Los Angeles neighborhoods - Best 4 out-the-front-door cycling

[beeatnik]

I have a pal who thinks the ironic #LAsucksforcycling hashtag is ridiculous. Mainly because all the photos associated with the hashtag do not show landmarks or vistas which are in the City of Los Angeles. At the risk of sounding pedantic, for the most part, LA proper, which is to say the Westside, Hollywood and The Valley, does suck for cycling. If your idea of a nice bike ride is avoiding giant potholes and having to stop for red lights every 3 blocks, then LA is awesome. Otherwise, the rad riding which the Radavist features on the reg is in foothill and mountain communities around and outside of the City of Los Angeles. The Santa Monicas, The Verdugos and The San Gabriels (a mountain range without trees), kinda don't suck for cycling.

[cinema]

Eagle rock, highland park, echo park if you want to be close to dtla you can ride in in just a few minutes. Wouldn't even work up a sweat. Griffith park within ten-15 riding minutes. Angeles crest nearby except you'd have to ride thru south pas which is one of the more boring rides you can ever do. Close to lots of great trails in Altadena Angeles crest etc. even Elysian park has a fun hobo trail for weekday pick up rides. I wouldn't live any farther out for traffics sake. Don't live downtown, just don't if you can avoid it.

[cinema]

Originally Posted by beeatnik

At the risk of sounding pedantic, for the most part, LA proper, which is to say the Westside, Hollywood and The Valley, does suck for cycling. If your idea of a nice bike ride is avoiding giant potholes and having to stop for red lights every 3 blocks, then LA is awesome.

This is true and I would definitely have a beater/donor bike with wide tires 35+ as well as your main rig, if you don't already roll with a couple different steeds. la is pretty good for cycling but also not.

[Climb01742]

Never lived in LA but have spent essentially years there in 3-8 week chunks shooting commercials and one truth sunk in for me: to enjoy living in LA, live in the same or adjacent part of town you work in. And avoid the 405 like the plague. As much as we all love riding, I'd place it way behind minimizing your work commute. Good luck with your search. Every place has its flaws, but few places have LA's upsides.

[ofcounsel]

Originally Posted by livingminimal

Second this, or +1 or whatever. I live in Old Towne Orange (And ride the Cowan Heights area regularly) and think Central/Southern Orange County is incredibly unknown for good riding...unless of course, you live here. Yorba Linda and Brea too are fantastic. Not lots of long picturesque climbs (aside from Santiago Canyon area) but lots of bike paths and plenty of gradient to keep you busy.

I third this! There's so much good road and mtb riding to be had here in OC. I live in Brea (North OC) and there's lots of good road and mtb riding nearby. I always am surprising myself with the wealth riding we have. Just the other day, I was riding past the city of Diamond Bar along Grand Ave. on my way to Chino Hills Parkway, and hilly scenery as the sun was coming up was just amazing. I love it here.

I commute into DTLA daily for work. It's about 1 hour door to door using my electric car, which allows me to use all the carpool lanes for free. It's a long commute, no doubt. But if you desire to live anywhere decent outside of L.A. Unified School District where you can raise kids, it's all a long commute.


A colleauge lives in Fullerton, which is adjacent to Brea, and she takes the train into DTLA. It's also about an hour door to door. She uses the time to read or do a bit of work remotely, thereby reducing the amount of time she's in the office.

[ofcounsel]

Originally Posted by echelon_john

Caveat: I know next to nothing about LA, other than how absolutely obscenely ridiculous the traffic is, having been there twice for work recently.

My buddy lives in Glendora, which, at rush hour, is FAR from downtown. But his access to riding is pretty amazing. Glendora Mtn Road is an amazing climb with great views. Nice town, pretty low key.

Glendora is great!!! It's about 8-10 miles East of Sierra Madre. Lots of good riding there too. Glendora Mtn Road, as mentioned is great. At the summit, you can take Glendora Ridge Road to Mt. Baldy! That's a killer ride!

The Monroe Truck Trail is an MTB trail that starts at the base of Glendora Mtn. Road and terminates at the summit, about 7 miles and 2800 ft. elevation later! Both are awesome rides!

