The Radavist

I never go on a bike ride without a camera. Call it what you will, but documenting the rides in the greater Los Angeles area is something I love to do. Add to the list, taking out of towners on rides they’ve never done before. Our good friend Erica is in town for a bit, on a riding holiday/work trip from Nevada City, California and expressed an interest in riding up Mount Lowe in Altadena. Now, for those of you who haven’t done this ride, it’s the hardest road ride in the LA area, ATMO, but you can choose to bite off as much as you wish, establishing the general ride vibes early on, or as the hours go by.

Last weekend, we opted for the full experience and it left me a bit vanquished for a few days, so Erica and I took the party train up to Inspiration Point for some reflection on what it means to be a cyclist in a city with so much car culture. Spoiler alert: bikes will always win… and yes, I got sunburnt. In winter.

Check out a few more below and see our route from the Cub House at my Strava.

We’re all packing up and heading to the high desert tonight for an escape from the Los Angeles heat. I never thought I’d be saying that, but that’s the world we live in now. Does anyone have some favorite desert rides we should check out in the Southern California area?

Nomenclature is often an intuitive byproduct of one’s, most notably the one who does the naming’s, experiences. A local example, here in Los Angeles, is Sunset Ridge trail. Yes, it’s a ridge trail and yes, it really, really comes alive at sunset, especially in that low, soft winter light.

Last night, the Wednesday Slacker’s ride, aka Wednesday Warriors, aka freelancers union shredders, aka whoever wants to ride on Wednesday, took 11 souls up into the San Gabriel mountains for a New Years party ride. We brought food including but not limited to: fried chicken, sandwiches, chocolate almonds, gummy bears, beer and trail mix. Our troop sat atop the old Echo Mountain ruins and watched the sun fall behind cloud cover before moving on through the myriad of trails before descending Sunset Ridge.

It was one of those evenings where the mountains really began to sing. Not with sounds however, but with light. Stopping to soak it in was a requisite before shredding the dusty and rutted trails, so parched for water that our fee for usage were dusty eyes and dried chains. We rode just about 12 miles and climbed 3,000′. If you’ve yet to do this loop, I highly recomend it!

Check out more photos below and Happy New Year!

Dustin from Cadence was in Los Angeles on a “Permanent Marking Tour,” doing tattoos at the shop. After a night of partying, the boys woke up and went on one of our staple loops in the Hollywood hills…

Thanksgiving is a time to bring community together and help out any way possible. This year, we wanted to do something for one our local Southern California Native American tribes, the Haramokngna. Along with the Mount Wilson Bicycling Association, we made an homage water bottle to the popular “Red Box” area on Mount Wilson. Red Box is one of the few places in the San Gabriels that offers shade and most importantly, a place to fill up your bottles at a spigot. This area is marked by a beautiful red box, painted with Haramokngna petroglyphs and designs, from which it gets its name.

On the weekends, the Haramokngna American Indian Cultural Center is open, serving cold sodas and snacks. Just about every cyclist in the Los Angeles area has been through this oasis, either on their road or mountain bike and has benefitted in some way from the Haramokngna American Indian Cultural Center’s services.

We’re selling these bottles, exclusively at Golden Saddle Cyclery, alongside MWBA with all proceeds donated to the Haramokngna American Indian Cultural Center. Stop by and pick one up and know your money is going to a solid cause.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Lookin for something to do tomorrow afternoon that goes to a good cause? The Cyclist’s Menu Ride Bikes Eat Food tour is stopping by the Cub House. For $25, you get a gourmet meal cooked for you, ready upon your return from a night ride. All proceeds go to Mount Wilson Bicycling Association. Sign up at the event’s Facebook page.

A favorite ride is always amplified by winter light and cycling tourists. Tonight, Kyle and I took Kelly out on a Dirt Mulholland sunset ride, which turned into a Topanga Creek Outpost banana bread run, turned mad-dash through Melrose gridlock at rush hour. The thrills are never short on this ‘cross-town jaunt. If you’ve never done this route, be sure to check it out on Strava and click-through to check out more photos…

This post is coming in late, because we didn’t finish our ride until late today. We saw some spooky shit on our ride. If you look closely, you can see Kyle in there and maybe the dude pushing his bike up, carrying the compound bow and arrows too. It was really wild, but we didn’t stick around to find out what he was up to.

Hopefully, everyone is having a good All Hallow’s Eve!

Last night, as part of the Rapha Rides series, a group of cyclists rode from the Rapha Santa Monica store to Golden Saddle Cyclery for a super chill “photography” ride up to the Helipad in Griffith Park to watch the sun set over this golden city. Half were in plain clothes and half were kitted out, but all enjoyed some beverages. Towards the end, Kyle requested for help in picking up the area’s trash, prompting everyone to pitch in. Because you can’t take photos when the area has trash all over it… Check out a few more below!

Our friends at Mission Workshop have opened a new storefront in Los Angeles and would like to welcome everyone to come celebrate. If you’re planning on attending, make sure you RSVP at RowLA.

Metro Bike Mountains of Madness
Words by Carter Chappell

If you have been to LA recently maybe you have noticed the new Metro Bikes that launched last late year. They are essentially three-speed commuters by Trek that are built around a bombproof steel frame and held together by an army of tamper-proof bits. You cannot in any way take the tires off if you get a flat or do much outside of raising and lowering the seat to change the bikes fit in any way. It’s pretty much that last thing you would want to do any sort of long or hilly ride on.

Well, that’s something I never thought I’d see; Floyd Landis and Kyle from Golden Saddle riding a tandem. Last night, Floyd’s of Leadville were in town, so they wanted to throw a shindig at the bike shop including a ride in Griffith Park and free tacos by 100 Tacos. Floyd’s are out promoting their new CBD oil capsules that aid in sports recovery and can be sold online, legally.

This weekend has been fun. You do not disappoint, Los Angeles! See more shots from the ride below.