Section 5: Waterfront/Crosstown 6/25/2010

Friday was my ninth commute in by bike for the year. The trip is becoming second nature, but my preparation is still slow. I've been getting a later and later start each morning, and now I am leaving well after 7am -- not ideal. I need to do a better prep job the night before to roll out on time, hopefully around 6am if not earlier.

Today I will describe the last section of my morning ride which I think of as the "Waterfront and Crosstown" section. This section begins where the Custis leaves off: The ramp down from Rossyln outputs me directly into the Roosevelt Island parking lot which is the northern trail head for the Mount Vernon Trail. This lot would make a great commuter lot for biking, but with its 3 hour parking limit on weekdays and northbound only (countflow) access from the GW Parkway it is always mostly empty on weekday mornings. The trail continues into the woods at the east end of the lot and travels down a long boardwalk over the marshy tidal banks of the Potomac River. The right fork leads up to the Roosevelt Bridge carying I-66 and US-50 over the river, but I stay to the left and continue along the MVT. Although I appreciate the shady coolness of this section I'm always afraid that my tires will pick up a splinter from the rough boards and will leave me having to change a flat a good 6 miles from my office.

Once off the boards the trail climbs slightly and crosses the boundary channel. As it's name implies I am technically in "The District" at this point, although it doesn't really feel like it until I cross over the 14th street bridge some 2 miles south of here. The prettiest shots of the Washington skyline in the morning can be captured as I ride along the MVT across the river from the Lincoln memorial and the Washington Monument. The trail passes under the memorial bridge in a narrow single lane section and then opens up to a beautiful view of boaters, birds and the memorials bathed in the yellow light of the morning sun. About 1.5 miles into this section I pass by a memorial for sailors and marines lost at sea and then head up and over the humpback bridge. Recovery Act tax dollars are widening this short bridge over the boundary channel as I briefly pass back into Virginia before climbing the gradual approach to the 14th street bridge.

One or two planes landing at Regan National will usually pass overhead while I pedal along the bridge side path. I enter the city at the Jefferson Memorial and dodge pedestrians along the wide tidal basin paths. It is deserted this morning, but I know that I will have to employ my bell for the return trip. I cross over the 395 SB/Potomac Park entrance lanes and then work my way under 395 to the southwest waterfront. The rotton fish smell is overpowering as the fishmongers are clearing out the day-olds and restocking their ice chests. I pass Phillips Seafood and the now-quiet night clubs and then turn left onto 7th street The light at 7th and Maine is usually long enough for me to refill my water bottle and get a good drink before I head across town. 7th street leads me to I (EYE) street upon which the city is marking a bike lane, making EYE a much safer alternative to the hustle of M street. In the morning I tend to hit every light but I really don’t mind the breather, having completed 23 of my 25.3 miles. I cross over South Capital 6 blocks north of the stadium and work my way to New Jersey and then to L street before turning down 3rd and crossing M at the DOT building. I make one last push down M street and up into the Isaac Hull entrance to the Navy Yard. Feeling good about my ride I coast down to the garage and lock up my bike.

Section 4: Custis Trail 6/18/2010

I rode in this Friday again. I had a going away party at work so I did not ride back home. Keow picked me up from downtown and we left from there for our fathers day vacation across the bay bridge at the Delaware shore. I will describe the fourth section of my comute here: The Custis Trail.

The Custis is both the most challenging (read most hills) and most enjoyable section of my ride. The signed trail starts at the intersection of Lee Highway/Washington Street and I-66 in East Falls Church but the W&OD and Custis nearly share the same route for 2 miles down to Bon Aire Park. At the W&OD/Custis Trail junction I turn left and head up into the grove of trees lining I-66. This is a surprisingly serene place considering I'm only about 100 feet from the interstate sound barriers at this point. The trail descends to an underpass where the Custis and a branch of Four Mile Run pass below I-66 and the Metro Orange Line. The three separate viaducts play with the morning light creating contrasting shafts of light and darkness against the backdrop of a cool babbling stream. I call this place the Custis Grotto because of its cave-like feel.

