With the news of Paul Thomas getting hit yesterday (he’s alright it sounds like) after another cyclist was struck and killed in the same county, I’m just wondering where the best place to ride is in the entire world. You know, just in case I come up on mad amounts of cash and can move wherever I want. I’m guessing the best combination of good mountain roads that have drivers on them who are courteous to cyclists would be somewhere in Europe?
I’d have to say I was impressed by NW Alabama. No monster climbs, but there are some that will put a hurting on you. The drivers were great there. They’d wave and smile as they slowly pass you while you grind along at 7 mph to get to the top of a climb. Only real problem I encountered while riding there for a week was loose dogs. But thats just sprint training anyway.
great roads and very cycle-friendly traffic in Denmark. Good luck finding any hills though…
Your own private velodrome. Other than that, you’re going to have to deal with other people and the potential for inattention and injury, both from other bikes and from cars.
I just spent some time in Bend, OR and I realized just how much traffic and people we have here in San Diego! I’m actually surprised with the number of cyclists and cars we have on the road here we don’t hear of trajedies more often. Thank god! In Bend we went out the door and basically had no stop signs or lights and VERY few cars! It was awesome!!
As far as the “safest/best cycling locale in the world” I’d have to say Holland where there are more bikes per capita than anywhere in the world (except China) and bikes have their own roads (fietspads) alongside the cars. No “mountain roads” though.
For the mountains… when we were in France, Alp d’Huez and Galibier were crawling with bikes who were cohabitating nicely with the cars on the narrow mountain passes so that might be an area you’d want to look into.
the best place is OFF-road, as in mountain bike…
you may get eaten by mountain lion or griz, but at least you won’t get hit by some fat knucklehead in his chromed-up ‘suburban-jungle’ SUV or hummer…
In my basement on my trainer is the safest place I’ve ever ridden. I don’t think I have ever had a ride without some kind of incident. Hell, I saw a rider get hit by a car DURING a triathlon in South Haven, MI two years ago.
There is no safe place to ride, but that kinda adds to the excitement of it all.
yes, amsterdam is great.
and i assure you, Chinese cities are no longer safe for cyclists. and the worst drivers in the cities there (at least in Shanghai) are the taxi drivers and bus drivers. no hesitation or second thought at all before they simply run you over…
On my bike trainer, I do it mainly to save transport time, but safety is an added benifit. No hills in my apartment, though…
I’d have to agree on Holland. You can also add Danemark and Norway. I remember that most norwegian drivers pass cyclists as if they were cars, giving them 5-6ft of clearance.
Unfortunately, most of the “first world” will quickly forget the cost of cost of the “car culture”: our entire lifestyle rests on it 
Almost anywhere in France is good, If you’re riding along a narrow lane and a car can’t get past they usually drive patiently behind until they can get past or the road ends. In the UK they would expect you to stop or be run over because ‘you don’t pay road tax’ or something.
I hear the Basque country is pretty good too although I’ve never ridden there…
The Problem with riding in Holland is that although you can train on the cycle paths and the motorists are generally well behaved, the racing can be nasty (particularly road racing). They have so many speed bumps, traffic islands and other road furniture that its hard to make a course that isn’t dangerous. Did anyone see the Eneco Tour of the Benelux? they were losing riders on almost every corner/bollard/speed bump (partly due to the rain though).
Lake Placid and the rest of the northern Adirondacks are pretty damn good in my opinion.
i love riding up in rural vermont. (i.e. the vast majority of the state). great hills, few drivers. Of course, much of the year it’s cold and snowy there.
I, too, just came back from Bend and I second what KestrelKerri said.
Beautiful road surfaces, generally wide shoulders, lots of hills and relatively scarce traffic. Lots of llamas to gaze at too!
Col
The best place is Gatineau Park just north of Ottawa. Every Sunday, the 40K road loop is closed to traffic. 2800 ft of climbing per 40K loop. In addition to this, 50K of roads in the city of Ottawa are closed and only open to bikers, inline skaters etc etc.
                   <u>Gatineau Park</u> is a giant wedge of land measuring 363 square kilometres to the northwest of Canada's Capital Region. In the Park, the<u> National Capital Commission</u> protects plants and animals and manages facilities and trails so that the public may enjoy outdoor activities in every season.
I agree. I decided long ago I didn’t have the nerve to ride with inconsiderate drivers, and so I do most of my training on my mtb.
Also, there are just as many “fat knuckleheads” driving fuel efficient economy cars as there are in SUV’s.
I have to agree with the Lake Placid area. The roads have wide bike lanes and there are signs up warning motorists of “Athletes Training.” I think the people in the area have gotten pretty used to seeing lots of bikes on the roads. It’s the best area I’ve ridden in, anyway.
You already know the answer to that one, you drive there several times a week. It’s Valyermo, and the big loop… Roads still slosed to traffic up there, you just have to be tough enough to do the ride in 90+ degree heat…
the best place is OFF-road, as in mountain bike…
you may get eaten by mountain lion or griz, but at least you won’t get hit by some fat knucklehead in his chromed-up ‘suburban-jungle’ SUV or hummer…
Nope, just backwood slack jawed yokels on their ATV’s.