Monday Evening Ride - Less bussing

Happy Labor Day. When I was a kid, this was always the last day before school started, so it always had this air of pending doom. Now it doesn't feel that way anymore, even though I'm still going to work tomorrow.

• A new NoMa apartment building, only blocks from the Met Branch Trail, will include a bike workshop.
• Richard Layman proposes rerouting the Met Branch Trail off of 8th NE and onto 9th. I'm not sure I see the need, but I think making 9th a bicycle boulevard and converting the alley along the NW side of Franklin into a bike connection are two good ways to complement the Trail. I remain hopeful that some day the trail can be routed along the CSX tracks in the section.
• The current state of the Suitland Parkway Trail.
• "East end of Interim CCT just got a makeover. Brush cleared back, graded, bench repaired. Thanks MCDOT"
• More on Arlington's new green bike lanes. And Arlington County PD was recognized as having the best traffic safety program in Virginia, for municipal police departments with 301 to 450 sworn officer, in part because of their bicycle and pedestrian safety initiative.
• The Friends of Long Bridge Park submitted a petition to the Arlington County Board asking that funding be provided for, among other things, "a pedestrian/bicycle bridge over the George Washington Memorial Parkway to the Mount Vernon Trail."
• Many cyclists = good environment for smoothie shop.
• Arlington Public Schools is enforcing its rule "that reserve bus transportation for students a mile or more away from their elementary school and 1.5 miles or more away from their middle or high school, "those inside the walk zones must walk, bike or otherwise find their own transportation to school." Some parents are not pleased "They argue that forcing their children to walk to school — sometimes over busy roads — risks their safety." Sounds like a lot of new supporters of Safe Routes to Schools. 
• Bad bollard replacement.
• "Vienna Police have arrested a man for allegedly intentionally striking a cyclist with his vehicle after a dispute on Maple Avenue while both were in motion."
• "FABB, GMU, and Fairfax County have been meeting over the past month to plan the Fairfax Bike Summit to be held on October 27."
• More photos of Metro bike parking. 
• The Two Rivers development, which will include a new section of the WB&A Trail, may undergo some changes.
• Another review of Just Ride. There is some good advice there, but personally I enjoy tracking my miles. But then, I'm an engineer and I can never get too many metrics.
• US DOT recognizes that transportation plays a role in health and fitness. 
• "Once the highway network is completed, an estimated 15,000 additional people will switch from driving to biking. And that, say officials, will have a direct impact on the environment, public health and finances. The bike highway alone is expected to save Copenhagen's health care system some $60 million a year."

Comments

[Wayne Phyillaier]

"Interim CCT just got a makeover" --

Now, if only we can get it extended beyond Lyttonsville into Silver Spring.

[dynaryder]

Grant can bite me. I missed the 8 gears thing when I thumbed through it at B&N. My commute used to take me up Nebraska/Loughboro from Sibley hospital to the traffic circle at AU. I'll keep my 3x9 drivetrain,thank you.

[Kolohe]

And the Suitland parkway pic understates things; that section is at least clear and smooth (down the middle). There's still derecho debris, possibly pre-derecho debris(iirc) a little closer to Sheridan. And bad tree root uplift and general erosion throughout.

[MM]

@Kolohe

I took the Suitland Pkwy photo...you're right it definitely doesn't capture all that's wrong with that trail. It was like an obstacle course of overgrowth, downed branches, and deteriorated pavement. I found it really disappointing, since there has been a decent amount of development in that area, particularly on the southern end by St. Elizabeths and the Anacostia Metro, that the trail could be touted as a great amenity. And it could be easily linked to the ART and be a nice commuter corridor. If only...

On a related note, I encourage folks to spend some time riding EOTR. On weekend mornings, it's very quiet and the hills make for some very challenging rides. And getting to see tons of families out, taking walks and headed to the parks for picnics and BBQs really defeats the "crime-ridden no-man's land" stereotype that so many people cling to.

[Thoughtful]

I think you mean "busing." "Bussing" would be old-timey kissing!

[washcycle]

According to my dictionary, both bussing and busing are correct.

[Read Scott Martin]

@MM re East of the River, +1,000. Compare with Macarthur Boulevard and Rock Creek Parkway routes into Maryland. More frequent hills, longer hills, closer to the neighborhoods east of the Mall, minus much of the traffic density and driver hostility/cluelessness of the rest of the city and northern burbs, and the crowded trail issues such as Capital Crescent has on weekends. Until Suitland gets fixed up, safe routes over the Beltway are near Wheeler Road/St Barnabas and on Darcy Road and take you to Maryland countryside.

[Crikey7]

As formulated in this review of Just Ride, I can agree with at least some of it. But in general, it's kind of a mishmash, like when he offers on the number of gears--that makes sense largely to people who will never read his book. Then he makes a point of ticking off the ways more serious riders who might actually read his book are, in his opinion, wrong. And he's downright hostile to those who like to ride racing bikes.

[I forgot]

Does the number of cogs in your rear cluster really matter? What's important is only the range. The only time I get into my small chainring around here is up 41st Street. Eight suitable gears should be fine, but is hard to achieve with derailleur systems. Back in the days, you could get good ranges in 2x5 systems and superior ranges with 3x5 gearing. Of course there is no problem going with larger numbers of cogs except its harder to dial in 10 cogs systems with friction shifters.

[oboe]

Lot of things that are just plain *odd* in the latest from the Retrogrouch from Rivendell:

One of the problems with becoming a serious bike rider is that you stop going for short rides because somewhere along the line it sinks in - falsely - that a ride you don't have to suit up for doesn't count.

Sounds like the "you" here he's talking about is Grant P. Certainly not anyone I know. Whether you ride for utility in addition to training probably has more to do with where you live than anything else.

How many times have you been told to 'eat before you're hungry, drink before you're thirsty'? Eating before you're hungry will make you fat - no surprise there. Drinking before you're thirsty will make you pee a lot. It's unnatural, too.

If you're riding short distances, you probably don't need to drink/eat anything on your bike. If you're riding for more than an hour, you want to eat before you're hungry. Likely drink before your thirsty too. If you're on a multi-hour ride and you wait to eat until you're "hungry", then you're pretty much fucked.

My take on Grant is that he washed out as a competitive racer, but was unable to get over it like most do, and that his failure had quite the traumatic effect on him. So now anyone wearing Lycra or using a saddle with a synthetic cover is "the enemy".

[oboe]

Eating before you're hungry will make you fat - no surprise there...

Figure on a moderate-paced bike ride you're burning 800 calories an hour. Eat a 240 calorie Cliff Bar every 45 minutes (which is about as much as your body can absorb while exercising).

Yup, that's a recipe for gettin' fat alright. :)

[MM]

"Drinking before you're thirsty will make you pee a lot. It's unnatural, too...but if you do choose to hydrate during a ride, don't buy one of those 'racing' bottles, head on over to rivbike.com and pick up one of our 'unracer' bottles made from reclaimed old-timey shoe leather and wrapped in recycled tweed. Only $99.95 + S/H"

Fixed.

[@jtedc]

"A new NoMa apartment building, only blocks from the Met Branch Trail, will include a bike workshop."

You mean block, not blocks, from the Met Branch Trail.