Ten for Tuesday - Thor is 83rd

1. I went on a ride around the Anacostia recently, to see where the Riverwalk would go in. One part of the Riverwalk will go along the Navy Yard Promenade.  I took this photo of one end of the promenade (under the 11th Street Bridge). It'll be a real miracle if this opens to bike/ped uses. Since 9/11 everything has been closing (I used to run around the portico at the Capitol), and this will be first thing I can think of to really buck the trend.

2. DC is continuing its Street Smart campaign. This article (Taking Steps to a Pedestrian-Friendly D.C.) focused mostly on pedestrian issues, but it also discusses cycling safety.

Two years ago, the city launched Street Smart for Kids, which uses volunteers from the Washington Area Bicyclist Association to train schoolchildren in pedestrian and bicycle safety. Part of the training is done at intersections and sidewalks near schools, Branyan said.

3. This article (Rock Creek's Scenic Drive Battered) about how the July 3rd flooding impacted Rock Creek Park, features a quote from frequent Wash Cycle commenter - and fellow bike blogger - Joel Gwadz.

"Euphoric" is how Joel Gwadz described his Beach Drive bike commute this week. Gwadz, 39, lives in Mount Pleasant and works in the computer department at CBS News at 20th and M streets NW. The prospect of Beach Drive being closed to traffic was so alluring that he went north -- in the opposition direction of his downtown job -- to spend additional time on the road.

"Everyone was smiling and grinning," Gwadz recalled. "People were waving to each other. Everyone was really enjoying it."

The closure of the road offered a glimpse of what would happen if the National Park Service shut down segments of Beach Drive during off-peak weekday travel periods, as the Washington Area Bicyclist Association has been lobbying for it to do for years.

"I know the people who drive that road have been really ticked off, but I've loved it," said Samantha Smith, 38, who rode her bike this week between her Adams Morgan home and the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, where she works as a psychologist.

"It's like a dream come true," she said, describing the joy of rolling down an empty exit ramp onto a vacant Beach Drive. "It is really like my fantasy world. No cars, no noise."

I was surprised to find that Gwadz could talk in normal sentences instead of his signature, stream-of-conciousness writing style.

4. Did you know that a bike trail caused Howard Dean to change religions?

In 1980, Dean, then a practicing doctor in Burlington, caught wind that a local real estate developer was planning to build a pair of high-rise condominiums on the shore of the lake. Along with a Burlington lawyer named Rick Sharp, Dean began to campaign against the project, proposing in its place a scenic nine-mile bike trail. "He became a crusader," says Sharp. Dean went door to door with leaflets; he stood in the street with petitions; he cleared brush and laid bricks. Then, the hard part began: getting the land for the bike trail--a fight that ultimately wound its way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Part of the struggle involved convincing the local Episcopal diocese to cede ownership of a stretch of old railroad tracks that ran across their property. When the church first resisted, threatening to join a lawsuit, "Howard went to talk to them into it," says Sharp. Thanks to Dean's persistence, the Episcopalians eventually succumbed. But their initial resistance left a bad taste in Dean's mouth.

As Dean has described it in recent months, the dispute over the bike path caused him to break with the Episcopal Church and become a Congregationalist. It's hard to imagine this story will resonate with religious voters, because very few people would untether themselves from their spiritual home over a bike path. Indeed, when Dean first explained his denominational switch on ABC's "This Week," George Stephanopoulos was incredulous: "Over the bike path?"

5. For it's road trip feature, the post has been branching out from driving (maybe they saw An Inconvienent Truth) promoting bike rides, scooter trips, hikes and the like. Two weeks ago they did one entitled Bike the Mount Vernon Trail. It's a great ride, and once you get south of the Wilson Bridge the crowds thin out.

6. Everyone is crazy about pedicabs, from DCist to the Times.

7. Richard Layman makes the point that "bikes are better."

People would send me stuff about scooters, Segways, etc. and I would always respond, "a bike is better." Sure, a bike is better than a scooter or a Segway for most settings, but that isn't the point.

