I’ll be staying in Redondo Beach, working in Long Beach and would like to get a few bike rides in. What are some decent routes for 90min up to 3hr rides (multiple loops OK) that do not require a ton of driving to get to? Thanks!
Hi Ed:
As for riding out of Redondo.
Leave South on Esplanade to PV Drive and that will take you into Palos Verdes. You can do a 23 mile loop there.
Out of Long Beach.
You can catch the San Gabriel River trail. It will take you out 35 miles to hwy 39 (If you climb that up to Crystal Lake about another 20 miles you are a bad ass). No light all bike path. Warning the wind coming back into Long Beach is a BEAOTCH!!!
Do you have a car? Will you be in on a weekend?
If so get up to Malibu.
Btw many will ride in Malibu from Redondo (I did when I lived there)
If you are in town on Sat PM me, I lead a ride from Santa Monica up into the Santa Monica Mtn (Malibu). You can join.
PV, along the coast, up the switchbacks to Marymount College, Crest Rd. to the radar domes, back down to PV Dr. East, where you either backtrack or complete the loop…
a quick note about hwy 39 headed into the mountains - the bike path(San Gabriel River Trail) merges onto a regular road surface just before climbing begins in earnest.
there is no bike lane per se, but if you have good lights, you can gain a little more breathing room from the cars and trucks that will pass you going uphill.
i rode up to the San Gabriel Dam from the Sante Fe Dam Recreational area last weekend(about 10 miles) but turned back when the weather turned sour(an unusual occurrence for SoCal)
so i can’t can’t speak from experience what the road surface is like and how much room there is past there. i was planning to take East Fork Road and get to someplace called Eldoradoville,
which is a campsite of sorts.
on the weekends, vehicular traffic is heavy, with many folks hauling their OHVs up to the OHV specific area(OHV - Off Highway Vehicle, ie quad, 4runner, sandrail, etc.)
the infamous GMR(Glendora Mountain Road) merges just before Eldoradoville, so again, on weekends, motorcycle traffic will be heavy as well.
Best bet from where you are easiest is palos verdes. You can get 3 hours with a lot of climbing (approx 5k) if that’s your thing. Helps to have a little local knowledge if you want I can post our ride from last weekend, 46 miles 4800 feet 3 ish hours. Basically 4 big climbs (big climbs here are 20-25 minutes ) cut any of that out to lower the time
If youre up for a group hammer fest there’s always the donut ride Saturday 8 am in south redondo
I’ll be staying in Redondo Beach, working in Long Beach and would like to get a few bike rides in. What are some decent routes for 90min up to 3hr rides (multiple loops OK) that do not require a ton of driving to get to? Thanks!
For gawd’s sake you don’t need to drive!
I lived in Redondo for a a few years ~'90. So assuming it hasn’t changed that much… Palos Verdes is a great place to ride and it’s right south. Routes should be obvious from the map. You can also ride on the beach path that goes way up north, that I would take to the Santa Monica Mountains. Most of the canals have paved paths next to them also. There were big group rides in Palos Verdes on Sat, Mulholland Hwy up north on Sun.
Thanks! Those sound like great options. I’ll be here until Tuesday but I’ll be working through the weekend. I’ll probably fit in a 6am to 9am ride in there before work on the weekend… not sure if that is compatible with the group ride From Santa Monica. Just in case my schedule works for it, are TT bikes welcome?
Would love it if you would post the ride, Thanks!
Are you looking to do hill climbs or steady state endurance rides, or a mix?
Looks like you’re on, for palos verdes consider searching for:
easy steady state endurance:
Pacific Coast Highway, if you don’t mind the traffic
Hill climbs:
PV Switchbacks turn to top of Crest
Via Del Monte Full (to stop sign)
Mix:
Reverse switchbacks loop
Simple PV Loop w Switchbacks
be careful about skipping stop signs, cops in PV have very little to do…
Actually my coach just put in a VO2 interval workout for Saturday (30" to 2’ zone 5 intervals) into my schedule. Would PV loop and/or switchbacks work for that? Then a 3 hour Z2 ride on Sunday.
Just about any hill will send you into zone 5 if you drop gears and cadence enough, not sure if that’s what your coach wants.
Steep hills will send you into zone 5 with a higher cadence and higher gears; however, steeper hills in town will require really good brakes and conservative top speed if you are interested in any margin of traffic avoidance safety. So I’ll punt to your coach on the cadence issue.
If you want a steep lung burner and Via Del Monte doesn’t do it, there’s:
Eastvale Road 1 mi, 8%, capped off with Sunnyridge Road .5 mile at 11% – but it’s residential
and if that doesn’t do it, there’s:
Crownview Drive, 0.8 mi, 12%
Going up the switchbacks has relatively little traffic, which is good, because there isn’t a proper bike lane. Still, it’s safer than blasting down the residential streets. The switchbacks has some fun curves to keep you interested on the descent, but the best part is a long slow ending leading to the stop sign, so you won’t melt your pads white knuckling to a full stop.
Tri bikes are welcome, I will be riding mine.
My ride starts at Ocean and San Vicente in Santa Monica at 730. We will ride about 3.5 hours / 65 miles / with climbing.
Based upon your time window, you should probably stick to the ride in Palos Verdes.
Ed,
See link below to PV loop route. I will be out there tomorrow but after 9 as I have baby duty in the AM. Good luck.
https://www.strava.com/activities/287329893
Enjoy
Probably the best ride in the south bay
http://www.mapmyride.com/us/redondo-beach-ca/the-donut-loop-route-12437100.
Yeah many people have suggested this. I think I’ll do my Saturday ride on that. Are there many stop lights on the route?
Yeah many people have suggested this. I think I’ll do my Saturday ride on that. Are there many stop lights on the route?
There are are 5 or 6, well spaced apart.
Below is another link for a longer ride in PV with more climbing,variation on the above. Nothing too steep, maybe a 10% section in there in a couple places. I will be doing this route or some variation Sat starting at 7
http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/697294197
PV drivers are generally courteous to cyclists, and there is a bike lane for much of it, but make sure to at least slow down at the stop signs, if not outright stop. Both in PV and South Redondo (and if you happen to go through the Redondo Pier bike path area, walk your bike per the signs, but if you stay up on Catalina you can avoid that). The above route is an out and back, going up Crest twice, with a different climb up Via Coronel (one of my favorite climbs) on the way back to Redondo. The only sketchy part is the descent on PV East. No bike lane, drivers can be aggressive, just take the lane as needed. I avoid that descent unless I am in a big group or on the early side. All other descents are fine.
The other area to keep your head on a swivel is the intersection of PV south and PV west in Malaga Cove Center (basically where the “donut ride” loop actually starts). You’ll have the right of way but there’s some funky stop signs for cross traffic so just make sure you’re seen.
If you want a flat ride the only other local option is Westchester Parkway which is going north. It’s actually a little bit of 4 lane paradise with a bike lane in the middle of L.A., but it’s relatively short and there are a couple lights that might break things up if you hit them wrong. It’s good for being in aero though. The link below keeps you on the bike path between Redondo and Imperial Hwy, we don’t usually ride the path but for an out of towner it’s just easier, and early there will not be as many people if you go early
I know many guys who go longer on the Donut ride to get more climbing in. Adding Crest Rd. up to the radar is a nice addition.