A long bike ride

Last Friday as I do nearly once a week I went into to L.A. to drop off and pick-up film at A&I. If I have the time and not the need to carry anything large I'll ride my bike. From my home I pedal about 3 miles to the Del Amo station L.A. Metro Blue line. With my bike I hop on the northbound train towards downtown L.A. to 7th & Metro stop; there I transfer to the red line toward North Hollywood. I exit at Vermont and Santa Monica Blvd,; from there I hop back on my bike and head west on Santa Monica Blvd. another 3 miles to West Hollywood. Normally when I am finished with my errands I return as I came. However, last Friday I was feeling rambunctious, and on a whim I decided to make the entire 27 mile ride back home on bike. At a quarter till 4:oo pm I set off south on La Brea Avenue. Many who have not ridden bikes as long as I have fear traffic. I'm not implying I wouldn't be safer if I was driving like any normal person in the comfort of my car, but bike riders with experience know how to make car traffic aware of their presence. In fact Friday afternoon rush hour traffic is the best time to ride a bike in Los Angeles. Actually rush hour is an inaccurate description of traffic during the periods when working folk are on their way to or from work. It should be renamed snail hour, because L.A. traffic from 3-7 in the afternoon is merely creeping along. So not only am I unconcerned by the possibility of being injured by a car traveling at 5 miles an hour, I'm able to speed past most past most of them. At Washington Blvd with the wind at my back I headed east. L.A. traffic in the afternoon is usually heavy eastbound, but that wasn't the case, and to my surprise Washington Blvd. was free of potholes with plenty of room for me to ride comfortably between the parked cars and traffic. I remained on Washington Blvd through Korea town to downtown where I eventually was riding parallel and next to the Blue Line Train from whence I came. As does the train I turned south on Long Beach Avenue where all L.A.'s recycled scrap metal appears to reside.

So why am I writing about bike riding on a photography blog. That's an excellent question, and here's your answer. Riding my bike home allowed me to see parts and locations of L.A. I had never witnessed. If you have a taste for urban grit as I do it was a visual smörgåshbord. Heading south between the 110 and 710 freeways through south central cites Huntington Park, Walnut Park, South Gate, and Lynwood while I reposed at red lights I experienced a plethora of L.A. culture. My rear was soar and my muscles were tiring, yet the vibrance L.A.s vast multi-culture energized my pumping legs. I smiled at anyone who looked at me. Of course most people in L.A. think that a stranger over 20 riding a bike a bit kooky the return looks I received were a tad wary.

The best part of this trip was seeing all the wonderful possibilities for photographs. There's a project there. Perhaps it could be called "By Bike in L.A.." Now if can just find a way to rig my 4x5 and tri-pod to my bike. Dale's Donuts was merely taken with a Canon G-12.