After paying 10% tax on food in DC, it was so nice to not pay any sales tax at restaurants or retail stores. There is only property tax which seemed pretty cheap looking at the houses for sale and tax estimates. One strange thing with the tax is that asphalt and concrete surfaces are considered “livable space” and are taxed. This is why there were so many gravel driveways, or driveways that were partly paved and then gravel to the road.
Friendly’s
One of my favorite spots for ice cream sundaes, I had not seen them outside of NY on the way down to DC and was so happy to see on in Rehoboth! The first time I was there, I had a 5 scoop sundae with 2 scoops cookie dough, 2 cookies and cream, one mint chocolate chip with Reeces Pieces and extra peanut butter topping 🙂 Yum!
Outlet Malls..Even QVC?!
So I don’t go shopping for clothes much, but if I had a tax free outlet mall a few minutes away….I might not keep underwear for as many years 🙂 Just kidding, I order those online. LOL Granted I do have some restraint when shopping. I typically shop the sales rack in the stores so not only do I get clothes that were popular a few years ago which are no longer making them unique, but I save around 75% that way. For example I got a pair of Khaki’s which were a little tight, but for $2.98 from Banana Republic, what a deal! Polo shirts… $9.99 the next trip.
QVC Outlet? Yeah, there is one. It seems to be returns / discontinued items only, but was cool going through the stuff. Since I have never ordered from QVC, it was interesting seeing the quality or lack thereof of the products. If it seems to be to good to be true….it is!
No Helmet Law for Mopeds?
Perhaps they were just kids not abiding by the law, but I saw many without any helmets on. I have heard that many states don’t require helmets, but you would think that since they move fast with traffic that you would want to wear one.
Bike Friendly
Shared turn / Bike Lanes on major routes
Signed no bikes or skateboards on sidewalks
Republican State
Based on the number of Anti-Obama shirts for sale, one can gather 🙂
2.5 Scenic Hours from DC
While I may never be able to own a house in Rehoboth Beach, it is only a few hours a way on mostly back roads / small highways which seemed to pass the time.
After a long Sunday, starting at 5:30 AM with a 62 mile bike ride and volunteering at the Capital Pride Festival, I was tired and hungry! I had wanted to try the new sports bar in Columbia Heights and finally had the chance. It is located near the metro next to the now closed “Commonwealth Gastro Pub.”
Walking by
Walking by I always noticed the large flat screens in the covered outdoor seating area which seemed to be unique. I would think they would not be out if the weather was poor, but it was certainly a nice touch for those patrons who wanted the fresh air and a view of the game.
Sports Bar….
We had dinner around 8 PM and it happened to be NBA Finals and all of the TVs were changed to the same station and the young fans started pouring in. We definitely got there at the right time!
Menu
The prices seemed very reasonable and there was a specials board outside which added to the single page menu. I enjoy American food so there were plenty of $10 burgers and salads along with dinner entrees. My stomach was definitely talking even though I just ate 6 hours before at Buffalo Wild Wings after the Air Force Crystal Ride.
The 3 course price fixe menu drew my attention at only $25. For that price you got…
Salad: House or Caesar
Entree: Ribs, 16 oz Porterhouse Steak, or 16 oz NY Strip and 2 sides
Dessert: Chocolate Mousse, Apple Pie a la mode, Brownie marshmallow thing, all but one dessert item was eligible.
I was full!
It was a great deal. The salad was large, the 16 oz steak was very tender and the sides of mac and cheese and fries came on separate plates and were very generous. The Mac and Cheese seemed to be homemade, but pretty plain. Only one cheese and it was more creamy than cheesy. There was no oil floating in it which is characteristic of cheesier versions. I have a weakness for even boxed versions though, so I was happy 🙂
Dessert… 🙁
While the portion was very generous, the whipped topping and the mousse were not homemade. The mousse seemed a bit “gritty.” My partner is a chef and after he tasted it told me it was that way because it was a mix. Needless to say I did not finish all of the mousse since it tasted a bit odd, but I did leave stuffed.
Okay, so I do like chocolate mousse and have made it from scratch on occasion since it is rather easy.
Egg Yolks
Egg Whites
Heavy Cream
Melted Chocolate
Whip and mix them all together and refrigerate and viola!
Go 🙂
Great value, good food, and sports. Give them a try!