The trail quickly assends up "Grotto Hill" from below grade to well above I-66 and then it flattens out into what I refer to as the "Custis Flats". This straignt run under a treed canopy is a rare level spot among the roller coaster hills that line the interstate. After a few more quick up and down hills the trail rises to a fork with the Fairfax Drive trail to downtown Ballston. This marks the start of the hill up and over Glebe road the most difficult in this direction. Once over the Glebe road overpass, the trail ascends and rapidly descends 4 good size hills that I refer to as the "Four Sisters". Each of the sisters has her charms but their difficulty is really felt in the return trip. The northern most sister leads down to a section along the interstate that is level with the road and in front of the sound barrier not behind it for a change. The trail departs from the interstate to cross above US 29 Lee Highway and then it rapidly descends througha series of switchbacks down to the road grade. I call this the "Maywood S-curves" since there is a sign for and an access trail to the Maywood neighborhood at the apex of the curves. At US 29 the trail ascends behind a strip mall and crosses over Spout Run Parkway at grade with I-66. There is one final steep uphill in this section and then a quick rise to US-29 which now rises about 50 feet above I-66 at this point. The trail then drops about 300 feet into Rosslyn in less than a mile. The trail is no more than a wide sidewalk along Lee highway passing condos and the Key Bridge Mariot. After a grade crossing with the Key Brige access street, the trail descends down to the river, crossess the George Washington Parkway and a series of switchbacks take the trail down to the parking lot for Roosevelt Island, where I pick up the last section, "Waterfront/Crosstown."

Section 3 Washington &Old Dominion Trail 6/17/10

I am riding in for the 7th time this morning. I will describe the third section of my ride along the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. More to come. . .

Section 2 Vienna/Metro 6/11/2010

I rode in to work for the second time this week. I had meetings out in Chantilly on Thursday and rode the 18 miles yesterday out and back. So together I rode 118.6 miles this week!!! So far June has been good for riding. We plan to do some riding this weekend as well, I know Keow wants to get out on the C&O canal path, but more on that later.

Section 2 of my ride is the first part where I feel that I am away from home. This section rolls 4.1 miles from the Fairfax Circle to the W&OD trail and runs along the signed Fairfax City Connector trail, which is more a designed bike route connecting several disjointed paths, and not a dedicated bike commuter route.

Crossing over Fairfax/Arlington Blvd (US 50) I head into the tall trees of the Towers Park, a dark sylvan adjacent to the Circle Towers Condominium complex. The trail quickly rises about 50 feet and dumps me out about 100 yards from a crosswalk on Lee Highway going in the wrong direction. If I can cross at the light I will quickly jump across the 4 laned road otherwise I must stride my bike along the broken sidewalk and wait at a busy bus stop to cross. On the other side of Lee Highway I descend into the East Blake Lane Park, a large wooded quadrangle that 4 town home communities back up to. Despite its proximity to major roads, it is usually very quiet through here. One morning I came within an arms lenght from an adult white tail doe. The trail gradually rises through the EBLP and outlets to a defunct parking lot for the Vienna/Fairfax/GMU Metro station. The metro station is my first out. If I breakdown or don't want to continue I can lock up my bike here, deposit 5 bucks for a train ticket and ride into the city.

The "connector trail" then continues on sidewalks over I-66 and past both the north and south parking garages for the metro station before it passes through Vaden street and into Nottoway park. Dog walkers are usually out in Nottaway as I zip through and make the sharp right onto Tapawingo and head up the hill into Vienna. This second major hill rises 80 feet and tops out at the Vienna watertower. Tapawingo rises up and down over the last 1.5 miles. As I cross over Park street, the houses get larger and the cars more plentiful. I round the "Knuckle" before which I was heading mosly to the north east, and after I travel primarily southeasterly. I turn right onto Glyndon and then Left onto Adahi. The W&OD trail and the start of section 3 is just up ahead.

