Exorcising the Speed Demons
On the drive from Columbia, I had that feeling creep up on me. It starts in my lower back, and works its way up my spine. I just need to put the pedal to the floor and feel the roar of the engine, to move through traffic like water down an incline, finding the surest path to the bottom.
Turning off the Beltway onto the GW Parkway, the radio obliged my need for speed, pumping up the bass line and ripping into “Going the Distance.” I wove like a shuttle through a loom. I knew I was risking a ridiculous fine and federal charges, but it was worth it. Traffic slowed as we reached the city again, but the feeling had passed.
I’d love to find more spots like the GW in the DC area to indulge myself automotively, where can you drop the hammer a bit?
ehhhhh. be careful.
i get it on in the wierdest of roadways.
k street NE, in DC rocks!
just gotta get there in the early hours on sat or sunday.
i don’t get to virginia or MD much, but in the nation’s capitol, there are great runs on the parkway, or elsewhere – during weekend mornings.
you really wanna play hard? blast your music and bust the crack house next to my pad in NE DC.
or…
just hang in the burbs, speed, and tell everyone you live in DC.
each to their own…
Be careful on that stretch — heard of this kid?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/11/AR2006051101829.html
Yes… nice stretch, but a little too many doofuses when I ride it…
Try taking it on two wheels…. you can feel the temperature change of the shadows in between the trees…
I especially like the fall-away curve when 123 joins southbound…
Damn, 126mph on GW Parkway? That’s just insane. The fastest I’ve gone is 115, but that was out in the middle of nowhere in Colorado with my dad’s 1992 300ZX twin turbo.
If traffic is good on 66, I like to do some speed weaving back into the city after work and then onto Rock Creek Parkway.
Poo Poo – I don’t think I understand the last part of your comment. Are you saying I suck because I live in Arlington? I don’t get it.
Beca – yeah, that’s waaaaay too fast I just like moving past the other traffic, not driving like a lunatic.
The best speed run is outbound on 395 on a weekday, hitting 70-80mph as you pass Treasury and cross the 14th Street bridge while the inbound lane is at a crawl.
Windows down, spring breezes blowing and a jet landing overhead: pure adrenaline.
You can feel that same temp change in a convertible, David. Owning one has made me a complete convert to the concept of how much impact even a small number of trees can have.
When I drive home with the top down there’s sometimes temperature differences that feel like 5-10 degrees lower when I go through areas with large stands of trees & undeveloped land.