In a city, for a lot of things, a bike is better than a car. And, now that you can take a bike on buses, and on the subway except for certain times of the day, you get further enhanced mobility that is relatively time-efficient.

There is some discussion about the Smart Car, and the response from some is "a bike is better." But the Smart Car isn't about bicyclists. It's about people who already have cars.

Then he lists transportation options from best to worst (?) - if so, I'd move some things around.

walking
bicycling
Segways?
scooters/Vespas
transit
- bus
- rapid bus
- light rail/streetcar
- subway
driving
- car (usually big)
- cars (usually many in a household)
- shared cars
- Motorcycles
railroad

I've always recognized that not everyone is going to bike - just like not everyone is going to watch "Lost" - even though most should. A city full of smart cars would probably be good for cyclists. I mean, would they even knock you over if they hit you?

8. I went for a ride out the W&OD trail on June 9th, and was pleasantly surprised to see that in less than a week they had built a temporary bridge to serve as a bypass for the bridge damaged in the flood.

9. Maryland has free bike maps of the state. You can order them here.

10. The Tour de France is going on and my favorite, Thor Hushovd, is in a disappointing 83rd. (I have to root for someone named Thor). Lance Armstrong's old team is still sponsored by Discovery Channel, HQed in Maryland. In an article, Cycling Magnate, in the Post, they profile Discovery Networks president Billy Campbell.

What's it like riding with a cycling icon?

Well, it's humbling. . . . It is almost like I'm riding a tricycle and he's riding a bike. About a year ago in Austin, he took me out riding and we were coming down a hill, and I realized this might be my only time to ever pass Lance Armstrong. So he was kind of relaxing and I kind of zoomed by him. And within two cycle spins, he came up behind me, grabbed me by the jersey and said, "What do you think you're doing?" He showed me how quickly he could go right by me.

Also, I was curious as to why there was no "Women's Tour de France." The race does so much for tourism why not expand it? I found this.

Tour du Parks Baltimore

p>You could, if so interested, probably spend every Saturday and Sunday riding your bike in some official or semi-official ride in the DC area without repeating yourself all year. Between club rides, charity rides, races, WABA rides, and community rides we're almost drowning in organized rides. Still, there is no signature ride in the area like the Five Boro Bike Tour in New York City (which I haven't done, but want to do) or RAGBRAI in Iowa (which I have done, and is great fun).

WABA used to sponsor BikeDC, which served that purpose, the one can't miss bike ride in the area.  But it has been a victim of hurricanes and the post-9-11 security push.

Because of the unique security challenges we now face in DC, the number of agencies and jurisdictions involved in the permitting process for the event has increased dramatically.  Accordingly, WABA needs to take time out in 2005 to evaluate whether to continue the event in the future or to achieve our goals in other ways.

Sure, there's the 50 States Ride (Aug 26), Bike-In Movie (Aug 5), and Booth's Escape Ride (Oct 21 - You'll bike right by my house, isn't that exciting?) but those are, by nature, limited to experienced riders, people who can get dates, or people who shot Lincoln.

Baltimore, on the other hand, has a ride called the Tour du Parks. Now I for one, am not a fan of bike rides (or races) that use a variation of the Tour du France name - lacks creativity, but still the ride sounds like fun and I'll look at doing it next year.

“If I had friends coming into town, this is what I’d do to show them the city,” said Michael Abrams. “It’s the full spectrum of nature and urban landscape.”  About 350 amateur bicyclists — from grade-schoolers to Social Security recipients, but mostly 20- to 50-somethings — came with small groups of friends Sunday for the Tour du Parks, a social morning of exercise.

The big selling point of BikeDC was the street closures, and on the 4th it was nice riding around the Mall without any traffic.  It sounds like the Baltimore ride stayed off the roads, but I have to think that a ride could be put together that would close a few roads early on a Saturday morning. They seemed to be able to close the streets for Marathons.

