bikewalk.net Blog

June 6, 2008

Comments

A friend once told me a long time ago that I should be blogging my commuting experiences. I never started because a) it’s more work for me; b) who cares anyway; and c) why a blog and not a podcast. Then along came Andrea and her documentary and the realization dawned on me that I might achieve some notoriety; people might be interested in my life and my choice of transportation. So please allow me to explain myself more than 8 minutes will allow.

Before I dive into this blog I should clarify my reasons for participating in the documentary. I have a car. I do not drive it to work. I hate driving, in fact. The only thing I consider extreme about driving is the extreme stupidity of the activity.

When I learned of Andrea’s project my first reaction was: Great this is going to be another tale of drivers sitting in traffic for hours on end, to drive to their homes in West Virginia, while experiencing economic hardship over the cost of fuel, and familial problems due to the 12 hours spent away from home. wank-wank-wank… I have already seen that movie and I know how it ends.

Why the hell should drivers get all the glory? I damn near get runover on a daily basis. I get no recognition for that. I have experienced hypothermia. I have (permanently) lost the sensation in the tips of toes and one or two fingers. Where’s the respect for that?

Why people choose to torture themselves for hours on end, sitting in traffic when they could be doing something better with there lives—spending time in nature, or with their kids, or spouse….

Route home

Capital Crescent Trail to Beach Drive to Park Road to Home.
Heavy & not quite hot. I chose a longer route home to pack in a few more miles. May and June will be busy months at work. My conditioning is going to suffer as a result. Gotta grab miles when and where I can.

I was returning my laptop home, so between that, my clothes, and my tools, I had about 25 lbs on my back to slow my progress.

A guy on a Cannondale cyclocross (or touring) bike with fenders decided he had something to prove to me. There is a location where the unpaved portion of the CC Trail crosses Connecticut Avenue. If you have bike this portion of the trail you will remember the crossing. You can press the WALK button all you like, but you will still be waiting 5 minutes to cross the road.

Oh, and before you set wheel or foot in the crosswalk, best be sure to check that all three or four lanes of southbound traffic has stopped. A red light and a WALK signal is no guarantee of safety.

So I was there with the WALK signal, doing my due diligence of staring down the drivers to make sure they stopped for the light, when I got snaked on the outside by this guy. Whatever. I have seen this hundred times. My road bike, my team jersey, and my leisurely pace on the unpaved trail is taken as an invitation by anyone on a cyclocross bike to blow past me at 25 mph. (As a sidebar: that 15mph speed limit on the paved CC Trail is a joke.)

Since this world already has enough asshole cyclists, I decided to proceed at a prudent speed.

The remainder of the commute was typical for that route: a massive backup at the intersection of Jones Mill/Beach Driver and 410 East-West Highway; motor vehicles operated in blatant disregard for the speed limit in the Park and the safety of other road users (passing me around blind curves) on Beach Drive; and a crappy road surface. The National Park Service really does need to do a better job of enforcing the speed limit (25mph) and monitoring behavior at stop signs.