Orange County Metblogs » Biking in OC

Thomas F. Riley Wilderness Park

dawn — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 01:54:07 +0000

I’ll be honest and say I haven’t been exposed to much wildlife ’round these parts. I still get excited when I see rabbits and squirrels. So when we saw deer a couple of weeks ago I couldn’t stop snapping pictures.

We were scoping out Riley Wilderness Park for an engagement photo shoot and I am so happy our photographer pointed this place out. Also known as Wagon Wheel Park it is off of Oso Parkway just before the entrance to Coto de Caza and its awesome. There are short trails to walk on or to ride,wildllife to see and hardly any people the couple times I’ve been.

We must have seen more than 20 deer roaming around. So if it must be 80 degrees in November you might as well make the best of it and head here for a picnic or an early morning walk.

Wish You Were Here

Dave Share — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 17:49:10 +0000

Surf music at the beach??

I would like to start off this post by apologizing. I’m sorry if you were working or otherwise involved with life las Sunday, that you were stuck indoors or couldn’t make it to the beach. I’m not trying to rub it in your face. I promise!

My best friend and his wife just got new bikes, so my wife and I decided to join them for a ride around Huntington Beach. Oh boy was I glad I did! I’m fairly certain the weather at the beach was even nicer than it was inland. Honestly, how often does that happen? Especially in June!

More photos and a video after the jump…….

We ate lunch at Fred’s Cantina, right at the corner of PCH and Main St. Personally, I wasn’t too impressed with the food. It wasn’t bad, but I really don’t think it was good enough for the price. My wife and my friend’s wife had Margaritas. They didn’t seem too terribly impressed with those either.

From where we were sitting in the restaraunt, we could see a bunch or crosses lined up on the beach, so we decided to investigate. I assumed it had something to do with Memorial Day, but as it turned out, it was some soldiers protesting the war in Afghanistan. This isn’t my forum to speak my mind on the war, but I will say a very good friend of mine is being deployed for a third time. Seeing the crosses representing the soldiers killed in the line of duty made me nervous. He has cheated death 3 times already (and had the purple hearts to prove it). Eventually his luck will run out and that scares me.

That's not-so-good Al

That's a lot of sons, daughters, friends, husbands, wives.....

On a lighter note, we also got to see some great street dancers! Their name is One Love. They were set up right at the entrance of the pier. As with any street performers, they talked a lot. But they were very funny and the dancing…..well I included a video I put together of their stuff.

If you can see this, then you might need a Flash Player upgrade or you need to install Flash Player if it's missing. Get Flash Player from Adobe.

This guy proceeded to do push-ups from this position. Seriously

Unfortunately, my camera malfunctioned, so I didn’t get a great pop/lock section one of the guys did, and I also lost the very end of the show where one of the guys flipped over 5 audience members (I was one of them). It was quite impressive and I’m upset I don’t have it. If you get a chance to see them, stay and watch the show. You’ll enjoy it.

So that was my day at the beach on Sunday. I hope the weather only gets betterer and I hope that the folks who missed out last Sunday get to go play soon.

I love Orange County.

Do You Appreciate Orange County?

Jeff Donaldson — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:00:58 +0000

Laguna Niguel Regional Park

I mean really appreciate it. Do you know everything it has to offer? This morning as I was on the beach after riding my bike I got to wondering how many people who live in Orange County get to actually appreciate all it has to offer.
We have miles of beaches, rolling hills, public parks and open spaces available to us at little or no cost. If any of the readers are like me, they know how easy it is to get into a routine that creates tunnel vision. Get in the car, put the DVD on for the kids in the back, turn on the satellite radio in the front, drive to work, home, dinner with the spouse, weekly meetings/practice, etc… Then rush home to catch up on all the latest reality shows on the DVR. Rinse, lather, repeat.

Coastal Laguna

If anything, riding my bike most places has really opened my eyes to things I either don’t see or don’t have time to see while driving. In the past week on my days off I have ridden up and down the coast, through Santiago, Laguna, and Silverado Canyons, and through the Newport Back Bay and Wetlands/Wildlife Sanctuary in Newport/Irvine. The many parks around Orange County have provided me with a place to rest, meditate, and even offered shortcuts to my destinations that would have otherwise been a daunting ride at the time. For a full list of the parks available visit ocparks.com

Tucker Wildlife Preserve-Modjeska Canyon

As the weather gets warmer, and spring is upon us, I recommend that everyone take some time to appreciate some of the natural wonders Orange County has to offer; ride a bike, go fishing, take someone on a picnic, or just take a nap in park.

Lack of Racks

Jeff Donaldson — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 15:40:32 +0000

Last week I went for a doctors appointment and I couldn’t easily find a place to park my bike. If you look closely at the photo below, you will notice a pink bike, but that one is just sitting next to the door unlocked. Not something I would do with my bike.

Entrance to Irvine Medical Center

As you can see in the photo below, I had to get crafty and wedge my bike next to a bush and lock it to the base of the Handicap Parking pole.

My Bike and a bush

It is something I am finding more and more. I know that it is not required of private property to have bike racks, but as a courtesy it would be nice. I remember a couple months ago looking for 20 minutes at Fashion Island ad could not find one at all. I would prefer not to have to use parking poles and benches as it can impede on the public and the intended use of the bench or walkway.
As I mentioned in a previous post, I wish OC had better bike racks. Not just on private property, but on the city streets. And not the edge of the tire kind, something like in the photo below that a cyclist can get a ulock around and through the middle of the frame or in the rear triangle/wheel area. Not every street has parking meters, which have become the old stand-by for a majority of cyclists.

