[scoot]

Phenomenal day!

I parked at Skyline HS shortly after 8am, rode to 211 and back, returning just after 5pm. Along the way, I was able to enjoy the scenery in solitude at many points on a uniquely serene day without the noise of motor vehicles. I also had the pleasure of conversation with a variety of awesome people, both while climbing together and while stopped at overlooks and waysides. All while adding/removing my insulation layer and zipping/unzipping my jacket regularly to match the terrain.

NPS did a fantastic job managing this. The rangers and volunteers I spoke to near the end of the day were unaware of any collisions, but there had been a number of other incidents that personnel had responded to. They had picked up a couple folks with muscle injuries and mechanical problems, treated several people for hypothermia at Elkwallow (the southbound descent from Hogback was extremely chilly, and some people were dressed for summer riding), and even apprehended people hunting illegally in the park.

Skyline HS and the western edge of Front Royal, viewed from Shenandoah Overlook (MP 2.:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14647[/ATTACH]
Elkwallow Wayside taken over by bicyclists:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14648[/ATTACH]
Barrier at southern end of event:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14649[/ATTACH]
Crossed to the south side of the bridge over US-211:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14650[/ATTACH]
After climbing Hogback on the northbound return:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]14651[/ATTACH]

[scoot]

I’m in; looking forward to this! I’ll be on a road bike, 23mm slicks with rim brakes, so will take all the descents very carefully if the road hasn’t dried out by then

@TwoWheelsDC 158907 wrote:

So rain now pretty much out of the forecast.

FWIW, chances of rain lingering tomorrow are somewhat higher on Skyline Drive than they are in DC. But it looks promising that we might get much more pleasant conditions than previously expected.

@Judd 158806 wrote:

The challenge is going to be how to dress for the temps and wet combined with altitude and the heat up from climbing and the cool down from descending. I have a feeling I will be zipping and unzipping stuff all day.

Yeah, I may have to stop near each crest and nadir to add or remove a layer. These will be the longest hills I’ve ever attempted to ride. Not especially steep anywhere AFAICT (and presumably no challenge for RV engines or brakes), but long.

[scoot]

Glad to hear that the bikeshare tank design helped you avoid a fall this evening. And thank you for filing a report to help build a case for a better cycling experience on the Pike. I don’t use that station much anymore now that they installed one two blocks north at 8th Street, but it is definitely a bit of a hassle accessing it from either of those two roads, especially if you have to make a left turn.

You should also notify Capital Bikeshare of the incident if you haven’t already.

From CaBi’s FAQ:

What should I do if I crash my bike?

If you are injured, call 911 immediately. You should also call the police precinct where the crash took place and file a report with an officer to make sure that all important information is documented.

Within 24 hours of the incident, you must also notify Capital Bikeshare of the facts of the crash by calling Customer Service at 877-430-2453 and speaking with a representative. We will provide you with a Crash Report to fill out.

The bike remains your responsibility until it has been properly locked at a dock or handed over to a Capital Bikeshare representative. If you aren’t able to dock your bike, please call Customer Service and we will send someone over to help you.

[scoot]

@bentbike33 158811 wrote:

This will be a major PITA for those trying to pass through caught unawares right at the TRI parking lot given the lack of nearby alternative routes. It would be helpful if they posted signs near Memorial Bridge, the DC side of the TR Bridge, and at the IOD.

You would think that signage at key route decision points such as these might even be standard protocol if this were, I don’t know, an important transportation corridor or something… Maybe even announce the date in advance and put that on the signs too?

[scoot]

@huskerdont 158788 wrote:

George Mason between Washington Blvd and Lee Hwy, where there are sharrows but it seems like death is overtaking you with every vehicle that passes

Do you feel any differently about George Mason southbound vs. northbound? I’ve ridden on that stretch several times southbound near the end of a workout loop, and I never felt it was especially dangerous. I do imagine it’s a little more uncomfortable northbound though, since the relative velocity vs. car traffic would be higher given the slope.

[scoot]

@huskerdont 158758 wrote:

A couple hundred cyclists a day going through there taking the lane would certainly get some attention. I can add it to my route on the way home once or twice a week.

+1

This decision sabotages an otherwise useful transportation facility so that ten people can have a slightly shorter walk from their homes to their cars. Obviously the County Board (and the community at large) need to hear the message that it is NOT OKAY to sacrifice public safety just so that a few vocal people can appropriate the public right-of-way for the storage of their private property.

I can swing by there every now and then, but it is far out of my way. Nonetheless I do hope that most eastbound cyclists will take the lane there instead of shunting off to some second-rate ill-conceived detour. Especially the slowest riders

[scoot]

@Judd 158576 wrote:

I just had a flashback to my Driver’s Ed class. I can literally hear the clicking of the filmstrip with the soft radio voice saying, “Look left. Look right. Look left again. Now proceed with the turn.”

