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Old 08-09-2010, 11:34 PM
 
2 posts, read 4,412 times
Reputation: 10

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Sure we bike. Many people have bike racks on their cars to get the bikes to the good spots. I love a good bike ride, just have to transport the bike to where I want to ride though. I am just kidding here, but as many have said we prefer cars to bikes. Riding a bike for the most part is a recreational activity here and not a means of getting from point A to point B. Still many like yourselves opperate in that mode and that is perfectly acceptable if you can pull it off. We have probably a dozen employees where I work that ride most days. We also have a dozen employees that ride Mortorcycles, something that I prefer. For the majority though it seems the reason for riding a bike is financial and not because they choose that lifestyle.
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Old 09-26-2010, 06:30 PM
 
Location: Philadelphia PA- not for long!
17 posts, read 84,239 times
Reputation: 15
Default I'm here & I see ppl on bikes all the time...

Thanks for all of your replies. My husband and I have finally gotten here, (though we're in a hotel, STILL looking for the right apt.,and I'll have a TON of questions about the very different Landlord-Tenant laws here in another thread!) and though I've yet to go out on MY bike- haven't gone anywhere really, main focus is to get an apt., THEN be tourists & start "living" here- I feel in limbo in this hotel & spend all my time looking at/for apts. online and ruling the out, mostly...) anyway, I've seen many people biking since I've been here- NOTHING like in Philly, and I didn't expect that, but I have seen them all over, from Silverlake to Burbank to downtown LA and Hollywood, and of course in Santa Monica.
My husband's been out many times on his bike to do errands or whatever and he's had no problem with people's attitudes. In fact, I've noticed that HERE, so far, all of the cyclists I've seen, (in contrast to Philly, esp.,) actually ride the way we do- WITH traffic, and with lights at night and I haven't seen too many NOT stop and wait for a light change, though I have seen some on the sidewalks.
My husband tells me it doesn't feel much different to ride here except for nicer, WIDE streets- in Philly, they're very narrow and where we lived, there was a lot of cobblestone, which made a hybrid with front shocks necessary for me!

I can't wait to get settled and get out there.

We've also seen that yes, one CAN get around without a car. The worst trip my husband's had so far was from Silverlake to Santa Monica on a bus- he takes his bike with him, too, though, so he can always get off and ride out of congested areas and knows to do that for certain trips.
Since he GOT the job that he got called to interview for, (just before we left,) though doesn't start until next week, we've had plenty of time to plot out where we can live that will make things convenient for his commute and everything else. His job's in Burbank, though for now, we want to live in Hollywood within about 2 miles of the 101/170.

Then he can take the red line up to Universal City and bike about 2 miles on Riverside dr. to work.

The "heat" here won't be a problem at ALL- just the sun- we're very skin conscious, esp. me, but to us, as long as it's below 85, that's "warm!" Philly was in the 90's and often above this year since MAY and every summer for at LEAST 3 months, there are more often than not days well above 85.
For us, not having that kind of heat every day to ride in, (as well as no rain or snow!) will be AWESOME! It's no fun to have to be so bundled up for the cold that you can barely move your joints.

I love it here so far, and have seen unbelievable displays of human courtesy that I haven't seen anywhere else- for example, on the bus, I've seen everyone help a guy on one of those big, motorized wheelchairs get on and be patient and help him get it settled into a place. On my first bus ride, a man got UP for me and gave me his seat. I also watched a total stranger help a woman with a couple of kids and a lot of stuff carry it off the bus. Things like that- oh, and everyone here, unlike Philly, greets the driver and thanks him/her when they get off.
That kind of stuff made me SURE we made the right choice moving here, not that people were mean or rude to me or my husband in Philly- in fact, we never seem to get that kind of treatment even in areas where others complain about it, but it looks like there are many more people who go out of their way to be helpful or nice. I suppose it depends where one is, though...we'll see how nice they are in Beverly Hills!

