, 2011 9:09:52 AM
Route: Commute
Import URL: http://share.abvio.com/d93a/e052/4e11/525f/Cyclemeter-Cycle-20110727-0802.kml
Ride Time: 59:54
Stopped Time: 7:17
Distance: 13.82 miles
Average: 13.84 miles/h
Fastest Speed: 32.49 miles/h
Behind Median Ride: 0:11
Ascent: 292 feet
Descent: 600 feet
Calories: 511

(It also gives you a map, which I deleted)

Yes, it uses lots of battery power, but it would have to be an awfully long ride to deplete it fully. After this hour long ride, I still have 88% battery left.

So, it’s something to consider if you are easily satisfied and want a low cost option. But I am still intrigued to hear how the iBike works out . . .

Liz

[Author]

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