# LA Mountain Biking Question



## DocHunter (Jan 28, 2011)

I live in LA and I'm new in town. I was thinking hard about what to do this weekend (assuming it's a nice weekend) and mountain biking came to mind. I'm a road bike guy and don't do much mountain biking so I thought it would be a fun change of pace and workout.

My question is: where can I rent a decent mountain bike for saturday and sunday and where should I go riding?

The only thing I've found surfing the web is Topange Creek Bicycles that rents mountain bikes for $75 to have the bike overnight and use Sat and Sun. It doesn't specify what kind of bike. Is that reasonable? I initially thought it would be cheaper than that. I was sort of surprised.

And their website says there are a lot of trails right around them in the Santa Monica mountains. Anyone ridded their before? I'm looking for something challenging and scenic. I'm open to getting out of town completely too. I tried to look and see if there was and good trails around Joshua Tree because I really want to check out that area. It didn't seem like there was much. 

Any suggestions are appreciated.


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## Mapei (Feb 3, 2004)

I don't know if Topanga Bicycles' rental price is high or low, but they truly are near some excellent mountain biking territory. Topanga State Park is nearby. It is chock full of fire roads and singletrack, Lots of big views. Lots of steep hills, too. Eventually, you can find yourself on Dirt Road Mulholland, which will take you along the crest of the Santa Monica mountains. I've ridden these trails for years. Maybe Hollywood (the RBR member, not the Screwy Ballyhooey) will chime in in this thread. He's up in those hills all the time.


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## endo verendo (Nov 22, 2005)

The Santa Monicas offer some of the best mountain biking around. Sycamore Cyn or any section of the Backbone Trail should be more than challenging for anyone. 

I'm sure there's other shops in the area that offer bike demos but $75 for two days doesn't sound unreasonable for a high end bike. You might also want to try posting on the So Cal Mtb forum for better results. 

J Tree's got rock climbing. that's about it.


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## Ride-Fly (Mar 27, 2002)

What level of rider are you? My favorite trail system in the SMM is Cheseboro Canyon. A great loop with plenty of detours to vary the ride and add as much time and variety your heart desires. You can add China Flats, Gaspipe, Bayleen Wall, Simi Overlook, etc to the main Cheseboro-Palo Comado Loop. Another good trail is the backbone trail which can be started at Tunnel 1 (or 3, I can't recall for sure) at Kanan.


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## Hollywood (Jan 16, 2003)

DocHunter said:


> I live in LA and I'm new in town.
> 
> Any suggestions are appreciated.


what part of L.A. do you live in?

Topanga Creek is a nice shop and the owner Chris is usually very accommodating. His demo bikes are very nice. I believe they host a shop ride on Saturdays too, you may want to call and find out.

Westridge and Sullivan Cyn are very close to the shop and offer lots of fireroads and singletrack, whichever you prefer. 

Just keep an eye on Saturday's weather


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## DocHunter (Jan 28, 2011)

Hollywood said:


> what part of L.A. do you live in?
> 
> Topanga Creek is a nice shop and the owner Chris is usually very accommodating. His demo bikes are very nice. I believe they host a shop ride on Saturdays too, you may want to call and find out.
> 
> ...



I live in Redondo Beach. Not LA exactly, but I sort of consider it to be.


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## Hollywood (Jan 16, 2003)

DocHunter said:


> I live in Redondo Beach. Not LA exactly, but I sort of consider it to be.


definitely worth a trip up to the Santa Monicas, regardless of where the bike comes from.


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## mohair_chair (Oct 3, 2002)

When I'm in LA, I usually go riding in Malibu Creek State Park or in Ahmanson Ranch. I love Malibu Creek. I usually head out to the M*A*S*H site and then do Bulldog to the top. Then close the loop on the Backbone trail back back to Tapia Park. And there's a trail I don't know the name of you can take from Tapia over the hill and back to the start. This is not an easy ride by any means. There's a rock garden to get through before the M*A*S*H site, and then Bulldog is a tough climb. Backbone isn't easy either. It's work, and you'll definitely know you've done something when you get back. I don't know if you will find any more spectacular views anywhere else in the Santa Monicas.

Ahmanson Ranch is about a mile from where my parents live, so I go there more for convenience than great riding. But it's a nice place to ride, and you can find plenty of challenges if you head into the backwoods and towards the top of the ridge.

Also close are Rocky Peak, Chumash, and Hummingbird, which are in Simi Valley. Those are good, challenging trails.


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## JSR (Feb 27, 2006)

DocHunter said:


> I live in Redondo Beach. Not LA exactly, but I sort of consider it to be.


If the Beach Boys can say that Redondo is LA, you are allowed to also. 

FWIW - you have been getting a lot of good advice in this thread, except for the one about Sycamore Canyon. I live about a mile from the trail at the top end. I can tell you it sucks out there. I'll go out there for hours at a time, trying to find some decent riding, day after day, and nothing. You don't want to go there. I, however, will continue to look for some decent trails and let you know if I find one. Until tren, stay away.  

JR

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