nmcheese

I've been a longtime lurker on these boards, finally decided to join. Currently I ride for fitness/relaxation in the range of Uptown south to Carmel Rd, but with the recent swap from a FS mountain bike (with road tires) to a real road bike (joining the Bianchi army here as well it seems) I'll probably expand my range a bit. Thanks for all the tips/insight so far - hopefully I'll be able to contribute some now.

* jack *

Greetings from Durham, and welcome to the forums!
I just noticed Charlotte was awarded an Honorable Mention as a Bicycle-Friendly Community.
Would you agree with that? Cary, NC is also on that list and lots of folks don't think it's very bike-friendly.

p.s. what kind of Bianchi? I test rode an Eros the other day... nice.

nmcheese

Well, there is a pretty large cycling population in Charlotte, but there are still very few bike lanes or commuter-friendly establishments (no secure racks at apartment complexes nor at say, my office). There are some pretty well established and maintained mountain bike parks in the area though, so that's a definite plus.

I lived in Raleigh for 4.5 years through college (NCSU) and thought that was a much better city to ride in, especially if you lived near downtown - pretty much anything is within a 10 min ride at that point.

As for the Bianchi - I found what I considered to be a great deal on a (Celeste) 2004 San Lorenzo stripped frame/fork (it came with stem/bars/wheels/seat/rear cassette) for about half of the new frameset price. When it arrives in the mail in a couple of days I'm probably going to throw some 105/Ultegra bits on it to get it rolling and upgrade as wanted later.

* jack *

That's a great frameset... and the color makes all the difference, right?
105 and Ultegra is gonna make that a sweet ride... I'm jealous.
Where did you find this 2004 SL? Mail-order or eBay?

nmcheese

Haha - yeah - I normally don't care about the color, except when looking for Bianchi frames - then it has to be green.

I found it on ebay actually, hopefully the luck will hold out. (I've personally had good luck recently getting parts from good sellers, but have known people that have had many headaches with that marketplace)

anthropete

Hey all ... greetings from Carrboro, NC. Pretty cycle friendly here too. Welcome to the forums nmcheese!

Pete
https://www.viovio.com/anthropete

* jack *

Hi Pete. I remember your photo from the 'Top of the Hill' race on the Road forum...
I lived in Carrboro from '96 - '98 (UNC grad) - most 'bike-friendly' community around here, IMHO.
I still do some solo riding near the 'boro from time to time: Dairyland Rd, Orange Grove, Borland... etc,
as well as the occasional fixie ride up and down Main and Weaver Sts. with friends...

crosscut

welcome to the farm. Check out the locals....https://www.rankriders.carolinaat.com/

I travel alot so I am not always riding this schedule but these are the places you can find people to ride with.

Mondays-Booty loop
Tuesday nights are usually at Orr Rd
Wednesdays-Booty Loop
Thursdays-Bicycle South Group ride (two groups here, one fast 21 ave., other slower 19 ave.)
Fridays- Booty Loop
Sat-Ultimate Cycles Pineville Group ride (no drop 17-18 ave with a slower group 15 ave.)
Sun-Ultimate Cycles Matthews group ride ( I haven't ridden this ride)

peterjcb

Greetings from Weddington, NC!
Not to hijack this thread... but Are any of you planning to do the MS 150 Breakaway to the Beach Tour on Sept 24-25?

nmcheese

I didn't plan on the MS150 this year, been too busy to do any fundraising - it's definitely on the calender for 2k6 however.