Fifty Plus (50+) - Time to change locations...

We had a big snow storm roll through around Christmas, then it warmed up melted, then the deep freeze hit and the roads are just ruts of in the ice. I commute, but fell twice two nights in a row, right in front of my house. It gave me pause, as I'm over 50 now, and the wrong fall could end cycling all together, or at least for a long time.

I took to driving my van, but the same ice conditions on the road or a pothole drove the driver's side shock absorber into the engine compartment (the mount was more rusty than I had thought and one good thump), so I am back on the bike, after falling again on the way to work, I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS ANY MORE, not in MN, I'm through with winters like this, I love the snow, but I love biking more.

Any ideas?

Texas has room for one more Yankee.

Texas has room for one more Yankee.

But just one I heard.

Texas has room for one more Yankee.

+1. Nice rides away from the metro areas with wide shoulders.

+1. Nice rides away from the metro areas with wide shoulders.

One Texas ride in Big Bend:

http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh187/10wheels/TMT%20BB%20Ride/?albumview=slideshow

Are you using studded tires? They work great on ice.

Our average January low temp is 45. Our average August high temp is 74. Any questions?

Having been born in the midwest myself, people from the midwest have one trait in common.......







The desire to relocate.

I would get out of dodge now.

Our average January low temp is 45. Our average August high temp is 74. Any questions?

So what's the downside? Earthquakes? Wildfires? Extremely high living expenses? Hordes of self absorbed ninnies?

We've got gnats and high humidity...

So what's the downside? Earthquakes? Wildfires? Extremely high living expenses? Hordes of self absorbed ninnies?

That would be the short list. :roflmao2:

So what's the downside? Earthquakes? Wildfires? Extremely high living expenses? Hordes of self absorbed ninnies?

We've got gnats and high humidity...

I'm on a coastal plain so earthquakes and wildfires haven't been an issue. It is expensive but I save a lot on heating/cooling bills. And the hordes of self absorbed ninnies tend to head 40 miles south to Malibu or 40 miles north to Santa Barbara. Riding along the coast is awesome and we've got a great MUP heading up to the hills. We do have a few days a year without sun but it's mostly pretty awesome.

Texas has room for one more Yankee.

What he said, you could ride as far as you want when you want.:thumb:

Really, really liked the weather in Atlanta - spent 8 years there as an everyday bike commuter. Ice and snow seldom seen. I do remember flatting on the way to work on a 20+F morning but that was very unusual. (coldest tire repair I've ever done). The down side is that the traffic would seem to be exponentially worse than it was when we moved back to Indiana 24 years ago.
I suspect the traffic is quite tolerable everywhere else in GA.

If I didn’t live where I do there are some places I have considered. The four corner states of New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona and Utah. The parts of Colorado we like get pretty cool in the winter but they have a pretty good bike culture. Utah is another bike friendly state and there are places in Southern Utah where the weather seems rather mild. New Mexico is fascinating and seems to have lots of places to ride. It tends to have a bit more wind than I like but you can’t have everything. It also gets rather hot in the mid summer. I like Northern Arazona more than southern Arizona but that may be just me and I would have to learn to climb more. I like Eastern Texas a lot more than I have enjoyed Western Texas but I have only traveled through most of it. However as my choices may point out I prefer hot and dry to hot and humid.
In my state the cost of living can be a bit high but with the housing downturn if you have a job that is easily transferable it can be a good time to move. I happen to live in the desert, 18 miles by bike to the snow line and two to four hours by bike to the beach. But as Metric man has admitted there are drawbacks here as well. But we will never need studded tires. It is easy to get in 11.5 months of cycling every year.

It NEVER snows here in Sydney,we cycle all year round in mostly great weather!

Note the lack of anyone urging you to stay. That speaks volumes. . .

Really, really liked the weather in Atlanta - spent 8 years there as an everyday bike commuter. Ice and snow seldom seen. I do remember flatting on the way to work on a 20+F morning but that was very unusual. (coldest tire repair I've ever done). The down side is that the traffic would seem to be exponentially worse than it was when we moved back to Indiana 24 years ago.
I suspect the traffic is quite tolerable everywhere else in GA.

Traffic varies across Georgia, as I'm sure it does everywhere. The circle of ridiculous traffic volume around Atlanta seems to expand constantly. Most of the rural areas have great roads with light traffic, but there are exceptions.

As Gregg Allman once sang, "Georgia ain't no paradise, a place I just call home".

Texas....I grew up in Colorado (and sometimes visit in the summer)
But I like Texas the most.

Our average January low temp is 45. Our average August high temp is 74. Any questions?

Yeah. How d'you manage the chill? Blimey.

