I'm getting sick and tired of the desert.
I feel like a real loner when it comes to commuting out here.
Some parts are too rural, others are just too jam-packed with cars.
Other parts of SoCal are sunny and warm, while we get tundra weather.
I don't even see anyone else riding outside of just putzing around.
As far as "bike circles", I feel like the only one in the circle around this area.
With all of that said, I was planning on a potential relocation to someplace like Riverside, Corona, etc.,
What I wanted to know is mainly, how active is the general cycling commute like down there.
Are there enough faces you see on the road that it makes you feel good all the time?
Road quality, public transit infrastructure, those sort of things.
Because I'm definitely tired of feeling like Mad Max all the time.

Well, I'm in Redlands, and it depends on what you mean by "active".

If you're interested in recreational riding and training we've got you covered. I can show up to the local training ride on any given weekend morning and be pretty much guaranteed to get humbled. It's not Boulder or CO Springs, but there's an impressive amount of cycling talent around here for a small town. The usual weekend ride group usually includes a few ex-pro roadies, a pro mtn. biker, a smattering of fast Cat 1/2/3s and the rest of us hangers-on. We even have a former olympian in our midst.

If something a bit more sedate is what you're looking for, there's a rather large contingent of recreational riders, who ride at a more civilized pace, as well.

OTOH, If you're hoping to see bikes all over the place when you ride to the grocery store or whatever, I wouldn't count on it. With all that cycling talent you'd think you'd see more bikes around town headed somewhere other than to work-out. That's not usually the case though. To the vast majority of cyclists around here bikes are toys to play on, and cars are for getting from point A to point B. But I think that's just SoCal in general. There aren't too many utility-cyclists around, but there are a few.

Riverside also has a pretty active bike club (both road and mountain). Can't really tell you much about other nearby areas.

I saw a few fellow commuters in Riverside, but they weren't very aggressive.

There's the Cycling Connection in Rancho Cucomonga (I think), the Redlands Water Bottle Transit Company in Redlands, and the Riverside Bicycle Club in Riverside if you're interested in recreational rides. Like Trevor, I can't coment on the commuting part. I leave for work at 5:00 am. I don't see any bicycles on the road at that time.

I commute in Riverside and I know a couple of others who do as well. I don't see many people on my commute, but then I'm very close to work and I ride at odd hours. I can't comment on the group riding situation, but I see plenty of them out there -- I just tend to ride alone. If you're looking to rent a little place at a great price, there's a small apartment in a house across the street from me -- this is in the Wood Streets of Riverside -- great neighborhoods.. Drop me a line if you want the number.

As other people have mentioned, the bit 3 road biking areas would be Redlands, Rancho Cucamonga/Upland, and Riverside.

But your choice would also have to depend on where you could find work, wouldn't it? :)

These are great suggestions nonetheless.
The "fellow commute" thing would be a pretty hard pill to swallow, but the weather down in those areas more than makes up for it.
If anything, that would be the number one reason for myself to make the move down there.
As I might've said before, the Victor Valley region has it's own weather patterns.
The winters here are brutal enough for me.
I like to be able to ride in a tanktop and shorts all year long, without risk of pneumonia.