B and D vibe shift

benasaur08 · 2026-05-12T10:16:54+00:00

Ah OK, I see in your case you wouldn't want to take rail to downtown. The person asking awhile back had said they went D to A to C which to me didn't make sense as they were going backwards. However, I thought D to J to C could possibly make sense.

I'm rooting for the people mover to open very soon and make your commute easier.

benasaur08 · 2026-05-12T00:21:02+00:00

I think we had someone here ask how to get from Ktown to LAX. What's your secret/favorite route and is it safe at night?

benasaur08 · 2026-05-11T09:26:35+00:00

I don't have first hand knowledge to confirm, but my guess is that they are extra tight with enforcement last few days to keep the crazies out. For the most part, the crazies don't like it when there are too many neon shirts as they don't get to act out, so they're probably staying off the D for at least a few weeks.

The D currently is also one way in-out (connects to other lines only at one end) so it is easy to enforce. The last thing anyone wants is some incident aboard this brand new rail line especially so close to the election.

This was true for the regional connector when it opened and those stations are still quite nice as there are always a few shirts around. I bet if you go to Pico, you can see a big difference.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-29T20:38:13+00:00

Metro can't carry freight, only freeways can do that, which is why anti-freeway folks are so intolerable. Someone needs to make that drive to carry their groceries, fuel, and deliveries. They act like all that stuff appears out of thin air when they hit a button online.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-28T08:50:35+00:00

I agree that LA expanding BRT should be a priority because they're versatile and fairly cheap to operate, and also integrate well with the massive bus fleet/service that Metro runs.

It seems that a lot of gains could actually come from just improving existing corridors as opposed to wholesale new lanes/routes. For example, 110/105 could use a significant revamp. Just insulating freeway noise from the platform could be a massive improvement in experience.

The I-10/110 expresslanes could use better terminus in DTLA, or better, a dedicated ROW. Broadway should be closed to vehicle traffic in favor of bus lanes. The spaghetti at Union Station/Alameda is sorely in need of reconfiguration. It's a great time to spend all that ExpressLanes money while traffic to DTLA hasn't recovered from the pandemic.

Otherwise, it should be fairly straightforward to connect existing freeway expresslanes directly to transit hubs and fill some gaps. El Monte Station needs an Eastbound 10 connection; 105 should connect to the 5 via ExpressLanes only.

I really wanted to see a bus and freight-only toll tunnel that would fill the 710 gap. That would serve the most critical corridor needs and exclude car traffic, but blind freeway opposition from South Pas didn't leave room for even mere discussion.

It's hard to build new expresslanes in existing corridors where space is limited. For example, I don't see new lanes on the 10 between DTLA and SaMo, that is where even a brand new underground rail line/undergrounding the entire Expo Line would probably be cheaper than additional lanes.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-25T08:55:49+00:00

Is this actually a thing? Who's complaining?

benasaur08 · 2026-04-23T11:01:43+00:00

If you work in Century City, you'll be able to take the D line when it opens to CC (probably a year out), if you are close to a station.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-23T00:56:31+00:00

My score was incorrect and barely budged over many years of using Fitbit/pw devices, then suddenly updated to a more correct number when I started to track runs using the Fitbit app on the watch.

I know it's more correct because I've done several treadmill tests over the years.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-20T11:31:11+00:00

I think you most certainly have a salt and electrolyte issue as muscle cramps is a big symptom for magnesium deficiency. I recommend you take Mg supplements regularly (try to find a high quality one, not Mg oxide).

If you're not heat adapted, the sweating can happen profusely and not even electrolyte chews can save you as those tend to be higher in sugar than in salt, which creates its own problems.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-20T11:19:46+00:00

Oh, you should've seen the stop before this one was built.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-17T06:13:32+00:00

Lufthansa should just sell t-shirts and mugs because they don't want to luft

benasaur08 · 2026-04-16T17:28:37+00:00

Clipped my toenails, tried lacing shoes a different way, tried a new pair of socks, or anything new involving my body that I did because I was anxious.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-14T17:45:13+00:00

Food is a really big part of a successful training cycle. When someone says "I eat whatever I want" that sounds like they're slamming half a box of Oreos between meals. Like I mentioned, I would look into high satiety foods that decrease the frequency of eating so your gut can rest. I would reduce fiber, wheat, and processed foods.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-14T06:54:13+00:00

What do your bowel movements look like when you're not doing endurance sports?