33 C ( maybe 92 F I guess??) this fine fresh February morning

We packed up our bags and bikes 32 years ago . . .
Moved from Michigan to outside of Tucson, Arizona area.
Best move we've ever made.
Getting a bit crowded now; the small town we moved to has grown from less than 3,000 folks to 40,000+ since 1978.
We lived sort of in the boonies (first traffic light headed north was 100+ miles away).
Still loads of sunshine (average 360 days a year). . . in summer we wish for a cloudy day!
Have been snowed on 3 times in over 3 decades, but cansee the snow capped mountains gtrom my back yard.
You can only ride 13 (!) months out of the year. Boosted our riding from around 5,000 miles a year to 10,000+ a year.
Now in our mid-'70s, pedaled just over 5,000 miles in 2009.
Leave your snow shovel/blower in MN . . . but do bring a broom to clear all that excess sunshine away from your mailbox!
Our greenery is a bit different, not as many trees . . .
Pedal on TWOgether!
Rudy and Kay/zonatandem

I'm on a coastal plain so earthquakes and wildfires haven't been an issue. It is expensive but I save a lot on heating/cooling bills. And the hordes of self absorbed ninnies tend to head 40 miles south to Malibu or 40 miles north to Santa Barbara. Riding along the coast is awesome and we've got a great MUP heading up to the hills. We do have a few days a year without sun but it's mostly pretty awesome.

I spent a couple of weeks outside San Diego in August and I remember thinking that if I moved here I wouldn't go into the heating and air conditioning business and the most useless job was the weather man...

Having been born in the midwest myself, people from the midwest have one trait in common.......







The desire to relocate.

I would get out of dodge now.

Yeah the weather sucks but the people are wonderful. The weaklings who can't take it move away. It works out great because it raises the average IQ in both areas.

Palm Springs, the snow is parked on the mountain tops, the valley floor is pretty flat and the winter temps are in the 60s and 70s.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ZfpyrqSFadY/SyKMWVARraI/AAAAAAAAAFs/jIdNb252gSs/s400/Palm+Springs+Snow.jpg

You can visit the snow, but you don't have to live in it.

One Texas ride in Big Bend:



Thanks for sharing the pics 10 wheels. Very nice, so many open spaces. Hopefully I can bring my bike with me next time we visit or perhaps fly to Houston and bike my way down to CC along SR35.

Palm Springs, the snow is parked on the mountain tops, the valley floor is pretty flat and the winter temps are in the 60s and 70s.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ZfpyrqSFadY/SyKMWVARraI/AAAAAAAAAFs/jIdNb252gSs/s400/Palm+Springs+Snow.jpg

You can visit the snow, but you don't have to live in it.

I will be riding there on the 13th for the annual Tour De Palm Springs. Grest Place to ride.

Palm Springs, the snow is parked on the mountain tops, the valley floor is pretty flat and the winter temps are in the 60s and 70s.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ZfpyrqSFadY/SyKMWVARraI/AAAAAAAAAFs/jIdNb252gSs/s400/Palm+Springs+Snow.jpg

You can visit the snow, but you don't have to live in it.

Sweet view. I took this one on Highway 111 in Indian Wells last January during a ride.
http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e392/macnkat/IMG00040.jpg

Minneapolis is for sissies! It's Baja Minnesota. Go up north if you want real winter.

My parents and most siblings live 200 miles further north. But 30 years ago I and family moved to southwest Michigan where the summers are little cooler, the winters are a lot warmer, and the bicycling season is longer. But I must confess that today I was looking at the weather forecast way down south -- as far as Vincennes, Indiana. I like that country, too, and it would be nice to get in a few days of riding.

We had a big snow storm roll through around Christmas, then it warmed up melted, then the deep freeze hit and the roads are just ruts of in the ice. I commute, but fell twice two nights in a row, right in front of my house. It gave me pause, as I'm over 50 now, and the wrong fall could end cycling all together, or at least for a long time.

I took to driving my van, but the same ice conditions on the road or a pothole drove the driver's side shock absorber into the engine compartment (the mount was more rusty than I had thought and one good thump), so I am back on the bike, after falling again on the way to work, I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS ANY MORE, not in MN, I'm through with winters like this, I love the snow, but I love biking more.

Any ideas?

Just to encourage you about what riding in February can be like I thought I would attach a picture of someone was passed on out group ride today.:D Looks like this lady was coming home from a little shopping and had man’s best friend along for company. Now ask yourself, do you like this image or one of a similar woman in a parka and Ski mask? :innocent:

Big Island of Hawaii.

I will be riding there on the 13th for the annual Tour De Palm Springs. Great Place to ride.

Enjoy,

I used to run the sag stop at the 75 mile mark in La Quinta. It was cool to see all the riders.