I ride through every part of DC. What I don't like about the "bad" areas is the broken glass and trash. I don't deal with people very well. I don't like to go into areas with a lot of criminal activity at night. Since I'm not a participant in the criminal activity, I'm a potential witness so not welcome. When one of the local crew is trying to size you up it helps to ask directions or something to let him or her know your business there. The more worisome people are the younger kids who are still fighting for their role on the streets. They do stupid things just to show the older ones how tough they are. There is often what I call a "body language of guilt" when they're up to something. Of course if they're really targeting YOU, things will happen too fast for you to think. The unskilled ones will give you warning, of course it is also the unskilled ones who will do something stupid too. The story about the 11pm attack reads to me like the bikers had some relationship with the attackers. But, one time coming home from visiting my daughter at 11pm I pedaled past a group of about 8 excited teenage boys. They were yelling and carrying on. When they saw me on my dorky recumbent a couple ran out in the street at me like they were going to push me off it. No shots were fired. It would be pretty stupid to shoot at me for nothing but then teenage boys do stupid things.