California for dummies(Me)!!!

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So guys I got some sky miles that are about to expire here in the next month and I'm gonna take a trip wit my grandfather to California. We have no plans or places in mind we just want to see all that we are missing out here on the east coast. so I need your help, I want to know about every place any bike fanatic needs to see. Swap meets, bike shops, museums, restaurants....I want too see it all. So please post every place you know in Cali a bike fanatic needs to see and ill see if i can put it on the too see list.

Thanks, :D
Tyler
 
uhh, here, lets see. Karfer67, Sensor, George Barris, NHRA museum, go find Robert Williams, annnnd on the way back stop at the salt flats. 8)
 
Cali is a BIG place. Up here there are tons of mountain bike stuff but I am not involved with that so I don't know much on that. We do now have a river trail that starts at the new walking bridge and. It's called Sundial Bridge and is in Redding. The only down side is you'll probably have to fly into Sacramento and take the 3 hour drive north.
 
You can't go wrong with beach cruising. We really enjoy just hanging out on the boardwalks riding & watching bikes. Our most recent trip we spent a couple of days riding around Mission Beach in San Diego. Wait that was 2 years ago. Last year we rode in Northmen Cali. Driving the coast on highway 1 is nice. Northern California is great. We really like the giant redwoods.
Here's info on the trips we've made out there.
 
Reread your first post...so I have lived in California all my life....22 years in the bay area, 3 years in southern california, and have been up in my area another 20 years. If I had a choice for two weeks I would say San Diego....the beaches are off the hook,and with you being 16, the beaches are off the hook, rent some beach cruisers , Mission Viejo, Venice beach, check out the freaks, or San Francisco is awesome, you could spend two weeks just hitting sites, golden Gate park streets shut down on Sundays for bike riding ect. But if you decide to go to nor cal Sacramento, hit a second Saturday ride with the crew from Pedal Grinders, nice river paths you can also ride, Visit College cyclery is a must see,catch Mike S Vintage Bicycle Supply as he also has some cool stuff......check the events section always something going on. :wink:
 
If you can get out July 4th, both Huntington/Newport Beach(Orange County) and Mission/Pacific Beaches(San Diego) absolutely go off lots of bike/cruisers and well the beaches, usually hundreds of thousands in San Diego on that weekend. Venice Beach up in LA is always interesting anytime but not as July 4th centric I think. Virtually the whole coast is bike rideable, realtively cheap rentals everyhwere.

Starting August 1st thru the following weekend is the US OPen for surfing in Huntington Beach, lots to look at and there's a lot going on beside surfing, BMX bike open, and skatebaording open plus music, check out the link below for a list of events. Lots of people, all the sports pros, and reps so free goodies. It's like a scaled down X-Games.

http://www.usopenofsurfing.com/surf/schedule.cfm

If you can book now and come out later there will be 3 Tour de Fats in the fall, but 2 on consecutive wekkends in San Francisco and SanDiego, Fly in drive down fly out, the drive is worth doing on its own.

09/25/2010 San Francisco, California Lindley Meadows in Golden Gate Park
10/02/2010 San Diego, California Balboa Park
10/23/2010 Los Angeles, California L.A. Historic Park
 
Cailifornia is roughly 3 times the size of your state ,Georgia, or Florida, the two biggest states on the East Coast.
Having grown up in the Southeast, I understand it and the people from there. To come to California and try to look at it through Eastern eyes is the biggest mistake to make. The scenery, climate, population density are somewhat uniform in the East. In California, you can be in a different micro climate 5 times in a half an hour. You can go from a massive population density to literally in the middle of now where in 30 minutes. I am right now at an altitude of about 800 feet, staring at a mountain peak 15 miles away almost 11,000 feet in height.

Easterners, because of the uniformity of thier surroundings, tend to place a lot of emphasis on nondescript places, whereas Californians seem to blow off incredibly scenic surroundings. Most Easterners tend to go into sensory overload in California, numb out, and completely ignore what's going on around them simply because of perspective. Then they go home and complain about the people or traffic.

What you want to do in California is going to depend on your time and how much you want to spend. But please don't come here, stay holed up in a Motel 6 in Compton for 3 days, and then profess to having gone to "California". If you are really serious about it, e-mail me, and I'll put together a list of places and routes to see and travel.
 
really I'm just wanting to go to some bike shows and swap meets. We don't have those over here. I'm not really wanting to see it all. ill save that for a family trip.
 
If you're going to be in the L.A. area, I suggest checking out http://atomiccycles.com. Paul (Rev106) has weekly rides, the Coaster Brake Challenge every weekend in July, and a really neat little shop. He may even be able to hook you up with a loaner bike if you want to ride in the CBC on a Sunday evening.
 
If that's all you want the link below is probably on of the more comprehensive list of swaps in Cali I've seen, but by no means is that all of them. Many cities/towns also have cruise nites where everyone brings out the rods etc.

http://www.pomonaswapmeet.com/the_digest.php

Note that Aug 15th is the Pomona Swap at the LA fairgrounds about 50 miles east of the airport, this is a really huge one, many exhibition hall and outdoor stalls, also at the fairgrounds(called Fairplex) is the NHRA museum as well as dragstrip.

http://www.fairplex.com/fp/accommodations/wallyparks.asp

Double Nickle said:
really I'm just wanting to go to some bike shows and swap meets. We don't have those over here. I'm not really wanting to see it all. ill save that for a family trip.
 
man i would come out for the behind the bars show in sj next year it was epic.
 
Double Nickle said:
really I'm just wanting to go to some bike shows and swap meets. We don't have those over here. I'm not really wanting to see it all. ill save that for a family trip.

Again, where in California? People are trying to help you but it would benefit all if you could narrow it down...if you end up in the greater Los Angeles area, check out http://www.cyclonecoaster.com The last monthly ride had 125 riders...basically a moving bike show.
For swaps, check out the Long Beach motorcycle/bicycle swap...usually much better for bike stuff than the Pomona swap.
 
long beach swapmeet!!!! its awesome tons of bike parts and awesome motorcycles in the parking lot. i think its the 2nd or 3rd sunday every month... and for food deli news on las altos is a delicious pizza place and its cheap. another one is roscoes house of chicken and waffles in long beach, ive never been but i hear its good and if you visit long beach you outta check it out. oh and the beaches of course definitley recomend visiting the beaches
 
San Diego area is great. I stayed in La Jolla for a week last year. I was 7 houses up Playa Del Norte St at Windansea Beach where the sun sets over the Shack. Every morning I biked the back roads to the boardwalk all the way to Mission Bay and back. Fine sites at the end on Mission Beach where the ladies play volleyball 8)

Non bike things are the San Diego Zoo and if you bring some extra change try a Para Glider ride at Torey Pines (you must do this jumping off the cliff)

Have fun

GL
 
Well the tickets are bought. I will be hitting the bike show in Sacramento on the 18Th and the cruise the day before. Also I was going to hit the vintage bicycle supply shop in town.
 
If you don't mind riding with an older dude, then hit me up if you come to San Diego.
I have several complete bikes (4 men's, 1 woman's) and live five blocks from the beach, so we can go beach cruising every day you're in town.
The same invitation is open to anyone from this forum who visits San Diego.
 

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