Long Distance Competition/Ultracycling, Randonneuring and Endurance Cycling - Best Place to live in the U.S.

I'm a nanny and I'm looking for my next live-in gig. Where do you think the best place to live for long distance riding is? Colorado? Utah? New York? I'd like to base this around my job search.

Thanks!

Standard answers include Northern California and Colorado.

Depends on the terrain you're after, but for year-round riding I'd shoot for somewhere like SoCal. Good weather and a huge scene.

As for LD rides, are you looking for supported type stuff or brevets, or both?

I live in Chicago now and love being able to just leave my house and ride, and not have to pack up my car and then go to a trail and ride. I will check out Colorado and Northern California. I don't like S. California would be my kinda place, I'm just not that fabulous.

I don't know what you mean about being fabulous in Southern California but as a former nanny (domestically and internationally) I think finding a good paying job would determine where you land. If you have well paying job choices in Northern California then that would be a good start. The public transportation is superb up that way.

In Colorado, there are people that bike year round, but a lot of them just put the bikes up for winter and skiing or whatever. I've been seeing some pictures of beautiful routes and bike trails, though.

I am in San Diego County. Biking weather is good all year round. We get the occasional rain storms during the winter but that's about it. We also have pretty decent public transportation, depending on the area you live in.

I don't like S. California would be my kinda place, I'm just not that fabulous.

I am not sure if I understand that, but it should be pointed out that Southern California is a big place with a very wide range of environments and cultural districts.

That is a pretty large generalization, kinda like saying all (fill in the blank) are (fill in the blank).

Southern California cycling is good year round. The best surfing is in the winter, but south facing beaches (Malibu) are fantastic in the late summer/fall. Winter snow in the mountains is nothing like Colorado or Utah, but not bad for a day trip and the Snowboard scene attracts people from a wide area.

Cycling in the urban areas, essentially from the City of Los Angeles south to the Mexican boarder takes some local knowledge to avoid a lot of traffic, but Ventura and Santa Barbara offer some of the best cycling roads on this planet. Several pro teams, including that old guy that came in third on the Tour this year train in Southern California in the winter.

Check out Pacific Coast Highway Randonneurs or San Diego Randonneurs for brevets. Most of PCH Randos rides run north of LA going into what many refer to as the Central Coast.

Then again, the PCH Randos fall 400 which runs from Simi Valley to Solana Beach along the beach and the 600 that runs from Salinas/Monterey down through Big Sur and the Santa Barbara wine country and the south coast of Santa Barbara is pretty fabulous.

Boulder - lots of rich people who need nannies, cycling most of the year, skiing when you can't ride. Big Brevet scene - www.rmccrides.com.

Not sure about your definition of long distance riding, but Northern California has four randonneuring clubs; Davis, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, and Santa Rosa offering a plethora of rides and cycling enthusiasts... this year three local 600ks and one 1200k.

New Mexico is not bad. I live in Santa Fe and we have almost year round riding (depending on the winter). Check out the New Mexico Brevet Series (http://www.nmbrevets.com/).

In the Northwest, (washington and oregon) it rains all the time and no one rides and its really hard to get around. Everyone stays indoors. Not... Seattle has the largest Randonneur club in the US. And, it stays green year round here. Some people like that. Seattle was voted a great place to bike. Portland is, also,a great center for biking. We just wear rain jackets, some times. Personally I love Eugene and Olympia.

In the Northwest, (washington and oregon) it rains all the time and no one rides and its really hard to get around. Everyone stays indoors. Not... Seattle has the largest Randonneur club in the US. And, it stays green year round here. Some people like that. Seattle was voted a great place to bike. Portland is, also,a great center for biking. We just wear rain jackets, some times. Personally I love Eugene and Olympia.

You had me going there for a minute... :lol:

Seattle Randonneurs and Oregon Randonneurs put on some of the best rides in the PNW, (and I'm sure the Vancouver Randos up in BC probably get top marks, too. I haven't ridden anything up there yet, though.) I find the rando rides up here better organized and more fun than even any of the charity or other organized/club rides I've done.

Coming from Chicago, the temperatures would be milder but the rain is more plentiful. The winter days are short and grey, but the summers more than make up for it. The terrain is a spot more hilly than you'll find around Chicago but you quickly get used to it.

I'd tell you the best place to live if you like to do long distance riding in a wide variety of terrain with spectacular scenery and very little traffic but then you might move here...no offense but... ;)

yeah, I can get on my bike, ride 200+ miles and see three stop signs, a half dozen cars and all the scenery and wildlife you can handle...

I am kind of partial to the Phoenix area seconded by So Cal. Anywhere from Santa Barbara to San Diego.

I am kind of partial to the Phoenix area...

oh GOD no! not for all the tea in china mate...

oh GOD no! not for all the tea in china mate...

Why not? I can ride 360 days a year. In the summer, you just ride early in the morning.

Of course I am biased, but I have to say that Nor Cal is a really great place to ride your bike. I have commuted year round on a bike in the Bay Area. You have all the varying types of terrain you can handle. There are cycling clubs up the wazoo around here, not to mention all the long distance rides.

Besides just cycling, this is where all the .com people live. I can only presume that there is a large market for live in nannies in these parts.

