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More California
Hi All,
My relocation plans are starting to take shape. I am going to California next week to have a look around. No bike riding, but plenty of driving. The plan is for me to see as much as I can so I can make a "short list" of potential areas which I will visit again in October with my wife and kids so they can see and make a final descision later. I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. In general what is it like? Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? Thanks! Joseph |
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#2
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More California
On Aug 21, 2:03 pm, "
wrote: Hi All, My relocation plans are starting to take shape. I am going to California next week to have a look around. No bike riding, but plenty of driving. The plan is for me to see as much as I can so I can make a "short list" of potential areas which I will visit again in October with my wife and kids so they can see and make a final descision later. The bike riding and weather are the best. "We" have a rotten, burdensome, and corrupt commie-fascist state guvmint though, so get ready to pay a lofty sun tax anywhere in the state. I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. In general what is it like? Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? I lived in Santa Cruz for 18 years, and now live in Sonoma County. There is great riding in both. Personally I prefer Santa Cruz -- it is on the north end of the Monterey Bay. In Santa Cruz, The Saturday Ride is legendary -- basically it is an informal free training race. The same goes for the Tuesday Night Piggies ride, which is very hard. We used to do Thursdays too, and Sundays. Santa Rosa (Sonoma Co.) has a training crit on Tuesday nights where the time is split into three different "categorized" races. It is flat, a circle, very boring and costs money. There is no comptetition on that score with Santa Cruz's Tuesday Piggies ride. There are probably more total routes to ride in Sonoma County than Santa Cruz, but you won't get bored in either countryside. Santa Rosa is a commie haven. Santa Cruz makes Santa Rosa seem right wing. Very amusing, even though criminal. My free advice is to alternate making fun of them to ignoring them. Enjoy everything. |
#3
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joseph santaniello wrote:
I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? I hope you like wind! Seriously though, Santa Maria is a great place for riding. As for racing, it's good news/bad news... there's a somewhat active racing community right in Santa Maria, but not as big as nearby San Luis Obispo (to the north) or Santa Barbara (to the south). But the main drawback is that you'll generally be at least 2-3 hours drive from most of the races. Santa Maria, just like the rest of Central California, is in between the racing hotbeds of LA/OC/San Diego and the Bay Area. But you could turn that around and recognize that you usually have two equidistant race options every weekend. Also, I'm pretty sure there are regular group rides and training races in Santa Maria, but certainly you could find rides of any level ride you wanted by going to SLO or SB. Plus, if you're into centuries, the world-famous Solvang Century goes right through Santa Maria (it even has a start location there). How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. Not far at all. Couple miles at most and you're in the Santa Ynez Valley which has some of the best riding in the state. Like I've mentioned before to someone in rbr, there's a reason many pro teams hold training camps there. In general what is it like? The town or the cycling? The town is growing fast, with lots of housing tracts sprouting up. It's an agricultural economy mostly. Lot's of vineyards and strawberry fields. The riding is really good and the weather over most of the winter is better than the rest of the state. Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? Go climb Figueroa Mtn. Visit some wineries. Go to Los Alamos and eat at American Flat Bread Pizza (only open Fri/Sat nights). Visit SLO and SB. Go to the beach. Here are some cycling resources for the area.... http://www.slocycling.org http://www.teamtailwinds.com http://ridesb.com Good luck! Mark http://marcofanelli.blogspot.com |
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joseph santaniello wrote:
I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? I hope you like wind! Seriously though, Santa Maria is a great place for riding. As for racing, it's good news/bad news... there's a somewhat active racing community right in Santa Maria, but not as big as nearby San Luis Obispo (to the north) or Santa Barbara (to the south). But the main drawback is that you'll generally be at least 2-3 hours drive from most of the races. Santa Maria, just like the rest of Central California, is in between the racing hotbeds of LA/OC/San Diego and the Bay Area. But you could turn that around and recognize that you usually have two equidistant race options every weekend. Also, I'm pretty sure there are regular group rides and training races in Santa Maria, but certainly you could find rides of any level ride you wanted by going to SLO or SB. Plus, if you're into centuries, the world-famous Solvang Century goes right through Santa Maria (it even has a start location there). How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. Not far at all. Couple miles at most and you're in the Santa Ynez Valley which has some of the best riding in the state. Like I've mentioned before to someone in rbr, there's a reason many pro teams hold training camps there. In general what is it like? The town or the cycling? The town is growing fast, with lots of housing tracts sprouting up. It's an agricultural economy mostly. Lot's of vineyards and strawberry fields. The riding is really good and the weather over most of the winter is better than the rest of the state. Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? Go climb Figueroa Mtn. Visit some wineries. Go to Los Alamos and eat at American Flat Bread Pizza (only open Fri/Sat nights). Visit SLO and SB. Go to the beach. Here are some cycling resources for the area.... http://www.slocycling.org http://www.teamtailwinds.com http://ridesb.com Good luck! Mark http://marcofanelli.blogspot.com |
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On Aug 21, 2:03 pm, "