Sunday, June 12th started very early. I got up at 5:30 AM and met a friend at the end of the block to head over the 14th street bridge on the Mt. Vernon trail to participate in the non competitive Crystal Ride. Since Shane was part of “Team Sabre” which is the fundraising team for the ride, he got to start at the Air Force Memorial which was close to the half way mark of the course from Crystal Drive in Crystal City. We wished each other luck and off he went to his starting location and I mine.
Wave 2
It was not so clear how to line up for the ride, but basically there were 2 waves. Wave 1 was for those who received a Gold Metal in a previous event or were VIPs, part of “Team Sabre.” Apparently that wave seemed to start from the Air Force Memorial since there was no division in Crystal City. Once the serious riders lined up, I lined up with some others I was chatting with who were also first timers and watched the minutes tick down until the 7:30 AM start. Recently the weather has been pretty hot in DC so it was good the ride was in the AM.
The Ride
The course is approximately 12.5 KM starting in Crystal City and looping around the Air Force Memorial. There were a few hairpin turns on the leg over, but as the ride progressed, the 1500 participants spread out a bit.
The Goal
Everyone has their own goal of course, but the idea behind this ride was to ride as many laps as you can in the 3.5 hour time allotment and earn medals dependent on the number of laps completed.
1-3 Laps Bronze
4-7 Laps Silver
8 Laps Gold
Ready…Set…Go!
The time arrived and off we went. I have to tell you I was so excited as I received emails the week before as I registered back in March. While you hope you don’t have any bike problems, you do expect there to be some flat tires along the way and this ride was no different. As more laps were completed, the number of riders diminished as did the upside down bikes getting new tubes. I only saw one scary situation which required emergency medical assistance. Others just stopped early. Perhaps they met their goal, not feeling well, or body just said “Not that hill again!.” (The hill up to the Air Force Memorial seemed to take me longer each time I climbed it. The 8th time up I was going less than 10 MPH! Got to love gravity! 🙂
Lap 1 Complete
Since it was a bit slow getting going it took just over 30 minutes to make one lap of the course. Lap 2 I think only took 20 minutes. I am hoping to get the results later today or tomorrow to see how my laps did. I do know my average speed was dropping on my last lap.
Time is running out Lap 8…
So I was not really sure what lap I was on. The “Laps to Go” was counting up! I assumed that meant laps completed, so when I crossed the start line at 7 laps with about 25 minutes to go I thought…”This is it, Gold in sight!” As I approached “the hill” I was a bit worried about my time. I was not sure I was going to be able to make it back to the start/finish line before 11 AM. With only 5 minutes to go, I checked my mileage and still had a few miles. I pushed as hard as I could! 10:59 came around and I was trying to remember how many more turns before the finish line. At this point I was a bit shaky in my legs. Eleven am arrived….I thought if I could make it before it was 11:01 I would be golden. That time came, but I did not give up. I was so close now and not going to admit defeat!
11:05 AM Course Exit
I was not sure if I had completed 8 laps or not, all I knew was that we all had to exit the course as more events were coming up. I snagged one more bottle of water from the volunteers who were skilled at delivery while you were biking by which was cool. I only missed a bottle one time.
Medal Pickup
I walked around the vendors at the finish line to get my medal. They asked me how many laps I did? Hmm…I was not quite sure but thought I did 8 laps. Apparently if you did less than 8 they believed you and you received the medal from the staff there. They sent me over to a tent where staff were checking the computers and the timing chips we were all wearing to see how many laps we completed.
Gold!
I was so excited when I was told I earned a Gold Medal. Granted this was not competitive, but it was the longest continuous ride I have ever gone on. Sadly I use my bike for transportation to cut costs and travel time. The reason I started biking and gave up the free shuttle bus was because the bus route was changed increasing 5-10 minutes travel time.
My longest trip was about 20 miles. I did make it to Mt. Vernon with a friend, but we stopped to eat and check out the grounds for a few hours before getting back on the trail and biking back.
A few weeks back I marshaled Bike DC which was about 20 miles. I took that at a more leisure pace as we were stopping to help riders in need change flats, etc.
The Day After
I took the free shuttle bus to work today since my knees seemed to not like the ride that much. That probably means I need to be sure my bike is properly adjusted to prevent issues down the road, especially if I enter more long rides. Short commutes do not seem to bother my knees.
