Am in Los Angles for a few days this weekend, and my cycling route knowledge there is limited. Was gone cycle from Century City to Malibu and it into the Malibu Hills for some climbing, but saw that Rappstar was hit on the Pacific Coast Highway.
How safe is it? And am I okay to cycle on my own there
Can anybody recommend some good cycling routes or destination with a bit of climbing around LA. I do have a car, so can drive somewhere to start as well. Route length should be around 100km. Got time for like 4 rides.
google stunt road…great climb. My fave is PCH to Topanga, at top at Old Topanga rd to top, then down to Mulholland, then left and ride to Malibu Canyon Rd, take left and ride till spits you out at Pepperdine and PCH.
PCH is generally safe, but weekend (and Holiday) traffic gets wild around 10/11am, mostly on the ocean side.
Hey man - this thread popped up in a search. How did your trip pan out? I’m traveling to LA in a week to put in some training time away from the brutal winter in NE and was wondering about the climbs in the Canyon.
I’m bringing a Tri bike with 53/39 on it so I’m a little scared to trek up Topanga canyon… Also did you find the roads safe/easily accessible? I went to Uni in LA and have driven to Malibu many times but never really thought about it from a cycling perspective.
Not the op but a local. If it’s your first time I’d recommend climbing encinal or mulholland from pch. Much less traffic and IMO Better im a overall. Latigo is also a classic although a bit more traffic. All are better than topanga in my opinion.
Trip panned out perfectly. Did three rides whilst there.
Century City direction Malibu http://www.strava.com/activities/81050845
this was just simply along the coast. Must admit that I felt better/safer when I was cycling with others along that route, as there was a fair amount of traffic. I started out on my own, and then just joined a couple of other cyclist up the coast. On the weekend this route seems to be packed with cyclists. Just be careful when you head back direction LA along the coast, as a lot of people park along side the road for the beach. Cars pulling out, and car doors opening.
Century City direction Topanga Canyon http://www.strava.com/activities/80816235
I had a road bike, with 53/39 and a 28 cassette on the back. And as I m not used to hills (live in pancake flat country), the 28 cassette was definitely helping. But if your used to Hills, then a 25/26 should be fine. I spend a month in Cape Town, SA in January and had a 26 cassette on my Tribike and it is relative hilly around there as well, and that was no problem. Some of the Climbs in Malibu area can be hard work, but doable, but I would not recommend having a 23 on the back. I like to have a bail out gear, and for SA70.3 I put a 32 cassette on my tri bike. Just for safety reasons.
And before I forget, some of the descents are relative narrow, with depending what route you take, it can involve a lot of breaking. And not all the road surfaces are very good. So make sure you feel comfortable descending. I had Enve 6.7 clinchers on my bike, and they got a little to hot on the way down.
Mount Wilson Climb http://www.strava.com/activities/81803962
If you have chance, and want to climb a continuous 20km route, than this one is amazing. Did the route on my own, on a Wednesday morning. I do recommend starting earlier than 10am (when I started), as it is very exposed to the sunshine. By the time I got to the top, I was covered in salt crystals. But as a route it was stunning, with barely any cars. On my way up I had like 5 cars pass me. So relative quiet. And the way down is just pure speed. Swapped my wheels to my climbing set for those, and descending and climbing was perfect. If I ever head to LA again, I m definitely doing that route again.
Hope this helps. Have a long at the routes on strava, as it gives a better idea for potential routes. Also if you do head into the Malibu hills, and you go via Calabasas, then head to Pedalers Fork. Great coffee and food. Adress is 23504 Calabasas Rd, Calabasas (Kalifornien) 91302
Thanks, Alex! Awesome stuff! I’ll report back after my trip. I run a 12-26T cassette but a 165mm crank so that toughens up the gearing a bit. I figured if it comes to it, I’ll find a shop in LA/SantaMonica to rent a roadie
No problem. In regards to bike rental; not sure where you can get a decent road bike for rental from, but I would contact ‘Bike Effect’ in Santa Monica and they should be able to recommend a place to rent a bike. And if you have any problems with your bike whilst in LA, they are pretty good in regards to service and customer service. Ended up buying a set of wheels whilst visiting from them them.
