[Greenbelt]

I’ve ridden it every day for almost a year and never had any trouble. Lots of fast riders out tonight, which is nice that folks aren’t getting scared off. Bike cop was out when I went past around 7pm.

[Greenbelt]

Here’s a somewhat more detailed article. http://www.slate.com/id/2299432/

I love the final synopsis by the bike group:

I’ll leave the last word to the victors, the @wolfpackhustle, whose cryptic, communiqué-style email told me: “The ride was beautiful and scenic, our race inspired people to rollerskate, to take trains, to walk to the finish. Meanwhile our politicians and police cowered and bit their nails, telling people to stay home and avoid this sunny California weekend.”

[Greenbelt]

We’ve had good luck with the $30 NBC feed — pretty reliable. Worth it to not have commercials, the British (I presume) commentator seems OK, and the scenery from the helicoptor camera is fantastic.

[Greenbelt]

I consider tires that go flat as disloyal. I shred them with my wife’s expensive meat scissors, and hang their remains out for the all the other tires to see, as a warning of the penalty for treason.

[Greenbelt]

My job is statistics — these didn’t look very reliable to me, and could potentially be misleading. I wonder how many of the cyclists at fault were children? Do we know anything about reporting rates or what the criteria were for a report? (I was in a wreck with another bike earlier this year, but we decided not to call police or file a report. If we had, would that have been categorized as a “cyclist at fault”? Since the statistics are being reported as if all crashes were car-bike, with bikes reportedly at fault more than half of the time, these bike-bike statistics should be thrown out.) Also, if a report was made, but no charges were brought, should the “at fault” determination in that case (presumbably by the cop writing the report) be disregarded for statistics?

[Greenbelt]

Thanks DaveK. I may owe a scooter rider an apology (at least if his motor was small enough). I guess that means electric scooters are OK regardless?

[Greenbelt]

I did a bit of on-road riding today (away from DC). Because I mostly ride on trails and low-traffic routes when I commute in DC, I forget how much worse the air quality seems just being in traffic with all those cars and trucks. I do NOT know the answer to the question either, but I’d bet that air quality varies a lot even within the region on low wind/stagnant air days — much better in the parks away from traffic; much worse near heavy traffic.

[Greenbelt]

Here’s a plain old link if the embed isn’t working: http://www.vimeo.com/26239230

[Greenbelt]

Kids and dogs seem to understand bells very well. “On your left” not so much. Took me a while to learn this.

[Greenbelt]

Max Speed: 2,401.5 mph

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/52498466

And don’t ask me how the heck I did it !

When the temperature gets below freezing, my computer goes blank except for a tiny little word at the bottom that says “sick” in those little LCD reverse characters. Cateye engineers having fun I guess.

[Greenbelt]

Thanks! Lots of great ideas for early Christmas presents here.

My biggest complaint about the cheap “see me” lights I’ve been using is the lack of weatherproofing in their design. It’s like they were engineered for dry conditions only. I finally found a set of good mid-price lights now that are much more waterproof, but probably not bright enough for full night on unlit trails. It’s nice to hear that these more expensive lights will actually last a long time — I’ll use that in my rationale anyways…

[Greenbelt]

@Riley Casey 1687 wrote:

I bike after dark in Silver Spring and NW DC on streets that are poorly lit and which are often raked by headlights intermittantly adding to the confusion. I have found that the only safe way to negotiate those streets is with a combination of handle bar and helmet lights with the handlebar light focused about 25 feet ahead and the helmet light about 12 feet ahead. Otherwise I run into potholes much more than I care to.

Thanks, this is what I was thinking also for the trails. A bar-mounted light plus a helmet light so I could also scan more easily from side to side. Also appreciate the specific light suggestions on this thread very much.

[Greenbelt]

Slightly off the already weird topic, but I’d appreciate tips from night trail commuters on what lights to get, and any other tips (besides watch out for critters). Next winter, I want to start riding home after dark (can’t get off work early enough to get through the trails before full dark). Do you use both a helmet-mounted light and a big handlebar mounted light too?

[Greenbelt]

Best wishes for fast recovery!

…I understand a lot of helmet companies will send you a new one for free if you send them the damaged one.

I’m going to try this today. I could use an extra helmet and I saved my mashed one from when I crashed a couple months ago.

[Greenbelt]

Split saddle design seems like best of both worlds. Nose is there for control when standing or maneuvering, but you sit on the split part further back, not on the nose itself!

[Author]

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