I'm really glad to find that we CAN easily get by here with just our bikes and public transportation- and stay OFF the 405,(obviously, I don't mean on a BIKE!) as well as knowing which streets to avoid that CROSS it!!
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Old 09-26-2010, 09:17 PM
 
10,629 posts, read 26,655,416 times
Reputation: 6776
Interesting observations. I, too, was always impressed with just how polite people are (generally) on LA's public transportation; LA has had, by FAR, the most courteous public transportation riders of any of the cities we've lived in. Not that everyone is nice, or that you won't encounter some real weirdos on the bus (or on the street), but overall people seem to be pretty decent.
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Old 10-19-2010, 11:20 AM
 
Location: Valley Village, Ca
55 posts, read 168,099 times
Reputation: 27
Get a good lock like a kryptonite new york lock. Be careful and wear a helmet. You can be faster by bike in many cases.
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Old 10-20-2010, 11:45 AM
 
Location: Philadelphia PA- not for long!
17 posts, read 84,239 times
Reputation: 15
Quote:
Originally Posted by backpacker71 View Post
Get a good lock like a kryptonite new york lock. Be careful and wear a helmet. You can be faster by bike in many cases.
Thanks, but I'm not a newbie to biking. I've been doing it all over Philly streets, (and NOT in BIKE LANES, IN TRAFFIC, just following the same laws I would in a car,) and the first thing I did when I got a bike was get a Kryptonite lock and chain. I take anything removable off the bike and lock the chain through both wheels.

As for helmets, I'm not looking to get into a debate about that. I made the mistake of asking, as a newbie, if they were worth it or not, and found that the debate was as heated as atheists vs. theists.

I did a lot of research into it after putting one on, as did my husband, and dug deep enough to find that the often quoted comments about "it saved my life," "see, if it hadn't cracked, that would have been my head," as well as, "my doctor said I would've been killed otherwise, and the every popular
"a bicyclist was killed while not wearing a helmet...." and other such comments.
However a doctor does NOT necessarily understand biomechanics - in fact, most GPs don't even understand half of the physical issues I have- that's why there are specialists...like engineers who DO understand physics and biomechanics and that the fact that the helmet cracked did NOT mean it saved one's life, it means it FAILED.

They only perform ONE kind of test on those things, a linear drop. People do NOT generally pitch off their bikes and land directly on the top of their heads from a standing position on the seat of the bike. I rode a bike my entire childhood, so did EVERYONE I KNEW, and only ONE kid ever fell off and cracked his skull open- and THAT was because he was doing something STUPID at the time, and contrary to popular belief, he didn't die, and wasn't brain damaged. How many people do YOU PERSONALLY know that have actually fallen right on the TOP of the helmet?

You're actually MORE likely, statistically and PER CAPITA, to have a head injury in a CAR, while wearing a seatbelt, but no one wears them in their cars except race car drivers.

Most people don't understand the physics and biomechanics of the logic in the actual data, or the fact that the "wear a helmet" evolved from the main company who makes them.

MILLIONS of people in Europe don't wear them and there are very few problems there.

The helmet companies want us to be SCARED.

It's not like I bike on the freeway, haven't even been on Wilshire yet, but have been all around Hollywood and WeHo on Santa Monica, Sunset and Hollywood blvd, even at night. No problems at all. As long as I assume no one can "see" me and LIGHT MYSELF UP accordingly and give gestures and make EYE contact with drivers- I've even literally ASKED people if I could get in front of them on the very narrow streets of Philly, I'll likely be fine until my physical limitations keep me from riding.

P.S. My husband has been commuting to work 4 or so miles in & around Philly for 3 years, and now here and even though they drive faster here, they're more aware of us, AND more courteous about it, plus, we ride in the BUS lanes. If it's a narrow 2 lane street with short blocks, I take the CENTER of the lane so as not to get doored AND to make sure drivers SEE me.
When I reach an intersection, I stop and let people pass, IF I was holding anyone up. Oh, and I can go 20mph on flat streets, which isn't too bad for someone who doesn't race and had major back and joint problems. The bike is what I call my "pre-wheelchair," because it hurts to walk or stand very long, but luckily, contrary to those issues, my muscles develop fast and my former GP said, at my last appt., "you're strong as an ox!" (On the medication that allows me to escape the pain, I can build muscle and these hills will have me eventually climbing them at a good pace. I know I used to pass nearly every other "typical" non-Lance Armstrong cyclist.

