Customer Reviews

Short Bike Rides in and around Los Angeles, 2nd (Short Bike Rides Series)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Having lived in LA for 5 yrs I bought this book in hopes of seeing more than my own neighborhood. Unfortuately I was very worried about the routes chosen - suggesting riding down Sunset Blvd. borders on criminal negligence. The book also suggests riding down WIlshire Blvd. to the beach in Santa Monica despite that fact the Wilshire is a busy 4 lane commerical road with nothing but strip malls, while only 1 block south is a bike path through a tree lined neighborhood

Short Bike Rides in and around Los Angeles is an absorbing book to read whether or not you are not going to do the rides. I found that each page is full of interesting history, geography, and explanations about what to see in different areas of the city, from Griffith Park to Hollywood to Santa Monica to Santa Clarita. I discovered the origins and meanings of street and city names which I'd always wondered about. As a cyclist and a member of the San Fernando Valley Bicycle Club, I have done many of the rides described in the book. They are scenic, safe on weekends, and enjoyable for both beginning and intermediate cyclists. The maps and routes are easy to read and right on target. I recommend this book for any rider who wants to try a bit of bicycle touring while learning fascinating facts about Los Angeles and vicinity. If you are not ready to ride, read it just for fun.

I bought this book for my husband, who loves to ride. We live just outside LA. When I cracked it open, I got excited about a downtown LA route. My husband read the route and said we'd be crazy to be on bikes through some of LA's most dangerous neighborhoods (both in terms of crime and in terms of traffic). A lot of these routes are nice in theory, but I wouldn't exactly want to put them into practice.

There are better guides that stick to the well-known, safely traveled routes like the beach bike paths and stuff through the Malibu mountains. This isn't recommended for a LA novice, because you need to know if a route makes sense before embarking on it.

The lay-out of the book is great, with detailed maps and turn by turn directions. If you know you want to do a route, it is very easy to follow along.

Not sure if this has been corrected, but just a quick glance at the 1st edition had one error I caught right away. One that would have been easy to fact check had the author bothered: Marilyn Monroe is not buried in Forest Lawn. She is interred at Westwood Memorial.

When I see mistakes like this, always makes me wonder what else is sketchy.

I love taking these "shortie" bike rides with my son, Myron Kempelstein, and many of his friends in the entertainment industry, including his ex-wife Amy Sedaris, and the Trump-Hiltons, among others. Excellent routes, although many are quite demanding. Scenic.