[whateveronfire]

Originally Posted by beeatnik

I have a pal who thinks the ironic #LAsucksforcycling hashtag is ridiculous. Mainly because all the photos associated with the hashtag do not show landmarks or vistas which are in the City of Los Angeles. At the risk of sounding pedantic, for the most part, LA proper, which is to say the Westside, Hollywood and The Valley, does suck for cycling. If your idea of a nice bike ride is avoiding giant potholes and having to stop for red lights every 3 blocks, then LA is awesome. Otherwise, the rad riding which the Radavist features on the reg is in foothill and mountain communities around and outside of the City of Los Angeles. The Santa Monicas, The Verdugos and The San Gabriels (a mountain range without trees), kinda don't suck for cycling.

I don't think the west SF Valley sucks for cycling at all. Close to the mountains, good road and mtb trails from my door. That said, I wouldn't want to commute from the SFV to DTLA for love nor money. South Pas is a great suggestion.

[beeatnik]

West Valley is qoo. One of my favorite loops is riding from Los Feliz over the Cahuenga Pass, then down Ventura Blvd all the way to Calabasas. If I have time I keep going to Malibu (worth the hassle of riding back from Santa Monica to La) just for the views. Ventura Blvd is great on weekend mornings, wide and relatively flat forever.

[SoCalSteve]

So, I'll say it again...

Culver City has everything you would want, even if you work downtown.

You can take the Expo Line to DTLA. No traffic. You can pick up the Expo Line in downtown Culver City. Commuting to work with no traffic, check.

You can take the Ballona Creek bike path to Marina Del Rey, from there your choices are endless. To the left, Palos Verdes. To the right, Mandeville, Malibu, canyons and beyond. Great riding, check.

Shops, restaurants, coffee shops,movie theatres and a vibrant social scene. Downtown Culver City. Check.

Weather that you never need air conditioning, weather that you can ride 50 weeks a year, weather that never gets above 90 and never below 60. Check.

Culture. Museums. Theatres. Ethnic restaurants. Check.

I truly don't get the " cycling sucks in LA". I guess they have never ridden with me... Please, ride with me anytime. I'll prove to anyone that cycling in LA is pretty great.

[ofcounsel]

Originally Posted by SoCalSteve

So, I'll say it again...

Culver City has everything you would want, even if you work downtown.

You can take the Expo Line to DTLA. No traffic. You can pick up the Expo Line in downtown Culver City. Commuting to work with no traffic, check.

You can take the Ballona Creek bike path to Marina Del Rey, from there your choices are endless. To the left, Palos Verdes. To the right, Mandeville, Malibu, canyons and beyond. Great riding, check.

Shops, restaurants, coffee shops,movie theatres and a vibrant social scene. Downtown Culver City. Check.

Weather that you never need air conditioning, weather that you can ride 52 weeks a year, weather that never gets above 90 and never below 60. Check.

Culture. Museums. Theatres. Ethnic restaurants. Check.

I truly don't get the " cycling sucks in LA". I guess they have never ridden with me... Please, ride with me anytime. I'll prove to anyone that cycling in LA is pretty great.

Fixed it for you. Even those two weeks a year when it rains, you can still ride...

[beeatnik]

Originally Posted by SoCalSteve

So, I'll say it again...

Culver City has everything you would want, even if you work downtown.

You can take the Expo Line to DTLA. No traffic. You can pick up the Expo Line in downtown Culver City. Commuting to work with no traffic, check.

You can take the Ballona Creek bike path to Marina Del Rey, from there your choices are endless. To the left, Palos Verdes. To the right, Mandeville, Malibu, canyons and beyond. Great riding, check.

Shops, restaurants, coffee shops,movie theatres and a vibrant social scene. Downtown Culver City. Check.

Weather that you never need air conditioning, weather that you can ride 50 weeks a year, weather that never gets above 90 and never below 60. Check.

Culture. Museums. Theatres. Ethnic restaurants. Check.

I truly don't get the " cycling sucks in LA". I guess they have never ridden with me... Please, ride with me anytime. I'll prove to anyone that cycling in LA is pretty great.

#lasucksforcycling is meant to be ironic since everyone thinks LA is a car centric town. the million plus residents who rely on the bus or old MTBs to get to work don't count, obviously.

as for living in Culver City. do you like driving the 405? I get the public transport option but it's the rare individual who wants to rely on that exclusively. and what about weekends or when you work late?

only reasons to live in culver city:

You're a Sony exec
You like overpriced restaurants
You bought a house there in the 60s for 15 grand and that home is now worth 1.2 mil.

