Armed Forces Cycling Classic Challenge Ride 2025

Challenge Ride Route

Yesterday I rode in the 2025 Armed Forces Cycling Classic Challenge Ride. I’ve done this once before, but skipped recent years because of other plans. This year is the first iteration of this ride in which the start/finish line is actually in DC adjacent to the US Capitol building. I’ve been training all winter; I wanted to see if I could get another gold medal.

Sadly, I just missed the cut-off; I wasn’t able to start another lap with about 30 minutes left to go in the three-hour window. I completed four laps, enough only for a silver medal. They physically blocked the course to prevent riders from going out for another lap.

Waiting to Start

I Rarely See the Washington Monument from this Side

The Ride Started Shortly After Sunrise

It was really cool to be able to ride in DC without worrying about cars. In fact, this was my first time ever riding in the District, after 30+ years living nearby. I parked in East Potomac Park near Hains Point, then rode to the starting area. I was near the front at the start and we got going much faster than last time because there weren’t so many early choke points. I quickly learned that there are hills that I had never noticed when I drove my car on those same streets. There are also lots of manhole covers, some with deep depressions. I spent a lot of the time on Independence Avenue just avoiding potholes and deep manhole covers. The course proceeded west on Independence, south on 14th, and across the Potomac on the I395 express lanes, then, near the Pentagon, joined the course from previous years between Crystal City and Rosslyn. The course was mostly in pretty good shape, with only a few places where there were deep gaps in the concrete. I really didn't like the expansion joints on the 14th Street Bridge; they look like intermeshing teeth with gaps that could grab my wheels, but I never had any trouble with them. There was a lot of rain overnight and the road started out damp with a few puddles, but it mostly dried out before the end of the ride. The temperature was pretty cool at the start but I warmed up quickly and only broke out in a brief sweat a few times.

So how did it go?

• I think I’m in better shape than last time. I actually rode slightly faster, on average.
• The wind sucked; it was windy all morning.
• I tried to be mindful about drinking but should have done it more often. Same for eating.
• I was able to produce power surges whenever I needed for climbs.
• If I do it again, I need to show up in better shape to get past the cut-off at 2 1/2 hours.

 

 

Cherry Blossoms

Every year, if the weather and my work schedule cooperate, I try to pay a visit to the Tidal Basin to photograph the cherry blossoms during peak bloom. This year I managed to get there on a Sunday morning. I chose this day because the previous few days were rainy and cold.

In the past, I’ve used Metrorail to get there. But this year I wanted to try a long exposure of the Jefferson Memorial while it was still dark, so I decided to drive. I got there at 5:40 AM to be sure to get parking and so I would have time to shoot the memorial before sunrise. The Park Service closed roads and even made the road out to Hains Point reverse flow so I found the navigation kind of confusing. But I found a spot near the Park Service HQ and walked around the Tidal Basin in the dark to a spot where I could shoot the memorial head-on. I got a bonus - the airport traffic was taking off to the south so their light trails showed up in my photographs.

Jefferson Memorial and Aircraft Light Trail

After I got the Jefferson Memorial shots, I returned to my car, stored my backpack and tripod in the trunk, and then went back to the Tidal Basin to walk around. It got really crowded really fast. The rain turned everything to mud and standing water. I was glad I wore my hiking shoes; I didn’t care that they got filthy and the fact that they’re waterproof allowed me to plow through puddles that most people were trying to avoid.

Nearly all of the blossoms were still white; very few trees had reached the pink phase. It wasn’t much fun trying to shoot with so many people in the way. There were several professional photographers trying to get shots of their clients, all dressed up, with the flowers and the water and the memorials in the background. It was difficult to find places to stop for a moment to shoot. Here are my favorites from this trip.

July 4 Fireworks

I've wanted to photograph fireworks for a while but never got around to it. Well this year I did it. I hauled my DSLR and tripod to the Potomac River bank in Virginia and set up opposite the capitol mall. As usual, there were enough boats to almost walk across the river. This year, the event is in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. The crowds on shore were sparse, but the river was packed. Last time, we had a nice spot, settled in, and just as the show was about to start, a dinner cruise boat (Odyssey I'm still mad at you) sailed up and partially blocked the view while spewing stinky exhaust. At least this year the pandemic kept the big boats away.

Boats on the Potomac

I've actually seen this show twice before: once from the south lawn of the White House (very cool), and once from the Virginia shore. This was a return to the same general area on the Virginia shore. Previous experience lulled me into a sense that I knew what would happen. The show was different this time. Previously, the fireworks launched from alongside the Reflecting Pool. This year, the launch was from two distinct spots, one around the base of the Washington Monument and I think the other spot was on the Georgetown Waterfront Park. Well, I set up to shoot the area that was visually between the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial and figured out pretty fast that was a bad choice when fireworks started launching from the extreme left and right of my composition. I tried that for a while but switched to concentrating on the Washington Monument, which turned out to be a good choice.