Section 1 Mason/Fairfax 6/7/10

Monday morning was another opportunity to ride in. I thought I would use the next few entries to describe in detail my route. My 25 mile ride is easily broken up into 5 20-30 minute segmants. Each section has a different feel, and completing each gives me a sense of accomplishment and a better idea of how far I still have left to go.

I first segment "Mason/Fairfax" starts at my front door and rolls 4.8 miles through George Mason University, past Old Town Fairfax City, and then down to the Fairfax Circle. As I leave my development I turn left onto Braddock Road toward the main entrance of GMU. I cross the street with the light and head down into campus then I start up one of the six major hills of the entire ride. VADot has changed the traffic patterns on University just north of campus so what used to be a busy bus route now is a quiet disconnected street. At the bottom of the hill I jump back onto University Ave and into Fairfax City. As I pass the fire house I see that the fire fighters are up and washing their rigs. I check the time and temperature at the Sun Trust Bank, then with traffic I wait for the lights at Main Street and North Ave. I continue down University Ave past the Fairfax Library Garage, then Turn right into the Courthouse Plaza Safeway parking lot. I pass behind the shopping center, onto Democracy Road and follow through the office park to get down to Old Lee Highway. At Mile 2.7 I jump on to the side path and continue past Van Dyke Park. Keow and I like to take the kids here and I often meet them for a picnic here on my afternoon return trips. Near the Civil War era historic Blenhenm house I cross over onto the traffic lane in time to pass the Fairfax High School and then down the 4% grade hill. Early in the morning traffic is not bad here and I usually can get up to about 30 mph. I then turn right onto Old Picket and then left onto the Picket Road side path. Up ahead is the intersection of Route 50 and Picket, a block east of the Farifax Circle. I will have to wait a few minutes here to cross both lights so I take a nice rest and get a drink of water. This is the end of the first segment.

I am now at the point of no return. If I were to get a flat, or have to go back it is closer to continue ahead to the Vienna Metro just 1.7 miles ahead. The next segment is "Vienna Metro" because I pass up through a few wooded paths past the Vienna Station of the Metro, and then cross the city of Vienna, VA to the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. It looks like Friday will be the next day to ride in so I will describe segment 2 in more detail then.

June 2: 4th Ride to Work -- Getting Stronger

I rode in again on Tuesday. I left the house at 0610 and it was light enough to not need any lights, a nice change from January. Traffic was heavier on Old Lee Highway and I rolled down to the Accotink stream bridge. I wished I had brought my camera in that there were very many beautiful spots of sun rays shining through the leaves along the trail. Next Time I promise.

I made great time and arrived in the garage at 0810 exactly 2 hours. Not bad for 25.3 miles.

It was quite warm on the ride home. I like my two water bottle configuration but worried that I would have to reload before I made it home. The Custis hills were much easier and I actually found myself passing some people on the way home. My first water bottle ran out just before the Vienna Metro station so I knew that I would be okay for the last 6.5 miles. VDOT is doing some work in the East Blake Lane Park and they have updated the bike trail through this section. I saw a Mason bike cop clocking speeders at near the water tower on the GMU campus as I rolled through. I don't think I was exceeding the posted 25 though. Once in the development I did a quick run down to the community pool and then back home to see if the pool passes were in. Not yet.

Over the next few posts I will attempt to describe several of my favorite spots along the trail and post pictures.

Also Keow and I are getting excited for several bike supported camping trips this summer. We plan on riding down to Burke Lake Park, Lake Fairfax, and the C&O lock house 6. These trips at 7.5, 15, and 30 miles should be a fun way to spend an overnight with the kids. This type of camping trip is called an S24O or sub-24hr overnight. For more information check out Grant Peterson's page.

May 24-25: Two Meetings Out in Chantilly, First Back to Back Rides

View Larger Map

I had two meetings for work on back to back days out near Chantilly, VA on May 24 and 25th. I found a way to get out there, reusing much of the path out to Costco from earlier in the month. Unfortunately much of the ride is on a side path that follows the busy, and loud US 50 west from Fairfax. As you can see from the above shot, the path has several dangerous grade crossings of the acceleration ramps onto US 50 like this one from NB Fairfax County Parkway. The route also incorporated a fair weather crossing of the Rocky Run stream. I would not take the kids on this route but it was fun riding instead of sitting in traffic.