I wonder, if I wanted one ride that would show out-of-towners the city, what would it include. The Mall, the Capitol and the White House obviously. Georgetown. Capitol Hill and Eastern Market Neighborhoods. The Anacostia Waterfront. Rock Creek. DuPont Circle, Adams Morgan and U Street. Old town Anacostia. I think that's doable.

Ten for Tuesday - 230th birthday edition

1. Here's a great photo from the Silver Spring (singular) criterium a few weeks ago and more can be found here.

The Gazette covered the race.

Also happy were the event’s organizers, including Susan Hoffman, marketing and special events manager for downtown Silver Spring. The second year of the event drew larger crowds than the year before, and the hope exists that the Grand Prix of Silver Spring will become a permanent fixture of the summer.

‘‘It brings people downtown, which is exactly what we want to do,” Hoffman said. ‘‘We’re ready for primetime, and we want people from outside the area to come here.”

2. Here's the photo of the 10 foot long bike lane on Massachusetts just north of Thomas Circle. The sign reads "Bike Land Ends" (though Bike is a picture of a bike).

3. Another product recall, this time for Specialized bicycle stems

The bicycle stem is black with the words "S-Works" and "Magnesium Faceplate" printed on it.

4. Reconstruction of the Marvin Gaye Park Trail began June 24th.

the city began work on a 1.6-mile walking and bicycling trail that will connect the northeast corner of the District with a network of regional trails. The $3.1 million project will include lighting, emergency call buttons and other safety measures. The trail was first constructed in 1978, but it was long neglected and became polluted and dangerous.

In time, the paved path will be lighted and widened for walkers, cyclists and skaters and better marked where it crosses streets.

The city has been aggressively encouraging cycling and commuting by bike. In addition to the Marvin Gaye path, the city will break ground next month on a section of the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail from the Navy Yard to Benning Road in Southeast. The city is also planning work on the Metropolitan Branch Trail, which follows Metro's Red Line from Union Station to Silver Spring, said Jim Sebastian, the Transportation Department's bicycle and pedestrian coordinator.

5. Here's a photo of the "mystery bridge" along the NE Branch Trail. It's been sitting there for four months if not longer and I haven't any idea where it's to end up. If you know, leave it in the comments. On the left side of the photo is a wooden bridge. The new bridge seems way too big to replace the wooden one.

6. San Francisco is having trouble implementing their bike plan.

Superior Court Judge James Warren issued a preliminary injunction this week at the request of two groups, Coalition for Adequate Review and 99 Percent, which are seeking greater public review of the bicycle plan. The plan, approved last year by the Board of Supervisors and Mayor Gavin Newsom, is designed to make the streets of San Francisco more bicycle-friendly by creating more dedicated bike lanes and places to securely stow bikes.

The injunction bars the city  --  at least temporarily  --  from creating new bike lanes, changing the timing of traffic signals to accommodate cyclists, and restricting or removing on-street parking to benefit bike

7. Also along the NE branch trail, the town of Edmonston built a park sign dedicating the park to the town's veterans (see left) and moved the gazeebo (see right) at Decatur Street.

8. I only use it for racing .

Researchers at Stanford University Medical Center believe that Viagra improves cardiovascular and exercise performance measures of trained cyclists at high altitude.

9. The Virginia transportation board approved funding for path improvements in Northern Virginia.

Fairfax County Park Authority’s Cross County Trail received the highest allocation of $435,000 toward a $2.2 million trail rerouting project between Lake Accotink to Hunter Village Drive.

Arlington: Child and Adult Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Classes and Brochure

Fairfax: Mason Neck Trail extended between Gunston Hall Plantation to Pohick Bay Regional Park

10. And finally, Lance Armstrong is planning to ride RAGBRAI at the end of the month. Makes me wish I could go this year. That and my need for delicious pork chops.

Seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong will not be biking across the hills of France this summer, but instead riding a couple days across Iowa highways and county roads.

