[trailrunner]

1) There are various ways to take sponge baths. After my wife and I have had surgeries, we’ve had periods where we could not take a shower. We bought some special type of wipes to clean ourselves. I thought they were OK, but my wife actually liked them. I forget what they are called, but they should be easy enough to find.

2) One of the advantages to bikes is that they have gears. You’ll go slower up the hill, but you’ll make it. 10 pounds of extra gear is no big deal. Indeed, some of us carry that around our midsection every day 😮 When I commute, I often bring stuff to and from work, such as my lunches for the week, new or worn clothes, coffee, electronics, layers I wore in the morning, folders of paper (i.e., work). I’ve even brought a new coffee maker into work on my bike. When I camp, I tow a trailer with 30 pounds or more, and I’ve ridden up and down the hills of Skyline drive with that load.

3) Fenders would be a very good investment for you. They help a lot. As far as clothing goes, I have yet to find a truly breathable, water-repellent jacket. For my commute (about 11.5 miles each way), I get overheated and damp inside, even on cold days in the 30s or 40s, but for your short commute that shouldn’t be too much of a problem. Actually, for a two-mile commute, I’d consider walking when it rains (don’t say it can’t be done: my daughter walks to and from work every day – rain, snow, cold, heat).

[trailrunner]

It’s amazing to me that people can get so worked up so quickly over trivial things, but I guess some people have that side to their personality. During one ride, I found out that one of my riding friends has this personality when he completely overreacted over someone with a dog on a path that was just slightly out of control; I didn’t think anything of it and was going to keep riding, but he made it a point to stop and scream at the person. It sounds like you came across one of these dudes. I used to ride on the W&OD and MVT once or twice a week, and never used a bell (although most of my riding was at off-peak times). I would call out my passes, and don’t remember having too many problems, even with people running with headphones. When in doubt, I’d slow down and be careful. I learned early on to back off on the speed because they are multi use trails for everyone, and not my personal training track. Fortunately, I never came across anybody as aggressive as the guy you encountered.

[trailrunner]

@Steve O 115302 wrote:

I’m wondering if we organized a ride for one Saturday morning and brought them a whole bunch of these to process. And then two months later did it again. And again. Would they get tired? (Or would we get tired first?)

As a government employee who deals with this type of bureaucracy as a routine part of my job, I’m confident that you will get tired first. It would be like trying to raise the water level by throwing pebbles into the ocean.

[trailrunner]

I grew up in a beach community, and we rode everywhere on our bikes. We often gave each other rides, and occaisionally even gave two people a ride at the same time. Sometimes we’d have battles between bikes, each with a passenger, riding alongside each other trying to knock the other off balance. We also learned how to do the opposite — ride one bike and bring another (empty) bike with us, which is harder than it appears. But we had limits: I don’t think I every managed to ride no-handed with someone on my handlebars.

[trailrunner]

I live right off the parkway near Rolling Road in Springfield and have ridden on it since it was opened about 20 years ago. Actually, I used to ride down the middle of the parkway while it was being built.

There is a path along the parkway from Herndon to Lorton, but there are a couple of gaps, such as between 123 and Burke Center Parkway, and there used to be a gap between 29 and 50 in the Fair Lakes and I-66 area, with no signs showing where to go or how to get back on the parkway once you leave. The first-time rider would be lost. When I first started riding on the parkway and I would encounter these gaps, I kept exploring the neighborhood until I figured out a way around the gaps. I also didn’t like some of the crossings and how the the trail would flip from one side to the other, so I eventually just started doing most of my riding on the shoulder.

But the bottom line is that there is nominally a path from the W&OD Herndon to the exit for Fullerton Road and Boudinot Drive in Lorton, which is just to the NW of I-95. With a smartphone or GPS (tools I didn’t have when the parkway first opened), you should be able to find your way without too much problem. Fairfax County has published some trail and bike maps, which you could probably find on their website, which might also help.

As far as extending it to Route 1 – I don’t know of any plans to do that, but it would make my life a lot easier. I commute from my house in Springfield to Fort Belvoir. I live about a half mile from the parkway, and it would be so easy for me to just get on the parkway and take it directly to Route 1 and then enter Fort Belvoir. But as I said, the path ends just NW of I-95, right before a very bike-unfriendly area where the parkway crosses over I-95 and then continues through an industrial area. In this area, there are several on and off ramps, lanes ending and merging, lots of trucks getting on and off the freeway, and lots of car traffic. I’m a pretty brave rider, but that is one intersection I will not ride through, at least on a daily basis. Instead, I have to add about three miles each way to my commute to avoid that intersection and get to Route 1. IMHO, they did a poor job on the parkway path in general, and an especially poor job in this area.

[trailrunner]

@Phatboing 112389 wrote:

My first commuter was a Trek 4300, for $550 or thereabouts. It was a heavy beast, yes, but did rides from 6-20 miles just fine (it could’ve done longer, except I never really tried at the time). If what you’re doing is mostly commuting and erranding, there are plenty of decent bikes in that price range.

My current commuting bike is a Rockhopper that I bought in 1992 for $500 something. Works great for that role. I still haven’t worn out the steel frame yet.

