illenvillain

So Im going to be on a layover in SF (girlfriend is a flight attendant) for a full day and was hoping someone could rent me a bike thats better than the cruiser rentals in Fisherman's Wharf. I know this is a long shot, but I would love to explore the city on a descent bike. 52-53cm and I would need a lock as well.

Kilroy1988 

Riding around SF on a vintage bicycle is one way to get a serious workout, but I'm not confident you'll have a lot of fun or actually get around to seeing much in a day that way. Traffic is hectic and the hills can be seriously gnarly. I got tired of commuting by bicycle in the city in no time, and I had a couple of years to figure out where everything was!

terrymorse 

You can rent a road bike from many places in San Francisco.

https://gobikenow.com/bikes/?city=Sa...ategories=road

bfuser191509248

In SF, you would also need an “ascent” bike.

AeroGut

If you’re starting at the airport, it’s south of the city. There’s lots of great riding on the peninsula near and south of there. You might know that already. I don’t live there anymore, so I can’t help you with the rental.

Sasquatch16

Rented a Giant TCR a couple years ago from Sports Basement right under the Golden Gate Bridge. Reserved online and bike was ready when I got there.

Salamandrine 

Geez it's not that hard to ride a bike in SF. I lived there two decades and my bike was my primary transportation the whole time. Simply stick to the shoreline and you can ride all the way from Dogpatch through Fisherman's wharf (tourists!), the Presidio, and on to Lake Merced. Only a couple little hills the whole way. To cut through the middle, ride from downtown, through the lower Haight, jag over to fell or oak, and ride out the panhandle to Golden Gate Park. That'll take you all the way to Ocean Beach.

jetboy 

I'd loan you one of mine but they are all 60cm or so. SF is great on a bike, don't let them get you down! I pretty much go everywhere by bicycle and its not a problem though you will feel it during, and after, the day. Some of my bikes are a bit modernized to deal with the hills, but others are still running 80s and 90s gearing, and .. guess what: it works fine/...but sometimes you probably should get off and walk.

but those streets are pretty rare and don't tend to be in the touristy areas...

the ebike craze is big here, and for a reason: your commute is a lot less sweaty and stinky- so don't feel bad going that route either! you will be able to get more places and still have energy to hike down to the beach and such.

Kilroy1988 

And who's supposed to figure that out in a day? I only lived in the city for two years when I was at SFSU and I usually stuck to the coast, or went up 19th Avenue towards Golden Gate Park then toodled around over there. But it was definitely most relaxing to ride south and away from the city! Sadly that's not where the action was...

Maybe I'm biased coming from the countryside, but traffic was what ruined it for me more than anything to ride my bikes around the city. I hated having to constantly pay attention to all of the cars... I can't ever imagine having a "leisurely" one day experience in a city like SF on a bicycle.

I'd rather walk. When I'm a tourist in cities I usually walk upwards of 20 miles per day and get to see a lot and take a lot of photos and have plenty of time to think. That's how I'd recommend spending a day in SF as well. You can pop your head into any little cafe or shop that you see without any considerations like traffic or where to stash the bicycle, etc... And you can have a good beverage in hand all the while!

-Gregory

terrymorse 

Fortunately, other cyclist have figured out decent routes through the city. A good resource is ridewithgps.com.

As an indication to which roads are popular with cyclists, there's the Strava Global Heat Map:

Salamandrine 

I can be figured out enough in a day. Sure! I just told the OP the two main tricks. Pretty simple with some rudimentary planning and a map and/or GPS. FWIW, if starting from SFSU, the best way is to take Sunset Blvd. There's a bike path and not much traffic anyway. Or just go down along the beach. 19th Ave would be pretty scary. I can kind of sympathize since I grew up in (what was once) a small town surrounded by country too. City riding takes getting used to, but in SF it's possible to avoid traffic to some degree at least.

Anyway, for a 1 day visit, I'd recommend something like starting near the ball park, riding along the water, keeping downtown on yer left, water on yer right. Go through the wharf area, take the bike path through Ft. Mason and the Marina, continue through the presidio. Take a detour over the GG bridge and at least ride up to the old nike base. Ask the locals about the real rides in Marin if you want. Then head back and go south through the presidio, past the Sutro baths and Ocean beach. Loop back the same way, or cut through GG park.

Kilroy1988 

Yeah, going down Sunset is a nice way to get up north from campus, for sure! I lived right off 19th avenue so I got used to just jumping on my bike and going, but at times I would definitely decide it was better to walk up a couple of those hills than grind it, depending on how bad my hangovers were and whether or not I was on the fixie... Ah, college life!

@terrymorse GPS would help for sure. I seldom use such technology. Again, perhaps I'm just ill-equipped for maneuvering through a city on a bicycle in a day!

I guess it really just comes down to what you want out of the experience... If you're looking for a cycling experience then of course consider the routes and recommendations given above. But if you're interested in actually seeing San Francisco, I still recommend walking. Especially so if there's any interest in architecture, boutique shops, street culture, or simply having time to think about what one's actually looking at as it passes one by! As opposed to concentrating on laws and safety and routes.

But I'm the sort of person that would rather stand and appreciate one place for an hour than rush through sixty places in a minute each. To each their own.

-Gregory

illenvillain

Thank you for so many positive responses

unworthy1

You don't mention what day is the one day you need it. I have one bike that size but needs some more work before it's ready for the streets, and not a lot of free time if your lay-over day is coming up fast.

billytwosheds 

There was a video floating around of a guy who packed a fixed gear in a soft bag, landed in SFO, put it together, and biked into the city. Can't find it for the life of me but just saying, it's doable.

The Wiggle is a really fun way to get through the city and avoid most hills, otherwise the embarcadero is relatively friendly.

Super bikeable place. Just mind the cabs and the rail tracks.