Pet peeves on the Capital Crescent Trail
Yesterday, I went on a long bike ride on the Capital Crescent Trail, an 11-mile trail built on the abandoned Georgetown Branch of the B&O Railroad that runs parallel to the Potomac River and C&O Canal. It’s a beautiful trail, well maintained, and quite popular with runners and cyclists alike. It has quite a bit of traffic on the weekend, but that’s okay.
As much as I like the trail, there are some things that annoy me about the trail. Because I have my own forum, I feel I can vent about the things that annoy me.
- Stay in your lane. The trail is nice, but it’s not a multi-lane highway. The trail is clearly marked, and there are signs everywhere telling users of the trail to “stay to the right/pass on the left”. When two or more people ride abreast, it creates two dangerous situations: (a) people coming from the other direction have nowhere to go, and (b) people going slow (e.g., walkers) on the trail create problems for the faster people who want to pass (e.g., cyclists, runners). You can run side by side without
- DO NOT STOP ON THE TRAIL. I cannot stress this enough. The trail is built on an old railroad line, so it is relatively straight; however, it is still a trail. There are some narrow sections and some blind corners. DO NOT STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRAIL FOR ANY REASON WHATSOEVER. I understand there are some places that you might want to stop and observe nature. This is fine; it is part of what the trail is for. However, please get off the trail before you gawk at nature’s splendor. Failing to do so creates a more dangerous situation that pet peeve #1, above.
- Call out when you pass. This is more of a pet peeve when I’m running on the trail than when I’m cycling, although it can be a problem when faster cyclists are passing, too. When you are getting ready to pass someone, yell out the side on which you are passing (it should be on the left, but situations may require a variation). This is for both your safety and the safety of those you are passing. When people are being passed unexpectedly, they do strange things. Sometimes, this means they jump into your path. If you are on a bike, and they are not, both of you will get hurt.
- Unplug from your iPodOne of my biggest pet peeves about people who exercise on the trail are the people who are out wearing their iPods. You are there to exercise, not to rock out. It makes it pretty tough to hear when I’m telling you that I’m passing you. You’re not running on a city street (another place you shouldn’t be wearing your iPod, but that’s another issue), and the sounds you here those of nature. If you didn’t like nature, you wouldn’t be on the trail. Leave your earbuds at home, please.
- Wearing a yellow jersey. This is a general cycling pet peeve, not just one for on the trail. Wearing a yellow jersey says a lot about you as a cyclist. If you are wearing one, make sure that you can cycle faster that the old women who are out for their weekly nature walk.
Adhering to these basic rules will make the trail more enjoyable for everyone. Thank you for your cooperation.
ADDENDA:
- Wear your helmet! If you are out on your bike, wear your helmet. Only you can prevent massive head trauma.
- It only gets worse. According to the Washington Post, the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD) trail is even worse. I don’t know of anyone dying on the CCT…
