From: dc-cycles-digest-request@XXXXXX (The dc-cycles list administrator) To: dc-cycles@XXXXXX Subject: dc-cycles digest for 10/16/08 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ __ /-----\ __ 'dc-cycles' is an unmoderated email discussion list (__\/ _____ \/__) about motorcycling in the Washington D.C. area. =( \___/ )= \ ___ / An archive of the dc-cycles list is available at: | / _ \ | http://www.dc-cycles.org/ \ || || / \|| ||/ Subscribe/unsubscribe requests should be sent to: \| |/ dc-cycles-digest-request@XXXXXX |_| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2008 13:06:37 -0400 From: "Paul Wilson" To: DC-Cycles Subject: [dc-cycles] Paul is going fairing-free Totally naked and back on two hydrocarbon-powered wheels. Whew, that feels better. On Tuesday I picked a very clean '00 SV650 with 11k miles on it. I've had my eye on the SV for a long time, and it seemed like a good idea to pull the trigger now. After giving her a stem to stern inspection yesterday, I'm taking her out for some sea trials this weekend, on a trip to W.Va. Paul in DC My bike genealogy-- '00 SV650 '95 VFR750F (crashed-RIP) '90 KLR (succumbed to an overnight ten-fingered discount) '96 KLR (ditto) '86 VF500 (sold) '91 CB750 (sold) _______________________________________________ dc-cycles mailing list dc-cycles@XXXXXX http://dc-cycles.org/mailman/cgi-bin/listinfo/dc-cycles _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) From: "Dave Yates" To: "DC-Cycles" X-Forwarded-For: [(null)] Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:12:36 +0000 Subject: Re: [dc-cycles] Paul is going fairing-free Paul Posted: Totally naked and back on two hydrocarbon-powered wheels. Whew, that feels better. On Tuesday I picked a very clean '00 SV650 with 11k miles on it. I've had my eye on the SV for a long time, and it seemed like a good idea to pull the trigger now. After giving her a stem to stern inspection yesterday, I'm taking her out for some sea trials this weekend, on a trip to W.Va. [Dave] Awesome news Paul. I'm glad the title wasn't "Paul is going with a bikini (fairing)", that would've been a bit much for just after the lunch hour :-P _______________________________________________ dc-cycles mailing list dc-cycles@XXXXXX http://dc-cycles.org/mailman/cgi-bin/listinfo/dc-cycles _ _ _ _ .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. .-.-.=\-. (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) (_)=='(_) From: "Chris Norloff" To: "'DC-Cycles'" Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2008 14:13:40 -0400 Subject: [dc-cycles] better pavement in Manassas Has anybody ridden this section of pavement? It might be nice for bikes, though I hope its being "prone to crumbling" won't be too much of an issue (hah!). Also, if it's that porous, it could hold a lot of oil to float up to the road surface in the rain. Chris http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/15/AR2008101500 021_pf.html VDOT Gives Pavement Mix A Road Test Material Designed to Cut Noise, Shed Water By Jonathan Mummolo Washington Post Staff Writer Thursday, October 16, 2008; VA05 A 1.7-mile stretch in Prince William County might portend the future of roads in Northern Virginia. The Virginia Department of Transportation has refinished a section of the Route 234 bypass with a material called porous friction course, an asphalt-concrete mix that better absorbs road noise and drains water more easily than a typical road surface. The Manassas area section, between Balls Ford Road and Sudley Manor Drive, is a test case. If successful, the surface could be used on other VDOT roads, including Interstate 66 inside the Capital Beltway, officials said. A typical, dense-graded road is made of variously sized stones that interlock, leaving about 4 percent empty space, and a porous road can have up to 25 percent of porous empty space, said Kevin McGhee, the research scientist who is leading the project for VDOT's research arm, the Virginia Transportation Research Council. The pores allow the surface to drain water, reducing hydroplaning and splashing, which can affect a driver's ability to see. The spaces also absorb noise from tires, McGhee said. The study will cost about $500,000 -- $400,000 of which was contributed by the Federal Highway Administration -- with noise reduction being the agency's main goal, McGhee said. "Noise barriers are expensive, not to mention some people don't like the look of them," said McGhee, referring to the walls that line highways near residential areas. Such barriers can cost $2 million to $3 million per mile. A porous road also has potential drawbacks, McGhee said. An earlier version of the material, which costs about $125 per ton, compared with $75 per ton for regular asphalt, was in use in Virginia in the 1980s but was abandoned because of durability problems. Because it is porous, the material is prone to crumbling, McGhee said. Since then, technological advances such as higher-quality liquid asphalt, and fibers that help retain it, have been added to make the surface more promising, he said. "A lot of people call this the new generation" of the material, McGhee said. The test strip in Prince William was finished early last month, and next month VDOT will bring in a contractor from Texas to conduct noise testing, McGhee said. The porous material can cut three to five decibels of noise when compared with a dense-graded road and five to 10 with a concrete road. "Three decibels is like halving or doubling the sound," McGhee said. The material has worked well in Texas, according to Dale A. Rand, who is the flexible-pavements branch director for the Texas Transportation Department. Since 2000, the state has used the product in more than 200 projects. In one case, a stretch of four-lane highway near Austin experienced a 93.8 percent decline in wet-weather crashes in the three years following application of the alternative surfacing, Rand said. Fatalities also declined about 83 percent during that time. "It was pretty impressive," Rand said. The material is also in use in Florida and Arizona, but McGhee said testing is necessary in Virginia because of the wet, freezing winters the roadways sometimes endure. In addition to testing the noise, VDOT will measure features such as drainage capacity and ride quality, and all the tests will be repeated next year to see how the road holds up over the winter. VDOT will continue monitoring the road for about five years, or until "it falls apart," McGhee said. If the surface tests are successful, motorists could see the material in place on I-66 within about five years, McGhee said. If lanes are added there, noise reduction will be a priority, he said. The economy, however, is posing a roadblock. "Right now, we can't afford to do much of anything, much less the premium road surface," he said. Staff researcher Meg Smith contributed to this report. _______________________________________________ dc-cycles mailing list dc-cycles@XXXXXX http://dc-cycles.org/mailman/cgi-bin/listinfo/dc-cycles