The Scenic Route

Today's ride was just what the bike doctor ordered.  Most of the easy riding in LA county is on riverbed paths.  They are smooth and (usually) well maintained, they keep you zipping along - but the scenery can get stale.  Another addition to the monotany is the fact that they are primarily level and straight.  The upside is that you can get lots of miles in without stopping and you don't worry about getting hit by a car (just other bikes :).

The good news is that today we went for a change - some hills and curves.  It required taking surface streets (some with bike lanes), but once we got into the hills it was totally worth it.  East St. and West St. in the hills of Whittier brought us excitement in the forms of pain while going up and free coasting while riding down.  The coasting provided free air conditioning on the way down.

Perhaps the most awesome-est part was the feeling that we were 100's of miles from LA.  All the hills, curves, trees, and open space between homes was refreshing.  It was a sweet treat for a group of urban bike cowboys.  Here is a short clip of us heading down one of the hills.  (Sorry about the wind noise).