Originally posted by Qak180
I am going to be in Newport Beach for the OC Half Marathon the first weekend of May. We were going to head out from Las Vegas after I complete my 70 mile training ride (for IM Texas), but now I'm thinking it might be nice to ride in new scenery. Any information I've been able to find on cycling out there has been a few years old, so can anyone give me an idea about cycling on PCH?
I'll be staying at the Hilton Hotel in Costa Mesa, and if a long ride is possible, I'd love to drive in early and get the 70 miles in mid-day that Saturday. Also, any thoughts on using my tri bike or should I stick with the road bike? Thanks for any responses!
You'll find lots of cyclists on PCH most days, both road and tri bikes. Like any major road, cars are going fast and there are accidents, so like always, be careful. From where you are staying, you can either drive down to PCH with your bike or ride down...perhaps take Bristol to Jamboree and turn right, then Jamboree down to PCH. There is a great area around the Back Bay that you should check out...filled with cyclists, runners and walkers. After you make the right on Jamboree from Bristol, take a right at the 2nd light at Eastbluff....then the first right you get to which is called Back Bay Drive...you can't miss it. Just review this area on google maps.
Back to PCH....the only area I'd be extra cautious of is if you head south on PCH into Laguna Beach. The bike lane gets very narrow and it can be a little sketchy. If you stick with PCH between Crystal Cove to the south and Seal Beach to the north you should find yourself in good company.
Not very pretty, but very safe, there is a bike path called the "Santa Ana River Trail" that starts at the beach, right where Huntington Beach and Newport Beach come together and runs inland all the way to Corona....you can easily do a 30+ mile up and back.
Finally, another very popular road for cycling is Santiago Canyon....plenty of solid rollers and some good climbs. From your hotel you'd want to drive up Jamboree to Santiago Canyon...there is a shopping center at the corner of Jamboree and Santiago Canyon/Chapman
(The road changes names at this intersection.
) You can do an out and back on Santiago or continue on Santiago all the way down to Trabuco and turn right. Trabuco turns into Irvine Blvd, which will hit Jamboree where you can turn right again and finish the loop back to your car.
Enjoy your visit, best of luck with the OC Half Marathon and IM Texas!