I just moved to Boulder and I absolutely love it!

Since we are doing this for fun, how about finding my utopia.

Thinking a few (or more) years down the road so finding a job is not a consideration.

Hot weather
NO cold, snow, winter. Crisp fall, spring ok but must be able to ride outside all year round. (That means never under 45F.)

Good (large) masters swim program

Near a decent sized airport

Would like to eventually sell my house after it double in price and pay cash for another one. (Yes, it will happen. I bought in the hood before it became the next hot spot to live close to downtown.) Say $300K or under.

No sky high property taxes. Hello/goodbye Austin.

No suburbia. Walkable.

In a dream world where money is no object, I'd have an apt. in NYC, one in Livermore Valley (NorCal) and a house in Kona. So I want coffee shops, bookstores, good restaurants, craft beer.

A velodrome would be a big plus.

Where is this utopia?

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

Those places sound nice and I love Portsmouth New Hampshire. I also love coastal Maine. But I'm tired of living in New England. If we make a big move, we want it to be a little more exciting. A fresh start! :-)

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Death is easy....peaceful. Life is harder.

By the time we figure out where we want to live, our house here in VT will probably already be paid off. Then being mobile in the winter would work. I'd love to get out of VT in the winter! The PNW would be nice in the summer too!

Maybe... sell the house and most of your stuff, buy a 5th wheel and big truck, and travel out west and look around for a year or so. If you can stand to live in a trailer, that is. Climate is easy to get from stats, but many aspects are not so easy.

No single place is ideal. I don't know how much your Vermont house is worth, but you may be able to swing two abodes if you do it right. Or just one main one in S AZ and use the 5th wheel for the summer. If you do that you could spend a lot of time wandering to races or chillin in the boonies or whatever. OR and WA are awesome in summer because it's lush from winter rain and snow, but is clear, sunny, and pleasant in summer, and the days are long.

Tastes differ, but IMO the climate sucks pretty much anywhere east of NM and CO. Too hot, too cold (or both) and too humid, too many bugs, too many people, etc.

You have described somewhere near downtown San Diego perfectly - except for the whole money thing.

Yeah, I think that's the question about Asheville, otherwise there would be a major long course triathlon there. Everything else seems perfect for one.

If you are looking for a smaller area with little traffic, I would avoid anywhere on the Colorado Front Range, including Boulder. I know there are some folks on ST from the Durango area. We live in the Crested Butte area, 3 hours from Durango in the central mountains, but since we have friends in Durango we do spend some time there. Nice roads for riding plus access to great mountain biking virtually year around. Excellent trail running, some of the best in the country.

The summer traffic is heavier than winter with more tourists around, but compared to what you will find on the Front Range or SLC it really isn't an issue. Year around the weather is good and it is rare that you won't be able to head out in the winter. If you ski, Durango Mountain Resort is just north of town and, Wolf Creek is 90 minutes while Telluride is 2 hours away. Having Ft. Lewis in town is a nice benefit plus Durango's location gives you quick access to both Arizona and New Mexico.

As for swimming, I know they have masters programs and I have heard Lake Nighthorse may finally be opening next year and that it will offer open water swimming. I would check it out. Housing has gone up in price but it is still pretty reasonable.

Yeah, I knew I was pretty much screwed when I left California.

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

My husband loves the Durango idea. I think if Lake Nighthorse opens for swimming, that would be more alluring. I'm waiting to see. Sounds like it was supposed to be open a year ago. If that big lake in Nederland, CO allowed swimming, that would be another idea but might be a hull in the winter trying to get to a pool.

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Death is easy....peaceful. Life is harder.