[SoCalSteve]

Originally Posted by beeatnik

If you're working in DTLA and your time is worth less than $200/hour, avoid the Westside. And especially, avoid Brentwood, Santa Monica and Culver City. I think SoCalSteve, being a film industry veteran, doesn't quite understand the physical, psychological and emotional toll which sitting in traffic for 2 hours to move 15 miles can take on you. I worked in Brentwood and Westwood while living a few minutes from DTLA and my commute home could average 2 plus hours. Westwood Blvd and Wilshire Blvd is the busiest intersection in the world, according to AAA. The 405 at Wilshire is the busiest onramp in the world, according to AAA. To get from Brentwood to the 10 freeway (4 miles), you'll average an hour (you could walk faster). Santa Monica, Culver City and Brentwood are models of bad urban planning. Bedroom communities which have become commercial/business hubs due to the tech, entertainment and financial services industries. There are more car trips out of Central LA to the Westside than the reverse. And that's only been the case in the last 20 years. Not sure if there's any other city in America with that type of traffic pattern. So, ya, if you're renting, Christian's suggestions are solid. If you're purchasing, unless you can afford 2 mil plus, Arcadia will be out of the question. The median home price in the San Gabriel Valley for a 2 bedroom, 1000sq home is $500,000. Anyhoo, bottom line there are no affordable options, just less expensive compromises (Glendale tends to be more affordable than Pasadena, Highland Park tends to be more affordable then Eagle Rock, etc).

Shoot me a txt next time you're in town.

Curious why you would think that because I worked in the movie biz for 35 years I am immune to LA traffic. Do you think I have some kind of " movie biz pass" that excludes me from the realities of living in Los Angeles?

I am 57 years old. I have lived and worked here my entire life. My mom was born here,I am second generation Angelino. I know Los Angeles.

For me, NOT living in LA proper is not living in Los Angeles. All the best that this city has to offer is in LA proper. Not a valley. Any valley. And, I know. I grew up in The Valley. Spent 18 years there. Got out, never looked back.

One mans opinion. Everyone has different priorities in life. Mine are living in a place that has great weather, culture and a vibrant social scene. Oh, great riding out my front door as well.

[SoCalSteve]

The OP wrote this:

Happy Holidays fellow Paceliners. Work may be bringing me to downtown LA and I'm wondering where to live that would allow the dual benefits of 1) public transit to/from work and 2) good road cycling I can get to that's not far away from my front door.

Culver City definetly works for both 1 and 2.

[SoCalSteve]

Originally Posted by beeatnik

#lasucksforcycling is meant to be ironic since everyone thinks LA is a car centric town. the million plus residents who rely on the bus or old MTBs to get to work don't count, obviously.

as for living in Culver City. do you like driving the 405? I get the public transport option but it's the rare individual who wants to rely on that exclusively. and what about weekends or when you work late?

only reasons to live in culver city:

You're a Sony exec
You like overpriced restaurants
You bought a house there in the 60s for 15 grand and that home is now worth 1.2 mil.

Please look at a map of where downtown Culver City is in relationship to the 405. Maybe the 10, but you would never have to drive on the 405.

The Expo Line is awesome! I use it pretty much every time I go downtown. Runs every few minutes and probably runs 20 hours a day, 7 days a week. And, as a bonus, it will be running all the way to the beach in 2016.

[beeatnik]

Originally Posted by SoCalSteve

Curious why you would think that because I worked in the movie biz for 35 years I am immune to LA traffic. Do you think I have some kind of " movie biz pass" that excludes me from the realities of living in Los Angeles?

I am 57 years old. I have lived and worked here my entire life. My mom was born here,I am second generation Angelino. I know Los Angeles.

For me, NOT living in LA proper is not living in Los Angeles. All the best that this city has to offer is in LA proper. Not a valley. Any valley. And, I know. I grew up in The Valley. Spent 18 years there. Got out, never looked back.

One mans opinion. Everyone has different priorities in life. Mine are living in a place that has great weather, culture and a vibrant social scene. Oh, great riding out my front door as well.

Most film/television production doesn't occur in Downtown Los Angeles between the hours of 8am and 6pm. I know the hours can be long and hard but if you get to drive home at 11pm on a Friday night you don't deal with the same abomination.

And The Valley is the City of Los Angeles. In fact, half the residents of the City of Los Angeles (2 mil plus) live in the communities which make up The Valley.

In any case, I like how Culver City has changed in the last 15 years. I like the Westside. The reality is that the worst traffic in California is in those areas (for a reason). IMO, as a former "Westsider," if you're not wealthy, it really impacts your quality of life.