On the return trip the second day I took a detour to Home Depot to pick up some bamboo stakes for the church garden then I delivered them to church via the side path of VA-7100 before heading home. This added about 2.5 additional miles to the trip but it was a beautiful day to ride.

Bike To Work Day 5.21.2010

Today was Bike To Work Day and what a beautiful day it was. I decided not to join the Vienna commuter convoy. I figured that I probably could make it in faster by myself, and I was a little late to the W&OD to backtrack up to the Vienna Community Center to join them.

Dan and Mike at work had promised to ride in as well and I made arrangements to meet up with Dan at the Rosslyn pit stop at 0730.

The trail was pretty crowded but not overcrowded. I felt stronger on the hills and made it into Rosslyn a little past 7am. I figure if I didn't stop I could have made it in in just about 2 hours. I gathered as many freebies as I could -- t-shirt, bike bells, water bottle, maps -- and had some coffee and a banana. Dan showed up and we took another tour of the give away tables, then set off down the MVT. Just before the Memorial Bridge, Dan's former neighbor came up behind us and surprised him. Work on the Humpback bridge continues and the sidewalk was very narrow, and because of the day busy. I led Dan down through the city to M street and we made it into the garage to find no available spots on the rack. I never thought I would see this problem.

The afternoon return was uneventful. I made good time up to Vienna and pulled into the Fairfax BTWD afternoon "party" in a little over 2 hours and 15 minutes. I think that I was one of maybe 15 people who had visited the rally. They were offering free pulled pork sandwiches, baked beans, and tortilla chips to riders. I grabbed a bag of chips, and refilled my water before heading back out on the road. For the first time I completed my return ride and met up with the Kids and Keow at home for dinner.

Running Errands in the Spring

Spring has hit Northern Virginia. Keow and I have used the beautiful and warm weather to get out by bike more. On the first day of spring, we racked up 6 miles riding to and from church. On the 7th of May, we converted two trips to bike trips and racked up 12 miles. I got up a little earlier and rode over to church to water the children's garden. Then in the afternoon, Keow hitched up the chariot and topeak seat and rode with all three kids down to her hair salon. I got home from work and rode down to meet her. We then both rode to church for the First Friday potluck, and then home in the dark along the trail. Our head lamps worked great and we tried out the new chariot cargo rack by toting a pan of lasagna back with us.

The best ride so far for our family was Saturday's ride out to REI, Costco, and Home Depot. I pulled the Ben and Jack, while Keow biked with Dougie in the bike seat. We both agreed that the new path along VA 123 at George Mason University was very nice. We cut through Fairfax city and found our way over to Route 29 then down Wapples Mill to Random Hills to get to REI. We celebrated our trip by loading up on bike gear! I picked up a TOPEAK rack (allowing us to swap the seat if necessary) and a rack top/ double pannier bag while Keow got a quick release basket for the front of her bike. We both also got adjustable water bottle cages that will fit our stainless steel water bottles. Yea!

After installing all of the gear we loaded up the kids and rode over to Costco. We picked up a few items and then moved down to Home Depot to pick up some items for the garden. Finally we headed back out down the Fairfax Countay Parkway path to Braddock Road and up the long long hill to home. In all, counting back tracking and wrong turns we put in 14.5 miles. This would be 14.5 miles toting 5 people in the Minivan. Almost a full gallon of Gas was saved and we all had a blast.

This Friday is Bike to Work Day in DC. I will be doing my normal route and picking up my t-shirt at Rosslyn. I think Keow will ride down to the Burke VRE station to get some freebies as well. See you out on the trail!

