[komorebi]

At the risk of jinxing the dumpling ride — it looks like it actually might not rain on Saturday!!! But it will be cold, especially at the beginning and the restarts, so layer appropriately.

If you’re driving to the Whole Foods, there’s metered street parking and also free parking in many of the Crystal City garages. The ride officially ends at District Dumplings on South Glebe, but that’s only a few miles from the Whole Foods and I’m happy to bike back with anyone who doesn’t know the way.

Hope to see you on Saturday!

[komorebi]

Very nice! I particularly like the dynamism of the design and the way you handled the feathers on the wings’ trailing edge.

[komorebi]

Mega kudos to everyone who came out today in the cold and the wind! I’m guessing that 30-40 people showed up, including forum members caseykane50, CBGanimal, Christob50, dbb, Emm, Judd, KWL, scoot, secstate, Steve O, and a bunch of others I missed because everyone was incognito under all those layers.

Today I learned:

• On a blustery day, stepping on the bottom of your trash bag is a good way to hold the bag in place. Otherwise, your bag might get blown upside down, and all trash you’ve just painstakingly picked up might get dumped back on the ground. Ask me how I know that.
• I really, really hate styrofoam.
• This would have been a perfect day to bust out the cargo bike trailer that’s been sitting in my basement for the past few weeks.
• Snow boots, two layers of socks, and toe warmers kept my feet surprisingly comfortable. I need to find a better solution for my hands, though.
• I really, really hate styrofoam.
• When you spot two bald eagles, while volunteering to clean up a national park, on a national day of service — well, it doesn’t get much better than that.
• Did I mention that I really, really hate styrofoam?

KWL and Emm in action:

Bald eagles:

Just some of the trash we hauled out:

More photos on Flickr.

[komorebi]

@drevil 186208 wrote:

Who knew a machete would be so handy for trail cleanup?

That’s so awesome! How long did it take to cut through the tree?

[komorebi]

Alas, I have one to report from this past Friday, on the W&OD.

My bootlace came undone and wrapped itself around my pedal, which I didn’t notice until my pedal stopped rotating. I tried pedaling backwards to unwind the bootlace, but I didn’t have enough momentum and went ker-PLOP! straight into a snowbank alongside the trail. No damage to bike or body, thankfully. But my boot was pretty firmly attached to my bike at that point. The only way I could get enough leverage to lift the bike off myself and get back on my feet was to pull my foot out of my boot. Since I was already in a snowbank, that meant putting my socked foot straight into the snow — and doing the rest of my ride with one wet sock. Thank goodness for wool socks.

[komorebi]

Update: the ride was originally scheduled for Saturday 2/2, but has been moved to Sunday 2/3 for weather reasons. Ignore the title of this post.

Dumpling ride on Sunday, February 3. The plan:

• Meet for coffee at 8:30 a.m., Whole Foods Pentagon City, 520 12th Street S. If you’re feeling especially brave, try the dumplings there.
• Roll out from Whole Foods at 9:00 a.m. and ride to Falls Church.
• Be at Mark’s Duck House, 6184 Arlington Blvd., when it opens at 10:00 a.m. Order dumplings and other dishes from traditional dim sum carts.
• Ride some of the new bike lanes in Annandale to get to A&J, 4316 Markham St. Enjoy dumplings and other Chinese small plates.
• Ride more of the new bike lanes in Annandale to get back to the W&OD.
• Finish the ride at District Dumplings in South Arlington, 2923 S. Glebe Rd.

Have questions? Read on.

Why dumplings? As bikedavid pointed out, there’s nothing like a steaming hot plate of dumplings on a cold winter day.

What’s the route? https://ridewithgps.com/routes/29186688. About thirty miles, a mix of trails and roads. Social pace (12-15 mph), no drop. All FS participants and friends are welcome.

What should I bring? Bring a lock and cash (A&J is cash only).

Can I join the ride along the way? Sure. Send me a PM with your email address so that I can temporarily add you to my Garmin LiveTrack. You’ll get an email when we start riding, with a link to see where we are in real time.

What if I’m vegetarian? A&J and District Dumplings have both meat and vegetarian dumplings, as well as other vegetarian dishes. I can’t find the dim sum menu for Mark’s Duck House online, but there should be vegetarian options.

What if the weather is bad? My Asian food rides have a history of being epically soggy. I’m hoping that the third time is the charm, but watch this thread for updates.

Why February 3? This is the last Sunday before the Chinese New Year, which starts on February 5 this year. Dumplings are traditionally eaten to bring good luck in the new year.

[komorebi]

@CBGanimal 186001 wrote:

And she carried a shovel home today for 10 miles or so!

