Originally Posted by gaucho777

I'm biased, but it's hard to beat the Thousand Oaks area where I grew up. It is about an hour north of L.A. at the southern end of Ventura County, and just over the mountains from Malibu, etc. Lots of coastal mountain roads, as well as wide open roads with generous bike paths. Being in SoCal, you can ride basically year-round. In recent years, it's become a cycling destination, with week-long training camps, and several pro teams have chosen the area as an off-season base. There's lots of cycling enthusiasts, shops, active club/race scene, and even a Velodrone not too far away in Encino. Oh, and mountain bike trails galore. Although it is close to the L.A. suburbs, you only have to go a few miles into Hidden Valley (shown below) before you feel like you are in the country.

Originally Posted by bibliobob

That looks pretty spectacular....