TheWashCycle

Volunteer for the Total 200 Ride

The Total 200 Ride is a fully supported double century  (200 mile of 200 kilometer options) bike ride that starts and ends at Anacostia Park and takes riders on a loop through southern Maryland. The event is scheduled for this Saturday.

Total 200 is an event of ReachAbove, an organization that raises funds for charities through athletic events. This year, Total 200, once again is proud to join hands with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation in their efforts to SAVE THE BAY. Proceeds from this year's Total 200 ride will go to help build a sustainable bay for today, tomorrow and the future.

They're looking for volunteers

Want to help out and volunteer on June 14 at Total 200? We'd love to have you at this ULTIMATE ONE DAY bike ride... 200 miles and 200 kilometers! Get $50 off registration next year when you volunteer this year. 

 

Sign up here: http://total200.com/Volunteers

Get more info here: http://total200.com/Volunteers/Roles
Here's the route: http://total200.com/The_Ride/Route_Map

Arlington Fun Ride this Saturday. Volunteers Needed.

The Arlington Fun Ride is this Saturday. And it is really two rides in one

1) leaving at 8am, the full Arlington Loop (~17 miles) with pit stops; or

2) the Family Ride, run by Kidical Mass Arlington, meeting at 10am (3.5 miles, mostly flat). Both leave from and return to Crystal City (18th St S and Crystal Dr).

They need volunteers to marshall the ride and perform other tasks. I believe there is a T-shirt in it for you.

Carbon-based bicycle counters needed in Arlington

From Arlington's Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator.

More volunteers are still needed to help out with this year’s annual pedestrian and bicycle counting efforts.  Yes, we do have an awesome array of super hi-tech automatic counters out there that can do that now.  But some things just can’t be counted by machine:  Who’s wearing helmets and who is not?  Who’s on their way to work vs. who’s just out for exercise?  Male? Female? Other?  Also, manual counts help us understand the accuracy of our automated counters and calibrate them.

Please sign up or encourage your friends and family to sign up.  It’s easier than working the polls and hurts less than giving blood!

Volunteer on Thurs, 9-12 or/and Sat, 9-14. Morning and afternoon times are available. Training/orientation is provided. To sign up or for more information, contact [email protected]

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=584655978257145&set=a.245124315543648.60837.127603117295769&type=1

WABA looking for help with Met Branch Trail event

WABA writes

We are looking for volunteers to be our support team for the following three roles:

-Clean Up Crew Leader: These volunteers will work closely with our Trail Rangers to lead small clean up crews of participants during the event. Tasks will include managing clean up participants for the event, handing out tools, and making sure clean up participants are performing their tasks. You would meet up with the Trail Ranger Coordinators at 11:00am at the Brookland Metro on August 17^th and be done at about 3:00pm.

- Check-In Captain: These volunteers will manage the check-in station for all clean up participants. Trail Ranger Coordinators will give you a brief training of check-in responsibilities and you will check in participants, have them sign a waiver, and direct them to their clean up crew when they arrive. You would meet up with the Trail Ranger Coordinators at 11:40am at the Brookland Metro on August 17^th and be done at about 12:30pm, when you would be invited to stick around and help us clean up the trail.

-Met Branch Trail Spokesperson: These volunteers will help a WABA staff member table at the NoMa BeerFest event (at 1250 First St NE) in the afternoon of Saturday August 17^th. We are seeking folks who are very familiar with the MBT and would enjoy talking to event goers about the trail, access points, planning and advocacy around the trail. There are two shifts, one from 1:30pm to 4pm, and another from 4pm to 6:30pm.

 

Tuesday Morning Commute - breaking records

Good morning

• Why is congestion down in the DC area? While the Post said it was all due to new road projects, Barbara McCann, a member of the MoveDC Transportation Plan Advisory Committee, credited shorter commutes and more biking for part of the improvement.
• More on the PG County transportation funding "$26 million for pedestrian and bicycle improvements on Branch Avenue, Naylor Road, MD 201 and Queens Chapel Road."
• Volunteer with iCan Bike "iCan Bike is a camp designed to teach children with disabilities how to ride a two-wheeled bicycle. With their adapted bicycles, specialized instructional program, and trained staff and volunteers, we're able to get most participants up and riding on a two-wheel bicycle in 5 days."

Monday Afternoon Commute - Karaoke

Good afternoon

• The DC BACs bi-monthly meeting is this Wednesday.
• DC Bike Party celebrates it's 1 year anniversary with a bike birthday party.
• Also, bike karaoke.
• "Local commissioners from ANC 3D will vote on the New Mexico Avenue NW bike lane at this month's meeting on Wed., July 10th. Your attendance and voice of support is needed!"
• Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley promotes transportation projects in Prince George's County including "$46 million for several bicycle, pedestrian and safety improvements along various roads in Prince George’s, including U.S Route 1 in College Park." Of that, $20 million will be used buy right-of-way for a bicycle and pedestrian trail along U.S. 1 from College Avenue to Md. 193 in College Park.
• The Alexandria Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee is still looking for volunteers for documentation project counts Thursday July 11th (5-7pm) and SaturdayJuly 13th (12-2pm).  Go to their webpage for additional information:  www.bicycle.alexandria.va.us/  
• Takoma Metro development plan will include a bicycle station with parking for 105 bikes. I don't know if the Met Branch Trail design has been finalized yet, but one of the preferred alternatives called for a sidepath through this area. 
• Surprise! Bike share in NYC is a big success. Though ABC got a little confused on the facts in DC. "Washington D.C. began its program in 2008 with 120 bikes and 10 stations. It has expanded to 1,800 bikes and more than 200 stations." And despite trippling bike parking in Boston, it can't keep up with demand. 
• Bike helmet made from recycled newspaper.