My Unofficial Stats
Start Time: 7:30 AM (Crossed start line by 7:33)
End Time : 11:35 AM
Average Speed*: 17.9 MPH
Top Speed*: ~35 MPH (Somehow I cleared my data at the end 🙁 )
Distance*: ~ 63 Miles or 100 KM
*(According to my bike computer)
Official Stats are in!
Top view sports was kind enough to give me my lap times 🙂 The data showed 9 laps total with 3:51 for the one, so I added them together for lap 1.
7:33 AM – 7:58 AM ~25 minutes
7:58 AM – 8:23 AM 24:49 minutes
8:23 AM – 8:49 AM 25:48 minutes
8:49 AM – 9:14 AM 25:34 minutes
9:14 AM – 9:44 AM 29:46 minutes
9:44 AM – 10:10 AM 25:54 minutes
10:10 AM – 10:37 AM 27 minutes
10:37 AM – 11:04 AM 27:50 minutes
L to R: Me, Shane, Lisa (Met her day of event) Why didn’t someone tell me I had helmet hair! LOL
Enterprise has been a car rental choice for me due to the convenience. While I have never been “picked up” by them, a branch is close to my apartment.
The Scam
Okay, not really a scam, but using some shady verbiage and a very summarized receipt, you don’t really see the full cost of your rental until you return the car.
The Receipt
The receipt lists your daily rates for everything such as the rate for the car, mileage restrictions, and the many optional services per day which they strongly encourage you to pay. How much does it really cost to rent a car? More than the $30 you see on those sites if you need insurance, etc.
Since I said…sure I will pay $.30 less a gallon to have you fill up the car, the rate per gallon was listed. This was never told to me at the time of the rental, nor was the capacity of the car told to me.
Most companies take an extra deposit these days regardless of how you pay, probably to protect them if you do incur extra charges and use a bogus card. So when I was told the total was $215, I was okay. I was figuring I would get some back at the end. I was wrong.
The final reciept
The receipt I received on car return had everything itemized and totaled up. So I was able to see the car rental, airport and other fees, and a new line called FSO $78! WOW. I gathered what that was and confirmed by calling up Enterprise and briefly mentioned how their sales people are very good about leaving off details to make a sale. In fact I think they should be referred to Sales Persons instead of Customer Service. Perhaps they are already.
Summarizing ….The deal
So….thankfully there are many other car rental companies out there to choose from. Also, I did just find out that my credit card covers the “Collision Damage Waiver” so I won’t be paying any company for that next time.
Now looking at the receipt I can see the line for $3.92, supposedly a discount per gallon of gas, but still no tank capacity. If it take the total paid for the Gas on the receipt and divide by the cost per gallon, it appears that the car has a 20 gallon tank which I confirmed online.
One more thing. Expedia said the total would be ~$104, but if I subtract the Gas, it turns out that it really cost me $140 to start which seems quite high even with a tax approximation. I better give a call to Enterprise and maybe Expedia to straighten things out.
Moral
I did think it was too good to be true. Fill up the tank just before you return. No company does anything to be nice to you. In rare cases, it may be a side effect of them being nice to themselves. You would think it would be very nice if they offered to fill up the tank and only charge you for the gallons needed. In fact, I would pay $.30 extra a gallon for that convenience, but for a hole tank? The sales rep mentioned that he has heard of cars stalling in the return bay in the garage, but how many of us are that irresponsible to not fill up when the light comes on. I don’t trust the gauge to be accurate now that they are electronic and no longer are floating on the top of the fuel, not that that was any more accurate 🙂
Almost Forgot the Cool Car
So I did not even get to mention how excited I was with the car. I guess they got me for the Hybrid. Not only did I not use a full tank of Gas, but I did not pay extra for the Altima Hybrid. I averaged 35 MPG with the AC on all of the time which does not seem to shabby. I think that if I were to be driving in cooler weather, the car would get better gas mileage. I did notice it seemed to kick in the Gas over 20 MPH, but not sure if that is standard or if you are cruising at a steady speed it would kick in. The dash had an indicator when it was in “EV Mode.” I am assuming that is “Electric Vehicle.”
I saw a seemingly good and unbiased review online and definitely will consider this car should I end up needing one permanently. I have not tested other Hybrids, but this one definitely had the pickup to help me pass on a single lane road!