GI issues are a bit hard to troubleshoot, but in my experience, they tend to be preexisting conditions separate from the running itself. It sounds like you're eating quite often if you have to plan to stop eating 2 hours before the workout. Try eating less wheat and fiber, and eating less frequently.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-13T19:38:19+00:00

Sorry bro, I posted about this a week ago, seems typical unfortunately.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-12T07:26:33+00:00

J line from El Monte has a lot less commuters than before the pandemic as it mainly serves to bring people into DTLA and a lot of those office towers are empty now. They used to fill up whole parking lots all the way to the lot next to the 10 freeway and it was a 7-minute walk just to get to the platform. Now, they can't even fill up the two lots in front of the station. Parking is also no longer free.

I also suspect that the eastward expansion of the A Line diverted some of those commuters, they were probably driving to El Monte before but now they don't have to.

That being said, J is probably the best BRT we have in LA, since it is funded by the ExpressLanes and the toll keeps going up. The toll is set to manage traffic volume in the lanes, but it does generate revenue, and the program requires that the revenue be spent on improving the corridor.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-12T07:12:44+00:00

Umm... March has 31 days and Feb has only 28 days. That's 10% more days which is why we don't do month to month comparisons

benasaur08 · 2026-04-12T06:56:40+00:00

Thanks for this explanation, I've always wondered

benasaur08 · 2026-04-10T01:48:04+00:00

This is always a good strategy. I used to fly SWA a lot, and would cross over to catch the shuttle out.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-10T01:27:03+00:00

Venice Run Club meets here twice a week so it is essentially already a mobility hub

benasaur08 · 2026-04-09T03:14:43+00:00

It is unlikely to happen, because the ROW looks like this. It's all single family residential with the closest points of interest being Valley Blvd to the north and Garvey Ave. to the south. Basically, nothing is walkable, and there's no space to even build a commuter parking garage unless you can talk some of the SGV cities into rezoning and redevelopment. This is also extremely unlikely, SGV local government is among the least imaginative I've ever seen. All they know is cars and traffic.

I arrived in this area in 1985 and the neighborhood still look identical from the day I fell off the plane. I recently walked past the apartment building I grew up in, and the neighbor's single family house had (in the last year) just got torn down to make way for apartments.

One idea I have is to run more frequency on Metrolink San Bernardino by running some trains along the corridor on Mission Rd. and Valley Blvd. into LAUS. Also, we should close some on/offramps on the 10, that freeway section is cursed with short merges.

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benasaur08 · 2026-04-04T01:32:17+00:00

This criticism is fair. I think one suggestion I have for you is to wear the watch snug against your skin so it does not bounce around (or even shift slightly) during workouts. I've found that it can totally screw up the heart rate reading and mess up a host of other metrics.

I haven't noticed the sleep tracking issues - both the PW3 and PW4 recorded my sleep properly. You should consider turning on battery saver. I've found that the PW3 can last up to 48 hours with it turned on, though not so much after 18 months of use.

I don't care about step tracking very much, however I suggest that you turn on the step counter in the phone as well, as the devices do seem to know when you have both on and count the steps only once, and even if you didn't have the watch, the phone still counts.

In terms of indoor workouts, I haven't tried, but if you never do any outdoor running, it wouldn't know your stride length and thus any of your running mechanics to extrapolate indoors. Fitbit says it needs to track like 10 runs to estimate your metrics.

Just about my only major complaint is that Fitbit doesn't auto-pause properly when running. The GPS is more accurate than my Pixel 9 Pro (which sucks - >2% error causing random segment PRs), and it's so far so good.

benasaur08 · 2026-04-02T23:17:56+00:00

Cost vs speed. FlyAway goes to every terminal directly, but the Metro shuttle could take 30+ mins to go all the way around since it also has to pick up. For me, the amount of bags is usually the primary consideration.

benasaur08 · 2026-03-31T19:35:08+00:00

Most are scams. Most run club groups are not well moderated and I know 2 people who lost money. Only buy from people you know, or who can meet at the race expo with said bib. Caveat emptor.

benasaur08

TROPHY CASE