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The 405 can be super fun at rush hour between the Valley and LA.... UGH.Summer in the LA area is warm but tolerable. Can you say the same for Phoenix?
All that aside you have quite a bit of choice within 90 minutes of LAX - all of LA county, much of OC and a good chuck of eastern Ventura and western San Bernardino and Riverside counties are within that range if you're flexible on commute hours. I live in the Conejo Valley of eastern Ventura County and commuted to LAX for the last 4 years of my career. Lots of good MTB out here for all age levels and decent schools. The commute to and from LAX wasn't fun, but would typically take about 1:20 each way in rush hour or less than an hour if you could stagger your hours. I did an extreme version of this and worked from 5 AM to 2 PM most days and shaved it down to around 45 minutes - YMMV.
Difficult without knowing income, budget and lifestyle, but personally I like North of the Hills (Sherman Oaks, Calabasas, Hidden Hills, etc) which is about 20 miles to LAX ... That could take 30 minutes or 2 hours depending on traffic. I think your biggest decision is do you want Los Angeles, Ventura or Orange County. They're both very different and have their own unique qualities ... And I absolutely love Phoenix. It's where I vacation most by far, but that's not a decision anyone but you and your family could possibly make. As far as riding, there's plenty of spots no matter where you choose, but I think OC would be your best bet as it's in close proximity to so many great spots.Yo,
I just took a new job and I'm thinking about moving my family to SoCal. I've got two elementary school aged kids, so I need to be near decent schools. Who's got recommendations on where the best combo of schools, community, and riding is within 90 minutes of LAX?
Also, would you choose SoCal over Phoenix, if given the choice?
Please, no politics. I know the pros and cons of all of that as I'm not living in a black hole.
Would appreciate any life advice.
He did say, he will be working at or near LAX 3 to 6 days a month.Just a few comments:
1) 90 minutes is a bad judge. On a good day, you can get from LAX to San Diego in 90 minutes. A bad day, 5+ hours. Same goes for being in Thousand Oaks or Ventura (but the high end is more like 3 hours).
2) You don't say where you are travelling, but Burbank has lots of flights and using that as your primary airport and only using LAX when needed can save you a lot of grief and open up where you live.
3) All other things being equal, the closer you are to the beach, the nicer, the better the weather, and the more expensive. Right by LAX you have places like Redondo and Hermosa Beach, a little further south the Palisades if you rolling in extreme amounts of money. Orange County near the coast gets you the riding that the LA beach communities don't have. Again, look at where you are flying and your options for using John Wayne as your primary airport instead of LAX if in Orange County, as that may affect your location choices.
Not everyone is cut out for splitting lanes. I did it for years commuting (fortunately don’t commute anymore), but approaching 50 I am thinking of selling my bike and cashing in my chips before my number gets pulled. It is not if, just when and how bad.He did say, he will be working at or near LAX 3 to 6 days a month.
Also traffic is less of a problem if you can commute on a motorcycle, and the weather in SoCal makes that possible. I have been doing it since 2011.
I was raised from age 9 to 14 in Laguna Hills, Orange County and lived for almost 5 years in Ventura when I was first married back from 1999 to 2003. I have friends and family in both places. I have a fondness for the OC because of growing up there, but Ventura is where I would go if I needed to move.I've been exploring the Irvine/Aliso Viejo area a bit and the schools seem pretty good. Oak Park/TO schools also look pretty good. Any comments on OC vs Ventura counties, culturally speaking? Santa Barbara is great, but it's definitely pushing the budget limits and the schools appear to be crumby. However I think it's probably everyone's dream to live there.