My husband and I ARE being VERY careful about the drivers here in the rain, though...no one seems to understand "hydroplaning," either, so I ride defensively, as if I EXPECT to get hit- that philosophy kept me from NEVER having a car accident though I drove fast and have a lot of miles under my belt in the 30 years I've been driving. Quick reaction time helps.

Last edited by BeBe Blazfemi; 10-20-2010 at 11:59 AM..
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Old 10-21-2010, 01:44 PM
 
Location: Valley Village, Ca
55 posts, read 168,099 times
Reputation: 27
You seem to have it all figured out regarding the helmet. Good luck with that. I hope you never need one.
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Old 10-21-2010, 11:20 PM
 
Location: Los Angeles
437 posts, read 809,052 times
Reputation: 165
when you mean bike do you mean bicycle or motorbike sorry if the question is dumb coz the slang over here has changed lol
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Old 10-22-2010, 11:47 AM
 
Location: Bella Vista, Ark
77,772 posts, read 104,291,838 times
Reputation: 49248
Quote:
Originally Posted by BeBe Blazfemi View Post
Moving from Philly to somewhere in the LA vicinity- TBD, in about 3 weeks. My husband and I gave up having cars a few years ago since we can bike or use public transit to get everywhere we need to go in Philly, (even though most people are afraid to ride the streets here like we do and it's not known as a "bike friendly" city, it's really not bad at all.)

We're not planning on GETTING a car and wondering if people DO ever bike INSTEAD of drive anywhere, even just in their own neighborhoods? It's not uncommon for us to go up to 10 miles round trip for groceries on our bikes and we enjoy it, but I'm wondering how the general population will react to seeing us since it doesn't look too bike friendly in the sense that most think of- no real bike lanes, and I didn't see many bike racks around on google maps, either.
It's fine with us about those parts because we have enough sense to stay OFF the streets where cars travel excessively fast and we abide by the same rules we did in our cars- with one exception- we make SURE people are aware of us on the street and of our intentions, etc.- as if we think we're INVISIBLE.
Unlike those who give cyclists a bad name, we DON'T skip stop signs, lights, etc. or go the wrong way down one way streets or ride on the sidewalks.

So given that, is it possible that we can survive without a car, assuming we also use public transit and car-sharing if available where we move to?
And will people be largely respectful of us if we don't act like idiots on the streets on our bikes?
I haven't read all the responses, but I can tell you most of the people in So Ca do drive cars. Biking is a past time for some, but it isn't normally anyone's main form of transportation. San Franciso is more bike friendly if you can do the hills than Los Angeles.

As for people treating you like idiots, probably not, it is just something that isn't as workable in some areas as others.

Nita
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Old 10-22-2010, 11:49 AM
 
Location: Bella Vista, Ark
77,772 posts, read 104,291,838 times
Reputation: 49248
Quote:
Originally Posted by BeBe Blazfemi View Post
Yes, I DID understand your implication. I thought it was rather ignorant, considering it's not true that EVERYONE feels the need to guzzle gas just because they can, but I'm glad you could dig up some articles to "support" your claim. I believe there was a song in the '80's you missed, though- It was by "Missing Persons"- "Walking in LA"...I believe you might've been referring to the lyric, "only a NOBODY walks in LA."

I'm sure you're aware that one can find supporting internet "evidence" for ANY argument however, yes? Just saying...
It sounds like you asked a question, are getting answers and don't like what you are hearing..
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Old 10-22-2010, 11:50 AM
 
Location: Bella Vista, Ark
77,772 posts, read 104,291,838 times
Reputation: 49248
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1200RT View Post
I'm not sure if you came here to argue, or spam us with your anti-car stance or not .... but it sure came off that way. You asked a question, and it was answered ... VERY few people get by with JUST a bike in LA.

With that being said - LA - as a general rule - is a pretty bike friendly area. Here in Santa Monica, there are TONS of bike lanes. I think the biggest issue is how far you will be commuting. I would focus on finding a place to live that is close to your job.

Let me also add ..... its refreshing that you follow the "rules of the road" when biking. I have bad experiences almost daily with bicyclists who feel they are above the vehicle code - running stop signs, cutting off cars, etc.
couldn't rep you, had to spread it around.

Nita
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