We were taught this same sequence in NoVa, but only for a left turn. For a right turn, it was just “look left”. Once, as a brand-new licensed driver, I made a right turn onto an exurban arterial with wide grassy medians, no painted crosswalks, and very few pedestrians. I had only looked left, consistent with that instruction, but I noticed after I completed my turn that there was a crossing pedestrian who had stopped in the median to avoid crossing my path. This was an aha moment for me as a driver, and I realized I would need to glance to my right as well on future right turns. Not just for pedestrians, of course: you also need to see if the roadway ahead is clear!

In fact, the Virginia DMV manual’s paragraph on right turns (see “Turning”, page 17) still says “Look to your left to check the intersection for pedestrians and traffic coming from the other direction”, but it says nothing about looking to your right. This is a serious oversight that needs to be fixed.

[scoot]

I don’t think it’s any secret that there is a lot of negligent bicyclist behavior around here. Is there any traffic law, besides speeding, for which bicyclists have higher compliance than motorists?

And yet, all that cyclist negligence notwithstanding, it is exceedingly rare that it causes the death of an innocent bystander. Such a story would have been barely newsworthy if the vehicle were a car. While all these fine WaPo commenters were typing up their righteous anti-cyclist screeds, their motorist brethren went out and killed another 100 Americans today.

Tree, meet Forest.

[scoot]

@DrP 158513 wrote:

A woman comes roaring up the road into the right turn lane … She continues to roar up, looking left and turning … Apparently oblivious to all else.

Glad to hear you are ok. Blowing through a no-turn-on-red like this is extremely reckless and dangerous.

You should be aware that this is an all-too-common behavior for drivers with a suburban (i.e. cars-only) mindset. In fact, at many intersections, right-turning drivers will get a green arrow whenever the cross street has a left arrow. Drivers thus become accustomed to whipping around corners whenever they see perpendicular traffic making left turns. (Plus they know that if they don’t hurry up and complete their turn before the corresponding left turn arrow expires, they might have to wait awhile after the straight-thru herd gets rolling.) Please do not interpret this post as an attempt to excuse this driver; her maneuver was very aggressive and entirely inexcusable since this is a high-pedestrian neighborhood and that intersection is clearly posted to prohibit such movement. But you might consider reducing your exposure to this hazard by waiting until the Army-Navy arrow clears.

[scoot]

@chris_s 157957 wrote:

If it happens to you in Arlington, you can report them with this form and Arlington PD will send them a letter.

Thanks for this link. But I encounter threats from distracted drivers more frequently than aggressive ones. I think they should get warning letters too. Since I don’t see anywhere else to report drivers that are dangerous but not aggressive per se, I guess I should just report them on this form also?

[scoot]

@jrenaut 155949 wrote:

IMG_20170227_122457806_HDR by Jon, on Flickr

Save the flagmen!

[scoot]

@ewilliams0305 155756 wrote:

I’m please the general response wasn’t “oh don’t ride there”….

Results may vary if it turns out that she’s playing Freezing Saddles…

[scoot]

That said, since you’re going to Foxcroft Heights and not Penrose, I would take the eastern route instead. With the western route, you’d be heading in the same direction as Columbia Pike rush-hour traffic between Courthouse and Orme.

[scoot]

@dasgeh 155711 wrote:

I don’t know, honestly, if I’d go the western route (through Rosslyn) or the eastern route (near the Pentagon), but I do know I would avoid the west-side-of-50 trail. So if I were to do the Eastern Route, I’d stay on the east side of 50, then take Pershing to Fillmore to the secret trail (Long Branch Trail).

I agree on avoiding the trail along the westbound side of 50. Since you are going to come as far west as Fillmore anyway, I’d instead recommend climbing either

a) Wilson Blvd (possible route: Fort Myer – Nash – Wilson – Garfield – Washington – Fillmore) or
b) Custis Trail (possible route: Fort Myer – Custis – Veitch – Key – Bryan – Danville – Wilson – Garfield – Washington – Fillmore)

Crossing 50 once is bad. Crossing it three times is torture. This is why I’d like to see the south(east)-side 50 trail extended either to the 2nd St bridge or over to Fillmore. I ride between Penrose and Key Bridge often, but I never use this trail because it’s too much of a pain to get to and from it.

[scoot]

@Steve O 155604 wrote:

Is the entirety of the parking lot in the viewshed? I would suspect that there is some sort of diagonal line that defines the eastern edge. If we could learn where that line is, there may be places on the parking lot itself that would be both out of the viewshed and relatively convenient to the trail. Without knowing exactly where the viewshed ends makes it difficult to suggest other locations.

+1. Is there a map that defines the capitol viewshed boundaries through this park? If that can be obtained and shared here, this community could reach a consensus suggestion pretty quickly.

[Author]

Posts