District of Columbia

Last Chance to Register for DC Bike Ride This Saturday

By ARLnow.com Sponsor

Mother’s Day has passed, but it’s never too late to celebrate!

DC Bike Ride is offering a $10 discount on registrations to their annual bike ride on May 18!

DC Bike Ride is the perfect way to celebrate with friends and family. The 20-mile closed-road ride means NO cars, just FUN! Say goodbye to the stress of having to dodge traffic — this is your chance to own the road worry-free. The ride is only a few days away — hurry to register and save!

In addition to cruising through the most iconic landmarks in D.C., you get to enjoy some of the best food and music D.C. has to offer along the course. And the fun keeps going after the ride! You can stop by the Finish Festival on 3rd street after you’re done with the ride to enjoy music, foods, drinks and lots of giveaways and fun!

Don’t miss out on your last chance to join the ride of a lifetime. Sign up for DC Bike Ride and let the fun times roll!

To redeem your $10 discount, click here and enter code MOM10 at checkout!

DC Bike Ride is Only a Few Weeks Away

It’s National Bike Month and DC Bike Ride is the main celebration!

Join us on May 18 for the best car-free recreational bike ride in the District. Not an avid bike rider, but still want to have fun? DCBR has you covered! The 20-mile ride is meant to be a ride NOT a race!

Feel free to pedal at your own pace, stop along breathtaking sights, and join a scavenger hunt challenge throughout historic landmarks. The course is packed with entertainment, pit stops, great food, music and giveaways from start to finish.

After the ride, stop by the Finish Festival on 3rd Street between the U.S. Capitol building and the National Mall to enjoy the FitDC Movement Zone and dance to DJ Jealousy beats!

Sign up today to join the 8,000 riders on this celebration, and don’t miss out on the chance to let the fun times roll on May 18!

Special Offer to Save with DC Bike Ride

Want to ride the DC Bike Ride on May 18, but wondering how you’ll get your bike to the starting line? Worry no more! DC Bike Ride has you covered.

DC Bike Ride is offering the lowest price EVER on bike and helmet rentals!

Forget about having to secure your own, just add a bike and helmet rental at checkout and leave the stress behind.

If you haven’t registered for the DC Bike Ride, what are you waiting for? May 18 is your one chance to celebrate life on two wheels on a car-free course. Come experience DC Bike Ride and enjoy the best sights, sounds and flavors D.C. has to offer.

And if that’s not enough, as a valued ARLnow member we’d like to offer you an exclusive discount. For a limited time only, use promo code ARLNOWPP and save $10 off standard registration. Hurry before this exclusive opportunity ends on April 11.

Mark your calendars for May 18 and let the fun times roll!

Morning Poll: But Seriously, Should We Do This?

By ARLnow.com

It was an April Fools’ Day joke, but an interesting one.

The Rosslyn Business Improvement District, riffing off the much-ballyhooed but not-actually-happening Rosslyn-to-Georgetown gondola proposal, floated an idea: a zip line over the Potomac.

Putting aside questions about feasibility — for instance, is it a good idea to have a zip line running across a major airline and helicopter flight path? — an argument could be made that a zip line would be a fun local activity and tourist attraction.

If this was a real proposal — again, putting aside whether it could actually work — would you be in favor of it?

Let the Fun Times Roll with DC Bike Ride

Mark your Calendars! DC Bike Ride is only a few weeks away.

Enjoy cruising through the streets of D.C. entirely car-free and at your own pace on May 18. This is your chance to be a tourist in your own city. DC Bike Ride offers the most exclusive sights, sounds and delicious bites along the course. Don’t forget to stop and snap a few pictures for Instagram along the way!

In case you needed even MORE reasons to be excited about the DC Bike Ride on May 18, we’re bringing you an exclusive deal that you can’t miss.

This year, DC Bike Ride is offering its lowest price EVER on bike and helmet rentals! Enjoy picking up your Cannondale bike and helmet at the starting line for just $12 at checkout. Say goodbye to the trouble of having to haul your own bike — Let DC Bike Ride take care of you instead.

And if that’s not enough, as a valued ARL Now member we’d like to offer you an exclusive discount. For a limited time only, use promo code ARLNOWPP and save $10 off standard registration. Hurry before this exclusive opportunity ends on March 31.

Mark your calendars for May 18 and let the fun times roll!

Early Bird Registration Ends Soon

Time is running out to save big!

