Best place to live (to cycle)
#101
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The spectacle of first-world retirees living in grand style in third-world locales is an ugly one. It's a kick in the face to the people living there. And spare me the justifications, because we've heard them all.
#103
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Originally Posted by Cowboy905
WOW, i NEVER think of Caledon when i think of great riding places BUT now that you mentioned it, I agree. When I am up there, my rides are incredibly painful but they've been scenic and great. It's endless rolling hills. Going through the Forks of the Credit, Cheltenham, and Terra Cotta is great too.
I'm in Stratford. My one complaint about southern Ontario is the relentlessly efficient road grid that doesn't allow for too many meandering curves. I view New England with envy in that regard.
#104
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Everyone's going to tell you that where they live is best, but most of them are wrong, because only a select few of us live in North San Diego County. (Though Portland has it all over us, Cycling-Community- and Sales-Tax-wise, but they need the discount because their weather su-u-u-u-u-u-u-ucks by comparison. No offense, Portland homies--I love visiting your town!)
#105
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I'll get hooted off the forum, but I suggest: Louisville, KY.
Why?
1. Large and active cycling community. Between Louisville and southern Indiana there are at least three or four club rides daily.
2. Decent MTB. It ain't Colorado, but KyMBA is active and the trails are pretty well kept.
3. Louisville Loop. I was just on it today. When completed, it will be 100 miles long and encircle the city. It will be the Mother of All MUPs.
4. From my suburban home I can cycle to Banjo country in an hour. I'm rarely hassled by rednecks. Most are fine if you stay out of their way. I also get professional courtesy.
5. Kentucky Center for the Arts and stuff.
6. Democrat major and congressman if that sort of thing is important to you.
7. The state is solvent. I'd never move to a state on the verge of bankruptcy, no matter how nice it is.
8. Reasonable cost of living. Housing is affordable.
Why?
1. Large and active cycling community. Between Louisville and southern Indiana there are at least three or four club rides daily.
2. Decent MTB. It ain't Colorado, but KyMBA is active and the trails are pretty well kept.
3. Louisville Loop. I was just on it today. When completed, it will be 100 miles long and encircle the city. It will be the Mother of All MUPs.
4. From my suburban home I can cycle to Banjo country in an hour. I'm rarely hassled by rednecks. Most are fine if you stay out of their way. I also get professional courtesy.
5. Kentucky Center for the Arts and stuff.
6. Democrat major and congressman if that sort of thing is important to you.
7. The state is solvent. I'd never move to a state on the verge of bankruptcy, no matter how nice it is.
8. Reasonable cost of living. Housing is affordable.
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#106
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I rode through Kentucky and I spent a couple days in Louisville. The people in Louisville were great, the city is clean and seemed bike-friendly, but on the back roads I had stuff thrown at me every day. If the punks weren't throwing bottles or cans they were spitting and screaming at us.
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I'm pretty sure I remember that somewhere in "the cyclists training bible" it said about this subject that, according to the author, people in always sunny climates who can ride through winter are in fact at a disadvantage exactly *because* they can and will cycle through winter.
Not cycling for a few months is good for you.
It gives your body and mind the chance to relax and makes you eager for your bike the next spring.
Not cycling for a few months is good for you.
It gives your body and mind the chance to relax and makes you eager for your bike the next spring.
#108
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I rode through Kentucky and I spent a couple days in Louisville. The people in Louisville were great, the city is clean and seemed bike-friendly, but on the back roads I had stuff thrown at me every day. If the punks weren't throwing bottles or cans they were spitting and screaming at us.
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It's actually not that much fun for me ... since I ride around working all day and have to watch these guys have fun all the time
#110
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That may seem like a lot ... for American standards ... but imagine how many there are between Kluisbergen, Zottegem, Geraardsbergen and Ninove ... and I happen to live right in the middle between those.
It's actually not that much fun for me ... since I ride around working all day and have to watch these guys have fun all the time
It's actually not that much fun for me ... since I ride around working all day and have to watch these guys have fun all the time
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Actually, it doesn't. In the first place, the fact that one can cycle year-round doesn't mean one will. In the second place, the idea that "not cycling for a few months is good for you" is nonsense. It certainly makes sense to have an easier period during the year, it may make sense to have a short time off the bike altogether, but to spend months at a time not cycling merely means you lose far more fitness than you need, and makes it more difficult to build on past performance.
