[GuyContinental]

@essigmw 19105 wrote:

For those of us on the Arlington Loopies (Group Health Commuter Challenge) don’t forget to log your miles there as well! go Loopies!, go BA!

Report your miles guys! Only 6/9 have numbers on the board! CCrew indicated that you’ll only be able to report miles until Monday of the following week.

[GuyContinental]

@DaveK 19113 wrote:

That site is horrible.

+1 It’s hateful- the other Group Health Commuter Challenge has a super easy to use site that actually updates instantly (for those of us looking for instant gratification)

[GuyContinental]

@KLizotte 19124 wrote:

It seems to me that manufacturers might be better off if they focused a tad bit more on comfort instead of solely on performance. One shouldn’t need a degree in biomechanics to set up a bike for oneself and ride comfortably. I’m just sayin’….

They do- they’re called hybrids. You sacrifice aerodynamics and application of power for greater comfort. That said, a strong rider on a 700cc hybrid can absolutely fly.

A traditional drop bar road bike puts your body in a position where it’s significantly more difficult to absorb shocks (vs an upright bike) AND spreads your weight balance between seat and bars giving you many more possible points of fit failure- it’s your body that’s at fault, not the bike designer. The more you alter the geometry towards upright, the less the impact of bad fit.

As far as fitters go- Clovis (at Freshbikes) usually gets extremely high marks- he patient, friendly and methodical. I think that my fit took 2 hours for around $200 (2 years ago). You’ll want to make sure that you wear your actual riding gear including gloves, shorts and a jersey (it will help them see your form better)… also, bring your wallet- it sounds like a racket but a typical fitment often involves replacing (one or more of) seats, bars, grips and almost definitely a stem. The smaller your hands and the more freakish your form the more likely that you will need new parts.

[GuyContinental]

I had a fit done by Clovis who works out of Conte’s/Freshbikes- it was pricey, especially since I needed to buy a new saddle and stem but the difference is huge.

On the small tweaks topic- even with the fit I was having upper back pain, a racer buddy noted my helmet visor and explained that I was probably craning my neck to see down the road under it, particularly when in the drops. I removed the visor and the pain pretty much went away.

There is also a big difference in the body’s tolerance for a poor fit on a MTB/hybrid vs a road bike. MTBs can be fudged a bit because of the style of riding, relative more upright body position and general cushion that they provide. The strains are more amplified in a road position on 120psi and an AL frame- millimeters can make or break a fit over a long ride and cause real damage over time.

[GuyContinental]

Last night I ended up at the intersection of Lee & Kirkwood and deliberately posted up in the crosswalk- why? There was a line of cars wanting to take a right on Kirkwood and “owning the lane” or even posting up on the right side would have prevented traffic flow. I felt that occupying part of an empty crosswalk was the better call vs pissing off a line of cars.

Also it’s a location where I will pass the endless queue of cars waiting at the light so that I can get a jump on the climb up Lee (EB) at the green (no, I won’t run the red). On my whole return commute, the 200′ between Kirkwood and Highland leaves me the most exposed to crazy car behavior- right hooks in particular. Anything that I can do to be visible and predictable in that section is worth it.

One side note- cars have to slow down once on Highland so I get to have educational discussions with drivers when I catch up to them at the speed humps… it’s one of the few places where that’s doable.

[GuyContinental]

@JimF22003 18056 wrote:

I hope they get to those sections out before Rt 28 this year. Those gaps in the trail are truly bone-jarring..

Yup- those are the ones that came to mind this morning. I really wish they’d just patch those 10-odd cracks that are super-bad. The other section that I find really weird is the 100′ right around and under Church Rd (last bridge WB before 28)- the surface is highly irregular but not visibly cracked. No matter how many times I ride it, I think that I’ve lost tire pressure…

Custis is a totally different class of messed up- some of those root rises are really scary and in bad places…

[GuyContinental]

@dasgeh 17950 wrote:

Ok, now I’m just throwing things at the wall. I’m an Arlingtonian and love it.

