A Big Thank You

A super huge (which I pronounce, to the chagrin of many, as yooge) thank you to the guest bloggers Lori and Kate. If a quarter of my posts were half as informative and a third as motivational and I had twice the knowledge of fractions as I currently do, well, then I would consider myself successful. I haven't yet received any email requests to leave town more often, but I fully expect them. Please limit the expletives. Once we square away the details of the whole Chinese food thing, I'll be sure to blog about that as well. Kate and Lori are both on Twitter, Kate has a righteous blog of her own (where she gives away gift cards!) and once Lori gets hers going (which I think the people rightly demand), I'll link to that too.
Regarding my time in LA, I was there to meet with some producers about turning Tales from the Sharrows into a late-night HBO program modeled on Taxi Cab Confessions. It was going to be called Tail in the Sharrows. Unfortunately, the producers read the blog and realized that there's nothing sexy or even tawdry about it and it's hard to translate whining about ANC autocentrism into a tv show anyway. I'm just kidding. I was in LA to film an episode of Jeopardy! which will air on July 21. So, there's that.

Guest Blog: My first "commute"

Hi guys! Girl On Bike DC here! Sorry this post is a little late, but apparently blogger's scheduling function didn't schedule this properly.

I'm so glad to have the honor of doing a guest blog along with Lori. And thank you to Brian for allowing us to graffiti contribute to his blog! I almost don't know what to write about!

Hrmmm....

I guess I will talk about  my very first time biking in DC:

About 10 years ago, I worked in your typical office building. It was full of your typical office droids, me included. ;-) I took 2 buses, plus one metro train to work. I worked about 6 miles from where I lived. Ridiculous, right? To be honest, it wasn't that awful. This was before Metro had devolved into the mess it is now. In fact, I accepted as a part of life. I kinda enjoyed it. Riding the bus was always an experience unto itself.

In my office we had one guy that commuted into work by bicycle. He wore lycra and was a freak (at least in my eyes)! He commuted 15 miles to work each way! That's 30 miles total! Who would purposely choose to do that?! And I knew he chose to do that because where I worked, a man in his position could totally afford to drive that distance!

So I relegated bike commuters to the back of mind as crazy people and didn't think much of it until years later. I was hired by an agency which would become (I hope) my permanent job.

For my first 3 years, getting to work was super easy because I only lived 4 blocks away. I simply walked there and back. Easy peasy!

But then I was transferred to a different area--an area that was a whopping 1.5 miles away! Wha?! I can't just simply walk that! Soooooo faaaar.... (ok, looking back I realize how silly that sounds)

Luckily, I had just purchased my very first bicycle in DC. Why? I wanted to "get in shape". Of course that meant it was simply leaning against my apartment wall ever since I bought it....

I thought to myself: why not use my bike to get to work? The very idea of cycling in DC traffic absolutely terrified me. But I was determined to do it. So one day, I made a goal of biking 5 blocks to a nearby park.

I told myself that I would bike in the street (not the sidewalk) no matter what!

And you know what? I was terrified the entire time. Terrified and thrilled. When I made it to that park safe & sound, I was the happiest person on earth. It was the biggest accomplishment I had ever made! I felt like I was on top of the world. Seriously. You would have thought that I just completed a marathon (which I had done before this, btw, and it did not feel half as awesome as this accomplishment did!)

Since that moment, you couldn't keep me off my bike! I started riding my bike to and from work every day. Rain or shine, sun or snow. Nowadays I look back on my petrified self, and I laugh! Riding in traffic is so easy now! It's second nature. I get asked by people all the time if it's "safe to ride in DC traffic" Absolutely! It just takes a little getting used to...

 Anyway, it was then that my boss noticed my bike parked outside my workplace everyday, and she nominated me for a special position in my company that involves biking everyday. She told me that she knew I loved biking, so why not make it part of my job?

