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.
