-CM-

Wow, nice post. I think I want to move to Boise.

Kokoro

Samudsun - The one thing no one has mentioned yet is that when that Yellowstone caldera goes Boise will probably catch a big chunk of it, of course no one really knows when it's going to go but with all the earth quakes recently.......

Monogodo - Once was enough.

Alanbikehouston - You mean you didn't stop at Cyclone Cycles? Do they still have Yao Ming's bike? That sucker was HUGE! One of the better bike shops in Houston right there in The Village (as in M. Night Shamalans).

Lotek - I live in Alanbikehouston's Hell. Out there near the intersecting bike paths of Kirkwood and Briarforest.

Bontrager

West U. Cycles had it a few months ago when I was there...

Stealthman_1

A couple quickies I forgot. If you dirt bike or would like to snowmobile, Idaho really is a paradise for both sports. About the only miles my dirt bike ever sees anymore are in Idaho, truly endless posibilities. While they do close trails to dirt bikes and four wheelers, they generally only close them from the beginning of hunting season through the calving season in spring. Idaho, seems to me, to be much more accessible than Montana, Oregon, or Washington for off road fun. I still elk hunt there every year, it ain't bad either, though they don't have the trophy class elk some of the Southwestern states do, of course since the state is 90% public land you don't need guides either...

RattlinBone

I live in Boise. It's nice. Good place to ride a bike, mountains close by. excellent skiing in the winter, excellent hiking in the summer, friendly pepople, clean air, easy to get a good cup of coffee. You'll like it.

kf5nd

If you leave, do one favor for me, please! Write to this man and tell him that one reason you left Harris County was because of the bicycle-unfriendly road infrastructure and attitudes of the local drivers.

Harris County Judge
Honorable Robert Eckels
1001 Preston, Suite 911
Houston, TX 77002

bluebottle1

One of my best friends from grad school took off for Boise right after graduation. Granted, it's where his family is from originally, but he's never had a bad thing to say about the place. From what I know, it's definitely good for the outdoors type and it's very family friendly. Contrast that to Houston which absolutely sucks for the outdoors unless you get a good ways out of town. I have to say that it annoys me to have to drive over an hour to find anything that even vaguely resembles a hill.

Also, as one of the other posters noted, the air quality can't possibly be worse than it is in Houston, and I'll add that, whatever sprawl Boise may have or be developing, I can't imagine that's worse either.

bluebottle1

AMEN, brother! AMEN!

samundsen

It's getting closer to my Boise trip. The dates aren't really set yet, but I am looking at leaving the last week of June and staying for 9-10 days. It's too short a trip and too much hassle to bring my own bike, so I am looking at renting one. I found one place that has bikes for rent, Bikes2Boards. Anyone has any experience with them? Are the bikes any good? According to their web site they charge $15/day for a road bike.

Don Cook

Any reason is a good reason to leave Houston.

SamHouston

Robert Eckels has no soul. He sold it years ago and having nothing further to offer accepted Satans offer of a time-share deal wherein Hell will be made slightly more comfortable for him if he will help industry make Houston more like Hell at the cost of the little people.

But do write him anyway.

Leave Houston, I did and it's been great so far checking out the rest of the world. Go to Boise and become part of the solution by living near your job thereby helping check sprawl and making it a pleasant daily ritual to ride to work.

I admire the people who stay in Houston and try to change things for the better but I spent all my life there and now it's me time.

Orikal

A quick derailment:

Awwww....come on people. I grew up in Houston and have recently returned after 6 years away, and after the other places I've lived, it's my opinion that you could definitely do a lot worse. Sure, Houston has its issues just like any other rapidly growing city (traffic, air/water quality, lack of public transportation, etc.), but let's look at the other 3 cities larger than it; Chicago (I could never deal with the cold, and let’s not forget their sprawl), L.A. (has its own pollution issues, housing is outrageous, has much worse traffic), and NYC (again the cold, ungodly real estate prices). I live inside the loop in Houston and I love it. Sure the sprawl, just like in any other city is a nightmare, but I almost never venture "out there" unless it's to visit family. It gets hot during the summer, but I can do outdoor activities in not much more than jeans and a t-shirt 12 months a year, plenty of sunshine, great real estate prices (especially for investment), and the market here is just booming. But I digress...

samundsen

Actually, I do live close to work (7 miles), and I do ride to work every day. That's the ONLY reason I live where I live. I still want to leave, and I am going to check out Boise within the next few weeks. I ordered a Crateworks bikebox (decided to take my bike after all instead of renting one). I will stay with a friend for a couple of days, then go camping. Decided that if I am going to check out the outdoor "facilities" I'd just as well go all the way.

skiahh

Hear, hear!! Or anywhere in TX for anywhere, for that matter!

michaelnel

I lived in Houston for a year, and I'd say it's worth leaving to go just about ANYWHERE else.

skiahh

Let's see... Houston recently came in as #2 on the list of America's fattest cities. That's after reigning supreme for the last 3 years.

As for housing, perhaps it's a good place to make investment purchases (one article said housing prices are undervalue by 11%) but in the past year, values only rose ~2%, so you're not going to see any quick profits in this department.

Heat and cold are, more or less personal. For instance, when I lived in TX, I couldn't bear the heat. Basically, I didn't ride from May-Oct. So, for some, that would counter balance the snow. And, if you dress warmly, you can still get outside and do phyiscal activity in the cold, like skiing. In the heat... well, you can only get so naked.

