I don't even live there, but it would be San Diego. No snow, ocean, mountains, babes;)

San Diego's great, my friend, but it's hardly the Nirvana that some non-San Diegans make it out to be.

We have an incredible climate, great training opportunities, and, yes, "babes." Ski in the morning and surf in the afternoon. (I've done it plenty of times.)

However, it all comes at a cost. A population explosion over the past decade or so has lead to spiralling real estate values, overcrowding, pollution, etc. SD's a small town with a hell of a lot of people in it, and they're not leaving.

I'm biased because I'm a native. I remember when now-developed areas were wild, and populated with deer and coyotes. This is home, and I'm not going anywhere else. My life is here, and I'm settled.

But, back to the point of the post. My greener grass grows in Colorado. I love the mountains and forests, and the tri community there. I love visiting and training there. That's MY Nirvana...

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"The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, but wiser people so full of doubts." -- Bertrand Russell

I hear ya! I live in Hawaii, the place they call paradise and we also suffer from the same probs of any city. Overpopulation, high cost of living. When I travel to the mainland I'm jealous of all that roadway to bike on. Living on an island has limitations!

Like you, I ain't going nowhere, but its nice to visit and check out some outa-state baes;)

Colorado is on my to do list. Watching OLN.....North (or was it South) Carolina looks cool.

I've heard San Luis Obispo (sp?) has all the great weather San Diego has but a lower cost of living. If I hit the lottery I'd have a place in South or Central CA and a place in Boulder. Boulder supposedly has 300 sunny days every year and has plenty of challenging roads to train on.

My two votes go to San Diego (really, anywhere south of LA) and Boulder. I love 'em both. But San Diego gets the nod for the better weather. What am I saying... NO stay away from San Diego, it's horrible. Sorry, too many people already. :)

Francois, I've lived in the states, but feel if you can handle a cold winter climate and pick the right area, Canada offers some advantages over the US - lower crime rates, tougher hand gun laws, government health insurance, less likely to have your kids drafted into the military to fight some obscure war somewhere, less populated/congested areas, etc. The people and culture are similiar but different. The taxes are higher but the government health insurance and the cheaper cost of sending your kids to college/university balances it out. In your case, an advantage would be that part of the country even speaks French. Of course if you want summer 12 mos of the year then forget it.

Mountains of North Carolina. This is where Lance Armstrong renewed his cycling spirit after his cancer treatments were over. There are plenty of smaller towns with olympic pools; cost of living is significantly less than somewhere outrageous like San Diego; lots of lakes; hilly, mountainous terrain; relatively warm ocean within 3-4 hour drive; decent weather year-round, summers aren't scorching hot, but not much snow in winter, so, maybe it's not perfect. It's where I'd like to head when I move again.

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Quid quid latine dictum sit altum videtur
(That which is said in Latin sounds profound)

I would absolutely ditto this comment, at least for American venues. Second place would be anywhere between Asheville and Winchester, Virginia, including Charlottesville, which is beautiful cycling territory. The Blue Ridge Parkway and Skyline Drive are right there. Off-road cycling abounds for winter diversions. Skiing isn't too far away. (You do ski, no?) The hills are tres magnifique!

I've been to San Diego and love it, but I like a wider divergence in temperatures for a place to live. In LaLa Land, I'd pick some place like the Stanford area or Redlands.

I can only think of one reason to be in Texas-the Pedernales in the Spring.

Cross off Cleveland, Chicago, and Pittsburg. Use a big black magic marker so there is no doubt. :)

Orlando, where I now live is only a 5 on a 10 point scale. The roads are a death trap and on my 10 mile run this morning I endured 80 degree heat and 95% humidity. Not nice. On the other hand, December through February is very nice. Lots of swimming venues available here as well, which is a plus for me.

Toronto and Quebec have a lot to offer, including a redneck index about 1000% lower than much of America. Toronto use to be very clean. Haven't been there in a few years though. Canada is much more biker friendly.

If I had any place in the world to pick, I'd go with Geneva and live just outside the city.

Good luck!

-Robert

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"How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world." ~Anne Frank

NJ

state motto: anyone who fall asleep in the trunk of a car deserves a bullet in the back of the head

Cerveloguy--the USA has not had a draft for over 30 years. My son is trying to get into the Navy and Air Force, and is having to wait in line.

