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It looked like a scene from a movie

Old 08-29-19, 03:22 PM
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TakingMyTime
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It looked like a scene from a movie

I modified one of my usual rides about 2 weeks ago in order to mix things up. I was getting off the SGRT at Westminster Ave and heading East to Bushard. I had been going down Bushard towards Huntington Beach. The ride was good. Nice bike lane on Bushard, plenty of room and the traffic isn't as bad as if you were to take Magnolia or Brookhurst. I found out that one of the reasons it had seemed so quiet was that school hadn't started yet. Well, after passing Slater you come to Fountain Valley High School. I have never seen traffic that bad. With all the cars trying to go every which way, parking in the bike lane, blocking cross traffic. It looked like a scene from a movie where everyone just learned that the world was going to end in 5 minutes and they just stopped and parked their cars wherever they happened to be.

I will be looking for a new route.
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Old 08-29-19, 04:42 PM
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Sometimes I see a cyclist going up or down the street near my kid's HS, during "drop off hours." I just shake my head. I would never ride a bicycle on that street during drop off or pick up times. Nothing like 2,200 kids coming out at the same time, mostly one to a car, and parents driving like they don't care about a single thing aside from picking up their progeny and departing with only the greatest haste. How bad is it? There are two police cruisers on the street every single day. The school is a scant 4 miles away, and it's not unusual for the round trip to take me 25+ minutes.

Matter of fact, I won't ride any of the connecting streets near the school within an hour of the bell, morning or afternoon. I've watched people drive half on the shoulder to get a little closer a little faster. And there's zero chance of going on foot, in spite of the short distance. There's no shoulder on the road, it's an undivided 2-lane with a posted 50mph speed limit, which no one obeys. Also, gravel trucks, and it's 102º outside.
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Old 08-29-19, 04:54 PM
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That's exactly why that route is now off the books. Before school started it was a nice little ride.
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Old 08-30-19, 08:53 AM
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Sometimes when I commute into work I'll ride on an empty road that goes under the 10 which is a complete logjam. Would make an awesome drone shot.
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Old 08-30-19, 10:42 AM
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I used to ride past a grammar school on my way to work during drop off time for the kids, and it was the most dangerous part of my route.
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Old 08-30-19, 10:48 AM
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Know exactly where that's at I've ridden by many times albeit on weekends. Next time try heading south on Springdale or Edwards to Heil. East on Heil to Newland (between Beach & Magnolia) which is similar to Bushard. Once you're on Newland you'll have many options turning east if you still want to take Bushard or just stay on it till it hits PCH.
There are many streets my wife & I ride early weekends that are almost empty which we'd never consider riding during the week due to commuter/commercial traffic.
West
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Old 08-30-19, 02:02 PM
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TakingMyTime
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@2seven0 Right now I'm going to be trying different routes in that area and see what works best. I will always be on Westminster for the first part of the ride but I'm looking for more of those streets that just the locals use. My goal is to get to the SART and head south. Today I just took Westminster all the way to N. Fairview and jumped on the trail. I've found that in comparison to some of the other major streets (Katella, Ball Rd etc) Westminster isn't that crazy between 06:30 and 07:00. You need to keep your eyes open, but not crazy.
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Old 08-30-19, 02:19 PM
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Yeah that's the issue with a lot of streets- sometimes a difference of +/- 1 hour makes a world of difference. Since I only ride on weekends the traffic is completely different than during the week. Have you tried taking Warner east to the SART? it's not bad & you can roll into Mile Square Park for a break. Seems there are always a few sticky points wherever you go.
West
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Old 08-31-19, 01:33 PM
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You don't have to worry about riding down Bushard for a while - the section over the freeway between Warner and Slater (just north of the high school) has been closed down. Guess its next on the list of bridge tear-downs/rebuilds for the 405 widening project.
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Old 09-02-19, 03:02 PM
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TMT,

I started using Bushard, accessed via PCH(s)/Seapoint/Garfield, to skip over the Main Street HB area, especially during the Surfing Contest. I would usually turn around at the Medusa Salon or as soon as I saw a lady with a shocking hair color (haha). This gives a total ride of about 46 miles from Los Al.

On Saturdays you might run into the Viet Velo club ride. I once rode into their paceline coming through balboa_bay_bridge/Mariners_Mile and they _all_ dropped me. I found out later that this is their sprint zone! Once they hit Brookhurst/Bushard they slow down and start chatting again.

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Old 09-02-19, 08:14 PM
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That's one of my loops but I do it the other way. PCH down to SART and turn around to Brookhurst and than hit Bushard to Garfield, Seapoint and then PCH home. Usually around 38+ miles for me.
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Old 09-07-19, 08:09 AM
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Originally Posted by TakingMyTime
That's one of my loops but I do it the other way. PCH down to SART and turn around to Brookhurst and than hit Bushard to Garfield, Seapoint and then PCH home. Usually around 38+ miles for me.
It seems like it would be easier just to go back up the PCH rather than weave through residential streets in the south end of Huntington Beach. If you're doing it for a few extra miles of workout you could go up-and-back on the SART for a few miles. Just a suggestion.
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Old 09-07-19, 10:18 AM
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Originally Posted by skidder
It seems like it would be easier just to go back up the PCH rather than weave through residential streets in the south end of Huntington Beach. If you're doing it for a few extra miles of workout you could go up-and-back on the SART for a few miles. Just a suggestion.
Although the scenery on Bushard is not as nice as the SART or PCH... it does have a large bike lane and the traffic in the section between PCH and Garfield is minimal. For the record, I'm not doing that route too much any longer. The other day I took the SART North to Taft/Ball Rd and then Ball Rd West straight home. But, Ball Rd between the SART and a little past Disneyland is a freakin' minefield. 3 lanes with no bike land and trucks all over the place. I'm probably going to go a bit further North and see if Lincoln might be a better route home.

I'm open to suggestions but sometimes I have no choice other than "weave" a bit. It just seems like any main road from the SART heading west is usually a challenge to say the least. I Googled the Lincoln route home and the road looks a little better. Now I just have to see how bad the traffic is going to be. My only other choices are to exit the SART at one of the main egress points and take one of the minor roads East.

Soon I should be up to riding 50 miles on a regular basis and then I can stay on PCH. From my house to Crystal Cove which is exactly 50 miles round trip. That's the mileage I'm building to, and then start working on the MPH.
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Old 09-07-19, 08:13 PM
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TMT FYI Lincoln is not very bike-friendly between the 57/SART pretty much all the way through to the SGRT. You'd be better off taking Lampson as far as you want. Also if you exit at Lincoln on the west side of the riverbed is a bike trail you can go south for @ 1/8 mile then exit onto South Street (small southerly jog at St. College) continue west then turn north on Anaheim Blvd then west on La Palma. Orangethorpe along that stretch has a bike lane most of the way but the pavement condition is terrible until you get west of Brookhurst.
Check google maps or mapquest & you'll get a clearer picture.
West
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Old 09-16-19, 01:42 PM
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No matter how disturbing, must have been nice viewing that traffic snarl from a bike!
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