Now? I ride a bike for 8 hours everyday, and I get paid for it. I credit that 'crazy person' from my old job as being a huge source of inspiration for me. Nowadays I bike 30 miles with no problem whatsoever! I can't imagine going anywhere without my trusty bicycle(s)!

(by the way, my initial bicycle has since grown into a collection of 5)

I have never owned a car in my life. But its only in the last 5 years that I've (re)discovered the joys of cycling. I have never regretted taking a ride on my bike. No matter the weather--whether its raining, snowing or super hot out, I love riding my bike. It is my center, my meditation, my wake-up-in-the-morning activity. I could go on for hours about how riding a bike centers you, calms you, makes you a better person------but, I suspect I would be preaching to the choir.

I have never owned a motor vehicle. And I'm ok with that.

Guest Blogging from the Sharrows: Lori

Hi, I’m Lori.

I am a biker. Bicyclist? Whatever.

I am guest blogging while our fearless leader is out of town, and thought I would make my inaugural blog a message of support to people on the fence about bike commuting. A “go team” kind of thing – boring, safe, unchallenging.

This isn’t my first blog, in fact, I am an experienced failed blog-starter, having presided over a short-lived work blog related to a specific project (most of my time was spent trying to get others to do the work), and having started two of my own – one I called “Dinner At Eight” for reasons I cannot for the life of me recall (and to which I never posted even once), and one called FLAT RAT. That last one was intended to be a blog about my bike commute. If you’ve ever biked in a city, you can quickly infer why I chose that title. I’ve tried to not think about the fact that I regularly ride over oozing smashed mammals and unrecognizable decaying birds, and then bring my bike through the living area of my home, over the hardwood surfaces on which my children sit and play….much.

Flat Rat never saw the light of day, either.

I began bike commuting four years ago at the age of 40. After years of driving the four miles (in my defense, most of that time I was also driving kids to schools, or multiple schools), or taking the God-forsaken Metro (two lines), I was inspired by two friends who successfully biked to work – one to downtown D.C. from Alexandria (south of Old Town) and one between Capitol Hill and Woodley Park. More challenging than what I was facing.

A girlfriend bought me a set of panniers, and there went my last excuse. I will forever be indebted to her.

If you live in DC, or in ring suburbs, you should bike to work, and here are some reasons why:

• Traffic is horrible, and frustratingly unpredictable. On the rare occasions that I drive to and/or from work, some days it’s 20 minutes, and some days it’s easily double that. It really does make you want to poke your eyes out.

• METRO sucks. This is a well-documented fact. If you don’t believe me, take a look at this. And I am speaking as someone who lives two blocks from a metro station and works two blocks from a metro station. And saying with authority and experience that the convenience of the metro is not a convincing reason to use it

• You’re out of shape. So am I! But whenever I say that people say “but you bike to work every day!” Gives me credibility, if not the figure of my dreams.

• It’s good for the environment. Duh. But those of us living where we can do this, should. Because there are so many millions of people who don’t care, don’t know, or can’t do anything about it.

• It pisses drivers off! So, even when you obey all the rules (which by the way I do declare that you must) they still get angry. Primarily, because they don’t know the laws. I once had some lady call out to me “get your a** on the sidewalk!” And I had the pleasure of chasing her down the street lecturing her on why I *can’t* be on the sidewalk. Fun!

• It’s easy! Seriously. My office has one dreary, dank, unventilated shower in the basement. But by having that I can say that My Employer Supports Bike Commuting! That, and I am allowed to bring my bike into the office for protection from thieves and rain (a holdover from the ‘70s when Dupont Circle was not so tony).

• It really is easy. I bought a Rubbermaid-type box at Target, filled it with necessary stuff (shampoo, soap, deodorant, hair dryer, brush, etc.), and leave it, and a towel, in my office. Yes, I look like a freak coming into the office in the morning, dragging my bike up several steps, wearing three flashing lights of varying colors and a neon yellow windbreaker. When I do this after a commute in below-freezing temperatures, rain, or snow, I think it gives me gravitas. Or maybe when people stand back it’s not from respect. I choose not to know.