Francois--look into university towns in the deep South. Austin, TX; Oxford, MS; Tuscaloosa or Auburn, AL; Athens, GA; Tallahassee or Gainesville, FL; or, Raleigh-Durham, NC. Universities have good facilities (pools, tracks, gyms) that are ususally available to the public at nomnal fees. These communities also usually have active triathlon/swimming/biking/running groups, good health care, culture/arts, employment opportunities, etc. The South gives you nearly year-round cycling, plus the nicest people in the US.

American by birth, Southerner by choice.

I live in San Diego, but I keep getting so damned tempted to bail out of here and go to either Vancouver Island (Victoria) or to the Wasatch Range in Utah (Park City environs).

San Diego is just too friggin crowded and expensive to live in.

Francois, you might check out Santa Barbara too. There's a very nice UC campus there that might have interest in a bikin runnin swimmin math wizard like you.

Brooklyn, New York! It's got Prospect Park (a biker and runner's oasis), a huge pool in Red Hook, great running over the Brooklyn Bridge, beaches galore, NYC Marathon, and while the weather can really suck, the fine citizens of this frequently overlooked trathlon-friendly borough of New York City more than make up for it with their, ahem, energy and enthusiasm for the sport of triathlon.

Another vote for Southern university towns. Though stick with the bigger/top tier ones. If the school has a direction or a hyphen in its name, run or cycle away.

For all the reasons listed above, plus they also tend to have rather comfortable sizes. With an area population somewhere between 200,000 and a million, you're big enough to have all basic and slightly exotic needs, but small enough that the cost of living tends to be low compared to the big cities (though generally more than surrounding towns), you get regular airline serivce, and it's usually easy to get out of the city/city traffic on long bike rides, even if you're in the center of town.

I have been fortunate to live in some really great places for active lifestyles, San Diego, Denver, San Luis Obispo, 1000 Oaks, Los Gatos and now San Francisco. If you can get past the cost of living issue, which is significant, my favorite by far is San Francisco. The amount and diversity of terrain is staggering. I live smack dab in the middle of the city and can do 1:15 ride leaving from my house and get to an area where you can't see any man made structures, just rolling hills and ocean. I can't think of too many major cities where that is possible, certainly not San Diego anymore where most of my old favorite riding areas are covered in stucco subdivisions Great running in the Presidio and Golden Gate Park and a sizable tri community. If you are willing to drive 30 minutes north, east or south of SF, you open up whole new areas of possibility. Yesterday we did a 10 mile roundtrip run to a beautiful. warm fresh water lake in Pt. Reyes, swam a mile and then enjoyed burgers and beers in Stinson Beach. I hope I can keep affording to live here, its great.

Hello Francois, you live in El Paso. That is a pretty nice place to be most of the year (except now cause it is damn hot). I think us Tri Team SW guys have it the best. albuqueruqe is great except that it is pretty hot right now too. The crime is a little crappy, bu overall there are some great training areas in and around the town. We have plenty of elevation and hilly terrain to give Boulder some competiton in that regard. Open water..that is a different story. We have to drive north about 30 miles to Cochiti reservoir or even up to Storrie Lake. A lot of the IM gus swim up there for prep work. Cochiti is a no wake lake and is coolish so you don't have to worry too much about boats clipping you. Besides all this there are plenty of us Tri Teamers to train with.

yuck.

problem for me is the altitude. some people apparently never adapt to altitude and it is the case for me. that makes sometimes life a bit hard, and
increase level of stress (tired often etc...)
despite being at just 4300ft...so Alb. would be harder...

Damn, guess I never realized how good I have had it...lets see...the towns I have lived in over the past 15 years are all listed above:

NC Mountains (Boone), Southern College Town (Auburn), San Diego, Boulder, and Austin.

San Diego -- very nice, but only if you like to surf. Otherwise too many other things outweigh it -- the cost of living, crowds, etc..

Boulder -- great place, but high cost of living/real estate, and good luck finding gainful employment unless you want to comute to Denver.

Small Southern College towns -- nice, but isolated with lots of drunk college kids and rednecks who like to play target practice with cyclers.

NC is pretty cool.

Austin is a great city for active people and atheletes, and decent weather all year round. Has a terrific music scene and awsome eats.

