Saturday, January 28, 2012

Why is Winter Cycling Can be Such a Drag in Los Angeles


My late afternoon ride on a typical winter's day –January 27th – along the bike path south of Venice Beach, was a disappointment. 

There I was, initially pedaling in bliss along the coast. The mountains above Malibu to the north, and the mountain that is the Palos Verdes Peninsula to the south, formed the wide open jaws of Santa Monica Bay. The island of Santa Catalina, 27 miles across the sea, floated like a serene, purple leviathan. 


Then I noticed pale puffs and stringy tangles of fog just beginning to muster in the bay, as they planned for a silent shore invasion in the evening. The fog slightly marred my otherwise clear views out over the Pacific. With a shock, I noted that the temperature had dipped to about 65 degrees, and I had to pedal hard just to stay warm. Why, oh, why, did I leave my arm and leg warmers at home?


True, this late in the afternoon most people were somewhere else, so the bike path was like my private, closed-circuit training course, as I headed south to the Redondo Beach Pier, and back north again. Even so, I soon realized the occasional cyclist, jogger, surfer, volleyballer – whomever – were intent, like the fog, on blocking my views! That really frosted me on what should have been a perfect winter's ride.



 The rude dude, above, blocked my view without even realizing it.




 Even the birds got in the way.




 A cyclist barged into my careful composition.


 Two surfers politely hurried through the scene.

More surfers blocked my potential view of gray and blue whales off the coast of Los Angeles.

 
 Stuff cluttered the beach.

All-in-all, it was a miserable day at the beach.


Note: click on images for a larger sized view.



2 comments:

CGO said...

Ha ha ha. It's not quite cycling season yet in MI.

diamondback bike reviews said...

Many people don't know that biking and surfing are a perfect match. Imagine yourself having a long ride and you end up on a beach refreshing yourself and the water is inviting. What's the best thing to do is grab a board and finish the day surfing till sun down.