So, you might be asking "What is the deal with this site?" Basically, you are looking at my hobby. Whereas some folks might make quilts or build ships in bottles, I like to make web pages. I also like to bike and so I thought this would be a great way to pass on my knowledge of the great bicycle facilities here in Washington DC Metro Area.
Greetings from the Author |
I started the "Urban ATB Page" in May 1996. At the time my wife and I were planning a trip down to Atlanta for the 1996 Olympic Games, and I was searching the internet for bike routes around the Atlanta area. I figured using our bikes would be a great way to beat the predicted traffic apocalypse. (The traffic problems never materialized, and the "predictors" soon moved on to "Y2K" <grin>) Anyway, I was unable to discover any really useful info regarding Atlanta bicycle routes. As a whim, I then decided to see what was online regarding DC bike info. I did find some information, but most of it was vague text-only descriptions that were often hard to follow, especially if you are from out-of-town. So I decided to start posting my own information.
The web site has totally exceeded all my expectations. My biggest surprise has been the hundreds of really wonderful comments folks sent me over the years. (A big thanks!!) The site has also been mentioned in the Washington Post on several occasions. By July 2001, the site was averaging over 2,500 page hits per day, and finally exceed my ISP's bandwidth limit. So I decided to re-host the site with a more descriptive name. Thus, Bike Washington was born.
These days, I am a regular bike commuter to my "real" job in Rockville (software geek). I am also a member of the Washington Area Bicycle Association and the Gaithersburg Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee.
Thanks for dropping by!
- James Menzies
- Montgomery Village, MD
- Email: UrbanATB@BikeWashington.org