# New To Riding - Santa Monica



## RiderKatz22 (Aug 4, 2007)

New to riding. I'm addicted. Live in Santa Monica and sick of riding on the stand and/or up and down San Vincente from Ocean Ave to Barrington. Are there any other "Road Trails" i can find in the near by area?


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## Mapei (Feb 3, 2004)

Got your Thomas Street Guide? If you don't mind climbs, when you hit Barrington and San Vicente, navigate your way east through the Veterans Administration to Sepulveda Blvd. Head north on Sepulveda to Moraga Drive and then Bellagio Road into Bel-Air. Or you can follow your fellow cyclists north to Skirball Center Drive, and then cross the freeway for the climb up to Mulholland. Go either east or west on Mulholland. If you go west it becomes a dirt road in a couple miles, but it's still worth the trip. If you go east, you'll eventually end up in Hollywood. It's a truly fine ride, but in your case it might not be the best idea, as you'll have to make your way through a lot of city to get back to SM.

If you don't mind a little Dancing with Cars, try going north on PCH. Eventually, the shoulder will widen and traffic will be less intense. Once you get past the long uphill that culminates at Pepperdine University, it mellows out considerably. Meantime, there are numerous canyon roads you can climb. Search through this forum to learn more about them. Everybody has their favorite canyon road. When I lived on the Westside (yes, it was way back in the 1970's), my favorite canyon was Latigo.


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## magicant (Apr 22, 2006)

Never ridden with this group, but always been considering it - more as a social thing than actual riding. They seem to do casual rides for relative newcomers in your area. May want to check it out.

http://wlacyclingclub.com/


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## stevo4 (Jun 25, 2007)

I live on the W.Side at Olympic/Sepulveda. I've ridden with W. LA cylce club once before and had a nice time. Not particularly demanding but nice people and a ride that usually goes somewhere from MDR down to PV.

I've also ridden with Shifting Gears too which are a step up (imo) and also ties into training rides for the Aids Lifecycle event from SF to LA each June. Also a nice bunch of people and good rides and a bit longer (for training purposes) plus they incorporate more hills. This Sunday (tomorrow) we do a warm up lap from Helen's in SM to MDR and then back to SM for the 5 mile climb up Mandeville Cyn. I have been riding solo up Mandeville the last couple of days and really like the descent down the hill. Nothing too steep and the road has some nice esses to carve your line. 

Stevo


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