Two Shows at Once

So I recomposed, which then undid my careful horizon leveling job that I did in the daylight. After the fact, I had to straighten almost all of my photos. Now and then good reflections on the water showed the silhouettes of the many boats, including the one boat with the American flag lights.

Fireworks Around the Washington Monument

The variety of fireworks made for a lot of unique shots.

Fireworks

I had my camera on a tripod, in bulb mode, focused on infinity, ISO 100 (yes 100, the lights are bright) and f11 (for depth of field, and again the lights are bright). I had a wired remote trigger that tripped the shutter and held it open for as long as I held the button. I experimented with short exposures and longer ones and watched the results on the rear screen. I quickly learned that the bright white fireworks will blow the highlights out, so when I saw those I went for shorter exposures. Otherwise, I just sat and waited for rising fireworks, triggered, held it open for the burst, then closed the shutter and waited for the next sequence.

Fireworks

I liked the sequences with colors and reflections, although I wish there were fewer boats in the foreground.

Colors and Reflections

After a while, the altitude of the bursts got higher and I had to recompose and zoom out. This meant some of the shots have a tree in the foreground: I wasn't expecting to be shooting in that direction. I was able to crop the tree out of most of the shots that I cared about.

Higher Bursts

Eventually we got to the big finish.

Big Finish

OK, lessons learned:

• That was waaay more fun than I expected.
• The launch site at Georgetown stopped launching about a third of the way into the other show; I made the right choice to concentrate on the Washington Monument. Actually I hope they keep launching from that site in the future because I think it looks better than when they launch from the Reflecting Pool area.
• Every now and then an airplane would pass in the background, or a helicopter would pass closer in the background. Their light trails appear in some of the photos. Annoying, but easy to remove if they're not among the fireworks bursts.
• Next time, choose a spot that will have less chance of obstructions in case I have to recompose in the dark. Also, bring and use a spirit level.

Edit:

I wrote the text above on July 5, 2020. Rereading this on July 3, 2021, I realize that I left some details out. I’m planning to go again to the fireworks show tomorrow. So I also reviewed my photos from last year. This leads me to the following plan for tomorrow:

• F11, ISO 100, 24mm, 1-3 second exposures on bulb mode, autofocus OFF, focus at infinity.
• Use a wired remote trigger.
• The launch site is either side of the reflecting pool, unlike last year. While there’s still daylight, get the tripod set up with the camera viewing a LEVEL horizon.
• Bring a flashlight so it’s possible to see what I’m doing if I have to fiddle with the tripod or camera in the dark.

Lincoln Memorial at Dawn

The Lincoln Memorial is in Washington DC. It sits at the western end of the capitol mall. I've passed it hundreds of times on the way to/from business in DC. It's a cool spot to visit because it's an impressive building with an impressive statue and it's right next to the Korean War Memorial and Vietnam War Memorial. It's like a 3-for-1 in a single trip.

Lincoln Memorial

I haven't tried to photograph it much. There's always a crowd and I don't like a lot of people in my photos. I've lived nearby for a long time; I've had lots of time to photograph the monuments; I'm just not interested. There are millions of photos taken of them all the time. There's nothing new.

Well, actually there is something new. I admire the work of David Coleman (https://cherryblossomwatch.com/photography-tips/) and Pete Souza (https://www.petesouza.com/). Both of them have photos online that show the Lincoln statue in beautiful dawn sunlight. The sun lights the statue this way only around the equinoxes, that is, for a few days before/after the first day of Spring and Fall. And you need perfect weather conditions: no clouds in the east at dawn. The memorial is oriented with the opening to the chamber facing east, and the pillars usually cast shadows on the statue. But this time of year there's an unobstructed shaft of light shining right on Lincoln at dawn.

We're in a long string of no rain and few clouds. Perfect weather. It's the equinox. Perfect timing. I went to the Lincoln Memorial at dawn. I set up by the reflecting pool and shot toward the statue. Too many people in the way.

Then I went into the chamber and started shooting. It's so large that it's hard to get a flattering shot of the whole statue from that close, so I went for tight head shots.

My favorite is this silhouette showing the face in profile, illuminated by the golden light, with the dark unlit chamber wall as a background.

Cherry Blossoms

Well, it's that time of year again. The cherry blossoms at the tidal basin are blooming. I hustled over after work one afternoon and got caught up in the crowds.

Cherry Blossoms and Crowds

 It was overcast all day, but some sunshine came through at times.

Washington Monument and Cherry Blossoms

 The Jefferson Memorial still looks pretty bad. The dark stuff is still growing on the roof and the area in the photo below where the people are walking regularly floods, leaving muddy pools to walk through even on the sidewalks.