2nd Ride, Beauty Among the Cherry Blossoms

Second Ride was Good Friday. The weather was perfect, upper 50s in the morning, and near 80 in the afternoon. I made pretty good time in, 2 hours and 15 minutes. I still couldn't get out until nearly 6:30, so I will have to get better preparing for my ride during the night before. I left early around 2:15 to get a jump on the weekend and decided to take a swing around the Jefferson Memorial on the way home. The blossom peepers were thick around the tidal basin and I had to walk my bike from the fish market to the 14th street onramp. I shot this picture right before I headed out. I noticed many families riding along the MVT, parking at Roosevelt Island and traveling into the city. I can't wait to do this with Keow and the Boys this summer.

I felt stronger heading up the Custis and cranked pretty regularly up to Vienna. Keow called me when I was on the roads of Vienna and asked If I would meet hear at Van Dyke Park in Fairfax City. I said that I was about 45 min away. I passed the Home Depot that I bailed out at last time and headed up the OLD LEE hill. After a few minutes of pain I got to the top and coasted down to Van Dyke. The kids were surprised to see me. We loaded the bike in the minivan and went out to REI and Red Robin for dinner. Yes this was the second trip I didn't finish but I know that I could have. Some things are more important than 3 lousy miles. Over 100miles under my belt so far.

SNOW!!!!

Special thanks to www.jessdillman.com and www.wandodtrialreport.com for the photos of the Custis and W&OD trail as of Feb 19, 2010.

I pledged to ride 75 miles in February. Well, that's not going to happen. We got dumpped with about 32 inches of snow during when two blizzards hit us in a matter of 5 days in the second week in February. Temperatures have been below normal and not much of the snow has melted. Plus the county's snow removal budget is busted and road snow was piled up on sidwalks. I don't expect the trails to be clear until at least March. I guess I will have to ride more in the spring to make up for it.

Here are some more photos of fun in the snow!

Made It! . . . Almost

First Commute: Jan 27 2010.

I've been excited to finally ride in. For most of January I was waiting for the remnants of the Snowpocolypse(R) to melt. I was also waiting for a short work day so as not to have a dark and cold ride home. Wednesday was that day. I had a day long meeting down in Norfolk on Thursday so Wednesday would be a travel day. I planned on biking in the morning, then leaving around 2 pm to bike home, have dinner with the family then pack and start the 3.5 hr drive down to Norfolk.

The day started off promising. I got up at 4:30. Had breakfast, coffee, and water. Then I showered, got dressed in many layers, and went around back to pull my bike out. I had to pump up both tires, and install my new bell. By the time I made my lunch and packed up my bag it was 6:15. I gathered some last minute items and headed out at 6:28am. The first streaks of light were appearing on the horizon when I crossed over Braddock road and headed into GMU. The Mason hill was longer than I remembered. Man, I'm out of shape. I took a photo in downtown Fairfax at the Sun Trust Bank: 6:33 31F. Brrrrrr!

The sky was lightening enough to see much of the trail from the Fairfax circle through the Vienna Metro. My toes were starting to freeze as I entered Vienna. After a couple of uphill miles I was at the W&OD trail. I didn't get to use my new bell much as the only people who were on the trail with me were the die hards who passed by me at quite a clip. There was no snow and the trail was clear as I worked my way through Falls Church. After a quick photo at the Custis Trail Marker, I headed under I-66 and up into Arlington. Before long I was heading down the long hill into Rosslyn and down to Roosevelt Island. The Potomac was very high and actually had flooded the trail in a couple of spots west of the Memorial Bridge. Humpback bridge was under repair so the side path was even more narrow than usual. It was still pretty cold over the 14th street bridge. I was surprised that the fish market still smelled bad in the below freezing weather. I took a quick breather at the red light at 7th and Maine Ave then pedaled up to I street. I noticed the new bike lane on I street. It is a good alternative to the traffic of M street. I crossed over South Capital and down 1st street to K street. I turned Left on K and went down to 3rd to travel down to M at the DOT. M street was pretty empty when I reached the Navy Yard, and I locked up in the NAVSEA garage at 8:50.