wrote: Hi All, My relocation plans are starting to take shape. I am going to California next week to have a look around. No bike riding, but plenty of driving. The plan is for me to see as much as I can so I can make a "short list" of potential areas which I will visit again in October with my wife and kids so they can see and make a final descision later. I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. In general what is it like? Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? As Slave says, northern California is a great place to ride but a particularly nasty area to work in. The commies are intent on destroying any businesses and slowly managing to kill the goose that laid the golden egg. If you have a good job it is sometimes funny to watch them building their own nooses to hang themselves with. For instance, Berkeley insisted on giving students at Cal the right to vote in Berkeley elections. Berkeley was really a hotbed of electronics and biotech development. The numbers of startups there were probably the highest in the nation and maybe the world. Now there are essentially no startups there, all of the electronics firms and all of the biotech firms are gone. One company I worked for was threatened closure for having "dangerous chemicals on site". What were these "dangerous chemicals"? Two unopened cans of motor oil used in the machine shop to lubricate the lath and mill bearings. Santa Maria is a strange place. It varies from decade to decade as a good place or not to raise children. Of course good parents can raise good kids anywhere but it helps if all of the local kids aren't thieves, druggies or worse (think of Moab). The riding is good but somewhat limited because there are so many cars down there and so few roads. But even the old farts are faster than hell. And the length of rides is sort of farther than I'm used to because most of the routes are flat though often windy. Up here in northern California we do 30-50 miles usually with a good deal of climbing. Down there a 50 mile ride isn't any big deal. Santa Rosa is pretty much the ideal country if you have a job though the roads are narrow without shoulder and the drivers ought to be ripped from their cars and beaten to a pulp about every other trip. San Francisco bay area is absolutely spectacular with any kind of riding you could want. But the cost of living is high, the local governments are looney tunes and the population never stops growing. On the other hand the racing is first rate, the good thing about looney tunes governments is that they discourage land development in the best places - such as Tunitas Creek Rd and west Old LaHonda Rd etc. So, there's good and bad about just about any place in California. The central valley around Sacramento is a good place to live and work but it is hot. SF bay area is a good place to live and work but you have to be ready to change jobs at a moments notice (since '67 I've worked at 41 jobs in electronics! My favorite was a company that hired me on Friday and when I came to work on Monday the building was empty.) Southern California is a great deal more stable, the weather is better for most of the year but the riding isn't nearly as varied or scenic. You makes your choice and you takes what you get. |
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Oh, MEW MEW MEW
Whatever, a$$bite. You have no money, no clue, and no future. Enjoy your time in hell. As Slave says, northern California is a great place to ride but a particularly nasty area to work in. The commies are intent on destroying any businesses and slowly managing to kill the goose that laid the golden egg. If you have a good job it is sometimes funny to watch them building their own nooses to hang themselves with. For instance, Berkeley insisted on giving students at Cal the right to vote in Berkeley elections. Berkeley was really a hotbed of electronics and biotech development. The numbers of startups there were probably the highest in the nation and maybe the world. Now there are essentially no startups there, all of the electronics firms and all of the biotech firms are gone. One company I worked for was threatened closure for having "dangerous chemicals on site". What were these "dangerous chemicals"? Two unopened cans of motor oil used in the machine shop to lubricate the lath and mill bearings. |
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One of the things I like best about Berkeley is that it drives Tom
nuts. Just sayin'. |
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www.SharonFund.com
wrote in message ups.com... Hi All, My relocation plans are starting to take shape. I am going to California next week to have a look around. No bike riding, but plenty of driving. The plan is for me to see as much as I can so I can make a "short list" of potential areas which I will visit again in October with my wife and kids so they can see and make a final descision later. I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. In general what is it like? Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? Thanks! Joseph Lots of great riding in and around Santa Maria. And you'll be just 30 minutes south of San Luis Obispo, so even more options there, both road and MTB (however, I've heard that most of the best single track riding on Montana d'Oro and other locations is being closed to bikes lately). Beaches are close (Pismo, Shell and Avila (I used to live in Avila Beach and love it there... no matter the weather elsewhere, Avila almost always clears by around noon... south facing beach I guess)) and lots of golf too (if that's your bag). And one of THE best steak houses EVER, called the Hitching Post out in Casmalia, about 20 minutes south and west of Santa Maria in the middle of nowhere, but great open fire, red oak grilled beef flesh....mmmm... We used to ride out to the coast quite often, or down to Lompoc, or up to Nipomo. Hwy 1 is just west out of town and leads to all sorts of nice rides. But the wind is merciless... just get used to it, that's really the only choice if you want to ride... |
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On Aug 23, 6:31 am, "BFWG" wrote:
www.SharonFund.com wrote in message ups.com... Hi All, My relocation plans are starting to take shape. I am going to California next week to have a look around. No bike riding, but plenty of driving. The plan is for me to see as much as I can so I can make a "short list" of potential areas which I will visit again in October with my wife and kids so they can see and make a final descision later. I have I beileve enough info for most of the places I will check out, but I recently became interested in Santa Maria. Can someone fill me in on what the racing/riding scene is like there? How far do you have to ride to be out of range of stop signs, etc. In general what is it like? Any suggestions on particular things/places I should check out when I am in the area? Thanks! Joseph Lots of great riding in and around Santa Maria. And you'll be just 30 minutes south of San Luis Obispo, so even more options there, both road and MTB (however, I've heard that most of the best single track riding on Montana d'Oro and other locations is being closed to bikes lately). Beaches are close (Pismo, Shell and Avila (I used to live in Avila Beach and love it there... no matter the weather elsewhere, Avila almost always clears by around noon... south facing beach I guess)) and lots of golf too (if that's your bag). And one of THE best steak houses EVER, called the Hitching Post out in Casmalia, about 20 minutes south and west of Santa Maria in the middle of nowhere, but great open fire, red oak grilled beef flesh....mmmm... We used to ride out to the coast quite often, or down to Lompoc, or up to Nipomo. Hwy 1 is just west out of town and leads to all sorts of nice rides. But the wind is merciless... just get used to it, that's really the only choice if you want to ride... Sounds nice. As far as wind goes, this weather station is about 5km from my house: http://tinyurl.com/258xmh I'm looking forward to a steak... Joseph |
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