So the weather was not as fabulous as predicted this past weekend or maybe that was just for those of us who live above 3300 feet. I did brave the chilly wind, replaced my inner tube and took a ride. It was good. The wind in my face....not so good. The weather dampened my riding mood, but it was great to be cycling. It gets the heart pumping and it gave me time to think. I'm looking forward to it warming up and I'll be very happy to start riding regularly again. My bike ride did get me thinking though. I don't live in the city and my address is in name only so I can jump on my bike or take a walk down the road without having to worry about sharing the road very much. The traffic is very, veeeerrryyy light. In that way I think I'm lucky. I don't have to worry about finding a safe bike route or worry about being bumped by a vehicle or crossing a major road or highway. I've lived in other places as well and I can't imagine having to ride so close to a lot of fast moving vehicular traffic. I feel a sense of freedom that I can do that. Maybe that's how some of the riders in Arlington, VA feel.

Arlington from what I've been able to learn definitely deserves to be on the list of top 50 bike friendly cities. They have an organized group that promotes cycling, they have multi-use lanes, bicycle lanes and even designated bike routes. Over 100 miles of a combination of the aformentioned in a very urban area that has a population that now tops 200,000. I'm not sure how high the percentage of people is that actively take advantage of this infrastructure, but it is there to be used. Along with the greater Washington area there is also a bike sharing program, bike racks in multiple locations and bicycling classes. Despite it's very urban character the compactness of the city (26 sq. mi.) may have something to do with the logistics involved in developing such an extensive amount of bike trails, lanes and routes. It has been named as a bicycle friendly city, walking friendly city, and a family friendly city. Maybe it's development has more to do with a group of people realizing that we can't ride in cars all the time.