This was probably the perfect weather for cycling. It's the kind of weather that makes everyone appear about 10-15% nicer looking. That might not be a real thing. By nicer, I mean more attractive, because people weren't actually nicer. They were just normal.
My first uninterrupted trip down the New Mexico hill in a long time. It's really fun when you make all the lights and when no one turns across your path. I saw a few cyclists working their way up the sidewalk in the opposite direction. The street is safe guys!
A whole heap of confusion in Georgetown. I think there are just too many cars- when you're trying to get to M and you're backed up all the way to Reservoir (8 West Georgetown blocks- which I think are shorter than downtown letter street blocks, longer than East Georgetown blocks, and pretty much snootier than any other kinds of blocks) on 34th, it must be really frustrating. I wonder how the congestion would be affected if even one in every ten drivers along that stretch switched to bicycling. I'm not trying to be snarky and sanctimonious here- I'm just curious. It probably wouldn't be as dramatically beneficial as if that conversion happened with drivers along M. Can someone who knows stuff study this and tell me?
I saw some girls riding CaBis on the sidewalk, presumably heading to the university. They looked like they were having fun. I saw a girl riding a nice Linus 3 speed Mixte along Prospect, picking her way past cars in various states of incompleted turns. I said "I like your bike." She didn't even acknowledge. I wasn't flirting. I just liked your bike.
I saw a guy walking his dog along the Custis and his dog was groomed to look like a sheep. I said "I like you dog." He didn't even acknowledge. I wasn't flirting. I just liked your dog. What's up with people? Can't some guy on a bike tell you that he likes your stuff? It'd make my day, but maybe I'm just a sucker.
I decided to take the Custis the whole way and got passed by some hardcore looking old dude in green spandex bike ensemble. He didn't see the pile of leaves in front of me blocking the trail and he unfortuitously passed at the same moment I would have been moving over to the left to avoid the aforementioned pile of leaves. I was peeved. I rode behind him a while until we were both passed by some even more hardcore looking young bike dude in a light blue spandex ensemble (I call them ensembles because any time your bike jersey coordinates with your bike pants, you're clearly going for a "look.") Green dude slowed down and waved me past, so I went to catch up with blue dude. I almost catch up with blue dude, when I look back to see that green dude is right (and I mean right) on my back wheel. We make the turn to go up over the bridge over Lee Highway at the intersection with 66 and green dude powers past me on my left and he and blue dude just take off. It's getting way too competitive out there for any Cat 6 stuff. The weekend guys are apparently starting to commute.
If you drive a Prius, you shouldn't be a prick to bicyclists. My carbon footprint is less than yours. Just let me go in front of you when the bike lane is blocked by a utility truck and a big blinking sign with an arrow. Don't just zoom past in your super quiet car and refuse to acknowledge my angry fist-shaking for cutting me off. It's not what Gaia would want.
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