[GuyContinental]

@vvill 31311 wrote:

I just took the folding bike in. If it’s really bad, I can now just jump on metro.

Watch out for my greasy seatpost and oily drivetrain, metro riders! Muahaha.

Might want to print out that press release and have a METRO contact number on speed dial…

[GuyContinental]

@dbb 31310 wrote:

On my ride in this morning along FMR and the MVT between 0600 and 0630, nine cyclists passed me heading south. Three of the nine had no front lights and one of the nine had something that emitted virtually no light. Four out of nine is way too many unlit cyclists!

By 0630 it had gotten light enough I stopped counting, but I kept my lights on.

If you don’t have lights on your bike, please get some if you will be riding after dark. Previous threads have offered a number of suggested brands/models.

Be safe

Heading WB Custis/W&OD yesterday at 5:30 am was passed by 46 EB riders(!), 43 had lights (which is pretty dang good) but only FOUR dimmed/covered them for me. That sucks. I had a monster headache by Vienna. Is it that EB riders aren’t used to passing folks going the other way since there are so few of us?

[GuyContinental]

@acc 31256 wrote:

Officially, the W&OD is closed after dark. One of my friends out in that direction gave up bike commuting because the police stopped him for being on the trail just after 9:00 pm in June. It was hardly dark. When Herndon lights the W&OD, makes it easier to justify being out on the trail after dark.

Really? In June? I’d actually relish that encounter, the inevitable ticket, and the righteous, internet powered indignation that would follow… “I’m sorry officer, I’m supposed to ride down the Reston Parkway to Rt 7, in the dark, to get home???”

Ccrew posted a while back about being stopped 1-2 a year in the wee hours but they always let him go. I’ve never worried too much about it and never even seen a cop on the trail in the pre-dawn hours.

[GuyContinental]

@mstone 31241 wrote:

To whoever spilled what smelled like a gallon of cheap gin at the fairfax county parkway overpass: I hope you managed to trade up.

I meant to give a HUGE shout out to the runner (possibly cyclist) with the broom and dustpan cleaning up the glass on Friday (from this?… it might have been the Reston Pkwy underpass, but no matter). The guy saw the issue, ran home, grabbed a broom and came back. Awesome! It was a heinous, awful sidewall destroying mess and I was making no progress with my cleats.

To the guy that couldn’t hear me scream “GLASS!!!” because of the double earbuds who then rode right through the middle? Well…

[GuyContinental]

@JorgeGortex 31229 wrote:

I guess my question is: why? Is the area dangerous for riders? Bad sight lines, or questionable individuals lurking? Other issues

I’m out there in the dark all the time but it’s never struck me as one of the true light voids (e.g. Hunter Mill). My guess is that the local walkers/runners are feeling vulnerable on the trail, particularly with some sexual assaults elsewhere in recent years. Otherwise, the trail is straight as it gets and is in ok condition. I guess that I’m vaguely in favor of it due to the high number of Loudoun ninjas and the lack of any natural feel (I’d be opposed to lighting the Hunter Mill-Vienna hill)

[GuyContinental]

I note that they weren’t specific on the size of folding bike… Slingshot anyone?

[GuyContinental]

@jabberwocky 31184 wrote:

Why are they installing speed bumps on a MUP? :confused:

They are definitely rumble strips, not bumps but they are the most pronounced that I’ve seen on the trails. Not really dangerous. Traffic around there (Cedar?) is really bad and going faster than it looks

[GuyContinental]

Found those in the dark this morning… now if they’d only add a speed hump for the traffic.

[GuyContinental]

@rcannon100 31052 wrote:

Is also going to cause you to retain heat – head is a major source of heat loss (aka air conditioning). May be good in winter; bad in summer.

Ah, but I only have the blinding light problem in winter so should be OK there. Plus, I paid a ton for a super-high flow helmet, why would I block any of that air except to stay warm? Regardless, probably should have thought about it a bit more and bought CoolMax vs cotton (thermodynamic nudity) but EMS had an inoffensive-looking PI cap super cheap (LINK) and I needed to spend a few extra bucks to get free shipping. If I fall in love with the concept, I’ll look for another one.

[GuyContinental]

@Jason B 31059 wrote:

i don’t have it front of me, but it is a sugino (sp?).
Same thing happened on my buddy’s bike, Calfee with Dura Ace, he was riding around with two bolts missing for most likely a while.

I’ve done both- on the crank arm I recently destroyed a very expensive and apparently rare Carbon Hollowgram SI spindle and extractor bolt set due to incorrect torque (bike was down for 6 weeks- I had to order parts from Andora Spain!). On the rings themselves I bent a granny ring fully in half after losing a single bolt- two more sheared off.

Lessons-
1. As said before- check frequently and if something feels amiss, STOP and check- you’ll cause way more damage from running loose drive train parts!
2. Properly lube fasteners (or use lock-tite where appropriate)
3. Have and use a torque wrench (super important for carbon equipment)

There are some 4-bolt cranks out there

[GuyContinental]

@consularrider 31019 wrote:

Kel,

Take Dirt’s advice and wear a cycling cap under your helmet. It’s fairly easy to dip your head slightly (kinda like flipping down the visor in your car, if you have one of those cages) and block the sun and still be able to see. While Dirt also recommends them for blocking overly bright bicycle lights, I’ve had much less success because I have to dip my head too much because the light is frequently coming at me from below eye level, and have trouble seeing what’s in front of me.

With some serious trepidation about looking too ELITE, I just bought a cap based on Dirt’s light-blocking suggestion- my only (other) concern is the impact on head position, I was having pretty serious neck issues because I was craning my neck to see beyond a helmet visor, I’m not sure that a cap won’t cause the same problem.

[GuyContinental]

Anyone interested in a west-side suburban version of the club? Maybe out towards Reston or Herndon? (or Vienna but I’d be there way early)

[GuyContinental]

E @eminva 30862 wrote:

It was a beautiful night to count cyclists, and nice to meet Guy Continental! (who I neglected to photograph for the One Eighth Sighting thread). For those of you who are curious, I counted 356 cyclists riding through the W&OD/Gallows intersection during my two hour shift.

Liz

And here I got dirty and everything for my photo! There was even blood running down my shoulder from hitting a tree in the park and mud on my nose… Sigh, next time I’m sure I’ll be all clean and stuff…

Thanks for volunteering, you had a primo day for it! Loads and loads of trail users of all kinds out there.

[GuyContinental]

@eminva 30834 wrote:

Hello —

In case you are out and about today or tomorrow, I will be doing trail counts for FABB at W&OD and Gallows from 5 to 7 pm today. I will be doing trail counts at the Custis Trail and the Ballston Connector tomorrow from 7 to 9 am. Feel free to stop and/or say hi briefly if you are passing through either of those spots. Maybe we can take a quick photo for the One Eight Sighting thread.

Liz

Cross your fingers that VDOT found whatever died at that intersection- it was EVIL smelling on Monday (but seemed OK this morning). I’ll definitely stop and say hi if I’m not already through! (Blue/White kit, seriously dirty black ‘cross bike)

[GuyContinental]

Semi-topical… Pandora decided that I needed to listen to “Ice Ice Baby” (in one ear…) while I was on Fairfax Blvd EB on Monday. As usual, someone tried to squish me at the Kirkwood left and I was briefly terrified that the last thing that I’d hear on this mortal coil would be Vanilla Ice… terrifying thought (as well as an amazing demonstration of the brain’s ability to multi-task when under pressure)

dumdumdum dada dumdum

[Author]

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