[SpaceJockey]

I was riding about yesterday and made a great discovery that may be of use to the coffee clubbers….the new Whole Foods by Garfield Park between capitol hill and navy yard has self-serve taps for a few varieties of nitro cold brew coffee and teas. Plus there is a Slipstream coffee/wine cafe on the adjacent block with likewise inexpensive prices coffee/treats.

While I have your attention I have one more hidden gem…. the Pavilion cafe in the art park next to the Natural History Museum. The catch? You must walk your bike while within the art park, no biggie.

[SpaceJockey]

As a counterpoint, I (eye) st se just off of South capital near the new Slipstream cafe has a treacherous bike lane that meanders from between the parking lane right in front of an apartment building to a bike/car interchange for car traffic headed to I-395S. I think the only surprise is that the majority of my close calls have been with pedestrians turning the blind corner either from or to the apartments and crossing the bike lane to their cars.

[SpaceJockey]

Very interesting, however, I assume there is a relative lack of enforcement or simply the necessary cultural factors for that to be effective. As it is drivers seem to have significant difficulty using their directional and abiding by posted lane markings and signage while in motion, let alone their actions while parked. I stand by my claim that the bike lane is one of THE MOST dangerous spots you can ride a bike, and bikers should exercise extreme caution and ride defensively at all times.

[SpaceJockey]

This is what I’ve been trying to tell everyone, the single speed dirt jumper mountain bike is the perfect commuter. I only ride my road bike to increase the element of danger and challenge.

[SpaceJockey]

@lordofthemark 182880 wrote:

It has been determined that it will be (unofficially, of course) renamed the Four Mile Run Delta. Or “Jesse’s Landing at Four Mile Run Delta” in order to encourage commuting by kayak.

Might need to coerce Alexandria to put the brakes on the raw sewage discharge for that to work…..I cringe every time I see the paddleboarders of the Potomac or DC Triathlon postponed due to health concerns… https://www.wusa9.com/article/news/local/triathlon-cancels-swim-due-to-water-quality-in-potomac-river/316067042

[SpaceJockey]

This is probably because there was significant growth in the BMX and mountain biking scenes from sports venues like the X-Games and freeride videos such as Kona’s New World Disorder series that introduced many riders to what was possible on a bike and it was the cool thing to do.

With the increased momentum was increased demand and the price of bikes of all sorts sky-rocketed, with second-rate used bikes fetching significantly inflated sums as well. When the interest began to die, the industry was still expecting to sell at the appreciated profit margins, which was not sustainable.

The style of riding is significant here too, a road bike lives on the road, just like any other pedal-powered machine on two wheels, why pay thousands for a bike when you are required to live in a constricted urban area to sustain the income high enough to pay for such a bike? At least if you ride jumps and off-road you have more fun on the bike, push it through harsher elements, break more parts, and pay the bike shops over the life of the bike to sustain your addiction.

[SpaceJockey]

@dasgeh 183739 wrote:

We’re pretty close to there and would take our kids there ALL.THE.TIME. This is a great idea.

Arlington pleads poverty at the moment — any change MORE or another outside group could help with things like a feasibility study?

The great part about this land is that the county has performed the legwork, including blueprint proposals and past surveys with conclusions, they just know it’s a problem spot and want SOMEONE to take stewardship. I don’t see why this should be a dollars-and-cents issue because most often the funding comes AFTER mountain bikers build something and use is demonstrated to the town. All we really need is for the town to tell us “Between A and B is an acceptable location for you to build any terrain features you see fit if first approved by X accordance with Y standards.” <- ie I think it is best we be given land and an approved process rather than a top-down dictation that would limit the project's potential. I believe we discussed at the meeting that in terms of feasibility there is the example on Bentonville, AR where they will support city planners of other cities to learn the impacts from such a project, and in their case argued revenues in the $Hundreds of Millions. https://www.visitbentonville.com/bike/ (there are even bike-friendly hotels listed!)