 
Since you had an emphasis on OWS - I'd vote for South Florida - Palm Beach County Area. Below is a video from a recent tri club Friday morning OWS. This a weekly training session. Several good local masters programs - morning and evening option. Great local tri club (minimal cost) - lots of training and social activities.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKEVWYKaVUg


Yeah it's hot and humid this time of year down here, but after training in it all year, the heat becomes a non-factor at most races out of state. At Raleigh 70.3 - I heard lots of chatter about how hot it was, but the heat was non-factor for those of us the came up from South Florida. Same thing at Boulder Peak a few weeks ago. Nice long straight 30 mile stretch of ocean front road with minimal stoplights. Obviously no hills to ride other than bridges. The other key thing in your original post that South Florida address is the ability to train outside year round,less a few rainout days.


Good luck.

Palm beach does sound nice. My husband would miss the mountains though. I would love to spend a winter there. I bet it's amazing Dec-March :-)

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Death is easy....peaceful. Life is harder.

I've enjoyed reading this thread. I live in NH, at the southern edge of the White Mountains. Very similar in most respects to the Burlington area.
I've been thinking about moving somewhere that would be better for running and cycling year round, without being too hot and humid most of the time. If cost wasn't an issue, I would prefer to be close to a city, as long as I have easy access to great places to run and ride. I enjoy snowboarding and I've been thinking about AT (alpine touring) skiing, but running and cycling are more important to me.

My short list would probably look like this:
Pacific Northwest I-5 cities (Seattle, Portland, Salem, Eugene)
Bolder/Denver area
San Luis Obispo/Santa Barbara area
Hawaii (Big Island)

I visited Seattle for the first time last year in June. I stayed with a friend in West Seattle and didn't think that getting around via bus was all that bad. I spent 10+ years living in Boston though.

I was surprised that nobody other than Joyce mentioned Eugene. I haven't been there, but it certainly is known for its running and I understand that it's rather cycling friendly. Are the Willamette and McKenzie Rivers good places to swim? Are there other OWS spots? I love college towns, so Eugene is definitely one I'm interested in. It's fairly affordable as well.

If money wasn't a factor at all, SLO/SB might be perfect for me.

Hawaii is fairly affordable in the rural locations, but much less so where I would probably like to live. I haven't been there yet. I realize that it’s a relatively low-paying tourist driven economy, which I’m fine with, as long as there’s a vibrant social and outdoorsy community.

I've researched places like Bend and Colorado Springs. Maybe I should look into Santa Fe and Albuquerque as well.

In all of the years I was doing software consulting work, I managed to visit lots of places, but few that I would have wanted to call home. Being based in Boston, most of my time was spent east of the Mississippi, most of which suffers from too much winter cold or too much summer heat and humidity than I would like; in some cases, both. On the other side of the Mississippi (or straddling it) … I’m sure that Minneapolis is beautiful in the summer, but not when I was there in February. Chicago is an incredibly fun city, but probably not an athlete’s paradise. I’m sure that Tulsa is beautiful in somebody’s eye, at some point in the year, just not mine. Pasadena was lovely, but not enough so that I want to be in the rat race to afford it.

I'd be interested to hear what people think of my list.

Pete

I also live in Central NH near the White Mountains.

Joyce, do you XC Ski? That is my salvation for the winter. If you are in Burlington there are tuns of opportunities for that, to me it is really nice to focus on skiing in the winter.

I live in Freedom, which is a beautiful place to live, but seems far from ideal for road cycling. There are some nice sections of road for cycling, but for the most part it's a rather limited network of state highways, with no shoulders, poor road surfaces and a fair amount of traffic. Some friends I've ridden with in the past don't ride anymore because they don't feel safe on the roads. Some of the most scenic local roads are the scariest, because of how winding and hilly they are, with poor sight lines for drivers.

I should get outfitted with XC gear this year. I'll be running my first Boston Marathon in April. It seems like I'll be far more likely to be in shape for that if I add XC skiing to my mix of activities.

I've researched places like Bend and Colorado Springs. Maybe I should look into Santa Fe and Albuquerque as well.... In all of the years I was doing software consulting work, I managed to visit lots of places, but few that I would have wanted to call home. Being based in Boston, most of my time was spent east of the Mississippi, most of which suffers from too much winter cold or too much summer heat and humidity than I would like; in some cases, both.

