Sometimes on Wednesday evenings, I join a group run out at Fleet Feet Encino. On this particular Wednesday, I decided to pre-game my run with a bike ride up in San Fernando.
 |
| Significantly northwest of downtown LA. The ride started in San Fernando (at right), and proceeded up into Porter Ranch (pink area with red pin). |
This area is north of Encino, even further from the city, and thus the trip to Encino is significantly easier from San Fernando than from our apartment in the evening (going south instead of north). I parked at the Sylmar Metro station. Note to Angelinos: MANY Metro stations have free parking.
 |
| I promise you, there's not much out in Sylmar except free parking at the Metro station.* But that was awesome! |
Time: ~3PM
Weather: 90F, Sunny
Route: R Hubbard/L San Fernando/R Workman (Rinaldi)/R Reseda/L Braemore/R Tampa/L Sesnon/L Mason/R Chatsworth/L Variel/R Devonshire/R Valley Circle/L Germain/End at Chatsworth Park North & turn around/L Devonshire/L Variel/R Chatsworth/L Mason/R Rinaldi (Workman)/L Truman/R Hubbard/L Frank Mondugno
This route is from Where to Bike Los Angeles. I am describing routes briefly in these posts, but truly - if you're a cycling Angelino, you should buy the book for yourself. The authors provide five times more information than I can/want to - and books like this come to fruition as a result of rider support. So go get yourself a copy - you won't regret it!
This route is from Where to Bike Los Angeles. I am describing routes briefly in these posts, but truly - if you're a cycling Angelino, you should buy the book for yourself. The authors provide five times more information than I can/want to - and books like this come to fruition as a result of rider support. So go get yourself a copy - you won't regret it!
Distance: 27 mi
Time: 1 hr, 51 min
Avg Pace: 14.6 mph, with a max of 33.9 mph (for me, that's freakin' FAST)
You can see the Garmin data for this ride here.
You can see the Garmin data for this ride here.
Ride Description: The ride starts with some mild suburb navigation through Sylmar, then involves a straight shot down Rinaldi for 4 miles. There is a bike lane here, but the road is a moderately busy commercial section, with freeway entrances/exits, lights, and businesses. I generally felt safe, but this wasn't a relaxing section to ride.
At Reseda, the route turns up into a very quiet, residential area - and climbs 350 feet in about 0.6 miles into the Porter Ranch neighborhood. Now THAT is a climb. But one thing about bike shoes that clip in to your pedals: You don't have much choice but to keep on pedaling! And at the top, I was rewarded with nearly deserted (and flat!) residential streets:
and views of the distant mountains:
One thing to note, though - if you're taking photos while on your bike, you may not be able to take full advantage of all descents!
After a few high miles, the route drops back down out of Porter Ranch. In this section, I encountered a road full of heavy construction equipment and obvious roadwork. I was afraid I'd have to backtrack - and the anal retentive part of me worried about not completing the route as it was written. But the road crew let me through and I coasted some fast, steep, and construction-riddled miles down. The final part of the "out" ride goes through another commercial district, but was quieter and more pleasant to ride than Rinaldi. The turn-around point is at a disappointingly meager park:
In fact, there wasn't even a water fountain (that I could find). I was glad I wore my hydration pack, rather than relying on water bottle refills for this ride. On my way back, I stopped for a pick-me-up lemonade at The Munch Box. It is, apparently, a Cultural Heritage Site (who knew?). The lemonade was pink, but acceptable. The cold sugary goodness fueled the last 8 miles of my ride.
The return trip skips the climb up to Porter Ranch and instead remains entirely on Rinaldi Street. This is not complicated, but does include too many entrance/exit ramps for my liking.
