Tuesday Evening Ride - Twins

It's official, we're having two boys.

• Maryland was ranked 8th in the LAB's Bicycle Friendly states ranking. Virginia was 17th. Maybe they didn't see this bike rack in Maryland. 
• And I failed to mention it this morning, but Arlington ranked #23 in Bicycling Magazine's to 50 cities (up from #30 last time). And while most people I've heard from agree that DC is a good biking city, one commenter thinks it isn't, because it's hard to ride in Virginia and Maryland (which I would also agree with). 
• One thing remains bipartisan - going on long road bike rides. 
• The battle against senseless bollards goes to the County Board. 
• A bicyclist allegedly ran through a stop sign on the Washington & Old Dominion Trail at Ayr Hill Avenue, N.E., and was struck by a vehicle on May 10 at 5:59 p.m., Vienna police said.
• The Tour de Fat comes to Yards Park in June. " Tour de Fat is a thrilling rite of passage that includes an unparalleled costumed bicycle parade, New Belgium beer, dazzling entertainment, local food, unusual bike contests and much more. Coming to 15 cities across the country, Tour de Fat is coming to Washington, DC this year for the first time."
• Rooftop velodrome. 
• Scary
• Military bases should get more walkable and more bikable. 

Comments

[Kolohe]

Congrats.

[antibozo]

I would have ranked Arlington way ahead of D.C., and Virginia way ahead of Maryland. I ride from Wheaton over to Arlington to use the W&OD, Custis, MVT, and other trails.

[antibozo]

And congrats!

[washcycle]

The part of Arlington I ride in is as good as DC, but there is more to Arlington than that. And when I have to go somewhere outside the good areas, it gets very bad. So on average I think Arlington is not as bike friendly as DC, even though it's best parts are equal.

[contrarian]

Congratulations! Twins are a blast, a continuous experiment in nature vs. nurture (father of twins and twin speaking). Once you get past about two or so they become highly efficient -- same schedule, same clothes, same toys, etc.

Damn, I just sold my tandem trail-a-bike a couple of weeks ago. Had I known I would have saved it for you.

[Will]

Congrats!

Also, having worked as a volunteer for 3 Tours de Fat, I highly recommend helping out. The proceeds will go to WABA, so if you are in town, and amenable to serving beer and doing other volunteery stuff in costume, go sign up to work.

[JDAntos]

Congratulations!

[SJE]

Congratulations! You will appreciate bike riding even more.

[Michael H.]

Congratulations!

[Ross Patterson]

Congrats!

[Ross Patterson]

The W&OD crossing at Ayr Hill Ave. (right by the old train station in Vienna) is a moderately-busy intersection for both. Cars use it as part of a bypass for Maple Ave (Rt. 123), and of course bikes and peds use the trail. A lot of cyclists shoot right across the road, and a lot of drivers stop and wave us across. So it's a place just waiting for an accident like this.

Hope the cyclist is OK. "Minor injuries" can hurt more than they sound like :-(

[oboe]

re: Ayr Hill

No word on how fast the driver was going, of course.

[Christopher Fotos]

Mega-awesome congrats. Kids are the most important thing in the world.

[oboe]

Also, congrats WC. Twin boys should be fun.

[Crickey7]

Great news. Stay safe and let Mrs. Washcycle put the air conditioning at whatever temperature she wants.

[Shawn]

Congrats!

I agree with the naysayer about multi-use paths. On nights and weekends it's difficult to use them (aside from the ART) because of the numbers of people using them. I prefer roads during these times, and D.C.'s good for that.

[Keroicap]

Wash: What parts of Arlington do you have in mind? There are certainly roads that are not particularly bike-friendly (Lee Highway, Glebe, Columbia Pike, etc.) but when I lived in Arlington I never had much trouble finding a side street that would get me where I wanted to go.

Apart from trails, the huge advantage of both Arlington and DC over any of the outer suburbs is that both have a (rough) grid system to distribute traffic.

[Michael H.]

Arlington has also added many bike lanes over the past few years, with more on the way.

I think cycling in Arlington is pretty good. The major complaint I have is the lack of good north-south routes, other than the MVT. The planned Washington Blvd. trail (heading north from Columbia Pike) will improve things greatly, but I don't know when that trail will ever get built. There will be room for it as the Washington Blvd./Columbia Pike overpass is rebuilt.

The 10th St./Courthouse Rd. interchange construction project will also improve north-south cycling in the County. But that project won't be finished for perhaps a couple more years.

[washcycle]

Specifically I'm thinking of trying to get to my old car dealership at N. Braddock and Quaker Lane. I recall having to go a pretty ciruitous route up and down some hilly streets just to avoid the traffic sewers.

[antibozo]

I think D.C. deserves credit for cycling in general because of CaBi, so i suppose i won't begrudge the rating. But for just getting around i think Arlington's trail network is the best in the area, both in terms of its reach and its maintenance.

Montgomery is a constant disappointment. I finally checked out the ICC trail last weekend. It's a good thing i knew where i was going, since for the detour it takes on to Emory Lane and Georgia Avenue, there's no signage at all to tell you which way to go and when.

[I forgot]

@washcycle To get to Quaker and Braddock, take the MVT to FMR. From Glebe and Glebe, take the old bike route up Valley Dr. Quaker and Braddock is in Alexandria, as is all the "bad" riding up Valley Dr. Don't blame Arlington for this, or for the hill. Actually the riding is perfectly fine, except for the hill if that bothers you.

[washcycle]

I guess I should have pointed out I was coming from the Columbia Pike, which means going Valley is kind of out of the way. And telling me that the best route to a point that is on the Arlington/Alexandria border is in Alexandria doens't say much for Arlington. Further, while we're on it, Columbia Pike kinda sucks too, and there aren't any good alternatives.

[antibozo]

Could Walter Reed Dr. or Army Navy Dr. work?

[I forgot]

Walter Reed and up 28th and Abingdon through Fairlington seems appropriate.

[CyclingFool]

Just catching up from way too long not keeping up with your posts (thanks to having a six week old of my own now)... Anyway, just wanted to extend my congratulations!

[washcycle]

Congratulations right back at you.