The afternoon was a lot slower as I was tired and sore, but at least the weather had warmed up to 40F. I had no troble retracing my steps to Rosevelt Island and up into
Rosslyn. Then the fun began, a half mile straight uphill. My legs were burning as I crossed over 66 and out of Rosslyn. My chain skipped and doubled over on itself on the S-curve. I had a tinge of fear that I would need to find another way to get home, 19 miles from home. But I got it free and was on my way. The weather was getting colder and I found that my leg muscles were getting very tight. I needed many breaks and I contemplated having Keow pick me up from the Metro station. But I trudged on. I called Keow from the Fairfax circle tired but told her I would be home in about an hour. But 15 minutes later at the Home Depot I called her again and had her come pick me up. I was 4 miles and two hills from home, but it was already nearly 6pm and if I kept at it I would have been home too late to make dinner and too tired to drive down to Norfolk. So I fell short of my January goal by 4 miles. Actually 3.6 miles. I learned that I will need to work out and stretch more before I head out again. February's goal is 75 miles. Stay tuned.

Yet another reason to bike commute: Parking

I work for the Federal Government, Department of Defense to be specific. And as a Government employee I do appreciate having a job. With 10% plus unemployment I am thankful for my cube, and don't want to come across as whining about trivial matters. One of the side effects of high unemployment is a surge in government hiring, which is great. I moved over from the private to public sector for better job security and better benefits, so I can't blame others for wanting to do the same. But with employment at capacity, parking has become a nightmare.

One of the perks of my job is a rather flexible work schedule. As long as I put in 80 hours every two weeks, and I'm there roughly between at least 9-3 each day I don't have to take vacation, or sweat it too much. I usually get in around 8, but when you have 3 kids sometimes it's harder to get out of the house in the morning. The Washington Navy Yard has 1 parking spot for every 5 employees, as it was described to me by the Management. Some drive, some take the Metro, and others car pool. Of late though I think more people have been driving in and avoiding the cold 4 block walk to the Metro Station. The Parking Garage across the street from my office used to fill up at 7:15. Base parking use to fill up around 8:45 most days, and would never fill up on Friday. Since the start of the year, the close garage is jammed by 6:30, and the base is full by 8:00. Each week the times seems to get about 5 minutes earlier. By spring we will all have to be there by 6 to get a spot! Last monday I pulled in at 8:15 and circled till 10 looking for a spot. I ended up having to park illegally so I would't miss a meeting, and then go back out at lunch to repark.

When I bike in, I get to lock up my bike in the close garage, no matter when I get in. I don't have to sit in traffic waiting to drive on base. When it takes longer to drive and park than it takes to ride in, I need to be biking more. Maybe 4 buck gas isn't that bad after all. At least more people carpooled.

The Great Weigh-In -- 201 lbs

Unfortunately, there is too much emphasis on "great".

The holiday season has come and gone, the new year is upon us so now it is time to put the resolution to the test. And with any challenge there must be a first step, a hideous "before" to go with the glorious "after". So without any further ado, as of Friday January 8th 2010, I weigh 201 lbs. *GASP* I have not weighed this much before in my life (unless you count the 207 I weighed in over Christmas vacation at my father-in law's house, but that was a different scale, right?) When I was in the Navy I was required to weigh less than 201 lbs for my height and never really had a problem with it, but as my job now has me sitting behind a desk all day I have put on about 20 lbs since leaving the service.

One of my challenges is to lose 20 lbs. My ideal weight is around 175 lbs. I think I will need to make the goal to lose 26 lbs.

Now that I am back at work I am itching to get started with the challenge. There are still piles of snow on many of the area sidewalks and roadsides from the epic "SNOWPOCOLYSE (R)" that gripped the Nation's Capital a week before Christmas. Most of the 20 inches of snow that fell are gone, but some 1-2 foot icy remnants remain, unable to melt with the consistent sub-freezing high temps over the last few weeks. I am figuring that if there is snow on my sun-drenched sidewalk, there is probably still snow on the shaded portions of the W&OD and Custis Trail. I am most worried about the Custis, with it's steep hills, narrow lanes, and limited sight lines.

The weather should turn warmer next week. I think I will inventory my equipment this weekend and plan on biking in sometime next week.