Monday Morning Commute - Beshot

Good morning

• A new bicycle-friendly gate has been installed at the Water Street entrance to the Capital Crescent Trail. [Photos here]
• Alexadria is looking for volunteers for bicycle and pedestrian counts in July.
• This isn't really a biking story, it's more of an unsafe gun handling story, but yeah, a cyclist was riding along in Herndon when a handgun discharged as it was being loaded inside a house and the cyclist was shot in the abdomen. The cyclist was taken to a hospital for surgery. John E. Albers, 49, was charged with willfully discharging a firearm in a public place resulting in injury and taken to the county detention center. This is why we need to register bikes.
• A 66-year-old was riding a bicycle Friday afternoon along the shoulder of Route 1 in Bethany Beach. Reportedly, she tried to cross over the northbound lanes of the highway in a diagonal direction into the path of vehicles. One vehicle was able to brake and swerve to avoid hitting her. That maneuver forced another vehicle to brake and swerve to the left, striking her. She was thrown from the bicycle and died at the scene.

Tuesday Afternoon Commute - Free High Fives

Good afternoon

• Support a trail connection between Carlin Springs Road and the W&OD Trail. 
• WABA is awarded an REI/Bikes Belong grant.
• A well-reasoned argument in support of expanding CaBi in Alexandria versus the one woman who opposes it. 
• I hate it when this happens.
• DC has installed 18 of the planned 54 CaBi expansion stations. 
• The new Bike to Work Day T-shirt. And Bike Month starts tomorrow.
• The Landmark Mall redevelopment in Alexandria isn't as friendly to cyclists and pedestrians as some might want. With Holmes Run Trail just north of the property, they're missing a real opportunity by not building a connection to it. A connection from the Trail alont Shirley Highway and the ramp to Walker street (with a small path to a bike parking facility at the Mall) seems like a no brainer. 
• Sigh..."The American Association of Neurological Surgeons reports that more sports-related head injuries in 2009 occurred on bicycles than on football, baseball, and softball fields combined." Which would be relevant if I knew how much time people spent on the activities. There are probably more gun deaths related to hunting accidents than to gunslinger elimination tournaments, but that doesn't tell me much about which is safer.  
• "A volunteer who often pedals more than 30 miles a day assisting hikers along a popular southwest Virginia trail is being recognized by the U.S. Forest Service."
• London's low-line.

Alexandria needs bike counters

Alexandria’s bike/pedestrian counting project has been helpful for documenting increases in bicycling and walking/running in the past two years. This project informs the City’s transportation planning efforts, such as documenting the need for new bike lanes and new bike routes. We need volunteers to keep this effort going on May 9 (5 to 7 PM) and May 11 (12 to 2 PM). Please see below and respond to Amos Desjardins ([email protected]) or Jim Durham ([email protected]) with questions or to sign up.

Review our count locations below, and shown on the attached map, and let us know your preferences. Early requests usually get their pick.  

A - Mount Vernon Trail just south the intersection with the Marina road.
B1 - Mount Vernon Trail just south of the WWB at MV parkway
B2 - Mouth of WWB trail West side
C - Mt Vernon Ave South of 4 mile run
D - Intersection of Commonwealth and Mount Vernon Avenues.
E – Off-Street trail between Braddock and King Metrorail Stations
F - Eisenhower Avenue just west of the Spring Hill Suites
G - North Beauregard Street just south of the intersection with King St.
H1 - Holmes Run Trail, along Holmes Run Parkway near North Ripley St.
H2 - Holmes Run Trail at the intersection of N Pickett/Holmes Run Pkwy 
I - Van Dorn St just N of Metrorail overpass and S of Eisenhower
J - Cameron Street just west of the intersection with Washington St.
K - Prince Street just west of the intersection with Washington St.
L – Slater's Lane just west of Portner Rd

COG Seeks Area Residents for Regional Air and Climate Group

From a press release. I would do this, if I weren't already over-subscribed. It would be a good place to get a bike advocate or two.

Are you interested in topics like clean energy, air quality, climate change, and sea level rise?  Do you want to get involved the public policy process?

You could be a great fit for the region’s Air and Climate Public Advisory Committee. ACPAC advises on air quality, climate, and energy issues to policy committees of the Council of Governments.  This means ACPAC members get to learn about and share input on a variety of regional plans, including transportation priorities and electric vehicles. Members also regularly hear presentations from state and local environmental officials and groups like the American Lung Association, Natural Resources Defense Council, and the Georgetown Climate Center.

ACPAC is currently looking for new members with a variety of backgrounds and interests. The group consists of 18 members, 6 each from D.C., Maryland and Virginia. For 2013, there are 4 openings (1 in DC, 1 in MD and 2 in VA). If you are interested in joining ACPAC, please fill out its online form by January 11.

ACPAC meets monthly at the Council of Governments. The COG offices are at 777 North Capitol Street NE in Washington, DC, 1 ½ blocks from the Union Station Metro Red Line. Underground parking is also available. For more information see the ACPAC description online.