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After a hot day, it was raining at 6:20 PM when I was making my way to the MVT after taking Memorial bridge. Three guys were walking abreast and taking up the whole trail, so the cyclist in front of me went onto the grass to get around them and I did the same. He then wiped out spectacularly on the wet grass, slamming down onto the grass then somehow bouncing back up to his feet. The guys were said things like “nice save dude!”. The cyclist was good-natured about the situation, all things considered.
On the Custis Trail there was a downed tree spanning the width of the trail, and the hefty branch is at “head height”. ‘Hope people see it in time after dark…

Edit- I should have posted it under “trail conditions” and I see it now has been, here:
http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?14719-July-2019-Road-and-Trails-Conditions/page6
Too heavy to clear manually; a chain saw will be required.

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I don’t have time to see the flick but feel that taming the beast must be done on the supply side- China no longer wants our nasty crapola, and I don’t blame them.
Go to you local obeseomarket and see the 8 ounce packs of slimy deli-like product, pumped full of chemically-infused, saline water, thickened with starches so it doesn’t run. It will be sealed in a plastic bag, which is in turn encased in a semi-rigid plastic clamshell, which, in a coup de grace, has a cardboard wrapper around it. Bloody hell.

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This calls for setting priorities, please. First let’s address if police and politicians think they’re above the law, because THAT matters. Though they (and cyclists) should not be vilified on the whole as it is unfair to the individuals who are the exception.

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Every streetlight is connected to electrical power… I think the docks as I envision them could be made economically, since they would not possess any locking hardware other than the fixed docking rods, and no moving parts.

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Aw man! And here I thought I had invented the thing! Well, there goes my fame and fortune as an inventor. Still, I think this is what needs to be done to solve the litter and unprofitable operation problem with e-scooters.

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@Oldtowner 191587 wrote:

The biggest problem with scooters is the dockless part. That’s also the part costing the companies the most money. If they want to be profitable, they are going to have to figure that out and once they do, scooters will be less objectionable to the public. The current economic model is not sustainable even at scale.

https://ark-invest.com/research/electric-scooters

THIS I agree with completely. A large city or region like the Washington Metropolitan Area, if it takes finding transportation solutions seriously, should take the bull by the horns and provide incentives for companies to use a docked system. The whole thing could even be voluntary and would not prevent users from going dockless in an emergency. It could work like this: The municipality installs racks that have on them a series of low-profile, horizontal bars that are 12mm in diameter and 30 CM (12″) wide; each bar has, at its center, four bands of contacts on them; two for data and two for delivering 42vdc, at 2 amps. Once the scoot “handshakes” with the dock, the dock delivers the juice. Engaging the docking bar simultaneously secures the scooter, and charges them as well. The scooter companies, eager to have their scooters secure and not have to pay contractors to charge the scooter daily, will attach a locking/latching clamp to their scoots that is compatible with the rack docking stations. The dock itself has no locks and therefore will not be part of the rental or unlocking process.
The biggest obstacle to raking in revenue all day with multiple rentals is the cost of a new scooter relative to its service life, which would certainly be shorter on average when the scooters are left out in the wild ; the cost to charge the scooters daily likewise drains away precious rental revenue. I could foresee rental companies charging $5 to unlock from a docking station and 15 cents per minute…. but refunding the entire unlock fee if the scoot is docked at a docking station. That way if there is no dock to be found, a renter can still drop off a scoot anywhere, but has a financial incentive to find a dock. The rental company can use that $5 to pay the company affiliate to find, charge, and re-release an undocked scooter. Or, to hell with voluntary compliance- the municipality can throw its weight around and mandate that all rental scooters have clamp solenoids. Imagine if a loose dockless e-scooter cost little or nothing to unlock for rental, but the renter STILL got the $5 if he ends up docking it? Then ANYONE with the phone app who happens upon an undocked scoot can pick up $5 of easy money by simply docking the thing! Helpful sidewalk sweepers will suddenly materialize everywhere!

By the way, how do I “like” a post? I don’t see an icon to do so.

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The brushless motor controllers in the rental scooters are sophisticated and programmable by the company for capping top speed, acceleration, setting a charge rate to the battery management board, setting degree of regenerative braking and when it engages, whether the scooter needs to be rolling (and how fast) before the motor will engage, and more.
There are high end e-scooters like the Nanrobot LS7 or RS11-11 that have huge range and go startlingly fast, at a premium price. That may be what you saw.
Rip out ALL the circuitry on a 36v, 300W rental bike, wire in extra cells to boost the battery to 52V, put in your own BMS and generic 48V, 300 watt controller, and you can make the thing move pretty fast for under $30. Not that I would endorse doing such a thing! And it would be primitive, throttle-only… you would no longer have all the refinements, like regenerative braking. Plus you would be driving the motor pretty hard. It could reduce the service life of the hub motor.

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@Bob James 191360 wrote:

66 Commuter Connection Trail. I would have loved this trail along 66 when I was commuting between Manassas and Capital Hill. As it was, I had to go an extra 10 miles each way for the safest way in. I like direct trails along highways when you have to get from point A to point B the quickest way. I would ride more scenic routes for recreational riding. Custis is good, but it’s too hilly (especially westbound) to be commuter friendly (especially if when wet, snow, or ice on trail).

That is a mind-boggling commute. Manassas to the Capitol, WITH an additional 10 miles of workaround, as a COMMUTE? Again, mind=blown. Respect!

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Arlington has the ART Bus; Since this connects to Fairfax, that Becomes FART.

Or the ART-CDT; All roadside trees cut down trail.

I vote for RIDE – the Roadside, Inhale Diesel Exhaust trail.

I just know that riding on it will be reminiscent of playing “Bob’s Country Bunker” when you’re The Blues Brothers’ Band. Lucky that chicken wire is there!

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This is not nearly as fraught as the pronunciation of NIKON. The British say “Nickon”, as if you just nicked one. Just about everybody else say “kneekon”, like “Nihongo”. And Americans (and Nikon themselves, when advertising in the US), say it is “nighkon”, with a hard “I”.

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A motorcycle-equipped Arlington county policeman was closely monitoring for traffic infractions on Lee Highway, where Fairfax Drive and the W&OD trail cross it. He was perched a short block away, at the corner of Lee and Westmoreland/19th.
Presumably to catch motorists turning right onto Lee Hwy from FX Drive on red without yielding to crosswalk traffic. He looked as if he meant business…!

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As a child of the 1970s who felt lucky to merely be pelted with empty beer cans from passing cars while on a bike, the entire idea of a bike-friendly place is an alien concept to me. Bike-friendly is not a painted strip on the road, it is a culture, and Americans lack that culture. I agree that efforts to foster that culture should be applied in every neighborhood.

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Bike to Work Day! Left my 48 volt, 1000 watt Schwinn e-bike conversion home, rode in on my 25 year old (but sprightly and lightweight) Specialized Crossroads (bought it new). The event shirt was a beautiful aquamarine this year. No bagels or energy bars in Rosslyn (that I could see) but a NYC-transplant joint called “The Little Beet” had tasty gruel that was probably better for me anyway, so thanks to them for the boost.

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I generally use only the segment in Arlington between Rosslyn and Memorial Bridge- a pleasant run, but tree roots have heaved up the asphalt in some numerous places and the bed has settled to into boggy area in others. It is in poor shape.

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I agree with that… I’ve always been a thrifty cyclist myself… but I’m positing that at over $4,000, this e-bike with a diminutive 250-watt motor is placing itself at a price point higher than a most exotic non-ebike. As for the “fixie” aspect, I’d agree that having e-bike power removes much of the need for gearing… a 3-speed would be ideal.

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