Need advice on where to go

[fretwes]

Hello All - hubby and I have two free flights on US Airways that we have to use up by April. We're in Pittsburgh, and we've decided we want to fly 'south' and do some cycling. We'd like to rent bikes because we looked into shipping our own and besides being expensive, we're not that comfortable taking them apart and putting them back togther agian.

Two places we're thinking about are Raleigh or Austin. Raleigh in some ways would be preferable because it is a short direct flight from Pittsburgh.

Few questions from those of you in the know:

1. What would the temperatures/weather likely be in these two locales at the beginning of March?

2. Found a place in Austin on the internet that rents decent road bikes (Trek 5.2) but searched in vain to find decent bikes for rent in Raleigh. Anyone know of a place?

3. Would it be possible to get by without a car? Ie. stay somewhere relatively close to good road rides and a bike rental place, as well as get back and forth from the airport.

4. Any other pros and cons you can think of....??

Would love to hear you opinions and insights.

[KSH]

Austin:

1) Hard to say. Texas weather changes... quickly. For example, today it was 80F, but last Wednesday it was 60F. It might be around 70-80F around then.

2) Sorry can't answer that.

3) No. Texas has horrible mass transit options that are quick and easy. Can't live anywhere in Texas without a car... unless you don't mind spending a 1-3 hours getting 20 miles down the road.

4) Are you going to ride in Austin? I guess you have found some places to ride then. Austin is a cool... artsy type of town. Not too many "tourist attractions"... but a very nice town. There are so many amazing places to eat though!

[CorsairMac]

The only thing I'd say about Austin right now is - there are wildfires out in the Tx, OK, AR, and now CO area. Not sure how close to Austin they are but the air quality may/could be affected by the smoke.

[MomOnBike]

I stumbled across this site the other day. Other than the URL, I know nothing about it, but you may want to check it out and report back.

http://www.bikes4rent.com/cgi-bin/search.pl

You may find something you'd be able to use wherever you finally go.

What a problem to have. {sigh}

[KSH]

The only thing I'd say about Austin right now is - there are wildfires out in the Tx, OK, AR, and now CO area. Not sure how close to Austin they are but the air quality may/could be affected by the smoke.

The wildfires are very minimal... Texas is HUGE...it's nothing like what happens when fires hit California or something.

[Steph_in_TX]

Here's a thought...fly to Austin, rent a car (as KSH said, you'll pretty much have to) and drive less than an hour west to Fredericksburg...charming small town, can stay in hotel or B&B, they have a bike shop and do rent. It's a pretty bike friendly place and the guys in the shop are very helpful with routes/maps. The weather should be mild and could be wet, but you never know! I went in April last year and we had slightly cool, cloudy days and one pretty warm, sunny day. Nothing you couldn't ride in. Here are a few links...

general visitor info...
http://www.fredericksburg-texas.com/visitor/index.asp

local bike shop...
http://www.hillcountrybicycle.com/index.htm

new site with popular routes and maps...
http://www.cycletexas.com/

Steph

[pkq]

I would choose Austin-Hill Country over Raleigh that time of year. But March is still a crap shoot.

Texas, bordered on the South by the Gulf of Mexico, should have a predominantly South wind so wildfires shouldn't be an issue. Also, it's about a 5 hour drive, if memory serves, from Dallas to Austin on I-35.

[luv'nAustin]

ummmmm, I vote Austin!

At this time, the fires have not had any negative impact in Austin. However, it has been a very dry winter and I imagine we will all have to be careful for some time.

I have only been here for one spring, so I can't really predict what the weather will be like, you could easily have rain or shine. However, you should be able to see some of our famous bluebonnets in bloom. I think I read somewhere that we have more wildflowers along the roads than anywhere else in the States. Springtime is really beautiful!

My brother-in-law came for Easter last year and he had really good luck with his bike rental from Bicycle Sport Shop. I shipped a bike last year to North Dakota and it was pretty expensive. I had to have the LBS break down and build the bikes for me on each end.

Let me know if you decide to visit. I'd love to share some of my routes and all.

Karri