Initial actions: I think the likely nexus of players in discussion will be MORE, Arlington County Board, Bentonville, and WABA due to proximity to existing commuter routes. I believe MORE should be able to obtain a template feasibility study from Bentonville and amend certain portions to fit Arlington’s resources. Another potential avenue is to start the social media buzz and begin fundraising for the effort if the county is amiable to it. What do you think? Can MORE support?

[SpaceJockey]

@dasgeh 182601 wrote:

Thanks for coming out to the BAC.

And to anyone interested in seeing MTB, cyclocross and pump tracks in Arlington, the time is now to comment on the Parks’ Master Plan.

Instructions and talking points in this FB post.

For incorporation into the plan, this is the land I was looking at, the “Ballston Pond Park” (depicted in the 2011 proposal).
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18659[/ATTACH]

For the environmentally conscious, the Arlington County website states the following:
“The Ballston Pond was originally designed and constructed as a stormwater detention facility to collect and slow stormwater runoff from Interstate 66 when the highway was built. Over the years, the pond has been filling up with sediments deposited by stormwater runoff, which slows down when it reaches the pond. The Ballston Pond is no longer functioning as originally designed, and its water quality benefits are limited due to water flowing straight through the pond instead of taking a more circuitous route. In addition to invasive plants, trash is a continual issue.” https://projects.arlingtonva.us/projects/ballston-beaver-pond-restoration/

^^^ It seems to me this is a perfect location, directly adjacent to the Custis Trail that is easily accessible via car, metro, and pedestrians from its central location in Arlington. Arlington County was already interested in its development based on past survey and the pond also provides water for terrain feature upkeep. Furthermore, with proper stewardship the biking community can ensure this land remains protected and trash from I-66 is removed according to County wishes. This will be a boon for business and local bike shops……I see a big win-win……

[SpaceJockey]

@JorgeGortex 182594 wrote:

Have that cycling someone on your upcoming holiday gift giving list that has it all? Don’t know what to get them? How about a bicycle mounted Villar-Perosa dual barrelled machine gun! That’s right, they to can unload 1500 rounds per minute of 9mm on those pesky trail ninjas, dog walkers (with option gung-wire leashes) and Lance-wanna-bes who brush your elbow passing at 25mph on the WO&D! Made of the finest Italian steel to match their ride, this heirloom piece will stand the test of time, and the coming zombie apocolypse. Don’t wait, quantaties are limited! Optional drop bar mount coming soon, and a sleek full carbon version is in the works for you weight weenies out there. Get yours today and make that specialial loved one feel… well… loved. We’ll even throw in a free fender to show we care.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]18560[/ATTACH]

If you turn it around it doubles as a means of forward propulsion

[SpaceJockey]

Continuing this thread because the WABA forum appears to have significantly less spam than the MORE MTB forum…..

I attended the BAC meeting on Monday evening where there was a good turnout from the off-road community and some great ideas were exchanged (SteveO made us look official by wearing a suit too). I rode at both the Fairfax Lake facility in Reston and the Rockburn Skills Park in Ellicott, MD. I believe that Rockburn in particular is a great example of a place that offers everything a prospective mountain biker could hope for in an urbanized area. The planners and off-roaders both seemed to like the idea of a pump-track as being a small footprint investment that is also a foot-in-the-door to generate greater interest. The number one consideration in a developed area like Arlington is the availability of space and potential need for acquisition. Much of the discussion centered around parks and environmental restrictions, but my focus is primarily on space that is not currently being used, the true classic off-road spaces that may or may not have a high incidence of tents.

Fortunately, I think I found such a space in a central Arlington location that I will scout out on foot, and from satellite does not appear to interfere with anything:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]18558[/ATTACH]
Note: Where N Glebe Rd and Route 66 intersect in Ballston.
Bonus: It is attached to the Custis Trail

Thoughts? I’d be happy to get digging if there is adequate drainage.

[SpaceJockey]

Here’s a question that I hope has not yet been addressed ad nauseam:
On the wharf side of Maine Ave there is a clearly marked lane for bikes and one for pedestrians…..Why is it that the bike lane is made of speed-robbing rubber and the pedestrian lane is made of plantar-fasciitis-inducing concrete? Wouldn’t it make more sense for the bikes to have the concrete and the peds to have the rubber?