• For me, as a D.C. resident, it shows support for the previous administration which advocated alternative transportation (bikes AND streetcars!), alternative energy (rebates for solar panels), and in general had my priorities. And support for Gabe Klein, the previous D.C. Director of Transportation, who installed the fabulous Pennsylvania Avenue bike lanes, of which I am such a fan (and which invite derision and resentment from drivers – unfortunate but true).

• More bikes on the street raise the profile of biking, and make drivers more aware and (hopefully) more careful. That is the most important thing we as bike commuters can do (and why I dress like a goofball in my neon yellow and flashing lights).

What are YOUR reasons? What tips and advice can you offer beginners?

How do we start a revolution?

Ride Home 3/18

First day that it could maybe even be described as hot. I remembered sunscreen this time.
I was going to take the CCT home, but I decided to instead bike down New Mexico to see if my video had any instantaneous impact. It, obviously, did not. But I wouldn't know how to judge impact anyway- maybe residents themselves out with white paint striping lines while singing happy songs about bicycling? I don't know.
New least favorite place where cars make a left turn- oncoming traffic on to Manor Place. From the perspective of coming downhill, it's after where traffic from Tunlaw and 37th merge. The stop sign nexus (technical term) is really fraught- mostly because traffic (bikes and cars!) on Tunlaw takes advantage of the fact that motorists driving up 37th make a leftish turn and that impedes the traffic (bikes and cars!) coming down 37th. This throws the stop sign sequencing completely out of whack! So, all parties are frustrated and then, because of their stop-sign-sequencing-out-of-whack-frustration rage, many drivers feel compelled to speed down 37th. The left turners know this, so they're extra jumpy with their left turns. Hence, why I don't like it.
Wrong way cyclist on the 34th street bike lane. She gave a sort of impish smile, one that said "by biking this way, I only expected to negatively impact the experience of drivers, no fellow bicyclists."

So surreptitious.

I tried to secretly take a picture of these local collegians (I assume) loading up their panniers with 24 packs of cheap, American beer. USA! USA! Here's the problem with surreptitious pictures- I can't actually take them. I was so spotted by the woman on the left and she did the thing where she pretended that she didn't see me. Just to be clear, lady, I was taking a picture of the youths. I'm planning on starting a "beer by bike" tumblr. Side project! (Because this one is so successful)
I have mixed feelings about cyclists riding up Lee Highway instead of on the Custis, which runs parallel to it. I guess it's their right, but prior to Veitch, Lee Highway resembles a limited access highway more than a pleasant, bikeable street. Plus, for a good bit of that stretch, it serves as an extended on ramp to 66.  I mean, there's a perfectly adequate trail right there. Do what you want, but use some common sense, right?
No one (surprise) took me up on the offer to guest blog for the upcoming week. If you'd still like to (even just once), please email talesfromthesharrows@gmail.com. Have a great couple of days everyone.

Here are some puppies playing. We miss you, Cuppy.

VIDEO: Bicyclist Perspective on Tunlaw Road and New Mexico Avenue

So, here's some video of my ride up Tunlaw Road and New Mexico Avenue (both NW) this morning. (My previous "reporting" on these bike lanes is here, here, here, and here) There are currently no bike facilities (a painted white line that helps tell people where bikes should go) on either of these streets,  but there's a possibility that some day there will be. I don't have much to add in the way of commentary. I'm sorry for going so fast up those hills- I had some Spanish steak for breakfast. I also apologize for the video quality. I'll try to get a better quality video up at some point, but this is the best I could do for now. I also chose not to add a soundtrack, because I couldn't decide between Tina Turner's Simply the Best or Tina Turner's What's Love Got to Do with It. Neither of those songs have anything to do with biking, but who doesn't love Tina Turner?

All in all, it was a pretty typical morning ride in terms of cars and pedestrians. The video is just shy of 8 minutes. You can decide after watching if you think that bike lanes would make any difference, positive or negative, for either bicyclists or drivers.