Sign up for the 2019 DC Bike Ride today and SAVE $10. Get the best price during Early Bird registration.

Youth riders in the age group 8-17 are always 50% off and kids between 3-7 years old are free. Price increases on March 1. Bring your friends and family. Everyone is welcome! 

Don’t miss the chance to join the most fun ride through the best sights of D.C. DC Bike Ride will take place on Saturday, May 18, 2019 at 8 a.m. EST.

*The price increases to $60/rider (18+) on Friday, March 1 at 12:00 a.m. EST. For more info visit dcbikeride.com.

5 Reasons to Register for the DC Bike Ride

DC Bike Ride is back on May 18 and we promise you don’t want to miss it!

The DC Bike Ride is the region’s only car-free, closed-road, recreational bike ride event. It’s the only time of the year you’ll be able to cruise through the streets of DC completely car-free and at your own pace while enjoying music, food and fun along the way.

Still not convinced? Here are 5 reasons to register for the DC Bike Ride:

  1. You’ll see some of DC’s most iconic buildings from an entirely new perspective and completely car-free.
  2. One-up your Instagram followers and snap epic photos with the DC skyline as a backdrop.
  3. It’s not a race. Enjoy the scenery and course at your own speed. All riding abilities are welcome and you don’t need to own a bike to join the fun — we’ve got you and your whole squad covered with plenty of bike rentals available.
  4. Enjoy a perfect spring day outdoors with your friends and family.
  5. After the ride, dance to some live music, munch on some amazing food from your favorite food trucks and enjoy free giveaways and fun at the Finish Festival.

Register now before the price increases on March 1.

Kids ages 3 to 7 are ALWAYS FREE and youth ages 8 to 17 are ALWAYS 50% OFF. Join us on Saturday May 18 and let the fun times roll!

Find us on social media @dcbikeride on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. For more information visit www.dcbikeride.com

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Wind Chill Advisory in Effect — A Wind Chill Advisory is in effect this morning due to a combination of gusty winds and bitterly cold temperatures. [Weather.gov]

MLK Day of Service — As of Friday, more than 850 people were signed up to volunteer for Arlington County’s MLK Day of Service today.

Rosslyn Building Sold — “Rosslyn’s Oakwood Arlington extended-stay apartments has changed hands for $70 million. Mapletree Investments, a Singapore real estate investment firm, has acquired the 184-unit property at 1550 Clarendon Blvd. from AvalonBay Communities Inc.” [Washington Business Journal]

Local Nonprofit Gets TV Donation — “Patricia Funegra founded La Cocina VA in Arlington as a way to create change through feeding, educating and empowering the community… FOX 5 and Easterns Automotive Group teamed up to help Funegra… with a $1,000 donation and all her students received new cast-ironed pots, recipe books and $50 gift cards.” [Fox 5]

Local Nonprofit Helping Puerto Rico — Wheels to Africa, which was founded by a 10-year-old Arlington boy in 2005 to send used bikes to Africa, is now sending used bikes to Puerto Rico to help residents still recovering from Hurricane Maria. The nonprofit’s founder has since gone to graduate from college and is now working in Arlington. [Washington Post]

County: Get a Flu Shot — “Flu season is officially underway. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that flu activity is ‘elevated’ as flu viruses circulate nationwide. Arlington healthcare officials are urging residents to take precautions and get vaccinated to help prevent the spread of flu.” [Arlington County]

Nearby: Kitten Lounge Coming to Georgetown — “What’s being called the first-in-America kitten-only place to rest, relax and interact with kittens between the ages of three-to-six months will open in early March, at 3109 M(eow) Street NW.” [WTOP]

Reduced Publishing Schedule Today — Due to the Martin Luther King Jr. Day federal holiday, ARLnow will be publishing on a limited schedule today. We’ll return with a full slate of local coverage tomorrow.