I couldn't get enough surfing, so for me personally San Diego had a lot of draw, but I guess my favourite has to be Boulder -- the concentration of of atheletes and outdoor activities, etc...is just hard to beat. If you are also into mountain activities, well, that seals the deal. Has a good music scene, good restaurants, college town, winter activities galore. It is a fairly transient population there though. Lots of folks move there, then move away 2-3 years later. Plenty of jobs if you are single and don't need much money, but if you have a family, or need a good job,...well, good luck. PhDs are waiting tables there.

Ixnay on NYC... tri-friendly? hardly. gym rat culture, handful of bike routes, few large pools, and those'll cost you a mint. nooner.

Austin... now we're talking, though the heat'll make you a morning person (you MUST exercise at 5 am in the summer, and even then you die). But great open water access, everywhere. Even downtown.

North Carolina... big mountains, empty forests, ocean, decent weather... yeah. Probably ideal. Though that whole Eric Rudolph thing makes me not want to be alone in the woods...

After living in NC for many many years I can tell you it is a redneck magnet. The mountains and eastern coastal areas more so than the RTP area. It does offer lots, lower cost of living, varied terrain, good ol' boys and 4 seasons.
Tucson has it all. 4 seasons including 20 days of winter spread over a 6 weeks, then warm, hot and hotter but still 6-10degrees cooler than phoenix. Low cost of living, a 27 mile mtn to climb when its not on fire, other great climbs in the area, lots of group rides and runs, numerous pools so you can work on your tan in the winter, bike lanes everywhere and tons of running and mtb trails. Where else can you start your ride at 7:30am in feb needing arm + leg warmers, jacket, gloves, booties and finish in a sleeveless jersey. There is a summer track meet series, XC/road race series and a S/R aquathlon series.
On the downside, in the summer, if you don't start by 6am your going to be toasty warm.
As for Rudolph my favorite bumper sticker that I have seen said in NC said "Eric Rudolph - NC's hide and seek champ"

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Brian Stover USAT LII
Accelerate3 Coaching
Insta

I find the Rednecks in NC quite charming. A few months back I was riding on the coast there I got a "nice ass honey" yelled at my by a Good 'ol Boy. It made my day! ;-)

People think I'm a moron. (That's true in general, but also because of the move I'm making.) I'm relocating from San Diego to Washington D.C. in late Aug/Early Sept. There's a ton I'm going to miss about San Diego but I'm still looking forward to the move. It's hard not to be active here. I don't think the average triathlete here realizes how great North County/Inland rides can be. Everyone's glued to the Coast. (That's nice too, but how about some variety and hills???) D.C. is a bit harder to be active in, but I like the 'buzz' of the city better. Plus it has GREAT restaurants and nightlife. Camping trips and weekend rides in the Appalachians are going to ROCK! Plus there's a pretty active cycling scene there. Lots of smallish but pretty hardcore teams. What is it they say about D.C.?? It's the city of Northern hospitality and Southern efficiency. Good times...

There's a reason they call it Dull C, pal.

"Great Restaurants and Nightlife?" Maybe compared to the gaslight district, or NC, but after a couple of years in that starter city you'll be ready for a move to the triathlete-wasteland-but-certaintly-happening... nyc.

Stay in TX, the land of the free. I live just south of Houston with a 20' commute while many of my neighbors have a 15' commute. I've got bike routes up to 80 miles starting from my driveway. Training is year round here. Low cost of living, great restaurants, plenty of shopping. IMO, the opera is better than either NY opera company. The fine arts museum is suprisingly good. There is also a strong French ex-pat. community here as well as just about every other nationality you can think of. The international airport has some of the best connections of any domestic airport (there is no flying to another airport just to make a connection).

Depending on your personality, Austin may suit you better as another poster has described. Dallas has a much larger hi-tech job sector, but I prefer the Houston lifestyle (and weather) better.

If you are coming to DC, you will find that the Maryland Suburbs might be good for you. There are some good teams as you mentioned (Team Snow Valley, Squadra Coppi, Aretimis, National Capital Velo Club NCVC, to name a few). Plus we have a very well developed tri racing scene with tricolumbia and triatlantic organizations.

You might want to subscribe to the USCF District 20 listserve.


Otherwise my vote is for the Rincon area of Southern California.

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I was, now I will tri again!
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Any time is a good time.
God Bless you my friend.