[LhasaCM]

@jrenaut 150887 wrote:

My intention is to see if we can make more teams competitive longer. I don’t want to penalize anyone for riding, but how many teams had even a distant shot at winning after the end of January?

Also, if you look at the leaderboards, there’s almost no change if you rank by points or miles. So if the ten point bonus barely changes the standings, all it does is motivate people to ride. What if we could do the scoring to motivate AND affect the standings? That is what I’m looking for.

Sent from my XT1060 using Tapatalk

Then for this alternative approach, is it a multiplier that should be applied to mileage, or just applied to the 10 point “participation” amount? For example, if you added a multiplier to the 10 point bonus based on some function of that day’s participation percentage (just based on the ratio is probably too simplistic), you’d be rewarding people who ride on days when other people don’t ride by an equal amount, regardless of how far someone goes. That would increase the incentive to participate on any given day.

Or, so that there is some reward for additional mileage, as previously mentioned you could make any multiplier/bonus logarithmic so there are diminishing returns (e.g., the more miles, the more points…but the marginal gain for the 5th mile is more than the 100th).

The devil, of course, is in the details. The challenge with any scoring system is trying to identify what you want the outcome to have been, then jury rig something that would’ve resulted in that outcome in the past, and crossing your fingers that it works OK the next time around.

(Disclaimer – as a newbie here and a “on a good day I’ll have a 5 mile round trip commute” type of rider…I’ve got no strong feelings about what is “right.” Just intrigued by the mental gymnastics of scorekeeping )

[LhasaCM]

@ginacico 150101 wrote:

I so quickly cross that line from cold to clammy, that I think ALL cycling jackets should have pit zips. But so many of them don’t. My mission is to get good at sewing the zippers in myself.

Last year I gave Peter one of the Zap Versa (convertible) jackets as a gift. He gives it a similar review, somewhat non-breathable but worth it in every other respect. They’ve got the reflective part nailed.

I’ll agree on the rather “non-breathable” comment. As a result, I can’t remember the last time I wore the sleeves; I wear the vest over my less reflective (but more breathable) Novara jacket (or t-shirt or whatever is appropriate for the weather).

[LhasaCM]

@gibby 150049 wrote:

And while they’re at it, a pedestrian education course would be very helpful, since the general practice closer to union station is ‘come bolting out of the metro tunnel, don’t look left or right, throw quick glance over shoulder when you’re halfway into bike lane, express shock that there is a bike crawling up your back’

Yeah, that area is really problematic. You have the intersection at the top of the hill that nobody seems to understand (it’s a simple pattern – 1st street, then bike lanes, then parking garage, then pedestrians). And down the hill between Metro and the PSB, it seems folks still haven’t processed the “this crosswalk moved a long time ago when this bike lane showed up – maybe I shouldn’t cross here without looking. You also get folks who do the same thing at the other crosswalks – make a sudden turn to cross the street without looking, expecting everyone to be able to instantly yield.

[LhasaCM]

@cvcalhoun 149949 wrote:

FWIW, the cameras help. I was able to report getting hit by a car that decided to move into my lane without noticing I was in it, and run into me. There is no way I would have had all the details (license number, make and model of car) without the video. Plus, with proof of exactly what happened, the police were willing to cite the driver.

The biggest hurdle for me right now is justifying adding another step/gadget/process to getting ready for my fairly short commute with a pickup in the middle (on the way home). Rounding up, it’s 3 miles each way. It’d be less of a hurdle if I had more close calls headed northbound in the evening (when I’m riding along with a non-empty trailer cycle).

[LhasaCM]

I’m seriously starting to wonder about the state of driver education among the drivers on 1st NE near Union Station. 5 times in the past week before today (so averaging once a week), I’ve almost been hit by a driver who was travelling southbound turning left onto either L or K streets NE, while I was travelling southbound in the “protected” bike lane. Each time before today – we were sitting at the same red light, and the driver sat at the traffic light while they had a green left turn arrow. Then, they all tried to turn shortly after the turn arrow went red, and the “go straight” arrow was green. Only 2 of the 5 were looking at their phones while the light cycled through, so it couldn’t just be that. DC, MD, VA, and CT plates were represented.

This morning was probably the closest call, as I wasn’t stopped at the light but it turned green when I was about 200 feet away, and the “it just started raining” slickness of the road made slamming on the brakes and swerving even more fun than it usually is with the empty trailer cycle on the back. Makes me think I need to get a camera one of these days…

On the plus side – it would’ve been worse were I not expecting that to happen as I approached the intersection. So – thanks to the 5 inattentive drivers in the past week for making sure I assume that everyone is just as dangerous on the road as you are!

[LhasaCM]

@cvcalhoun 149460 wrote:

Bikes that weigh less than 65 lbs. are also abusive.

Let’s keep going. We may have Freezing Saddles down to under 10 participants at this rate.

To ensure my ride is not abusive: can I count the trailer cycle attachment in the 65 lbs? What about the accompanying 5 year old?

[LhasaCM]

@bobco85 147169 wrote:

I hope we will get to see the new M Street Underpass (if it’s finished): http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/33687/nomas-first-underpass-park-is-almost-here/

Also, we’ll have to stop at some point while riding on the Metropolitan Branch Trail to look behind us. You can see the Capitol dome from much of the trail, and it looks even cooler at night.

