Froggie's #FridayCoffeeClub Finale

As most of you may know, I'm transferring from DC this upcoming week. Wasn't expecting to get a 4-day weekend at first, but my CO granted us today off. So I took advantage of it to hit up my last #FridayCoffeeClub. And yes, this was really my last #FridayCoffeeClub.

For those who don't know, #FridayCoffeeClub is an informal gathering of many of the bike DC crowd at M.E. Swing (a coffee roaster) at 17th and G NW. They meet up for morning coffee every Friday morning. It was initially (and still largely is) organized over Twitter...that's how I heard about it. The main "organizers" are Ed (@dailyrandonneur) and Mary (@gypsybug). Other notable DC bicyclists who regularly stop off are Brian (@SharrowsDC), John (@rootchopper) and Kate (@girlonabikedc). Of course, there are numerous others on Twitter who show up...too many to include here.

A little misty on the ride up, but it was relatively quiet, even on Washington St in Old Town. Noticed bollards at the bottom of the Wilson Bridge for the MVT (more on those later), and of course there are those bicyclists who don't bother stopping for red lights (a particular pet peeve of mine...gives the rest of us a bad name), but all in all a quiet ride up.

Today was perhaps the largest gathering thus far...well over 20 folks stopped by (I lost count). It got to the point where bikes were "double-parked" along the side of the building and even parking across G Street, which led to various comments about adding bike racks or a "bike performance parking district".

Afterwards, after breakfast with a friend, and realizing I forgot my water bottle at Swing (to which I'm grateful to Brian for handing it to the barista for me to retrieve), I rode down to Pentagon via Memorial Bridge and the "path" along Route 27. Though drivers stopped for me at the ramps from GW Pkwy so I could cross, this whole area would still be a lot easier for bikes and drivers if the crossings were grade separated.

The whoe morning was a little bittersweet for me. This is a great group of DC area cyclists, some coming from as far as the Mt. Vernon area, and the coffee's pretty good too. It's definitely something I'm going to miss. Going to an area where bicylcing is *A LOT* less prevalent is going to be a challenge.

Old Town Bike Parking

Dear Alexandria,

Since you took out the parking meters in Old Town several months ago for the new multispace meters, there are a lot fewer places to lock one's bike up to along King Street. Can you fix this?

Sincerely,