He did post on Bike “Arlington” after all- I think that we are supposed to be biased In this case, we are right though…

[GuyContinental]

Frankly, the areas are pretty similar- from the Alexandria area you have Shirlington nearby with restaurants, library, movies, etc (closer than old town) which connects to the 4 mile run trail. Depending on where you are you can get to the trail through the neighborhoods and connect at Mt Vernon ave (be prepared from some climbing). On the Arlington side it’s a straight shot down lee hwy (29) to the Custis where it crosses I-66. Lots of folks do that ride daily so cars are “almost” civil for a major road. I’m biased because I live right near there but I love the area- lots of access to DC and I66 for points west and generally less traffic (but it’s bad everywhere here) than the Alexandria corridor.

[GuyContinental]

I may get flamed for this but since you have a kid- I’d say 100% Arlington schools vs Alexandria schools.

The Alexandria location is closer to cool areas (old town) and the Mt Vernon trail. The glebe (120) area will have a bit of a urban street trek to the Custis trail but fantastic schools and a quick drive/ride to the urban restaurants of Clarendon (Wilson and highland area).

[GuyContinental]

@thecyclingeconomist 17854 wrote:

I’ll be 7.8 miles via the Custis trail (and a lil one mile jaunt through Arlington to connect).

Welcome! On really nice days or for additional exercise, you can extend the ride by doing the 4-mile run section of the Arlington Loop up to the WO&D and then back down the Custis.

[GuyContinental]

We need two more to max out the team…

[GuyContinental]

This is DC… you never know when someone is going to get aggro or hyper competitive over something trivial.

[GuyContinental]

@consularrider 17675 wrote:

The captain’s miles are there, but the totals for the team aren’t correct.

It added up for me…

CCrew
(captain) 4.0 224.0 100.0%

pfunkallstar
4.0 96.0 100.0%

Mike Essig
4.0 49.6 100.0%

consularrider
3.5 110.0 87.5%

americancyclo
3.0 75.0 75.0%

Kevin Williams (GuyContinental)
1.0 50.0 25.0%

[GuyContinental]

@consularrider 17670 wrote:

Now have the highest milage and number of trips, a close second on percentage.

Sorry about that percentage thing- I’ll usually have decent mileage but percent will always be low since I do 1-way 25 mile legs a few times a week and the occasional 50 mile RT. My goal next week is 100 miles but that’s still only 40%…

…annnd then I look at CCrew’s miles/trip and I am humbled (56 a day!)

[GuyContinental]

@JeffC 17644 wrote:

I freely admit to being a bit spoiled by having spent time in places like Davis, California and Boulder, Colorado where there are bike only paths. Although I have never seen them, I undestand that Minneapolis has some too. I also spent a lot of time in Germany. As an example of German bike infrastructure, in the city of Frankfurt am Main (western one, not eastern) along most major roads lke Bockenheimer Landstrasse (say comparable to Lee Hwy or Route 50 in Virginia) there is a double side walk with one side clearly for peds and another clearly for bikers. It is clearly marked. Peds know not to use the bike one and vice versa. Granted bikers there don’t go as fast and distances are not as long. But when I think about comparing that type of German infrastructure with biking along the rutted, narrow, not repaved in 25 years and crawling with peds MVT, it’s just not even close.

It just goes to show, my bar is low. Also, I have the fortune to commute early in the morning and at around 4:30 in the PM on the WO&D so I don’t have any real ped congestion or pothole problems. I used to do ARL to Silver Spring via CC & GB which is also good until the pavement stops…

I suppose that the WO&D could be reworked with a separated lane design but it would be pretty dang expensive. Also, I suspect that the resulting narrower bike lanes could create some new and interesting congestion issues. Hypothetically, separated lanes could be incorporated on surface streets but I can’t think of many that are wide enough AND traveled enough to make it make sense. What direction is the county taking on this? More surface-street bike lanes or separated lanes?

[Author]

Posts