You’re gonna love these sweet new bikes we’ve got tucked away upstairs. Shiny new frame, big loud bell, and a sweet profile that’s gonna look almost as stylish as you when you glide down the streets of LA. We’re giving away three of these sweet new road bicycles from Pure Cycles as part of our partnership with the LA County Bike Coalition. All you have to do is enter here! Plus the LACBC is giving discounted memberships to the first 200 new members and a limited edition tee (the cherry on top to their already sweet membership perks).
So since you’ve already won one of these bad boys in your mind, it’s time to start thinking about where you’re going to take it. Luckily, LA has some of the best bike paths in the world, and we asked our friends at the LACBC to recommend some of their favorites to us.
Los Angeles River
Forget everything you think you know about the LA River. It’s gross, it’s dirty, it’s filled with those damn singing 50’s greasers. Make no mistake, our little concrete stream has gotten a whole lotter greener in the last few years. So when you bike along the pathway on its side, you’ll not only get a great workout, you’ll also get a great view of a habitat that’s rebuilding. In fact, our friends at the Natural History Museum have found there a unique niche for dozens of types of wildlife. The bike path runs 7.4 miles from just North of Griffith Park to Elysian Valley.
Metro Orange Line
Let’s be clear, we’re not suggesting you ride your bike on top of some Metro busses (although that does sound pretty badass). But when the Orange line opened up just over 10 years ago, the MTA had the foresight to install a bike path along the way. So now, for 18 miles through the Valley, you can race the busses to your destination and not have to worry about remembering your TAP card.
Expo Line
Hey, if it works in San Fernando, it should work down in the basin too, right? Just like the Orange Line, the newly expanded Expo Line has a bike path that goes alongside of it from downtown LA to downtown SM. There is a small break between Palms and Overland Avenue, due to a particularly potent case of NIMBY-itis, but we have faith you can mind the gap (and maybe even scare some of the locals with your big bad bicycles, too).
Ballona Creek
If you find yourself in Culver City and want a bit more peaceful of a path, the Ballona Creek is a relatively flat, peaceful ride along the Ballona Creek waterway. Best part? It ends along the Strand in Playa del Rey, so you can keep going along all of the craziness of the pacific coast into Will Rogers State Beach.
Whatever path you choose, make sure to check in with the LACBC at LA-Bike.org to learn some great tips about bike safety, bike events, and bike news that will keep you rolling. Ride on!