From what I’ve seen (I go under that underpass every day), it doesn’t look like any of the lighting has gone up yet. They’ve started some of the prep work and have blocked things off (displacing the tents that had been lined up under there), but that’s about it.

One other thing for folks to consider around that area (in addition to making sure you get a good view of the Capitol dome): with the REI construction “wrapping up but not quite done” – 2nd street NE is a still little sketchy near M Street and partially blocked. It may be better to use the protected bike lane on 1st NE (getting there via Louisiana/Columbus Circle) to make the transition between the Capitol grounds and the not-on-road part of the MBT.

[LhasaCM]

For DC proper – I’ll second looking near Brookland and looking at apartments.com or rent.com – heck, even the Washington Post Apartment Showcase is good to look through (http://www.washingtonpost.com/rentals/). In favor of Brookland: still somewhat up and coming, so the rental market isn’t entirely crazy yet (last I looked). Pretty easy commute down the Metropolitan Branch Trail for getting to the Hill (well within the original 5 mile constraint). Growing retail presence near the Metro (on both Monroe and on 12th street) so you have some in-neighborhood dining/shopping options.

[LhasaCM]

@bentbike33 145472 wrote:

Long-term permanent solution: Dynamo hub powered lights. The Germans have some fantastic LED headlights designed to work with dynamo hubs. See http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/lightingsystems.htm for a good introduction.

Shorter-term permanent partial solution – you could look at getting something like the Reelight Neo or something analogous, depending on your rims. They had a successful Kickstarter last year (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1651132789/neo-worlds-most-powerful-friction-free-bikelight) and last month started shipping out (got mine a couple of weeks back). It doesn’t look like they have that up on their website for order at the moment, but hopefully that’s just a temporary glitch. Works via some sort of magic (not really – takes advantage of the Eddy Currents generated by a rotating aluminum rim). Nowhere near as bright as something that is powered by a dynamo hub (just north of 100 lumen for the front light), but far simpler to add on.

[LhasaCM]

Shout out to the motorist last night turning right from the northbound 1st to K St NE by the MBT. Unlike most there, he had his neck craned and was looking way back to ensure the bicycle traffic coming northbound was clear before starting his turn. Unlike other examples we’ve seen in that other thread, he continued to wait despite the furious honking of horns from the other motorists behind him.

[LhasaCM]

@GovernorSilver 143054 wrote:

You guys just reminded me of one reason I gave up on riding southbound on the First St NE protected bike lane, on my evening commutes.

At the intersection of First and K, there are too many northbound drivers that are all too willing to turn right from First to K, cutting in front of southbound cyclists trying to cross K on that unprotected segment of the bike lane, even though in theory the cyclists have the green light and the right-turning drivers have the red light. Some cars did their right turn less than 3 feet in front me as I was crossing.

Since DC is all about making money off of traffic cam tickets anyway, maybe they need to install a camera there. The money from the tickets could help finance more protected bike lanes.

It’s kind of ironic that I feel safer riding southbound on N. Capitol St. – which has no bike lanes at all – on my evening commute.

That’s not the only headache along that route.
1. It’s not just southbound; some cars try to squeeze the gap on northbound cyclists as well.
2. At the same intersection, there’s a high potential of being hit (or having the scurry out the way) when waiting at a red light going southbound at 1st and K. Cars (and even worse, trucks and buses) turning northbound from K onto 1st street cut the corner too sharply, driving into the bike lane (which already is set back from the intersection).
3. Cars don’t like waiting to turn right from L St. onto 1st. I’ve seen a number of near misses (and one hit) where drivers turned right on red. Since drivers can’t go straight there, it seems there’s even more impatience than normal.
4. Some pedestrians crossing between G and K St. NE don’t like to look before stepping into the bike lane; they’re focused on finding a gap in the cars.

Yet, I do it every day…what’s the definition of insanity again?

[LhasaCM]

@dasgeh 142488 wrote:

I’d say I see about one a day on the trails.

I’m usually shirt and tie in the morning on the MBT (downhill) but I change into shorts and a t-shirt before going home (uphill, and with an extra 40 lbs that doesn’t like to pedal…)

[LhasaCM]

Also – how old is the child and how much life are you looking to get out of the seat, and do you have a rear rack? For a smaller child, a Yepp mini could be OK on your bike without too much finagling. For a larger child, it’ll be a bit trickier since, from what I saw looking for the bike on Google, it’s not setup for a rear rack by default.

[LhasaCM]

Managed to make our ride home right in the middle of the 6PM deluge. I wanted to wait it out under a bridge, but my 4 year old (on the trailer-cycle) didn’t want to be outside with the lightning and thunder, and thought it was better to get wet than wait. Lots of water/near flooding on the MBT, especially under the Franklin St. bridge. Her shoes may be dry by the weekend….

[LhasaCM]

@jrenaut 141912 wrote:

You’re right, it’s not really accurate for me to say we have all but none of them. And the MBT in particular is becoming an important commuter route. I wonder if the owners of the new Riide e-bike shop in Shaw might be interested in working with WABA and other interested parties to fix this.

I don’t think that’s something that is ever enforced so it would be good to get it off the books; I generally see a few “motorized bicycles” every day on my MBT commute, passing me going uphill.

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