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Well, the good news is that it really was gone in a week, All clear this morning (3/2).

Hope I don’t get wet on the way home tonight. I’m getting tired of all this rain, but it beats snow.

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@Steve O 198820 wrote:

If you are following the detour signs to get around the Lee Highway/Route 29 bridge, you are doing it wrong. Use the Columbia Street detour instead:

http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?15613-seeking-advice-on-Banneker-Park-detour

Thanks. I tried that route you posted and prefer to just use the detour. It’s not that big of an inconvenience, and you do get a light to cross Lee Highway which helps during rush hour.

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@dcvelobrew 198807 wrote:

There is a narrow crushed gravel path that runs along the side of the firehouse which is ridable if you have relatively wide tires. You still have to ride in the west end driveway of the firestation (the end that is opposite from where the trucks emerge) and then hop on the path on the right side.

Yeah, I tried that once. That trail is really narrow and like you note, better if your bike has wide tires. Mine don’t.

I do enjoy looping around and checking out all the crashed Teslas at the body shop. And I never knew about Bikenetic bike shop.

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@joetats 198801 wrote:

This past weekend was my first time riding the W&OD east of Falls Church, and it really showed me how spoiled we are on the western end of it.

The bridge over 29 part is what keeps me on this side, I’d probably come up with my own detour through there if I were commuting on it daily.

It’s a great trail! The problem parts probably don’t add up to a half mile along the whole thing, but they are definitely there.

A lot of people cut through the fire station parking lot. I refuse to do that. Firemen don’t need to be dodging cyclists when they go out on a call.

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@Tania 198766 wrote:

There was discussion about this a few days ago.

http://bikearlingtonforum.com/showthread.php?16210-Temporary-Closure-and-Detour-of-W-amp-OD-Trail-%26%2365279%3Bat-Idylwood-Park-Starting-around-Feb-24th

Only 3 detours? It does kinda feel like the whole thing is under construction…

Closed for only a week! Well, that’s good news. I’ve been bike commuting on the W&OD from Northern VA into DC for 27 years. The last 2-3 years have been more detours and construction than the 25 years that proceeded it. My favorite was the cyclo-cross mud pit area that was created by Roosevelt Island when they repaired the parking lot. Why use some gravel when ground up mulch will mix with the rain nicely?

Then there was the closure at the end of the 14-th street bridge that had me going up and down stairs, only to end with the signage pole being left directly in the middle of the bike lane. I assume some day they’ll close it again and fix that.

But as much as I grumble, we’re fortunate to have the paths we do. Its been a tremendous boon to my physical and mental health.

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@ChristoB50 193441 wrote:

I’ll add that I’ve been very happy with the Spokes crew at Quaker Lane… they’ve done all the work (that I can’t or don’t want to try) needed on my ebike (since the makers Vintage Electric Bikes, are in California, and currently doesn’t have a retail presence in this area.) I had two “serious” issues over the last 18 mos and all was covered under warranty; parts (including a new controller / wiring harness at one point) sent by VEB, and Spokes did the install. VEB coordinated with Spokes for any issues that might’ve needed more input from VEB, as Spokes doesn’t carry any rear hub bikes… but then again, I’ve never had an issue with the hub itself, so that’s never been something Spokes had to dissect…

I don’t own an electric bike, but I do have four conventional ones and I go to Spokes in Vienna when I have problems with them I don’t or can’t want to monkey with. They have a lot of ebikes on their floor, and I usually see a bunch that have been worked on sitting in the repair area waiting to get picked up. Its a nice bike shop and the guys working in the maintenance department are really nice. If I were in the market for one, I’d consider spending the extra money and buying it locally to guarantee good service when the thing breaks down.

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@consularrider 192743 wrote:

Just got a message that he’ll be bringing his ow. Thanks everyone for the offers of help.

I hope its a good ride for him. It’s the first century I ever did which is what keeps me coming back. It’s actually really flat and kind of boring. Starting last year they let everyone who wanted to ride really fast in pace lines leave before 8:00. This was a big step in the right direction safety wise. Prior to that crazy fast pace lines would weave around the slower riders, so its good to get those folks out front and away. I enjoyed the ride a lot more.

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I’m doing that ride. Done it 26 times. Usually I ride it with my wife, but I suspect she won’t be up to it because of some health issues she’s dealing with. I’ve got some extra road bikes. What size does he/she ride?