Armstrong decided to ride in the Register's Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa, one of the largest bike rides in the world.

Ten for Tuesday - Your obsession with cycling borders on the interesting.

1. I just recently watched this from May 5th because my tivo is a little backed up. Well known bicycle enthusiast Rep. Earl Blumenauer was on the Colbert Report and he placed his bike in the background of the shot. In the photo at the left, Colbert sports a bicycle lapel pin.

2. I can tell from the comments posted here that some of you know your way around Lexus and Westlaw better than me. So when can DC count on a site like this?

3. Mainstream media coverage of the planning board's recommendation on the Met Branch Trail.

‘If it’s only about the money, then you’ve got to fight for the money,” [Commissioner Meredith K. Wellington] said.

4. Bicycling magazine gave out bikes in Baltimore as part of bike town. As a Bike Town alumnus myself (I got a free bike last year in DC) I think it's a great program. I saw two people at BTWD on their bikes from last year.

Courtney Matthews, a Bicycling spokeswoman, said the magazine has kept in touch with past recipients of free two-wheelers and 86 percent respond they are happier three months after they started riding again.

5. The Post had a good run down of Montgomery County bicycling.

Other projects include the Matthew Henson Trail, which would run through Aspen Hill, past Connecticut Avenue and Georgia Avenue, all the way past Layhill Road. The North Bethesda Trolley Trail, which runs along the old trolley tracks between Old Georgetown Road and Rockville Pike, is to be extended north to the Twinbrook Metro stop and south to the National Institutes of Health campus.

6. Another "Gas gets people out of their cars" story.

"People are starting to look for fundamentally different ways to travel," said Bill Wilkinson, executive director of the National Center for Bicycling and Walking in Bethesda, Md. The soaring price of fuel "prompts people to really think about where they live and how they get around."

7. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors endorsed Transaction 2030.

On the top of the list are transit projects and pedestrian and bike travel. An estimated $16.6 billion would be needed over the next 25 years to fund the projects.

The plan features more Metrorail stations and light rail or rapid bus service in some high-traffic corridors, including Route 7, Route 28 and Columbia Pike. It also includes about 600 miles of new trails and an 8-percent increase in highway capacity.

8. Bike to Work Day was a success in Baltimore and Washington.

Chapman brought along Terri Broemm, a nursing teacher at Harford Tech who was riding to work for the first time and was nervous about the limited space for cyclists on the shoulders of some commuter routes.

Although some noted that the crowd lacked diversity.

9. For those looking for a bike vacation, a new rail trail opens in West Virginia.

It's called the Cranberry Tri-Rivers Rail-Trail, and Richwood city officials believe the 16.5-mile path will cement their town's growing reputation as a recreation destination.

10. Registration is open for the Indian Head 100 on Saturday, September 10, 2006.

Cycle through scenic and historic Southern Maryland. Relax at a rest stop at the Mattawoman Creek Art Center. See bald eagles and blue herons as you pedal through hundreds of acres of gently rolling forested hills and tidal bottomlands to the panoramic vista of the Potomac River at Riverside. Enjoy a rest stop high above the Port Tobacco River with a spectacular view of the Potomac and Port Tobacco rivers.

Ten for Tuesday - Gas is Expensive $2.50 Edition

1. There were a lot of articles last week about high gas prices and biking to work, including this AP story

About 20 million bikes were sold in the United States in 2005, one of the industry's best years ever, and retailers are optimistic that escalating gas prices will lead to record bike sales this year

Unlike most countries, the vast majority of bikes sold in the United States are used for recreation rather than transportation. About 550,000 Americans - less than 1 percent of U.S. workers - bike to work regularly, according to Blumenthal. "You don't feel the love in a lot of places when you're riding your bike,"

The $286 billion federal transportation bill signed last year will double the amount of money available for bike and pedestrian facilities to about $4 billion.

