What are the best locations for riding all year round outside? Of course somewhere in the south, but preferably somewhere that doesn't have natural disasters strike all the time, or have really crazy bugs...

SoCal, period.

I lived there 35 years and while I won't go on about it's pros and cons, I will say it is not the cycling mecca some make it out to be. I find the Pacific Northwest to be much more cycling friendly.

55/Rad

Here in Jerez, Zacatecas, Mexico. Lived here nine years now. This week in mid 60's sunny not a cloud in the sky. Will be like this until Feb 15th when spring starts to show us warmer temps. The rainy season comes about mid june and every afernoon it rains and dries by morning and at 6:00am good to go again. At altitude of over 6000ft mountains and flats or rolling hills to ride. Mountain biking paradise too. Don"t tell nobody, OK?

Okinawa Japan! If you get the chance to get here it is great riding. Large shoulders and any type of terrain you can imagine and nice weather too! Right now it's not too nice but on most days its "Man I wish I wasn't at work!"

If you have been sationed here you know what I am talking about.

Later,
Stalter

Bluegrass region of Central Kentucky. Beutiful horse farms, rolling hills, lots of smooth backroads with little traffic. Instead of saying "car up" we usually have to say "deer up". Weather only keeps me off these roads 1- 2 weeks total a year.

Southern Cal.

So CA. Along the coast from San Diego probably up to Santa Barbara, maybe more. Sunny, modearate temperatures, Fresh ocean air, little smog, nice roads, abundance of flats and hills. No real bug problem, tornados, hurricanes, ... except dem earthquakes. Of course, as I write this, it is pouring outside. The weather here has been ... just plain weird.

And we do have this thing called the Santa Ana winds. Forms whenever theres a H pressure weather pattern. Wind comes from the high desert towards the Pacific. A dry, yuck-wind that is rotten to ride in and messes up my eyes (I wear contacts), nasal passages, mouth and throat. Happens every so often.

Note: even on Stage 1 Smog Alert days ... you can still ride along the coast and be almost unaffected by the smog. Inland ... forget it.

Now, if you could afford it, there's always Maui. Was there this summer and saw lots of roadies. Ride to the summit of Haleakala (10,000'), past the Tedeschi Winery, Kaanapali, Kapalua, Wailea ... Raods are in excellent conditions and you can imagine what the scenery is like.

Best.

We have lots of cyclists here in the Atlanta area who ride all year.
The temperatures are pleasant, there are plenty of hills for training, and nice rolling hills and flats for leisurely rides. But the traffic sucks - big time!!

those places sound great!

I wish Colorado didn't suck so much.

But you can SKI in the winter time. I'm 6+ hours from Mammoth Mountain ...

That's because you lived in the valley!..... :D

i sense a little sarcasm in your reply, opie. i'm in san diego, but i live in longmont(outside boulder) a couple of months out of the year, so i know how nice that part of colorado is. i've only ridden in the snow once, so maybe the novelty never did get to wear off, but i thought it was biiiitchin'.

since i've only ever lived in these two places, i can't really judge other places. but in terms of whether of not SoCal is a cycling mecca, i'd have to say only if you know where or when to go and who to go with.

dog hair, no one asked you ;)

When do you live here? I ride the Boulder area periodically, like Hwy 36 up the roads to the peak-to-peak hwy... friggin' awesome.

Colorado's great, except for the economy, constant water problems, and lack of culture (I moved here from Miami, Florida, so this place is boring in that regard... too many white people)

Phoenix Az

when it gets cold here it means its 50 degrees, It does get colder after dark but still great weather for riding year round.

Very little rain here most of the time too.

In the summer it gets very hot 110+ at times, but as long as you have have plenty to drink and wear sunscreen it is doable

opie, i'm out there for about a month in the spring and another month early/mid-fall.

So CA is great for riding..I live in Redondo Beach and ride the Palos Verdes area...Nothing like riding in the nice beach air over looking the ocean, riding through the hills and still able to see snow in the mountains.

I grew up in the Valley, that is correct. And there are some very nice rides to be found in the north part of So.Cal, from Santa Barbara down the coast, inland from Oxnard through T.O., up through the back roads of Simi and Moorpark and out in the Santa Clarita valley. Lots of great places including the canyons, Mulholland Drive, Griffith Park and the Rose Bowl loop. I also lived down in Playa Del Rey and experienced all there is to know about westside and beach riding. In fairness, I never lived in OC but I did once ride frm LA to Mexico and back to do the Rosarito Run. I won't argue that SoCal is a great place to live and ride.

But after 7 years in the Northwest, I like cycling better here. More and better scenery, better roads, far less traffic, no smog, friendlier drivers, and both the cities of Seattle and Portland, and their surrounding areas, are far more advanced as far as bike lanes and promoting cycling in general than L.A. ever was or will be. Yes, the weather in SoCal is better overall but I will take a 40 degree, light mist ride that starts and ends at my front door over a 60 degree and sunny ride that I had to drive 20 miles to get to the start of. Which I found myself doing more and more of when I lived there.

55/Rad

I agree but Orange County specifically is particularly biker-friendly with many "defined" bike routes and marked lanes on most city streets and the situation is even improving!

As for riding on the sidewalks, there is simply no substitute to being fully aware of the driving habits of all the dang drivers in this part of the country; there are now 3-lanes where there were only 2 in each direction before on most major roads and all the sidewalks are pretty much unused by pedestrians and they also have cutouts at most major intersections.

To put it mildly, it's simply heaven!!!

Central/SW France - where they rode in the 2004 TdF in the 2 days leading to the Pyrenees

55/Rad is probaby correct about the NW being more biker friendly but The OC is pretty good. From my garage I can ride just about any distance from 1-100+ miles on trails and good roads. There are certainly some "hairy" roads that a lot of cyclists around here like (Laguna Canyon Road, Bonita Canyon/Culver) but you avoid those and still have some great rides. All said and done, I prefer it down here just because any ride below 50 degrees is just plain too cold for me.

Pthbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbt! That may be OK if the roads are closed and the TdF is going on. Not so good for every day riding. Not to mention, even if you ride six hours a day, that still leaves a lot of time that you have to spend with the French :rolleyes:

--I would have expected that Atlanta area gets real humid in the summer, correct me on that.

--By the way all you folks in So Cal, you're right it is perfect down there. So you really don't want to move up here to Humboldt County... no just STAY down there.

on more vote for so. cal. i'm biased cause i was born and raised here in venice ca. but i've tried all over and always come back. happy new year folks.

The horse farms make for great riding. Nice terrain and scenery. But weather can still be a problem for 2-3 months. We just missed that last snow storm. Went to Cincy last weekend and they were buried! We got the rain part of the storm and a little sleet.

Parts west of downtown Lexington do rock though. All the way to Versailles and Midway.