[trailrunner]

I commuted on my old road and ‘cross bike for many (10+) years, so your current bike is fine. I used a backpack, or a messenger bag when I didn’t have that much to carry. I eventually fixed up my old mountain bike with a rack and panniers and now use that most of the time, but I still occasionally use my road bike. When you start becoming a dedicated commuter, having fenders and a rack can be nice.

You might get some beefier tires, say 700×28 or larger if they will fit in your frame, but again, I commuted on 700×23 for a long time, so larger tires are not necessary. If you do buy new tires, get some that are puncture resistant. They are a little heavier, but you’re not racing.

If you’ll be riding in any kind of traffic, get blinky lights, at least a white one in front, and a red one for the rear.

From where you live, you might actually be able to come up with a decent route. Spend some time on google maps or driving around on the weekend to find a route that works your way north from your house, and find a good way to cross Franconia Road. From there, there used to be a bike and pedestrian underpass under 495 at Clermont Drive in the Rose Hill area (I haven’t ridden there in a while, but I’m pretty sure it’s still there). Once you’re north of 495, there are various road and path routes that you could take to get to Crystal City or JBAB.

[trailrunner]

I work on Fort Belvoir, and they have been transitioning to the AIE over the last month or so. What is ironic about much of this discussion is that AIE readers don’t work with cyclists, at least not the AIE readers on Fort Belvoir. When a car drives up to the gate, the driver is supposed to put the ID card on a reader located near the driver’s window. Before it reads the ID card, there is also a sensor that detects the presence of the car. So far, my bike does not have enough mass or metal or whatever to trigger this sensor, so the AIE reader reports an error and won’t read my ID, and I have to do it the old-fashioned way: by handing my ID card to the guard. So far they haven’t used the hand scanner to scan my ID card.

A minor thing to note about some of the policy that people have posted here: one of the required things for cyclists is a “reflective upper outer garment.” That is usually interpreted by MPs as a reflective vest. This used to be the policy at Fort Belvoir for a long time, but they only enforced it for motorcyclists. When that policy was in effect, I was a little concerned that some bored MP would cite me for not having a neon yellow vest. In the DoD way of doing things, I could be lit up like a Christmas tree with several blinky lights front and rear and have reflective tape all over my frame and spokes, but if I didn’t have that silly vest, I would be in violation of policy.

[trailrunner]

It’s days like today when I wish my commute home was not in the NW direction.

A couple of times I almost came to a complete stop doing an impromptu track stand in the headwind.

[trailrunner]

I’ve commuted on both road bikes and mountain bikes. I don’t think one is better than the other.

My current daily commuter is an old (1992) mountain bike that I’ve kept alive. I installed racks and fenders. With panniers on the racks, I can haul a lot of stuff, including food for breakfast and lunch, coffee, and clothes. If I needed to, carrying a laptop would be no problem. I’ve even hauled a new coffee maker on the back of my rack.

I’ve also commuted on an old road bike (Lemond Zurich) which was nice and moderately high performance for its time in 2000. No rack, no fenders, 700×23 tires. I’d carry whatever I needed in a backpack or a messenger bag. But when I used that bike, I’d drive in to work a couple of times of week and would haul some of my stuff in my car on those days. The nice thing about that bike is that it was faster and lighter than my old mtb, but OTOH, when I’m commuting, I don’t really care about speed.

[trailrunner]

I think I have a pair of m frames in my basement that I haven’t used in a while and don’t plan to use. I’ll check tonight when I get home.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[trailrunner]

I forgot that there is a relatively new trail on the west side on Meadowood. Although I run there all the time, I haven’t biked there, but the trail seems like it would be good for a beginner: smooth, tight, twisty, a few small hills, nothing too perilous. The loop is roughly four miles. There are three entry points, the easiest being the new parking lot on Gunston Road just to the east of Gunston elementary school.

[trailrunner]

Check out Laurel Hills. There is a nice network of trails, but nothing too technical, and the trails have a nice flow to them. I usually ride my cross bike or an old rigid mtb.

Wakefield is a step up, but still not too hard. Fountainhead would be the next step up. May be a little challenging for the complete new comer.

If you’re willing to venture to Maryland, I’d recommend Shaeffer Farm. The trails are intermediate (IMO), but nothing too hard, and if you take your time you will do fine. Check to ensure that the trails are open before you head out there.

[trailrunner]

When I’m commuting, and very often when I’m not, I use a front white blinky light. It seems to get a lot of attention. Before, people would often look right through me, and then do something dangerous like pull right out in front of me. With the blinky, I’ve noticed people will often look at me, start to creep, then notice my light and stop because they realize that there is a real person behind that light. A moving, blinking light is unique, so it helps distinguish me from the urban landscape.

[trailrunner]

@Powerful Pete 101515 wrote:

Ok guys, so how about a recommendations for a helmet mounted light? No need for a billion lumen or anything silly – I have a nice set of bar mounted front lights, but am interested in something that I could “aim” in the dark on the Custis or the last bit in my very dark neighborhood on the ride home. And preferably not more than $150.

I use a Light & Motion 200 for my daily commute but I’m not sure if it’s available any more. Before that, I used a Dinotte. I’ve been happy with both of those.

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