#112
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I would go with Monterey area of California, but the cost of living would be rough. I have cycled all over southeast including a ton of rural roads, and I always laugh when I hear from someone that visited once and had bottles thrown at them and rednecks hanging out of trucks yelling at them the whole time. I would guess I have done a few thousand rides on rural roads, and I have probably been yelled at maybe 5 times and had only once did someone throw something at me and that was a plastic bottle. That being said, I will definitely admit drivers are more intolerant here than cycling friendly areas.
#113
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I quite liked Patzcuaro when I visited years ago, but I can't understand this expat attitude to "cheap" foreign places. Does it not bother you to be living the high life financed by the poverty around you? Are you really so cold? I know I would find it difficult putting on my expensive kit and going out on my expensive bike worth many times more than the annual incomes of the average Mexican living a meagre economic existence, never mind riding past the impoverished Indian families begging in the streets.
The spectacle of first-world retirees living in grand style in third-world locales is an ugly one. It's a kick in the face to the people living there. And spare me the justifications, because we've heard them all.
The spectacle of first-world retirees living in grand style in third-world locales is an ugly one. It's a kick in the face to the people living there. And spare me the justifications, because we've heard them all.
#114
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Actually, it doesn't. In the first place, the fact that one can cycle year-round doesn't mean one will. In the second place, the idea that "not cycling for a few months is good for you" is nonsense. It certainly makes sense to have an easier period during the year, it may make sense to have a short time off the bike altogether, but to spend months at a time not cycling merely means you lose far more fitness than you need, and makes it more difficult to build on past performance.
#116
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I quite liked Patzcuaro when I visited years ago, but I can't understand this expat attitude to "cheap" foreign places. Does it not bother you to be living the high life financed by the poverty around you? Are you really so cold? I know I would find it difficult putting on my expensive kit and going out on my expensive bike worth many times more than the annual incomes of the average Mexican living a meagre economic existence, never mind riding past the impoverished Indian families begging in the streets.
The spectacle of first-world retirees living in grand style in third-world locales is an ugly one. It's a kick in the face to the people living there. And spare me the justifications, because we've heard them all.
The spectacle of first-world retirees living in grand style in third-world locales is an ugly one. It's a kick in the face to the people living there. And spare me the justifications, because we've heard them all.
The point is, that people in those poor places where the "evil" retirees live, are better off because of the retirees living there. The retirees arrival increases the demand for goods and services, which in turn, raises prices and or decreases producer surplus.
IF, and only if you had a general understanding of economics, you wouldnt say that retirees moving to a poor place, hurt the community..
/rant
#117
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San Francisco has a TOTALLY different microclimate than the South bay just 20 minutes south. Sounds ridiculous, but it's absolutely true. Sf proper is gray and dreary most of the year - last summer, the avg temp in the summer during the day was barely 65F - sweater season the entire summer. In contrast, where I live, just 35 mins south of SF, it's 300+ days of sun and avg winter temp of lo 60s during the afternoon. Doesn't get any better than that.
#118
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Wow, Rousseau! Obviously, you are very happy living in your pretty neck of the woods. I suspect there is an element of xenophobia in such a narrow view of the world: so long as you don't see an ounce of poverty around you, the rest of the world is a happy place to live in.
Feeling somewhat satisfied that there is no dire poverty in the society one lives and works in day-to-day suggests a sense of solidarity with your immediate fellow human beings. It's not so bad that I'm wearing a $100-pair of bibs because just about anyone in the city where I live could afford them if they really wanted them. It doesn't represent a whole month of their wages. My flitting around the countryside on my bike for exercise isn't an affront to my neighbours because it's an option that is generally open to them.
There isn't a yawning economic gap between them and me, which is a vital thing for a community. But this is something that Americans either don't comprehend or don't tend to find very important.
