[Supermau]

Hot indeed. I put my ride clothes up to dry around 7 and they were still pretty moist at noon when I left

[Supermau]

@jcflack54 93893 wrote:

Yeah I like the bike lanes on Commonweath and there aren’t as many stop signs or lights as Royal or the MVT through Old Town. Have they reopened Four Mile Run trail under the bridges to MVT then?

I guess so. I didn’t know it had been closed as this is my first time on that route, but I got through just fine.

[Supermau]

Great ride in today. I took the opportunity to try a new route that proved faster than winding through Old Town Alexandria. Straight up Commonwealth to Four Mile Run then catching the MVT at the airport. I cut off ten minutes easily. And I can’t say enough about my investment in a bell. It simply works. People hear it and they understand it. I even got some thanks for it this morning. Love the bell.

Thanks to everyone who replied to my new bike tuneup post yesterday. I have spent far too much time in the second chain ring. Today I went big for much of the trip and certainly learned more about shifting. I’m just a little better than I was yesterday, and perhaps a bit faster as a result.

Cheers!

[Supermau]

Thanks for the tips. I love Sheldon, I found his site months ago a visit quite a bit.

The mechanic suggested I try using the third (largest) chainring as well. I guess my main gripe was that I had no rub before the tuneup.

It seems I spend 95% of my ride somewhere in the 2nd ring. That range seems to take care of business most of the time. Since tomorrow is my big commute day I’ll experiment more.

I appreciate your response.

Cheers!

[Supermau]

@americancyclo 93854 wrote:

that’s a bit of a circuitous route to get to Fed Center SW!

It’s the only one I know. I’ve refined it a bit since that ride but it’s basically the same. Just shy of 15 miles.

[Supermau]

I can’t really speak for other brands but I’ve been using GoPro cameras for a long time and I think they’re excellent. Here’s a vid of my commute about a month ago. God bless you if you have the patience to watch it though. I had to compress 75 minutes down to about 13.

http://vimeo.com/101089637

Here’s another using the chest mount, a little more watchable.

http://vimeo.com/100324868

[Supermau]

@dcv 93793 wrote:

Sweat much? Post-ride salt crystals, gross yet strangely compelling.

Fascinating. I suppose you could just lick yourself clean to get that sodium back in the system.

[Supermau]

@Crickey7 93681 wrote:

That’s a pretty commonly recommended entry commuter setup (see recent article below).
http://www.bikecommutercabal.com/convert-your-mtb-to-a-commuter/

I did it myself for a couple of years, when I discovered my road bike was not up to the rigors of commuting. Still, I wonder at the notion of spending money converting a mountain bike into a role it’s only so-so at instead of getting a more suitable ride from the start. The commuting offerings now are far superior to what I had available in the mid 90’s.

I got to the point pretty quickly where I realized I was wasting money. Still, I had a good time with the bike, fixing it and upgrading it. I learned a lot about how bikes work – stuff I hadn’t known much about prior to pulling this from the shed. It was a fun project. It’s a comfy bike too, but my Trek is just so much more efficient. It’s nice to have a backup now, as well as a useable off-road bike. I’m no hardcore mountain biker but I do enjoy it. Next year I’m hoping to get into the next level of road bike (for me, anyway)…some kind of endurance style roadie. We’ll see what the wife thinks of that…

[Supermau]

My original commuter was this old 26″ hardtail MTB. It’s now relegated to dirt only. Nothing special but it got me there! I have to admit it started to feel like dragging a dead mule on those long commutes even with road tires.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6544[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]6545[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]6546[/ATTACH]

[Supermau]

A few from my recent commutes from Franconia to DC…

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6536[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]6537[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]6538[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]6539[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]6540[/ATTACH]

[Supermau]

Ha! It really screws up pool season. Now it’ll get all hot, but the pool is about to close!

[Supermau]

Just like last summer…Too cool in August, too hot in Sept.

[Supermau]

I picked up Performance brand work stand for $120. No more flipping the bike over! I’ve bought a ton of stuff since May when I pulled my old MTB out of the shed and started riding again, including a Trek FX 7.3 for commuting and fitness rides. I began commuting on my MTB outfitted with slicks but it still got tiresome. I’m working my way up to an endurance road bike, maybe next year.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]6521[/ATTACH]

[Supermau]

To the guy who said, ” You’re blinding me” this dark morning on the MVT, to whom I replied simply, “Good morning” as I sped past…I apologize. I run my Cygolite hot in that neck of the woods. Sometimes it takes an unwitting cyclist approaching me to help me dial it in. I assure you that adjustments were promptly made on-the-fly as soon as I comprehended what you said. Didn’t mean to blind you.

No unsafe passes for me today, and my bell worked the charm in the darkness this morning alerting a centerline straddling walker to pick a line. Apparently my light wasn’t bright enough for him.

I’m starting to see familiar Saturday riders out there. I guess that means this whole bike commute thing is evolving. I look forward to working on Saturday just to get that big ride in. As worn out as I might get I never want to get off the bike. Smells like addiction.

[Supermau]

Gearing up for my 5 AM departure tomorrow. I think this is my seventh commute since I started and it’s becoming second nature for me as well. I only work on Saturday and Wednesday. The rest of the time my “job” is parenting…Mr Mom. Commuting as become so much fun. Working seems just a minor distraction between rides now. It’s the one day per week I can guarantee myself some decent mileage. Wednesdays are out due to kid swapping.

I invested in a bell today. Seemed like a good idea when the trail gets busy going home.

Cheers!

[Author]

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