You should always be careful everywhere, but especially right now, on the lower Santa Ana path.

A reader reports that he rode the path Feb 3, 2012, and got mugged and beaten. They stole his Trek Madone , his cell phone, and his bike bag as he tried to ride under the 1st street underpass.

He claims that when he went to the police, they told him that “two other high priced bikes were stolen during the last two days in similar events.”

I’m guessing they have a spotter watching the trail, and as expensive bikes go by, they phone ahead and lie in waiting…

The ideal situation for any bike enthusiast is to live in a place where he/she can hop on a bike and just go riding, without any worry about traffic, weather, and whatnot.

Unfortunately, the ideal situation isn’t often how things work out, so bicycle enthusiasts have to turn to other lifelines to make sure they can get on their bikes as often as possible.  For many people, that means driving to somewhere where open, free biking is possible, far away from traffic concerns and poorly constructed bike paths.  To drive somewhere to go biking, however, you need to actually bring your bicycle along.

There are several ways that exist that you can take advantage of before proceeding.  If you’re just planning on bringing a single bike along, you may be able to squeeze it into your car’s backseat or somewhere in your trunk.

Perhaps, you’re actually trying to bring several bikes along, but you’re also lucky enough to have an oversized SUV with extra storage space, or maybe even a pickup truck with an open rear truck bed.  Any of these options is ideal, as none require you to purchase something extra or alter your car in any way.  Even so, this method can result in bikes getting scratched up, or even your car upholstery getting torn or shred.

To avoid those types of situations, bike carriers come into play.  Bike carries are contraptions that allow you to lug your bikes along with your car, even if you can’t fit a bike in the backseat (or you can, but you need to bring along more than one bike).

Aftermarket bike carrier can be attached to the truck area of the car, and the bikes will be hoisted along from the vehicle’s rear.  This way, you can neatly stack the bikes, and you don’t have to worry about taking away from your car’s interior storage space in order to lug them along.

Bike racks, particularly those mounted onto the roof of a vehicle, might be among the most common alternatives.  If you have an exorbitant number of bikes to bring along, the bike rack’s your best bet, as it can probably hold the most bikes.

You’ll need to make sure, however, that you aren’t going to be driving through any shallow tunnels or low-ceiling areas, as the bikes will be stacked vertically on the roof, and no one wants to collide one thing with another at speeds exceeding, well, walking speed.

Any of these options should work out well for a bike enthusiast.  You may not want to have to drive somewhere to use your bike, but if you have to, these suggestions should make it easier to transport your bike along with you no matter where you go.

Join 1500 cyclists for the 11TH Annual Los Angeles River Ride June 5, 2011.

Choose from 6 ride categories from the 100 MIle LA River Century/70 Mile Park to Playa/50 Mile Half Century/36 Mile Training Ride/15 Mile Family Ride/Kids Ride and Fun Fair.

Full SAG/rest stops/water/snacks. Live Music. Great Food. Early registration discount before May 13TH. Kids’ under 12 ride Free.

Get more information at http://www.la-bike.org

What do you think of our new look for the site? We re especially happy that it’s now possible to leave comments on every map page… Try it out!