Hoping there is someone out there that can help short cut my research.
Moving from the lowcountry to the upstate…no longer to get hills will I have to ride up and down the Ravenel Bridge 10-15 times
A few questions I have:
Is there a good masters swim group? I don’t typically swim with masters but would love to if there is a good group.
Any good bike routes/road suggestions…or ones to stay off ?
Running trails?
I will work out of my home and car but would love to be close to a good pool and gym where I can snag a treadmill on bad weather days / etc…
What local shops do you use and trust for things beyond basic bike maintenance? (if you have thoughts on where to stay away from please PM me rather than post it here)
I think that about covers my questions for now. Thank you so much for any input!
I can help you out on bike routes. In short. . .there’s tons of them and some of the best riding in the country is here. From downtown Greenville you can take the Swamp Rabbit Trail out of town straight to the base of Paris Mountain. There’s a lot of rolling terrain with low traffic just north of town, and if you go about 25 miles north of town you can have 6-8 mile climbs.
Greenville has it ALL for cycling and multisport. On top of that, they’re about to ban any hands-on use of a cell phone (texting or talking) by drivers. You’re going to love it!
Welcome to Greenville! I’ve been here about a year and a half and I love it
I HIGHLY recommend joining the Y and swimming with Greenville Splash Masters. They have some great coaches and are a fun group to swim with. They have practices at both the Caine Halter Y downtown and the GHS Family Y in Simpsonville. I believe there is also a team out of Westside Aquatic Center a little north of downtown. Its a fantastic facility but I haven’t swam with the team there.
TONS of absolutely amazing cycling here. Like Boyd said, if you go north of downtown, you can’t go wrong. Hills everywhere you look. There’s lots of great climbing north of town. South of town is still pretty rolling compared to what you’re probably used to in Charleston. Most local shops have group rides and there is a large group ride in the Donaldson Center on Tuesday nights during the summer with several groups that usually pretty lively and a great workout.
I’ve found running trails are somewhat limited though… Swamp Rabbit trail is nice but it is paved and gets pretty crowded on nice weekend days, especially near downtown. It thins out a bit as you get closer to Travelers Rest. The only trail running i’ve found in town are the trails in Paris Mountain State Park. They’re lots of fun but mostly either straight uphill or straight downhill. They’re definitely worth checking out though
Finally, SetUp events has a ton of sprint/oly races within driving distance. The South Carolina Triathlon Series seems to have most of its races in the Upstate or in Columbia and Jeremey and his crew put on fantastic events. There’s also a few that will now be in the NCTS in the Asheville area that are driving distance as well and Mike and his team run great events as well. We are extremely lucky to have the local racing scene that we do here.
Uh so jealous I loved living in Greenville. The best cycling shape of my life, the best scenery. The fall rides are just ridiculous good luck concentrating on riding;) Wish I could remember all the road names and whatnot, but it’s been exactly 20 years this March since I lived there.
Ahhhhh cycling the Blue Ridge Mountain area in the fall. Delish.
Thank you all so much for the help. Looks like the north side is the place to look.
Also…my wife has taught French at a small private school for the past ten years. If you know anyplace looking for a French teacher please let me know!
Don’t rule out southern Greenville county. Definitely not as scenic, but much less traffic. I work near the Donaldson airport and there are great routes going south into Laurens County.
Michelin has a French school in town, and there is also Blythe Academy that has a French immersion program. Both worth checking into.
Hoping there is someone out there that can help short cut my research.
Moving from the lowcountry to the upstate…no longer to get hills will I have to ride up and down the Ravenel Bridge 10-15 times
A few questions I have:
Is there a good masters swim group? I don’t typically swim with masters but would love to if there is a good group.
Any good bike routes/road suggestions…or ones to stay off ?
Running trails?
I will work out of my home and car but would love to be close to a good pool and gym where I can snag a treadmill on bad weather days / etc…
What local shops do you use and trust for things beyond basic bike maintenance? (if you have thoughts on where to stay away from please PM me rather than post it here)
I think that about covers my questions for now. Thank you so much for any input!
Yes. The Greenville Splash team associated with the local YMCA branches is amazing. They typically have more than 1 class per day and are all well coached and attended. The Westside Aquatic Center also has a masters program but when I was a member there it was quite lacking. They cater more towards youth swim teams.
Tons of great routes. Just stay of the obvious major roads where everyone does their shopping, everything else is fair game. Go north for some great scenery and climbing, head south for wide open and much flatter terrain. There are always group outings being organized and I’d recommend going out on a few to learn some of the favorite local routes.
There is Paris Mountain State Park and Conestee Park which both have good running trails. If you are willing to drive some there are other parks in the area.
I live more on the south side of town but both the YMCA downtown and in Simposonville are only minutes from where I live. I’ve ridden my bike to both. Greenville is pretty easy to get around in. That being said I would rather live on the north side in Travelers Rest or around Paris Mountain for better access to bike route I like.
I haven’t heard any horror stories about any of the shops in town, and there are quite a few. I’ve used BikeStreet for most of my bike purchases/maintenance, but Carolina Triathlon is also a good shop and I’ve used them in the past also.
There is also a local facebook group for the area where people post where/when they are running/riding/OWS if they are looking for company or trying to get a group outing going. I could share that info with you if you are interested in meeting some of the area athletes when you get up this way.
Not much too add except to say that you’re going to love it. The riding is fantastic. Touch base with Carolina Triathlon when you get in town and they’ll help you get plugged in. There’s enough going on that it won’t be hard to do.
Welcome to Greenville, it is a great place to live as a triathlete.
Boyd is right about cycling and definitely knows his cycling routes.
I race triathlon professionally and choose to live here. Trail running at Paris Mountain is great, and there are options within driving distance such as DuPont. There are many swimming pools. The Y is an option, but Westside is a great pool, also with a masters squad and converts to a 50m pool in the warmer months. Message me if you have any questions, there are some really good training groups and coaches here.
I’m from Atlanta, but every time I am in Greenville I try to have dinner at Smiley’s Café. Local acoustic music starts early, the food is good, and a great place to hang out for a few hours. You can also park down near the Starbucks by the river (downtown) and run the river trail (paved).
not to jump off topic, but im heading up from hilton head to check out greenville for a ride. I was wondering what the best route from the paris mountain area up to ceasars head is, for good safe roads.
Are there any Saturday group rides in the travelers rest/north Gville county area that accept Tri bike cyclists as riding partners?
I live north of TR, we have a small group of Triathletes that ride out of my house on Saturday near North Greenville University. You are welcome to join us.