[txgoonie]

HIT
Rapha: Don’t hate. They’re pretentious. They’re overpriced. Whatevs. I waited for their annual sale last year and got a few keys piece, all of which I absolutely love. The stuff is made ridiculously well and it fits like a glove. It’s all about fit when deciding between manufacturers. I have a small torso and with wide shoulders and monkey arms, and Rapha just fits me. The wool jersey fits like it was custom-made. The wool baselayer is a revelation. And the wind jacket is effective and reflective.

Wool: See above. Also a big fan of Smartwool socks.

Light and Motion: Urban 550 and Vis 180. Rechargeable. Good battery life. Light. Easy to attach and remove.

Bell: Now that I use one, I don’t know why I waited so long. Dinging is much more effective than “on your left.”

Fort Hunt Park: Hains Point is THE place to see and be seen to do intervals in DC, but just a jaunt down the MVT is Fort Hunt. It’s about 10-15 minutes longer to get there for me, but the generally smaller crowd and one stop sign (and light presence of popo) make it a really nice place to do uninterrupted workouts.

MISS
Specialized bottle cages with Camelback thermal bottles: It’s damn near impossible to get the Cambelbacks out of Specialized cages with out twisting and yanking and running your bike all over the road. The cages are great for plain Jane bottles and hold them snug over rough terrain. But it’s a bummer that I can’t use the thermals when it’s super hot out.

Kenda tubes: Unreliable. They just suck.

MEH
Ergon grips. Sometimes I like the larger platform, like when I’m cruising on flats on the MTB. Sometimes they don’t feel ergonomic at all. I’ve tweaked the angle a bunch of times and still aren’t sure about them.

[txgoonie]

Will let the link speak for itself.

http://thermajock.com/

[txgoonie]

Wasn’t sure if I should start a new thread or tack onto another one. Anyway, thought some of you might like to see some early info about the winter riding boots some of us have heard about: 45Nrth Wölvhammer

http://gearjunkie.com/wolvhammer-bike-boot-45nrth

[txgoonie]

@eminva 37729 wrote:

Because I was so new at it, I liked the pace because I was still trying to remember to say “Car Back” and all that stuff. However, as I get more accustomed to riding with a group, I might find that I would like to go at a faster pace and I’m not sure what the ettiquete is about finding the perfectly paced group of cycling companions. I wouldn’t want to slow down a faster group so I’m not inclined to try one. Although they could just drop me; I’ve got an iPhone and the map feature sorta works.

Liz

Would be good to join Potomac Pedalers. They have rides at every level, so as you improve, you can graduate to the next faster group.

2013 will be my first year competing, so I’m going to working on my group riding a lot, too.

[txgoonie]

I heard that the Coppi ride leaving from JavaShack on Sunday at 8:30 is still on.

[txgoonie]

@Arlingtonrider 37559 wrote:

I think a lot of women who grew up with bikes are enjoying re-discovering them.

This. I was the only girl in my neighborhood and had an older brother that I was always copying, so I don’t know if my experience is typical or not. However, I can say that a couple of years ago when I decided that I wanted to mountain bike, part of the reason was that I still had sense memory of what riding was like as a kid — free, fast, fun — that I wanted to recapture. The mountain bikey crowd has heard me complain that the local MTB group does a really poor job of cultivating new riders, particularly women. Women’s fields in competitive cycling are dwarfed by the men. It’s a problem across the board.

I won’t be in town on the 23rd but I wil donate and ride in solidarity!

[txgoonie]

The reactions I get really run the gamut — from folks genuinely interested in it to the almost imperceptible eye rolls from those I know are the ones cutting me off in traffic. More often than not, people don’t say anything and try not to react — this is Crystal City after all. But the elevator doors in our building are mirrors. So people look at me not directly but via the elevator doors, thinking I can’t see them looking

[txgoonie]

That’s a bummer. The shop is essentially across the street from my office building, so I’m in there rather frequently for minor adjustments, parts and to grab waffles ‘n stuff when I need them. They’re always willing to answer my questions, and I invariably get in a conversation while there. It’s a nice resource to have just a hop off the MVT. Seems like the CC/Pentagon City area could certainly support a traditional bike shop.

[txgoonie]

@GuyContinental 37428 wrote:

If she has a circulatory problem, standard winter glove fare isn’t going to cut it (maybe Moose Mitts). I have some serious circulatory issues from years of mountaineering (frost bite) and too many years doing winter whitewater paddling and have been tempted by these:

http://cozywinters.com/shop/heated-cycling-gloves.html

I have a friend with Raynaud’s Syndrome, and he just got a chance to test out the WarmGear gloves at Cap Cross and was very pleased with them. From his FB post:
“Got to test out the new battery heated gloves at yesterday’s race. First impression is good….they kept my hands warm enough (outside temp was ~40 deg) and provided very good dexterity for shifting/braking. I would recommend them to anyone that has circulation issues and races/rides bikes in cold weather. This is the only glove I have found that works and isn’t overly bulky.”

If you’re someone who suffers from cold hands, it may be worth it. If your hands or feet or ears are cold, it’s misery. I too do the liner under the PI lobster claws, but with the same effect as GuyContinental. I bought skiing gloves end of season last year and will be trying those out too. (Anybody wanna start a cold toes thread, cuz that my real issue;-)

[txgoonie]

I would just try to remember that you’re a cycling advocate 24-7, so something that might seem like no big deal might be yet another reinforcement of a pissy driver’s perception that all cyclists are scofflaws. Just be sensitive to our uphill battle to coexist with motor vehicles.

#1 – I’m cool with that; I’d just be ultra careful. Folks will not be checking their mirrors, I can guarantee. #2 – see my above point. You don’t have to put your foot down, but proceeding on your merry way without some acknowledgment of the stop sign will piss drivers off. Cyclists ignore stop lights on Potomac Ave in CC all the time in a situation similar to this — without even a break in pedaling or a nod toward the intersection. It gets my hackles up less b/c of safety (it’s generally safe to blow the light) and more b/c of the message it sends to our opposing demographic. #3 – if there’s no reason for you to blow that light aside from you just want to get across faster, I’d say that’s a no go. Cars wait at lights. Bikes can wait at lights, too.

[txgoonie]

To follow up on this story: apparently the couple is not faring too well. He has multiple broken bones; she is in a medically-induced coma with possible brain damage. To top it off, the young man who hit them with his truck was uninsured. This is not going to play out well for them.

In a horrible irony, this info is coming from the lawyer I had to get after I was hit by an uninsured driver.

It’s worth a phone call to your insurance company to see if you have Uninsured Motorist Insurance on your policy. You probably don’t, but it’s often an option.

Be safe and prepared out there! Send good thoughts to the couple for speedy recovery!

[txgoonie]

Should be tons of fun when the Conte’s rides start up again!

[txgoonie]

I find that in the same situation people will try to pass just as often on the right, either while you’re waiting at the light or at the moment the light turns. It happens a lot when you’re waiting at a light in a bike lane. ELITE biker rolls up behind you, does an assessment and determines you must be slower. Either proceeds through the gap between you and curb and lines up alongside or in front of you, or they sprint past on the right when the light turns, so you have cars passing on the left and cyclists passing on the right. It’s awesome. I feel such respect emanating from the ELITEs every time it happens :-l

[txgoonie]

Oh, it’s totally ridiculous what he’s doing on a road bike, don’t get me wrong. But I wouldn’t try to ride the top of a fence on clipless pedals (and neither would he).

[txgoonie]

Yeah, it might be a road frame, but that bike is still tricked out for trials. Despite what they say, it’s not at all the same bike that Bradley Wiggins would ride.

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