moving to the northwest

[summer]

Hi folks...I'm living in Scotland, but I'll be moving out to Washington State with my family (Bellingham/Everett, somewhere like that) sometime late next year. I'm doing time trials, road races, audax over here, and wonder if soembody could give me a feel for what the cycling scene is like? Is there a lot on for recreation and competition? Are the roads safe? Lots of cycle paths for the little ones? Weather? That kind of stuff...all gratefully received!

[KnottedYet]

Sent you a PM.

[Grog]

KY: Why go private?

--

Rebekah:

Welcome to TE!

If you don't mind the rain in the fall and spring (and winter), there is indeed a nice cycling scene in the PNW, perhaps not as exciting as what you'd find in many European countries, but certainly better than what you'd find in many other parts of this continent. Quite hilly, too! There a few well known hill climb races.

I am not too much into racing so I can't tell you a lot. I hope we all learn more from other public responses!

[Eden]

The cycling scene is pretty big out here. We have a lot of opportunities for women. I couldn't say for sure, but I think probably California would be the only place in the US with more women's teams and women's racing.
to start with check out:
www.wsbaracing.com
http://www.nwwc.org (some of this one is a bit out of date, but there is some good info too)
www.cascade.org (they have a great set of links here)

In general I think the drivers are relatively safe - there are enough cyclists that most drivers are used to us and good about giving us space, not harassing us, etc. You still have to watch for the few pea brains that think bikes are toys and don't belong on the roads, but from stories I've heard its much worse in other areas.

There are many paved trails in the area - though probably a few more down where I live in Seattle than up north. They have a tendency to be pretty crowded when the weather is nice, so close supervision of little children is a must when using them.

Weather - cool and wet in the winter, so bring your fenders or plan to get some for winter riding. Everett/ Bellingham is more likely to see snow than us a few miles south in Seattle, but it is still pretty rare. It doesn't usually get extremely cold, so if you can deal with the rain you can ride year round. Summers are usually pretty mild too, with usually only a few weeks of very high temperatures - high 80's low 90's (26-32C)

Hope you enjoy your time here and an early welcome to the area!

[mimitabby]

Hi, Welcome to the "great" northwest.

Like some of the others have said, riding is better here than in a lot of places in the USA but you will find that riders are a lot less understanding and tolerant
than what I have seen in Europe.
You need courage and a thick skin. Many Americans have forgotten that there are other means of getting from point A to point B than your car or pickup truck and cannot understand what BICYCLES are doing on the road.

We do have lots of places for kiddies to ride; protected trails and the like,
but that is more in the Seattle area.

Hope to meet you when you come out this way; we live near the airport!
Mimi

[summer]

Wow, this all sounds great! Being in Scotland, I don't mind wet weather (although the gale force winds up here are a bit of a pain, especially in time trials...), nor do I mind biggish hills. My husband does triathlon and he has some sort of crazed obsession with riding up huge hills in silly gears, so I'm hoping a proper mountain or two will teach him a valuable lesson about how the rest of us feel.
I don't commute on my bike up here (partly because it's 25 miles to work) but also because while the drivers in Scotland are better than I've experienced in the south of England, it's still pretty rough. I've been run off the road, had bottles thrown at me, even got hit with a 2 by 4 from a passing car. All in only three years as a cyclist. It's a big difference from cycling in places like France or Holland where bikes rule the road! Mind you, on a trip to the States not long ago I bought my husband a jersey with the US flag on it...in the States it kept the pickups off his tail because they like to see the flag, but over here, well, it's a different story. Best to keep it in a drawer!

I'll check out the web sites, because I do like my racing and my long distance stuff, and I could do with some new scenery!

We haven't actually been to the area - it's my parents who are moving out and they're making it worth our while to come too so they can have the grandkids close, but we plan to get over to check it all out in january or february...it would be great to meet some of you folks and maybe have a 'trail ride' of the area!

[mimitabby]

! Mind you, on a trip to the States not long ago I bought my husband a jersey with the US flag on it...in the States it kept the pickups off his tail because they like to see the flag, but over here, well, it's a different story. Best to keep it in a drawer!
.it would be great to meet some of you folks and maybe have a 'trail ride' of the area!

Bring that USA flag jersey with you when you come. we've discovered that wearing Red White & Blue stuff (or having flags) is a kind of protection from many of the nasty folks on the road.

Keep in touch, it would be fun to meet you too.

[KnottedYet]

Grog - I only PM'd cuz I was writing such a looooooooong reply. (I lived in Scotland once, and was going a bit OT)

Keep us posted as to when you visit and where you'll be. Jan/Feb is going to be wet and dark and chilly, but it's always beautiful. If you need to rent bikes, I know Recycled Cycles has some ( www.recycledcycles.com ) as does Gregg's Greenlake Cyclery. (don't know their web, sorry)

the two big bike shops in Bellingham are Fairhaven Cycles and Kulshan Cycles. I don't know if either rents bikes.

[salsabike]

Add me to the welcome list. I think this is a great cycling area, and with the right clothes you can indeed ride right through the winter. I live in north Seattle but work in north Everett, and while I don't know the Everett trails, my boss does, so we can get info from him when you get here. Let us know when you come and we'll get a ride together.