2. The National Park Service is guiding free bike rides almost every weekend this summer. Check out this flyer (pdf) For Example:

Off the Beaten Path – Discover Lonely Landmarks

You may have seen them on a map, driven past them hundreds of times, or even walked up to one of them out of curiosity. What are they, who are they, and more importantly, why are they here? This is the story of Washington DC’s lonely landmarks. These statues, urns, and symbolic gestures of friendship and remembrance can be found all over DC. Find out the stories of these lonely landmarks from our Rangers.

3. The Virginia IMBA mountain bike festival is this weekend. So is the Arlington Community Bike Ride.

4. The Montgomery County Council authorized $200K to repair the interim CCT.

5. The 20 finalists for the Solving DC Problems contest have been announced. One is bicycling related.

The city could purchase a fleet of (ugly, theft-resistant) bikes and set up secure racks for them across downtown DC. For a reasonable membership fee, residents get a pass that allows them to pick up a bike, ride it to where they need to go, and drop it off at any official bike sharing rack (not just the one they took it from).

It's kind of weak that they chose an idea that's already in the works.

6. Gas prices are pushing cops out of cruisers and onto bikes and foot patrols. It will be interesting to see if this impacts crime (either reduces or increases).

7. One less place to rent bikes in the area.

‘‘When I was in high school, we would have almost 200 kids a day that would come in and out of there and go out in canoes or take bicycles out,” Swain said.

Deciding to shut down the lockhouse's boat and bicycle rentals and concession stand was a ‘‘tremendously difficult decision,” Swain said.

8. Adults ride bikes, but kids are so darn photogenic

My main concern is that the pictures suggest that bicycles are children’s toys. Bicycles are vehicles covered under Maryland’s Uniform Vehicle Code. The Gazette missed an opportunity to reflect a main purpose of the Millennium Trail — to make Rockville more accessible to cyclists and pedestrians.

9. Metro is going to add hundreds of bike racks.

"At some stations people weren't even using the older racks," says Metro spokeswoman Candace Smith. "They were opting to lock their bikes to trees, to light poles, because the old racks were missing pieces or they had a loose installation, or sometimes they were even just stripped down."

I do hate the old metro bike racks. I feel the same the way about them that I do gray hairs. I'd rather not have them, but they're better than nothing.

10. How I often feel

By using mass transit or riding my bike whenever possible, I may not be able to influence greenhouse-gas emissions standards or reduce mass global addiction to fossil fuels one iota.The question, however, is not "What can't I do?" but rather, "What can I do?"

The answer: next to nothing.

Biking across America II

I guess biking across America is becoming the new Appalachian Trail. Everyone seems to be doing it. Two recent articles bring me back to the subject.

The first article is about Thomas Heidenberger, a local man whose wife was the senior flight attendant on American Airlines Flight 77, which crashed into the Pentagon.

On Sunday, Chevy Chase resident Heidenberger will embark on a 3,600-mile cross-country bike ride to honor the memory of the 33 flight crew members killed on Sept. 11 and to raise money in their names for memorials.

Best of luck to him.

The other article from the Times does a pretty good job of explaining what you have to do to bike across the country.

Many who bicycle recreationally dream of going the distance. Few do it, largely because of the time commitment. You need close to three months -- more if you want to smell the roses. That's why cross-country cyclists usually fall into two categories -- those taking time off before college and those whose youngsters have just gone off to college. Getting that much time in prime working and family-raising years is tough for others.

I would like to find myself in a third category, those who have won the lottery and now have oodles of free time, but maybe I'm weird. I met a guy once who "Biked across Europe," except that he didn't really. He would bike from here to there, then hop on the train over night, and go on another ride the next day. He said it was great because each day the ride was totally different. It's hard to do that in the states because of the limited rail service. In addition, Amtrak doesn't have roll on service on every route. I tried to find a list of trains you can take bikes on here, but they just give you a phone number to call (really did I wake up in 1994?). I found this list, but it's from 1999.

 

The photo, btw, is from western Australia