Universal Bike Racks

When the gas prices go up again (and it will) and the with ever growing popularity with being green, I would hope more cities would look into doing this as more and more people start riding their bikes around. In the meantime, I know it would benefit myself and other riders in Orange County.

Incredible Edible Park

Jeff Donaldson — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 03:40:17 +0000

The other day, while riding my bike through one of Irvine’s many bike paths, I stumbled upon the Incredible Edible Park.

Incredible Edible Park sign

I found it as a great use for an otherwise usually barren area. For me it made a great rest stop, with picnic benches to sit and eat at. Something I would have never seen from a car.
Further investigation uncovered that this is a partnership between the Orange County Food Bank, Souther California Edison, The City of Irvine, Irvine Unified School DIstrict, The Orange County Farm Bureau, and the Irvine Ranch Water District. The food grown here is one of the donated fields that helps bring over 300,000 pounds of food to the Orange County Second Harvest Foodbank.

Park/ Fields on bike path

The Incredible Edible Park is located at 15058 Harvard Ave. Irvine, CA
To volunteer for this and other projects around Orange County see Volunteer Center Orange County.

Public Transit Wins again.

Jeff Donaldson — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 01:11:09 +0000

This morning I had to get to Anaheim from Laguna Niguel and my wife needed the car to get to work. By using google and a little planning, I determined that I could leave my morning meeting which got out at 8am, ride the bike to the bus stop at Crown Valley and Niguel road, take the bus to Crown Valley and Forbes Road, then ride the bike to the Metrolonk Station. Giving myself some extra time I planned to get the 8:35 bus and catch the 9:14 Metrolink to Orange, then ride the bike into Anaheim to meet my friend Jeff to work on bikes. Both the OCTA buses and the Metrolink trains have bike racks available to store a bike during the trip if needed.

Bike Storage on Metrolink

As luck would have it, I cought the 8:05 bus and the 8:25 train, and made it to Anaheim by 8:55. I am not sure I could have done better in a car. I know I saved myself some stress by relaxing on the train, and the combined bus/train fare was $8.75, which isn’t bad at all. In case some of the readers haven’t noticed, gas prices are on the way up again. (elections are over, seems to be a trend)
For those of you that have not tried the public transportation in Orange County lately, I highly recommend it. One can car less if they plan properly.

Old Towne Christmas Lights!

Dave Share — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 22:01:26 +0000

Just before Christmas, my wife and I like to drive around Old Towne Orange and check out all the Christmas lights on display on all the cute old houses. After the tree lighting 2 Sundays ago, we rode our bikes around town to enjoy the lights. To my surprise, a lot of people still hadn’t put up their lights. But there was one house in particular that stood out to me.

Oh I know it doesn’t look like much, but keep reading and you’ll see the glory of this little house.

My wife and I died laughing when we saw this. It would have been criminal for me to NOT have snapped a pic.

Snaps to the owners of this house. And you’d better believe I’m stealing this idea when I buy a house!!

Laguna Cyclery

Jeff Donaldson — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 04:18:27 +0000

I hate when I step into a bike shop for a part or a minor repair and get attitude because they look at my bike and think I am a “fixie kid” (I am actually riding a single speed, and I personally don’t like the term “fixie”). Some shops will look down their nose at you saying that is not “real cycling” (true quote, bit I will spare the shop that said that.)
Laguna Cyclery is not one of those shops.

Laguna Cyclery

Patrick, Tim, Josh & the rest of the crew there are very helpful with any questions one may have about bikes. Twice in as many weeks I have had minor repairs needed on my bike and the they have come through. They talk to there customers as they are fellow riders, no matter what their level. I am still relatively naive to the parts and servicing of my type of bike, so I ask a lot of simple questions. Not once did it feel like they were put out by answering my questions and even offered more insight beyond the questions. I saw this with other customers also.

Tim and Josh

They sell and service all types of bikes from kids bikes to competition road bikes. What has me excited is they have recently started stocking more fixed gear and single speed bikes and parts.

Inside Laguna Cyclery

They have all types of bikes, parts, clothing and accessories for all types of riders. In addition to sales and service they also provide rentals and guided bike tours

Check out their website and new blog for the latest news.

A very blustery day

Jeff Donaldson — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 18:40:03 +0000

Just a follow up to Daveshare’s post yesterday about the winds here in O.C.
Everyone out there be careful, driving, walking, riding, etc… The gusts can move your car into another lane before you know it. It really sucks riding the bike up hill into the wind. I know from this morning.
If anyone out there is sensitive to dust, I would recommend a dust mask when outside. One can get them cheap at Home Depot, etc..

As always, the fire danger is increased at these times. Keep your eyes out and report any smoke or dangerous situations immediately.

Bike Path Patrol?

Dave Share — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 04:25:35 +0000

I spotted this cop sitting next to the Santa Ana River bike path off Orangewood by Anaheim stadium.

Could he be protecting cyclists from the dangers William Cambell wrote about in his post a few days ago???

Or are they just harassing cyclists as they like to do?

Then again, I suppose he could just be napping eh?