Hey Josef,

I also work in the Longwood Medical Area and commute to work by bike. I'm currently living in Brighton and the commute round-trip is about 9 miles (<15 minutes each way). You didn't specify your price range for rent, but understand that the real estate out here is ridiculously expensive. I live in a 3BR ($1500/mo) with several public transportation options and I consider myself very fortunate. Other friends of mine live under similar conditions with rents pushing $2000/mo. Brookline itself is very clean and residential- a fantastic place to reside if you can afford it. I looked into moving there when I first moved out here for grad school but couldn't find a decent studio or 1BR for under $1100/month. The case is the same for pretty much all of Boston proper. About the only place I wouls steer you away from is Allston- far too many college students and absentee landlords letting their properties fall apart.

As far as gyms are concerned, you should be able to find a good one no matter where you choose to reside. I recently joined the Beacon Hill Athletic Club and have been very pleased with both their equipment and class offerings. They have 5-6 locations in the city and I am free to train at them all. Other popular clubs out here include the Boston Sports Club (BSC), Bally's, Healthworks (women only), Gold's, Fitcorp, and Wellbridge.

There are also several good cycling clubs in the area, but to my knowledge the one with the most to offer is the Charles River Wheelmen. I've done a few group rides with them and had a great time. Everyone was friendly, enthusiastic, and passionate about the sport. Should you choose to train with a tri club in the future, there are great options as well.

Feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

I've been in boston for a while now. I'm kind of a wuss so I do most of my bike training of the minute man trail because I don't want to get killed by a car. There are some great rides off it in concord, and a lot of bike rides go through there. There are a few bike maps of the area.

As far as gyms go, there is always boston sports club which is really expensive, but my wife and I are bally's members because it's cheap. I actually like spinning (shhh, don't tell anyone, even though they aren't cycling specific) Overall, a great city to LIVE in ,but not to train in, kuz right now, the weather STINKS. Don't worry, my wife and I do like it. You just have to adjust your training a bit.

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berndog
How did we all get sucked into this crazy sport anyway?!!

Commuting by bike in Boston is not an easy thing to do unless you live in the metro area. Cambridge, Somerville, Allston/Brighton, Back Bay, downtown, Jamaica Plain, or maybe Newton*. The thing is, as Spastic says, rents are ridiculous, and all of these cities have some pretty seedy areas. I live in Framingham, about 30 miles away, so bike commuting is not an option for me. Generally, I don't think that Boston is very bike-friendly, but some hardy souls manage to survive on two wheels. The biggest problem for somone from outside the city trying to commute in(to my mind, anyway) is that the roads don't usually have any room on the shoulder to accomodate bikes, and the people driving apparently cannot see anything smaller than a Hummer H2.

I second the recommendation for Charles River Wheelmen. I do a few of their rides each year, and the people who show up range from dedicated roadies to folks just out for a fun ride. If it happens on two wheels and pavement in Eastern MA, CRW is probably involved. They have rides almost every weekend all year round. For mountain biking there is NEMBA, which does rides on most weekends.

I am not really aware of too much road racing in the area. I have looked around a little, but not found a whole lot. I know there are a couple of crit series in the summer, but I haven't found any info on them online.

Good luck moving, and Welcome to Boston.

* Newton is one of the most expensive cities in the country, but you can sometimes find great deals on rent because of people who have lived there for a long time and have run-down multi-family houses that need renovations. If you manage to find such a place, then you have a pretty enjoyable commute on Commonwealth Ave. and live in a pretty nice area.

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Thanks for the tips and warm welcomes so far. This is just the stuff I'm looking for.

Seeing how the "hercules in NYC" thread has more replies than this one, however, I thought I'd give myself a bump...

thanks again. Stay warm.

JB

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Josef
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Hey JB,

You're moving to beantown - wicked pissah. (trust me, that's good)

Check out http://www.northeastbicycleclub.org/ or http://www.bostonroadclub.org

Notable races are the Wells Ave. crits (http://www.bostonroadclub.org/wellsave.html) and the Charlie Baker Time Trial. Both of these happen weekly from spring through the very beginning of fall...

There's the Fitchburg Longsjo stage race (4 days) in early July. www.longsjo.com

Welcome to Boston - it's 2 degrees here right now. Feels like -8 with the wind. What i wouldn't give to be on a nice 70-80 miler to Wachusett and back.

Woody

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Mike Hollywood
http://www.bostontriathlonteam.com
http://www.michaelhollywood.com

Woody-
Thx for the info. Wicked pissah right back atcha.
2 degrees. Damn. I'm glad I got a trainer last week. Looks like I'm going to be spending lots o'time on that sucker. I have heard about the Wells Ave. Crit but not the TT. Will check it out. Are you a member of any of these?

See ya up there.

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Josef
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