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@rcannon100 191193 wrote:

Sorry, both contacts led no where. Their contacts have gone cold too.

OPM and GSA are merging? Reputation is that GSA employees are muy unhappy. Hoteling and cubiclism was imposed on them and they HATED it.

Take it from me … it ain’t a great time to be a Federal employee. There have been bad times, but nothing like this.

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@n18 190089 wrote:

If more Vienna residents bike, it would improve the traffic in the area.

I’ve lived in Vienna for 23 years. Seen it go from a sleepy town to a congested town full of wealthy people inching down Route 123 in their over priced cars. I don’t think it’s the population of Vienna per se — I think it’s the explosion of the Tysons area. Most of the problem is from people going to and from Tysons to their jobs, but I think they are just passing through. I live off Lawyers road and its a challenge most mornings to turn right with all the traffic coming from Reston. Traffic has gone from bad to worse. Even on the weekends it’s terrible. And now they’re tearing down a hotel and restaurant on the corner of Nutley and 123 to build some huge mixed use condo development. Its all we need. Same with the Marco Polo lot. And up at the metro. There will be 500 more cars buzzing around in a few years. I can’t wait.

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@accordioneur 188752 wrote:

Last night as I was coming up the W&OD detour a little before 6 PM I saw a cyclist with the cojones to push around the construction barrier and keep riding west on the trail. Might have been you …

I was riding home from work with my wife. When I got through all but the last barrier, I looked back and saw another guy behind me doing the same thing. Judging from all the tire marks in the mud before the first barrier, its hardly an original or daring idea.

I suppose it could be worse. My all time favorite was the parking lot replacement by Roosevelt Island. The bike path became a dirt path that someone had the bright idea of covering with six inches of shredded mulch. The ramp replacement on the 14-th street bridge is a close second.

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I was riding home last night (6/13) turning west on the W&OD. I noticed several bike tracks next to the orange barrier wall and some of the plastic material pushed onto the ground. It’s 6:00, so I figure all the construction guys are gone, so I’m going to try skirting the detour and going on the trail. The trail is intact, but there’s two more barriers — so it involves getting on and off the bike a total of four times. I concluded that the detour is still the best bet. They’re making some progress lining the creek with big limestone rocks, but it looks like there’s a way to go. Its been 3 or 4 weeks? Guess there’s no hurry

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@JorgeGortex 188594 wrote:

Thanks PMF and everyone else for the great advice. I ended up going over to Bike Kinetic tonight and talked to Pete… super nice guy and knows his stuff. It works well because it’s about a mile and half from my house, 2.5 max. So an easy walk to go pick it up when the time comes…

And that pick up will be my new-to-me Open U.P. Classic frame that I scored from the Pros Closet. Parts are mostly Shimano Ultegra Di2. Enve G23 wheels, and a mix of other stuff. And get this… I came out of the shop, got in my car, pulled out my phone to check and see what was buzzing and found an email from Enve telling me I had won an entry through them for the Dirty Kanza in june. WHAT?! I am not worthy… or ready. Yikes.

If you can find a good shop/mechanic near where you live, that’s ideal. I do a lot of work on my bikes myself, but there’s always times when I just say screw it and go to Spokes. Over the years, I’ve built a relationship with the guys who work at that shop. Hopefully you can do the same.

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Spokes in Vienna. Jessy, Ron or Paul are all really good mechanics. Paul’s a little grumpy, but most good mechanics are. I’ve had them build up several bikes for me over the years (I always go the buy the frame and components route). They’re not cheap — I think a build is $250 — but they do a really nice job. I can walk in and they’ll fix minor stuff for free. Yesterday I took one of my steel bikes in. I’ve had it for several years and its always bugged me that the rear wheel is hard to get on and off. My other bikes with horizontal drop outs aren’t that way. Ron filed the drop out down a little and expanded it, and now the wheel goes right on and off. He spent almost an hour with it and charged me $10. With the exception of bikes for my kids. I’ve never bought a bike from them, and they still treat me really nice.

So Jorge … what did you get?

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I cut a small triangular shaped piece of electrical tape and stick it on the seat post with one of the edges right where the post meets the frame. I do it on all my bikes and my wife’s bike that I do have to expose more post to get it into a work stand clamp. Its also handy to monitor whether your post is slipping.

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