Yes, I grew up back east and the climate is very different in the west. Lack of summer humidity and bugs, and milder year round temperatures generally. The higher elevation parts of southern NM and AZ are very nice, and sunny in winter, but the cities are more in the desert. Desert is ok if you prefer it on the warm side. 2nd best year round climate in the US. Of course the S CA coast is tough to beat, but congested and expensive.

The PNW has great summers, but I couldn't abide the winters. To each their own.

This is a good resource if you haven't seen it. http://www.city-data.com/

I was worried about that too before moving to Portland but I've been surprised. When people say it rains a lot they really mean it's overcast a lot and there's maybe some light drizzle (think heavy mist) in the morning. It's really not often that it actually rains. The "rain" doesn't really keep you from doing anything outside and the temperatures are pretty mild. The biggest problem is that it's dark all the time but you get that almost anywhere. I've been pretty pleased with the winters here!

I know that I've been on city-data.com in the past, but it's either been enhanced since, or I was previously just looking at weather data. That's a great link. Thanks!




Even though I've only been to the PNW (Seattle) in June, I think I've got a pretty good understanding of what the weather is like throughout the year, based on my research and talking to friends that live there, or have lived there. Portland and Seattle actually get 6-10" less precipitation per year than where I am in NH. The PNW is enticing to me; I loved my trip to Seattle last year, although I haven't experienced the drizzly season there. Still, Colorado sounds a bit nicer to me overall. Colder, but much sunnier winters. The PNW has cooler summers than Denver/Boulder though.

Other than the summer humidity and some extremely cold winter temps at times, where I live in NH is a really awesome place for most outdoor activities. I wish I was a bit closer to a city though. My plan is to eventually take an extended road trip cross country to spend a bit more time in some of the places that have been mentioned.

We have done some xc skiing in the past but we prefer backcountry skiing. We are also alpine skiers. This past winter we were in ironman training. So on Saturdays we would ride the fat bike on xc trails or snow mobile trails for a couple hours and then sometimes finish up on the computrainer depending on the temps.

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Death is easy....peaceful. Life is harder.

I moved from Minnesota to the SW burbs of Portland a few months ago. Best decision I ever made. I am looking forward to not having a real winter here.

I have two almost 13 year old dogs. They've never even been in a local kennel, so I completely understand what you're saying. I love them both, and would never consider subjecting them to anything like that. But, I also look forward to the day when I can take an extended trip cross country, or consider hiking the Appalachian Trail, etc.

My old cycling coach lives in Seattle. Anywhere you have a dedicated year-round rain bike - no thank you. Plus, all the dreary grey days even if it doesn't rain.

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clm
Nashville, TN
https://twitter.com/ironclm | http://ironclm.typepad.com

Jupiter, Fl.

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blog

I am surprised that nobody has mentioned Wenatchee, WA. It has everything Bend (outdoor activities, very little rain, little traffic, 300 days of sunshine with no humidity) has to offer with much lower housing costs. With the onset of global warming, the winters are fairly mild but quality downhill and xc skiing are short drives away. It is also within easy driving distance of Penticton, Seattle, Couer d'alene and several other tri races. There are indoor (plus summer only outdoor) pools and open water swimming in the Columbia River and some lakes. It is very conservative politically along with the rest of eastern Washington.

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Dean Wilson
http://www.anaerobiczone.com
Bicycle Protection Indoors & Out

A friend of mine lives in Jupiter. I've also spent a bunch of time down there visiting some other friends who lived in Pompano Beach and I did a bunch of work for Pratt & Whitney in West Palm Beach. It was nice while I was there. It would be tough getting acclimated to the heat though. I went to Ft. Myers last March to catch a few Red Sox spring training games; I went for a run at 7AM one morning and thought it was pretty brutal by the time I got back. I could do FL six months of the year, but it's not somewhere I would want to be full-time.