By the way, if you like hills as well as LD rides, check out this link (http://actc.org/billygoats/index.php). This will give you a good idea of what some of the climbing has to offer. Plus, Almaden Cycle Touring Club is one of the largest clubs in the Bay Area.

yeah, I can get on my bike, ride 200+ miles and see three stop signs, a half dozen cars and all the scenery and wildlife you can handle...

Shangri-La

I'm a nanny and I'm looking for my next live-in gig. Where do you think the best place to live for long distance riding is? Colorado? Utah? New York? I'd like to base this around my job search.

Thanks!

Colorado is full;
But you can sign up for the waiting list.:D
Oh wait, did you say "nanny"?:eek:
So you are a chick?:)
Ignore what I said.:(

The SF Bay Area does rock for year round cycling. The only drawback is if you hate climbing. It's hard to find a decently distanced route that won't involve somewhere in the ballpark of a few thousand feet minimum.
Lots of jobs here though.

Shangri-La

That would the Ojai Valley or at least that was the location of Shangri La in the 1939 movie Lost Horizon.

Why not? I can ride 360 days a year. In the summer, you just ride early in the morning.

Because I grew up in Tucson :)

In the Northwest, (washington and oregon) it rains all the time and no one rides and its really hard to get around. Everyone stays indoors. Not... Seattle has the largest Randonneur club in the US. And, it stays green year round here. Some people like that. Seattle was voted a great place to bike. Portland is, also,a great center for biking. We just wear rain jackets, some times. Personally I love Eugene and Olympia.

...and once you get east of the Cascades, it REALLY sucks. :rolleyes: 300+ days of sun, easy access to skiing come winter, etc, etc. You don't even want to THINK about living here. Trust me.

SP
almost embarrased to admit I live in Bend, OR

Detroit

...and once you get east of the Cascades, it REALLY sucks. :rolleyes: 300+ days of sun, easy access to skiing come winter, etc, etc. You don't even want to THINK about living here. Trust me.

SP
almost embarrased to admit I live in Bend, OR

I just got back from a week in Bend. I love it down there. I'd seriously consider moving there if not for all the reasons that keep me in Seattle.

Definitely northern California (like north of Sacramento) - year round cycling. Up in Redding, I deal with summer heat, but have well over 300 sunny days per year. I also have everything from the valley floor and farming communities, to rolling foothills, to SERIOUS mountain climbs/descents available as "out the door" rides.

+1 for New Mexico. Good riding year round. Plenty of hills if you want but flat, too. The northern part of the state has mountains, snow, cooler temps in the summer. South part of the state has great winter temps and lots of flat riding. I don't do the brevet series but I ride all over the state and it is great.

I'm partial to Vermont... ;)

...not sold on Burlington as the place to live (current) - actually liked the small town I was in SVT better... but it does have more services and stuff to do just a bike ride away...

But we have snow and ice, and a great lake. And 1 hour from Montreal. Coupla colleges. Coop. Great local food movement. Great farmers market. Bike club and plenty of mountains to ride / ski / etc.

As long as it isn't your property that's at risk due to an act of God, and you aren't having to pay the rent, I recommend several areas along the west coast. San Diego County (north or east of the city), Orange County (areas adjacent to San Diego County), North or East of LA (avoiding the desert), Central California (avoiding the heart of the San Joaquin valley), Northern California (avoiding downtown SF, Oakland and San Jose), pretty much anywhere north of the Bay Area, Coastal Oregon and Washington are all quite good for variety of terrain, and year-round weather. The Sierras have nice riding, but not year round.

There are lots of other places with great riding, but if year-round is a requirement, I can't say I would recommend them.

I need a nanny to watch my kids while I ride my bike all day with like two stops signs and one or two friendly drivers every 15 minutes.

I just got back from a week in Bend. I love it down there. I'd seriously consider moving there if not for all the reasons that keep me in Seattle.

Y'mean like work? This can be a tough area to make a living. But for some fantastic luck, I'd still be in Seattle. I'd been trying for years to figure out how to move down here and make a living when, out of the blue, I got a call from a recruiter: "Would you consider relocating?" Hmmm... Bend, Oregon? Let me think about that... That was 11 years and two jobs ago, and we're still here. Bend ain't perfect, but I have yet to find anywhere I'd rather live.

SP
Bend (where else?), OR

Y'mean like work? This can be a tough area to make a living. But for some fantastic luck, I'd still be in Seattle. I'd been trying for years to figure out how to move down here and make a living when, out of the blue, I got a call from a recruiter: "Would you consider relocating?" Hmmm... Bend, Oregon? Let me think about that... That was 11 years and two jobs ago, and we're still here. Bend ain't perfect, but I have yet to find anywhere I'd rather live.

SP
Bend (where else?), OR

Work is the primary one yes :P Also my wife's family is all in town here, and she's never lived anywhere else. Would be a pretty tough sell.

I'm from Palm Springs area which is a very affluent town, with beautifully paved riding and mean mountains too. November to March is the BEST weather for centuries out here and there is a major charity ride too.

Despite being a wealthy town...the cost of living here is relatively cheap.

Boulder, Colorado
Plenty of people there can afford nannies.
The randonneur crowd is busy in that area.

Morrison, CO or Los Altos, CA