Originally Posted by pepox369
So.. I assume that you do not have anything that was made by poor people in a poor country with poor working conditions, because that is the same principle, people with money taking advantage of a good, or service that is significantly cheaper due to international trade. (when you go to a different country, what you consume, purchase, or services you use there can be considered an import to your country)
The point is, that people in those poor places where the "evil" retirees live, are better off because of the retirees living there. The retirees arrival increases the demand for goods and services, which in turn, raises prices and or decreases producer surplus.
IF, and only if you had a general understanding of economics, you wouldnt say that retirees moving to a poor place, hurt the community..
The point is, that people in those poor places where the "evil" retirees live, are better off because of the retirees living there. The retirees arrival increases the demand for goods and services, which in turn, raises prices and or decreases producer surplus.
IF, and only if you had a general understanding of economics, you wouldnt say that retirees moving to a poor place, hurt the community..
Retirees moving en masse to poor countries might produce more jobs cleaning floors, but they do hurt them economically in an indirect way because meaningful economic activity is usually curtailed in lieu of catering to the tourist or retiree trade. Tourist hotspots in developing countries are usually one-trick ponies where the locals wait or dance on the tables. Why should my purchasing power dwarf that of the person standing next to me on the sidewalk? If it doesn't bother you as you live in places like Patzcuaro (or, indeed, wherever you live) then you have a heart of stone and a broken moral compass.
#119
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I grew up in San Francisco and lived out in the avenues from 1960 to 77. I grew up in the days when we would watch movies like this in school and every day they would test the bomb siren.
Every October people would wake up one morning and begin running for shelter when they looked up at the sky, not realizing that the sun had actually burned through the perpetual fog and the bright thing in the sky wasn't a Russian nuke.
Every October people would wake up one morning and begin running for shelter when they looked up at the sky, not realizing that the sun had actually burned through the perpetual fog and the bright thing in the sky wasn't a Russian nuke.
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Yeah...grey...miserable...was like this yesterday, and the day before, and the day before, and the day before, and the day before..................
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I went from having a spring/summer/autumn cycling season where I cycled a lot, and then I backed off during the winter and did other things ... to a place where I could cycle the same amount year round. And I found that very difficult. I thought I would love being able to cycle year round, and I do enjoy not having a Canadian winter to deal with, but I feel almost obliged to cycle intensely year round instead of taking a break like I used to. It's hard to explain ... and hard to deal with.
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#124
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I went from having a spring/summer/autumn cycling season where I cycled a lot, and then I backed off during the winter and did other things ... to a place where I could cycle the same amount year round. And I found that very difficult. I thought I would love being able to cycle year round, and I do enjoy not having a Canadian winter to deal with, but I feel almost obliged to cycle intensely year round instead of taking a break like I used to. It's hard to explain ... and hard to deal with.
#125
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I think Holland counts as one of the best places to live as a cyclist. The primary reason for this would be safety.
The infrastructure as a whole is very cyclist friendly, with dedicated cycling paths, and never having to share the road with cars that go over 50 km/h. Also, because cycling is such a common and big thing, drivers learn to take them into account. The many cycling roads are well-maintained, and if you want to go somewhere by bike, there are usually a LOT of options to get there using primarily dedicated cycling roads/lanes.
The bad thing I guess is that Holland is almost completely flat. There are few hills over here, and many cyclists (myself included) travel to neighboring countries for this kind of an experience (for me, the nearest capital of a neighboring country is only 90 km away, the border only 40).
The sights are less impressive than some countries I have been in, but overall, in my opinion, still pretty good. Cities are relatively small, so even if you live in them, it usually takes only 15 minutes or so to get out into a nicer cycling area.
The infrastructure as a whole is very cyclist friendly, with dedicated cycling paths, and never having to share the road with cars that go over 50 km/h. Also, because cycling is such a common and big thing, drivers learn to take them into account. The many cycling roads are well-maintained, and if you want to go somewhere by bike, there are usually a LOT of options to get there using primarily dedicated cycling roads/lanes.
The bad thing I guess is that Holland is almost completely flat. There are few hills over here, and many cyclists (myself included) travel to neighboring countries for this kind of an experience (for me, the nearest capital of a neighboring country is only 90 km away, the border only 40).
The sights are less impressive than some countries I have been in, but overall, in my opinion, still pretty good. Cities are relatively small, so even if you live in them, it usually takes only 15 minutes or so to get out into a nicer cycling area.