Today I learned that car snow shovels will fit inside a Bike Arlington string backpack, so long as you don’t mind the shovel handle periodically clunking into the back of your helmet.

[komorebi]

@Judd 185999 wrote:

Josephine hasn’t claimed her points for attending a Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail meeting…

I’m too ashamed to claim those points. I sinned by driving instead of biking there.

[komorebi]

@Christob50 185914 wrote:

Can’t believe I forgot to think of this when meeting you Monday, Josephine!
Just fired off PayPal to you, for 4. Thanks! -Chris

Payment received — thanks! I’ll drop them in the mail tomorrow morning.

[komorebi]

Because I’ve gotten a couple of inquiries — yes, the stylish FS2019 ankle bands are still available for $2 each!

If you’d like to buy them in person, come find me (1) on Wednesday morning, infiltrating Team 10’s breakfast at Bob & Edith’s on North Kings Highway; (2) this Sunday afternoon, at the screening of Searching for Peace on 2 Wheels at the Vienna Community Center; (3) next Monday morning, at the Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail cleanup at Belle Haven Park; or (4) at the dumpling ride I’m tentatively planning for Saturday, February 2 (details forthcoming).

If you’d prefer to have your ankle band shipped to you, send me the money via PayPal at https://www.paypal.me/komorebicycling. Add $3.50 to cover shipping (that’s the minimum USPS package rate, sorry). In the optional “Write a note” field, enter your mailing address so that I know where to send the ankle band.

[komorebi]

@ShawnoftheDread 185893 wrote:

A couple of forum members were out again this morning clearing snow and ice on the DC side of the 14th street bridge. Great work; thank you.

That was KWL and me. It was great seeing you; thanks for saying hi.

Before:

After:

In addition to finding sore muscles in places where I didn’t know you could have sore muscles, I also found new uses for a bungee cord and some Velcro:

[komorebi]

MVT snow crew, here’s some further evidence that your efforts are noted, appreciated, and being put to good use: there were already at least five sets of tire tracks when I crossed the wooden bridge by the Pentagon at 7:15 this morning, and too many tracks to count when I crossed again two hours later. Thanks again for all of your hard work!

[komorebi]

It was great to meet you, Christob50 and Coppertop222! I posted some photos from today in the KOT/QOT thread.

If anyone else wants in on the snow shoveling fun, I’m planning to head out after tomorrow’s Cosi Crystal City Coffee Club to tackle the historically problematic areas by the 14th Street Bridge and the underpasses south of there.

[komorebi]

I can’t say thank you enough to the extraordinary crew who came out to shovel the MVT today: caseykane50, CBGanimal, Christob50, Coppertop222, dachs6, KWL, LeprosyStudyGroup, Judd, Judd’s Twitter friend, and Steve O.

Before:

After:

Some of the group in action (and possibly Christob50’s only break during the whole afternoon):

A good day’s work:

When I first arrived, I saw that the ramp leading down to the wooden bridge hadn’t been cleared, but the bridge itself had been cleared and salted, as had the trail through the LBJ Grove. The sun had just come out, the sky was blue, and the day was warming up. “This isn’t going to be too bad,” I thought.

Famous last words. As soon as I got to the southern end of the Columbia Island Marina parking lot, I saw that the trail leading to the Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial hadn’t been cleared at all. My heart sank. Given the amount of snow, I figured we’d be lucky to finish clearing the trail circling around the memorial; the Humpback Bridge and the connection to the 14th Street Bridge would have to wait for another day.

I’ve never been so glad to be wrong. We cleared the trail all the way to the base of the 14th Street Bridge, thanks to this extraordinary crew’s hard work and strong backs. You all motivated me to keep going when I was exhausted, stepped in every time I needed a break, and kept up the good cheer throughout. You all amaze and inspire me. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

P.S. I apologize for not bringing more water. I’ll bring more next time, I promise!

[komorebi]

@Christob50 185727 wrote:

Snow day wishes granted! I will endeavor to be at LBJ at 1pm… will you be starting out in the marina parking lot, or some central departure point, or should I just walk under the parkway bridge and look for shovellers?

Awesome, thanks! Look for yellow shovels and bright purple signs saying Friends of the Mount Vernon Trail. My plan is to start at the wooden bridge connecting the Pentagon and the LBJ Grove, then move east and south toward the MVT. Our exact location will depend on what (if anything) NPS is able to clear before 1:00 p.m. NPS announced last week that they’d be clearing sidewalks in the D.C. area despite the government shutdown, but I don’t know whether that includes the trails on the LBJ Grove –> Navy-Merchant Marine Memorial –> Humpback Bridge route. If it doesn’t, then we’ll try to clear that section first. If it does, then we’ll move south and tackle the area near and under the 14th Street Bridge.

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