For an outdoor oriented person, I don't think any of the major metropolitan areas are the best choice, really, let alone INSIDE any city's loop or beltway.

What about crime? TX doesn't have a very good reputation in its major cities for violent crime. According to the FBI website, Houston has a violent crime rate of 738.5/100,000 while Boise has a rate of 287.3/100K.

Just some thoughts. If someone's looking at a city like Boise seriously, I really don't think there's any comparison to Houston... or any of the southern metro areas. They're about as diametrically opposed as you can get!

kf5nd

Whether Houston is the fattest city or not, makes little difference to me, because I'm not fat, and no one in my family is, so none of us struggle with this issue.

I like that real estate here appreciates slowly, because my property taxes also are going up at the same rate. If my values jumped 25% in one year, as has happened on some of the real estate "bubble" markets... I'm not sure where I'd get the extra tax money from.

Also, people in bubble markets who are counting on their appreciating house to become their retirement nest-egg are going to have to sell it someday and move somewhere cheap... like Houston... if they ever want to actually cash-out their paper profit, unless they just want to give their house to their kids or something.

Violent crime in Houston is lots lower than Chicago, where I am from originally. I've had a bike stolen out from under me in Chicago, I've only been threatened once by a gang of youths here, and I think they were just messing with me (though it was a bit scary... I took off on a sprint away from them).

Places like Boise and such are not that welcoming from a diversity point of view for me. I find Houston quite stimulating in that way. Everyone's here, and they mostly get along. Not being white, I'd have trouble living in a really mostly white place. I'd feel like I was stepping back into the 1950s, and I'd have problems getting ethnic groceries, etc.

You could do better than Houston, but you could do worse. I think the cycling in Honolulu, where my Mom lives, is terrible. The roads are narrow and jam-packed with cars, it gets very dangerous for cyclists, even in what some consider "paradise".

Orikal

Well said.

Depending on the part of Houston you live, real estate appreciation varies widely. Inside most of the loop for instance, land value has gone up five-fold in the past 10 years, and continues to increase rapidly as we speak.

Even though cycling inside the loop is easy and enjoyable for me, if I want to get out of the city for some longer rides, I drive 30 minutes and am essentially in the middle of farm land. I get the best of both worlds, while still being far less expensive than any other city of comparable size.

I'm white, and I'd have a problem living in a homoginized city as well.

All in all, Houston may not be everyone's "cup of tea", but Houston is the 5th fastest growing city in the country, so it must be doing something right. https://www.citymayors.com/gratis/uscities_growth.html

Enjoy Boise!

SpiderMike

Not all of Texas is bad.

For me, getting out of H-town has got to wait on my wife getting her degree. I have been living in the (not so) Greater Houston Area for years...Pasadena for the last 20plus years. I will miss my the guys at Bay Area Schwinn for sure. I know that a lot things I deal with on my commute will probably crop up in anytown. I know there are cities/towns out there that are more respective of cyclist than Houston. Now San Marcos, that would be nice... I miss Hurbert's Taco Hut and 7-11.

samundsen

Well, it's confirmed now. I'll be in Boise from 6/24 to 7/3. I hope Continental won't give me too much trouble with bringing the bike. Chose Continental because they have a direct flight, should be less chance of any screwups with the bike that way.

SpiderMike

Well congratulations. Almost like we (Houston BikeForum guys/girls) should organize a memorial ride for you.

samundsen

Heh... maybe when I actually move.... for now it's only to check out the place.

gpsblake

I rode through Houston on my tour on Good Friday of this year. I was surprised at how easy it was to get into downtown Houston coming from the East via US 90 and Navigation Blvd. I did notice some smog while approaching the city. Downtown was nice, and it being a holiday was kind of dead for a city of that size. Man those buildings are huge! Leaving Houston via US 290 was another story. I took the frontage road and it seemed to be nothing but strip malls and endless traffic for mile upon mile w/o much of a riding area. I noticed some marked bike routes in Houston. It was just one pass through town but I found Houston to be rather easy for bikes compared to NYC, Baltimore, or Chicago.

Cheers,

https://poorguyonabike.crazyguyonabike.com

kf5nd

AWESOME TRIP YOU MADE, DUDE!!! You passed right near my house. I live near Highway 290 and Highway 6.

samundsen

I've now spent 2 days in Boise, and ridden 100 miles in those two days.

Right now I am staying with a friend in Eagle. Yesterday I rode with two incredibly strong riders (much, much stronger than I am) from Eagle all the way up to Bogus Basin. The ride was 60 miles total round trip. About 16 of those were climbing up the mountain to Bogus Basin. Hardest ride I've ever been on in my life (first real climb I've ever done!). Those two guys helped me out a lot, and probably went much slower than they usually would, but man, was that climb tough!

Today I rode the Boise greenbelt, a very scenic multi-use path winding its way along the Boise river. Total round trip, 40 miles.

So far my impression is Boise is fantastic for recreational bike riding. There are lots of bike lanes and paths. However, those bike lanes aren't always the most well planned, sometimes they are nothing more than a tiny shoulder with a white line and a bike painted on the ground. However, many places they are wide and very nice.

Don't know how well the place works for transportational riding yet. Traffic is heavier than I'd expected. I'll get to do some more exploring during the coming week.