Motorcycle Commuting and Los Angeles: two words that do not seem to belong to each other, both for motorcyclists and for other drivers of vehicles. I heard all the stories: “LA is the worst place to ride a bike!” Egypt "Too many cars, too unsafe and too many idiots." Colorful answers, such as these and other answers that are too colorful for this article, came to me a hundred miles an hour when I told my friends in San Francisco and Oakland that I was moving south to Los Angeles. Being a native of Southern California, I grew up on dirt bikes, and I rode street bikes for more than ten years, in five other cities.
For the past five years, I only had motorcycles, bicycles and public transport: life was cheap. I lived in cities where cars were neither feasible nor practical. The dynamics of the family and the recession in the Bay area considered it necessary to return to the region of Greater Los Angeles. Upon my return, I realized that I needed a car. Lifeless life in the city of Angels; it's a hard life, and I always thought it would be a nightmare without her. Upon returning, both in the first year and a half, I switched to and from work on motorcycles around Greater Los Angeles.
Motorcycle transportation on Interstate 5 and 405
First year
Weapon of choice: Suzuki SV-650Y Naked version
My first year of Motorcycle Commuting in Los Angeles was interesting, and new experiences were made. I had never seen a motorcycle crash before I returned home, and one of us was twenty feet away from me; it was sobering. If an accident occurs on freeways and traffic, you get used to “charging traffic” or “dividing lanes” for miles. On the way to work in El Segundo on the 405, I was confronted with the consequences of what appeared to be the Honda CBR 600 in pieces, when the ambulance left the scene with the rider behind. And I still have twenty miles to go to work!
Dangerous moments on motorcycles, in my experience, are rare, and these are “moments”. Riders have a saying "You are driving down the road." If the moment comes, you will go through this and that is good advice. This means that you never panic: you slowly think that your way out of this and act. So far, I only had two points, and I drove on the same freeway - Interstate 405. I followed my advice.
Inside - Los Angeles Motorcycle
Second year
Weapon of choice: Suzuki DRZ-400SM Supermoto
Relocation within Los Angeles has unique problems. My 650 would be too heavy for the Los Angeles stalemate. Enter Supermoto: the perfect city car for Los Angeles. With a one gallon gas tank, this bike costs five dollars or less to fill. Lightweight, responsive and fast, the Supermoto looks like a bike with street tires for incredible street work.
I used to work at a digital agency in Santa Monica, and I lived in Altadena. I could take several different routes to get to work, and after a few days I decided to take 110 Freeway to downtown Los Angeles, get to Pico Blvd and drive to Pico to Santa Monica. This route is great, except when you get to Beverly or La Brea streets, traffic tends to start and not allow access to the office itself. I have two funny facts to share my messages with this machine.
- Riding on the sidewalks - Yes, I did it several times, and it's fun and enjoyable! This is a gradual thing; backward movement, and it is more convenient to go between park cars and cars with the right lane. Then the “gap” between park cars and right-hand cars becomes too narrow - Time in the sidewalk I have not done this for a long time - a couple of hundred feet, and then returned to the movement. It is pleasant, fun and reckless.
- Using the freeway on the ramp to get off the freeway “I did it only once, when traffic was backed up on the Interstate 110 motorway and near the Dodger Stadium stadium, and I decided to leave the highway via the ramp. It happened too fast. I looked up, and the traffic began to return and hit the far right lane. I remember looking over my shoulder and counting “three seconds for myself” and starting to turn eighty degrees. The turning radius on Supermoto is very tight, and I was surprised how this bike can turn. The red light held back the oncoming traffic, and I managed to finish the action - Never again. It was a freebie and respect freebie.
Inside - Los Angeles Motorcycle
Third year
I am currently in my third year in Los Angeles and am still so good. Hard to believe that I was on these machines in ninety percent of cases. I have a car, but I prefer my favorite motorcycles. Los Angeles traffic is too much, and I just have no patience. The money that these machines saved me was great. For me, my mini-cooper gets poor gas mileage, and I almost don’t drive it; in fact, everything is getting bad gas mileage for me. Nevertheless, I look forward to the weekend when I drive a car and give motorcycles a rest.
Conclusion
Los Angeles Motorcycle commutes from any other cities at different levels, including:
- Number of vehicles - too many cars to navigate, and more cars - more danger
- The number of stupid people moving vehicles - Maybe it's just me, but I saw surprisingly poor driving in Los Angeles
- More than a hundred thousand streets in Los Angeles - The study of these streets was awesome. Learning DTLA through Supermoto is a life change!
Knock on wood, I still drive without accidents, and the city has turned me into an even better rider. I also understand that I was lucky and came to Los Angeles with many years of experience using motorcycles under my belt. Learning to ride in Los Angeles will be a nightmare, and I feel that future new riders are studying in such a difficult city. This should not prevent you. If you want to save money, switch to work and laugh at the stupidity of the Los Angeles movement; sign up for class and hope to see you there.
