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The dip in the Custis Trail by the Ed Center in Arlington pretty much constantly smells like MJ, I think someone may have planted some hemp…for some…eh…rope up in the old bamboo forest.

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I had a distinct superiority complex going this morning huffing frozen ice pelts out of my nose along the GW parkway. Also, my coworkers think I’m nuts, whatever.

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Must have gotten some dust in there, damn.

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@ShawnoftheDread 41259 wrote:

I saw that guy too. Maniac.

I saw that guy. I was wondering how he was able to ride with his gigantic balls, but then just figured that they had frozen off at some point. I felt bad for a lady down at TR Island and ended up changing her car tire, MISTAKE – froze my ass off the rest of the way in.

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@JeffC 40966 wrote:

It took me several years to realize this (having little kids greatly accelerates the process) but it is ALWAYS, ALWAYS harder to deal with a difficult, stressful situation the way you have in a polite, turn the other cheek, even-keeled demeanor. The easy way out is to scream, shout call the other person a bad name and stomp like an ape. That is the evolutionary path of least resistance like the apes dancing to the obelisk in the opening scene of “2001 A Space Odyssey.” That is not being tough though, it is the easy way out.

The extremely hard path is to take a deep breath, smile and say a reasoned, tactful response in a polite way, try a faux British accent (there is a setting for that on my wife’s Garmin or think John Cleese answering Kevin Kline about Americans in “Fish Called Wanda”).

Having two little kids that push my buttons at least once a week helps one’s patience. In a way the state of mind of a small child is probably (sadly) not that different from a stressed driver in DC–I know I have been a stressed driver in DC sometimes as well.

Keep up the good work and remember the faux British accent.

Ah small children v. stressed drivers – I think you may be on to something here, similarities abound, except for the bed wetting – well maybe that too.

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You: Lady driving ZipCar sedan on 11th and F.
Me: Dude in hyper Orange vest with shit-ton of lights.

Proposal: Lady, you seemed pretty nice, what with your blackberry in one hand and iPhone in the other. I like people who are connected to digital nature – oh yeah. But lady, please, you need to turn those lights on at 7pm in the winter, it gets pretty dark and lonely out there without your ZipCar lights. Also, lady, I know you hate the “dink, dink” sound of the turn signal, but I think they are just all right. Now let’s go draw a happy little tree together.

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Super nice ride in this morning compared to the past couple of days – ALSO NOT A SOUL – to be seen on the W&OD this morning. Zombies probably.

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That is just brutal, I almost got taken out by a pickup NVRPA driving without lights on not too long ago.

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Comfort-wise you have done just about everything you can. When you get home be sure to rag off your bike and spray some lube on the drivetrain and down cables. Unfortunately, this will lead to the viscious cycle of lube-grime build up, but it is hard to avoid that.

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Thanks for the tips, I’m taking the job and this thread is just the icing on the cake! I was starting to worry that I would have to get a gym membership or something along those lines. Although, this morning, shower totally unnecessary.

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Nearly collided with a guy doing leg stretches on the TR Island boardwalk last night, in all black, reflective strip on his shoes, Darwin.

@Terpfan 39977 wrote:

I haven’t seen as many flashing strobe lights as of recently, but boy oh boy have I seen people with ultra bright lights and little regard for them blinding fellow riders. I have started turning my light into their eyes to make the point. One thing to have a light on, pointed down at the trail. It’s another thing all together to have 2 or 3 lights on their highest settings and pointed directly toward oncoming riders–either turn them down or turn them away/down.

Not to be outdone by blinding, the moderately warmer weather seems to have encouraged ninjas specializing in camoflauging to their backgrounds. I counted one jogger with a non-dark colored jacket, two with reflective materials and one with a flashing light. I must have passed a good two dozen joggers and I nearly hit one going around a curve. To his surprise, miracously I don’t have an ability to see through turns nor do I have night vision.

I feel like two rules (after safety, although tied to it) should trump others: what would you like done to you (see lights example) and would you consider yourself easily identifiable/predictable on the path?

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It may sound a little gimmicky, mainly because it is, but I’ve found a lot of great body weight excercises in Convict Conditioning. I’ve combined a few excercises, mainly push up variations, leg drops, and yoga stretches as a nice post-ride workout.

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Absolutely fantastic story. Biking is stability. No matter how crazy the rest of life gets, my pedals will most likely turn and my wheels will most likely roll. I can chew on any thought or nothing at all while I’m in the saddle. That is freedom.

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Neoprene covers are the bomb. Handwarmers in the shoe work too, until they snap apart sending lava down your toes.

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You haven’t really ridden the Corkscrew of Death until you’ve ridden it on 700×23 tires over icy, frozen-leaf ridden ruts. My ass has a scar that looks like Sicily from doing exactly that, I would show it as a badge of honor, but it is kind of a Catch-22.

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