At Reseda, the route turns up into a very quiet, residential area - and climbs 350 feet in about 0.6 miles into the Porter Ranch neighborhood. Now THAT is a climb. But one thing about bike shoes that clip in to your pedals: You don't have much choice but to keep on pedaling! And at the top, I was rewarded with nearly deserted (and flat!) residential streets:
and views of the distant mountains:
One thing to note, though - if you're taking photos while on your bike, you may not be able to take full advantage of all descents!
 |
| Still, the photos were worth it. |
 |
| LA has some awesome parks. This isn't really one. |
In fact, there wasn't even a water fountain (that I could find). I was glad I wore my hydration pack, rather than relying on water bottle refills for this ride. On my way back, I stopped for a pick-me-up lemonade at The Munch Box. It is, apparently, a Cultural Heritage Site (who knew?). The lemonade was pink, but acceptable. The cold sugary goodness fueled the last 8 miles of my ride. |
| What can I say? Photos with historic cultural sites are now a habit. |
Interesting Happenings:
1. Best climb yet!
2. On my return trip, I saw a man lying on the sidewalk at a bus stop, receiving CPR. This was happening literally across the street from a hospital, and there were plenty of scrubs-clad-professionals in attendance, so I didn't feel that my Red Cross CPR certification was needed. I did, however, stop complaining to myself about silly, inconsequential things. For example:
3. Coming in to the final miles, I got passed by a gentleman 15 years my senior with a spare tire around his middle that would be suitable for Dimitri. Humbling, much?
1. Best climb yet!
 |
| This is a picture taken on the return ride. Straight ahead is Porter Ranch. I didn't climb all the way to the top, but this gives you an idea of the unusual layout of this area. |
3. Coming in to the final miles, I got passed by a gentleman 15 years my senior with a spare tire around his middle that would be suitable for Dimitri. Humbling, much?
Lessons Learned:
1. What climbing a 10-12% grade feels like.
2. Motorists interpret "bike lane" to mean "Hey! I don't have to pull super close to the curb, since there's all this extra space on the left!"
3. Lemonade is just as good at the end of a tough ride, as it is at the end of a tough run.
4. Maybe I'm getting a bit more comfortable riding with traffic? And this particular ride included several "right lane turns into right hand turn lane" situations. A vast improvement from this ride. Good thing, too - because this road was much busier than Old Town Montrose.
5. Don't write your turn cheat-sheet on old, brittle paper from a freebie WestLaw notebook. My direction sheet literally crumbled in my pocket, and I was holding left piecing fragments together to recall my route. I hope that WestLaw as a service is higher quality than their paper...
1. What climbing a 10-12% grade feels like.
2. Motorists interpret "bike lane" to mean "Hey! I don't have to pull super close to the curb, since there's all this extra space on the left!"
3. Lemonade is just as good at the end of a tough ride, as it is at the end of a tough run.
4. Maybe I'm getting a bit more comfortable riding with traffic? And this particular ride included several "right lane turns into right hand turn lane" situations. A vast improvement from this ride. Good thing, too - because this road was much busier than Old Town Montrose.
5. Don't write your turn cheat-sheet on old, brittle paper from a freebie WestLaw notebook. My direction sheet literally crumbled in my pocket, and I was holding left piecing fragments together to recall my route. I hope that WestLaw as a service is higher quality than their paper...
Lingering Questions:
1. Really must learn how to clean my chain. All this hot, dry, dusty business is resulting in grit accumulation. This isn't really a question, unless you have some advice!
2. Why does that one piece of hair insist on popping out of my helmet?
Overall, this was a great intermediate ride. There wasn't extreme climbing, or extreme traffic - but there were modest amounts of both, which resulted in my feeling both practiced and accomplished at the end. However, the distance from home, plus the commercial nature of Rinaldi, are enough to discourage me from returning to ride here regularly. But thanks for a good time on this particular afternoon, Porter Ranch!
*This is not entirely true. Sylmar also houses the Nethercutt Museum, the most fantastic collection of mint-condition classic cars I've ever seen. Admission is free. You should go.
1. Really must learn how to clean my chain. All this hot, dry, dusty business is resulting in grit accumulation. This isn't really a question, unless you have some advice!
2. Why does that one piece of hair insist on popping out of my helmet?
 |
| As if a helmet isn't already a terrific fashion statement... |
Overall, this was a great intermediate ride. There wasn't extreme climbing, or extreme traffic - but there were modest amounts of both, which resulted in my feeling both practiced and accomplished at the end. However, the distance from home, plus the commercial nature of Rinaldi, are enough to discourage me from returning to ride here regularly. But thanks for a good time on this particular afternoon, Porter Ranch!
*This is not entirely true. Sylmar also houses the Nethercutt Museum, the most fantastic collection of mint-condition classic cars I've ever seen. Admission is free. You should go.
No comments:
Post a Comment