Jefferson Memorial

 The blossoms were at peak, with most of the flowers in the white stage, and only a few trees into the pink phase.

Cherry Blossoms

Cherry Blossoms

 Back into the gloomy overcast, I got a hint of dramatic skies.

Washington Monument and Cherry Blossoms

There was a steady stream of helicopters flying over. I think every pilot wanted to buzz the basin. When I heard them coming, I quickly switched to a slower shutter speed to get a shot with blurred rotors. Marine One flew over twice, although I think it was a training flight, not a flight with the president aboard. So I guess it wasn't actually Marine One, but a VH-3D Sea King configured for the president's use.

VH-3D Sea King, Sometimes Called Marine One

 And here's another helicopter, this time a Blackhawk, also buzzing the crowd.

VH-60N Whitehawk

I wanted to go at dawn, but between work and driving my son around to his events and cloudy skies, I wasn't able to get the cool golden hour shots that I like. Maybe next year.

More Cherry Blossoms

I made my annual trip to the Tidal Basin over the weekend to try to photograph them, but the weather was awful. I had the opportunity to go again yesterday afternoon. Here's the second round of photos.

Cherry Blossoms

The Grebes were Playing among the Petals

Cherry Blossoms

Jefferson Memorial

Cherry Blossoms

Cherry Blossoms

It's that time of year; the cherry blossoms are in full bloom. I was unable to visit during the week, so I went this morning and arrived at the crack of dawn. It was cold and windy and cloudy with a brief period of mixed drizzle and sleet. I was hoping the bad weather would keep the crowd down. It did suppress the size of the crowd, but still there were lots of people.

I grabbed some shots of the monuments before the lights shut off. Aside from the tent, I like this one.

Jefferson Memorial

As I wandered around, I mostly used my 85mm f1.8, like most visits. However, I saw some horned grebes playing in the water, so I switched to my 70-200 f2.8 about halfway through. There was a pair that stayed pretty close to shore, diving frequently. Here's one who managed to surface under a flower petal.

Horned Grebe with Cherry Blossom Petal

 The overcast skies created a soft light that didn't really do much for the subtle colors. I've read plenty of times that overcast can create flattering light, but I've decided that I don't like it.

Cherry Blossoms

Robert E. Lee's house overlooks Washington DC. Here it's visible way off in the distance across the Potomac River.

Robert E. Lee's House in Arlington National Cemetery

Given that I passed the spot directly opposite the Jefferson Memorial while I had my zoom lens mounted, I went for the head-on shot with Jefferson's statue silhouetted.

Cherry Blossoms

The National Park Service decided to try to clean the top of the monument. It's had this ugly bacteria growing on it for a while. A contractor did a test cleaning with a new process, and it's easy to see the strip of the roof that got cleaned.

Jefferson Memorial with a Cleaned Strip

And I went inside for a quick shot of Jefferson. That dark statue in dim light was hard to expose for a usable photo. Wide open, with high ISO, and image stabilization, I got some detail in his face. It's possible to see the bird droppings.

Thomas Jefferson

So I'm glad I went, but I don't think I'll try again in the future if the weather is this lousy. There was a wedding taking place in the grass next to the Jefferson Memorial. The men all looked cold. The women in their bridesmaids dresses, and the bride too, looked like they were uncomfortably cold as the wind blew their dresses around a lot.

Cherry Blossoms at the Tidal Basin

It's that time of year again. We had an incredibly warm February, which accelerated the blossom formation. Then there was snow and frigid cold in early March, which damaged a lot of the flowers before they could pop open. After the park service adjusted the peak bloom prediction for the warmth, and then again for the cold, peak bloom finally arrived this week. I had an event downtown in the evening and was able to squeeze a visit in. Between the time crunch and gathering clouds, I didn't have a lot to work with. I favor my Nikon 85mm f1.8 lens for this subject, and that's the only lens I brought. Given the changing light conditions with the clouds and walking in and out of shade and changing the direction in which I was shooting, I was constantly on the aperture wheel to adjust the exposure. I was selective in my shot selection, came back with only about 50 photos, and had a lot of fun with it. As I've gotten more experience with photography, I like to think that each year I get a little better with this subject. Now sometimes the conditions don't cooperate (last year I shot in drizzle), but as I compare my work from previous years, I definitely like the progression in each sequence. Here we go...

Lincoln Memorial under Gathering Clouds

Cherry Blossom Close-Up

Another Close-Up Shot

Brief Rays of Sun on the Tree

In Full Bloom along the Tidal Basin

Dramatic Skies Contrasting with Blossoms

Just a Bit of Fleeting Blue Sky

With the Old Post Office (aka the Trump Hotel) in the Background

The Jefferson Memorial across the Basin

One More Sunny Shot before the Sun Disappeared for the Day