neneboricua

Can anyone tell me what the riding is like in the area of Emeryville, CA? I'm considering taking a job there but want to know what the terrain, weather, and cycling community is like.

neneboricua

hendrick81

Check out the regional forums and go to the Nor cal section. You will get better info there.

citizenerased

East bay riding is pretty awesome. Expect some rain between November and April, but also as late as June in some years. Hardly ever rains in the summer. A dry heat further inland, but it can be windy in Emeryville a lot of the time near the bay, less so the further inland you go. Mild winters, rarely freezes over and generally in the high 40s to 50s in December through February and lots of sun in the summer. It can get hot though depending how far east/north you go. The bay area has micro-climates, where you can be near the bay or ocean and it'll be in the 50-60s and windy, but go over a hill and a few miles away and it's not impossible to be in the 80s on any given summer day.

You've got some amazing hills through Oakland and Berkeley. Mt Diablo a little to the south if you want some of the biggest elevation gains in the area. Close enough to get into Marin on a weekend which has a lot of bike friendly hills and routes. Overall the roads are accessible, wide enough and in a good enough condition to ride year round. Compared to southern NY it's a dream.

Never been to the PNW for any amount of time, but others here might be able to give a better comparison between the two. Not cycling related, but the food in the SF area is great, something I really miss living just outside NYC. It's like a wasteland here once you're outside of NYC itself, compared to such great food for any budget from Marin all the way to San Jose and over to Berkeley and Oakland.

garciawork

Its ok. Busy, a smidge run down, but they have an Ikea! The Berkeley hills are AMAZING for riding, just East of Emeryville. You are also close enough to SF/North Bay to ride up there a LOT, which I would be jealous of. I'm over in the far east bay, so I have ok riding, but it involves a lot of crappy roads to get there. If you can live in Berkeley, you will be nice and close to the good hills (steep, so have fun), and be close to BART to take to the city and ride over the Golden Gate bridge.

prathmann

Emeryville itself is pretty flat, but has some good riding opportunities, especially along the bay. Here's an example of a club ride that went from Berkeley south to Emeryville and then north to Pt. Richmond along the Bay Trail. All flat, but lots of nice scenery:
https://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=136948

As others have said, if you want more varied terrain there are lots of hills in the surrounding area. Here's an example of a ride starting in Emeryville and climbing some of the Berkeley hills and then continuing about half way up Mt. Diablo south of Walnut Creek:
https://www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=66066

Plus you can quickly take BART into SF for rides there or ride across the Golden Gate into Marin and the areas around Mt. Tam.

SlimRider

I commuted to work in Emeryville from '05-'09. The main thoroughfares are decent. Signs are well-posted. However, there is a distinct shortage of bicycle lanes. Many of the side streets have speed bumps. Of course, this fact is both good and bad. Bad in the sense, that you are prevented from moving at your optimum pace when there's absolutely no other soul with which to share the road, but there you are, just lumbering along anyway. Good in the sense, that it prohibits any potential speeder from barrowing around some corner, or speeding pass a stop sign. Compared to riding the streets of San Francisco, Emeryville is a piece of cake!

Good Luck!

- Slim

B. Carfree

Emeryville is nothing to write home about, but the (L)east bay hills are heaven. Add in the fact that you can ride year-round and rarely deal with anything we would consider cold or wet here in the PNW, and this should be a no-brainer choice for you. If that's not enough, consider the fact that the typical Bay Area motorist is MUCH more considerate and skilled behind the wheel than the average PNW driver and the deal is closed.

Of course, my point of view is incredibly biased. I spent the first two decades of my life in the (L)east bay and still venture there quite often to visit family and friends. My geocentrism is centered there.

Beaker

As others have said, you're really well positioned for some gorgeous riding - locally in the Oakland/Berkley Hills - lots of group and club ride opportunities too. Pop over the hills and you've even more opportunities through the Lamorinda area and out to Diablo. Seriously, you'll love it. Then again, I'm a little biased...

caloso

And don't forget the POO ride.

Beaker

Always good to finish the day with a hard and sweaty POO

RoboCheme

One advantage of living in Emeryville is that there are plenty of apartments and condos, so you could either walk or ride to work very easily. It is somewhat of a chore to ride east through the streets to get to the hills, however.

neneboricua

Thanks for all the responses, everyone. I'm not thrilled about the job yet, but if the riding in the area is good, then that's one more item I can add to the plus column in my decision.

I'd like to live close to work so I could get my workout ride in at lunch if the weather is good, or run home and ride the trainer if the weather is bad. That way when I get home from work in the evening, I'm done for the day and can just relax. Hopefully rent in the area isn't too expensive.

Are there some fast club rides around? Not necessarily looking for hammerfests all the time, just a recreational group that likes to ride fast and get along with eachother. I was signed up for my first year of racing this coming season, but now with a potential move I may have to wait for next season. Are there any well-organized racing squads around that are welcoming to beginning racers?

neneboricua

Beaker

If you're calibrated to the bay area, then rent probably isn't too bad. If you're not, then you might have to be ready for some sticker shock. Don't have $$ figures to hand, but I'm sure a quick search of Craig's list will help.

Well, to burst the bubble, "POO" stands for Port Of Oakland - it's a crit style practice that goes once (or twice?) a week year round - can get quite fast from what I hear, but I've not made one yet. Another ride that I do quite regularly is an off shoot from the Grizzly Peak Cyclists - from April to October they do a really good group ride that matches pretty much what you say. The Tuesday ride is a group of anywhere from 8-20 folks a solid cat 4/5 pace, 30miles and 2,500-3,000ish feet of great riding - here's one I did, earlier: https://connect.garmin.com/activity/92510274 Also a very friendly, diverse group of riders. The ride has a bunch of sprint points and 2 or 3 regroups, as it tends to fall into a rhythm of 5 harder intervals.

They also do a very varied hill repeats series on Thursday evenings - you'd be amazed how many great little circuits and climbs there are in the area.

A little further afield you have the House of Pain ride each Saturday morning which is a flatter route 50 or 60miles depending on which group you choose - leaves from Danville.

Round here, the road season starts on Jan 1 with the San Bruno Mtn Hill Climb, followed by the Early Bird Crit series - each week in Fremont. Very good mentored series of 4 clinics followed by a crit, each focusing on different skills that make for excellent race prep for the year. The last one of the series attracts all the local clubs who are recruiting new riders. Your nearest local club is probably BBC https://berkeleybike.org/

ericm979

If you are a new racer do the early bird series. You will learn a lot and you get extra points for them so you get to cat 4 quicker.