Weight Weenies

I'm going to be in LA in the second week of August and then traveling up to San Fran.. Keen to do some riding while I'm there, any suggestions on good riding spots and or shop bunch rides to get in on..? I like hills but not that interested in 20%+ stuff and I don't mind toughing it out over a long climb for the chance to hit up a fast tech descent, any places I should avoid or must ride? We ( me and the GF and no she don't ride ) are driving up and not in a hurry. Thanks a bunch..

Sk


Ohh and if any one wants to do some riding then holla at me!

There's lots of great riding in LA. Often, though, you need to ride through/near heavy traffic to get to the good stuff. Also, your options on the weekend will be a little different than during the week. The major options:

1. (East) ... Angeles National Forest. There are a handful of beautiful roads ... Angeles Crest, Angeles Forest, Big Tujunga, Red Box/Mt Wilson ... that are great rides as long as you don't mind sustained climbing. The National Forest starts in La Canada/Flintridge, but decent places to start/end a ride are either Pasadena area or Griffith Park area. I think these roads are probably okay during the week, though I've only ever ridden them on the weekend.

2. (way East) ... Glendora Mountain Road. I never ride that far East, but supposed to be great. Can start in Pasadena, but you have to slog through some not very interesting stuff first.

3. (West) ... Malibu. There are a ton of great rides in Malibu. Unfortunately, you need to ride the PCH to get to most of the canyons. On a weekend morning the PCH is beautiful, but other than that it's has alot of fast moving traffic. However, the canyons in Malibu should not be missed. If you search on ridewithgps or mapmyride you'll find a bunch of rides. The key canyon names are Topanga, Fernwood, Stunt, Piuma, Latigo, Encinal, and Decker. Almost all of these rides start in Santa Monica.

I'm a member of Velo Club LaGrange and I think a few others on WW are as well. Here's a link to some rides from the LaGrange site: http://www.lagrange.org/rides.htm

Also, here's some info on the Malibu climbs: http://www.lagrange.org/local_climbs.htm

The one hill I would not miss, no matter what, is Latigo.

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If you have plans to be in specific parts of LA and SF, that information would help- both are in large extended meto areas. For example I live in the SF bay area but it's an hour and a half drive to SF itself.

In the LA area I like the coastal roads around Malibu- Mulholland drive etc.
There are also nice climbs to the east, in the taller mountains there.

In the SF area, Mt Diablo is a good monument. The view is very good if the air is clear. Mt Hamilton is also good. Both have been in the ToC.

Depending on where you are and my race and work schedule I'd be up for a ride.

If you want to take in one of the best views of the Pacific Ocean, consider stopping along highway 1 and ride Nacimiento-Fergusson Road near Big Sur. Also since you mentioned driving, I'd recommend taking highway 101 north. It takes a little longer, but there's also less local LA traffic, is more scenic, and is easier to get to highway 1 (if you do end up deciding to ride Nacimiento Rd).

A brief browse through flickr.com should be enough to convince you:

My two favorite:
SF/East Bay - Morgan Territory->Mt. Diablo = ~65miles/6600ft
SF/Palo Alto - Page Mill->Tunitas Creek->Old La Honda = ~70mi/7500ft

Let me know if you want any route details. Also, WrenchScience in Berkeley does a pretty good weekly shop ride...great bunch of guys.

You can google and research these awesome routes

http://www.strava.com/activities/99299
http://www.strava.com/activities/264000
http://www.strava.com/activities/303718
http://app.strava.com/activities/48861153

sugarkane wrote:Ohh and if any one wants to do some riding then holla at me!

I'll be in San Fransisco 29th - 31st August so may cross paths if still there?

I am also traveling further afield, so created a less specific topic a while back.

http://weightweenies.starbike.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=105309

But as I will be spending time in LA and San Fransisco at either end of my trip I also asked about riding there. So there may be some posts you could find helpful?

are wrote:
The one hill I would not miss, no matter what, is Latigo.

+1

I rode Latigo with member RippedUp last summer and we both had a great time.
I'd definitely recommend getting out with La Grange if you're looking for a morning group.

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From San Francisco I recommend the "Alpine Dam" route: over the Golden Gate Bridge into Marin, up to the Mt Tampalpais ridge and onward to the summit, down to Hwy 1 and back to San Francisco. It's around 90 km from the Golden Gate Bridge and very popular.

Diablo is very nice, but hotter and more arid since it's in the East Bay further from the ocean and less protected by fog.

The Old La Honda - Tunitas Creek Road ride on the peninsula is also amazing. Page Mill - Tunitas is longer and even more amazing.

There's a ton of group rides here for every level of ability as long as you're not climber averse (flat rides are hard to find, as they've been over-developed).