Understand storefronts likely prefer concrete to shuttle their wares in and out, however, every morning I get cut off by guys pushing trolleys across both lanes from Maine Ave to the storefront, which is not only harder for them to do, it chews up the rubber of the bike lane as well……Just does not make sense.

[SpaceJockey]

Me: Out in front after breaking free from the pack going upwind
You: Making the pass as I slowed down to not create an unsafe situation under Memorial Bridge

Despite any war of ego, I enjoyed watching you struggle hard for the next 2 miles as I took a draft. Normally I would be satisfied with that, except that you kept zigging when you should have been zagging during your passes and made what should have been easy situations into near disasters with high probability of collateral damage. Cool your jets.

[SpaceJockey]

@lordofthemark 182188 wrote:

1. There is evidence that ATE has helped reduce collisions

2. I am all for repositioning cameras to focus more on bike/ped safety, though I would point out that I want to be safe when I drive as well. I have seen people complain about speed cameras on I395 where it enters DC from Virginia – a mess of lane changing, that seems quite dangerous to me.

3. I would be happy if they dedicated camera revenue to bike/ped improvements, or just rebated it to residents in some form – if only to disarm this argument. But I don’t vote in DC, so I have no say.

4. I can certainly tell you I that I have advocated for easing the limits on cameras in Va, so we can have speed cameras in Alexandria – and I know of places in Fairfax where residents wanted them. None of the people involved was motivated by revenue.

I agree with you wholeheartedly on the point of assuring bike/ped safety, and I understand the honest good intentions of those that wish to implement those systems, but I am hesitant to propose that such enforcement systems be automated. Furthermore, I believe there should be very high standards imposed on case-by-case basis for their implementation, complete with comprehensive impact statement as determined by engineers.

My brainstorm of a few potential issues:
1) impact to other intersections,
2) driver aggression levels when they have 5 fewer minutes to get their child from daycare,
3) the fact that bikes are always 1/10th the mass of a car at minimum regardless of what the law says (except the law of gross tonnage),
4) the existence of an ATE at Washington Circle that serves no public safety purpose for any of traffic/bikers/peds,
5) that once legislated into existence is unlikely to go away even with advances in automated braking systems and autonomous vehicles or with other positive changes to local infrastructure, and
6) if we can implement ATE’s will we be more accepting of its moral arguments, hire fewer police officers, and double-down by imposing automated fines on pedestrians and bikers as well? Should every bike that crosses into the box when red, or blows through a stop sign, or rides on the sidewalk also get a $150 penalty in their mailbox? The intriguing caveat as well is that the more effective the enforcement, the fewer the number of lawbreakers, the fewer the number of fines, the less need there is to maintain the law enforcement apparatus…..Thus it is a quasi-stable system that requires continual correction via good judgement, and I believe we need to keep humans in that loop to be an interface with the humans who are paying into the system and for whose behavior we wish to correct.

To the argument of revenues, the chair of the state retirement board for Virginia was the highest-paid public service employee in the nation with exception to the state college football coaches, his job being only to serve other state employees, “give them an inch……”

[SpaceJockey]

@rcannon100 182173 wrote:

Exactly, the insta-ticket camera system is used only as a means of revenue for inflated DC local government. Perfect example: the tunnel under Washington Circle which has ZERO bike or pedestrian traffic, but you will get hit for $150 if you go any faster than 25mph….right after a downhill.

[SpaceJockey]

Sounds like a plan to me. I’d like to have something local. Checking my schedule, looks to be a dark and rainy night so I will probably be there
@dasgeh 182183 wrote:

There’s a pump track in Richmond, too. I am no MTB expert, so I don’t much more than that.

We will discuss this at November’s BAC meeting (Nov. 5 7pm 2100 Clarendon Blvd). Please come.

I have some spots in Arlington in mind that seem like they would work for a pump track. — Big Walnut Park, Woodstock Park, Stewart Park, the north end of the bridge to nowhere, are what come to mind now.

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