Photo courtesy Tom Mockler

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Spike Mendelsohn Planning New Restaurants in Crystal City — “Already in National Landing with Good Stuff Eatery and We, The Pizza, Mendelsohn has a letter of interest out for two new spaces. One will bring his Mexican taco shop already on Capitol Hill, Santa Rosa, to Virginia. Another is a new concept: fried chicken.” [Northern Virginia Magazine]

Shutdown May Fry Local Economy — “Come February — perhaps by the beginning of the month, probably the middle and definitely by the end — the financial, occupational and psychological impact of this now-record government shutdown will go from the theoretical to the very, very real.” [Washington Business Journal]

Trump Signs Shutdown Backpay Bill — President Trump has signed a bill championed by Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) that will provide backpay to federal employees affected by the government shutdown. Now Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner are working to provide a similar guarantee for low-wage federal contractors. [Federal News Network]

JBG’s ‘Brutally Honest’ Amazon Pitch — A quote attributed to JBG Smith Chief Development Officer Kai Reynolds, talking about his pitch to Amazon’s HQ2 team: “So we literally sat down at 8 in the morning, and I started the presentation by saying ‘I’ve lived [in this region] a number of years, I had never been [to Crystal City]. While it’s better than I thought, it’s kind of a shithole.'” [Bisnow]

Snow May Disrupt Evening Commute — “The main band of snow is likely to come through during the evening and overnight hours. As the onset of snow may coincide with the evening commute, especially in our western areas, build in extra time to get home or consider leaving a little early to beat the rush. Some slick spots could develop, especially on untreated roads.” [Capital Weather Gang, Twitter]

Nearby: Attempted Kidnapping in Georgetown — “As she neared her front door about 5 p.m. Tuesday, a woman grabbed the child from behind and tried to abduct her, D.C. police said. The girl fought back and broke free. The nanny in the car screamed, and the woman ran.” [Washington Post]

TRAFFIC ALERT: 14th Street Bridge HOV Lanes Blocked by Crash

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 11:35 a.m.) All lanes of the HOV span of the 14th Street Bridge are blocked by a serious crash.

Four vehicles are involved, one person is trapped in their vehicle and four people are injured, D.C. Fire and EMS said via Twitter. Of the four injuries, one is considered serious while the other three are considered minor.

Firefighters are currently working to free the person trapped in a vehicle.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Christmas Travel Crunch Starts Today — “A record number of people are expected to travel this Christmas season, spurred on by economic comfort and relatively modest gas prices… This year INRIX, a traffic data firm, has forecast the very worst time for drivers to set out on the highways, and for the Washington region, that’s five days before Christmas, on Dec. 20, between 1:15 p.m. and 2:15 p.m.” [Washington Post]

County Manager Pans ART Service — “‘The ART bus performance, recently, stinks,’ Mark Schwartz said during a meeting with Arlington County Civic Federation delegates… In the second quarter of 2018, on-time performance dropped to 83 percent from 92 percent a year before, according to data provided to the county government’s Transit Advisory Committee. Ridership in that quarter was down 14 percent from a year before.” [InsideNova]

Free ART Rides Today and Tomorrow — “Free ART rides on Thurs. December 20 & Fri. December 21. Everyone rides for free! Happy holidays and thank you for riding ART!” [Twitter]

Small Fire in Under-Construction Home — “ACFD is on the scene of a small trash fire at an under-construction home near Discovery Elementary and Williamsburg Middle School.” [Twitter]

Ballston Company Announces New Funding — “Acendre, a leader in secure, cloud-based talent management software for regulated industry verticals, today announced a majority growth investment from Strattam Capital. The investment will enable Acendre to accelerate its growth and more quickly advance its innovative, easy-to-use Software as a Service (SaaS) talent management platform, which helps organizations solve some of today’s most challenging hiring problems.” [Acendre]

Amazon Joins Arlington Chamber — “Amazon.com Inc. has agreed to join the Greater Washington Hispanic and Arlington chambers of commerce and could join more in the region in 2019… The e-commerce giant formally joined the 760-member Arlington chamber on Dec. 3. and subsequently sent a senior public policy official to its annual meeting on Dec. 7, said Kate Bates, chamber president.” [Washington Business Journal]

Nearby: Georgetown Wawa Opening Today — “What an exciting couple of days this week will bring, for fans of hoagies and tacos and caffeine and alcohol-infused frozen Pepsi products. Wawa announced Monday it will open its second D.C. location Thursday, in Georgetown at 1222 Wisconsin Ave. NW. As usual, the event will feature free coffee and a sampling of Wawa fare, in addition to a ‘Georgetown-inspired beverage.'” [WTOP]

Nearby: D.C. Population Breaks 700K — “Today, the U.S. Census Bureau released new official population numbers that put the District’s population at 702,455 as of July 1, 2018. The District’s population has risen every year since 2006 and has soared by more than 100,000 people since the 2010 Census.” [PoPville]

Flickr pool photo by Maryland Nomadic

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