[Rabie]

Hey Norcal, what can you tell me about the Santa Clara area -specifically Sunnyvale, Mountain View and Los Altos. I'm looking for info on local riding, and distance to good riding in surrounding areas, but am also interested in the cities themselves as far as social/economic and ethnic/cultural make up. Thanks. Hella.

 

[androshandrew]

Los altos has all the rich people, mountain view is pretty well off but has mixed culture, mainly white and latino with some black. for riding, theres calabazas which is 20 minutes away. a place that has some northshore and jumps in los altos hills, cant disclose info in the forum. you can ride saratoga gap, up highway 9 like 30 min, or pacifica, south of san fran like 45min

 

[Winger]

los altos ur be with all the pinner rich kids, mtn view has some nice areas and its lower ends of town, but is well rounded. I recomend south bay. More more riding spots and more average ppl. Plus then u can ride with me and my crew.withing an hour there are hundreds of trails and at least 6 dj parks. Ull love it here.

 

[DLo]

I see you're from the OC... cost of living is probably the same. Traffic is a tad better than down south though. Check, much better in the last couple of years with the economy down the drain methinks.

Ethnicity? I'd say probably the same as down south. Got everybody out here.

 

[bbmj]

there is tons of riding down here, youve got all the stuff up in the foothills here, not too much downhill stuff, but lots of places to dj, and good trailriding. You can make quick trips to pacifica, santa cruz, tahoe isnt more than 4 hrs away. there sandhill which is about an hour. good urban at stanford, san fran isnt far away either. Ethnicity, like most places, los altos ,and los altos hills, is primarily white, and very upper class, mountain view and sunnyvale are mixed, youve got the whites, latinos, asians, indians, pretty big mix. I really love living down here, only complaint is everyone seems to be in a rush, so you run into a number of uptight people

 

[Rabie]

Thanks for the info. The reason I ask is that a couple jobs opened up around there (teaching) and the opportunities around here are slim, so I have to be willing to move. I've had some experience at a couple schools around here which were mostly rich white kids, and though it takes some getting used to, it has some benefits (generous PTA), and kids all have their own issues. One of the best things down here, though, is that no matter how homogenous the community where you might be, you're never more than a couple minutes from more diverse areas, so it's good to know there is some of that diversity up there. The cost of living is concerning, though, since I'll be broke. Are there any surrounding areas where people can live more cheaply and commute without too much hassle?

 

[MVRIDER]

What kind of riding do you do? It's all here from xc to dh you're lookin at anywhere from 5 mins. up the hill to 45 mins. away. As far as culture, hmmm, some people refer to this valley as "the pit" with good reason, it's kinda goin to sh!t. If I had to pick one of the 3, it would be Mountain View ( it's in the name), I'm living in Santa Clara now, just cause I'm rooted ( other wise I'd be the F' out of this place!!). As far as night life, out of the 3 M.V. will probably be the best rounded, it's got everything from dive bar watering hole type of places to a couple of night clubs. West of El Camino will be the best part of town, if you can afford it, other wise the good is mixed with the bad, and none of it is really that bad a neighbor hood. Sunnyvale has an alright down town, it's full of yuppies though...wait...it's all full of yuppies!, but on the whole it is a little cheeper to live in. Los Altos is the rich old folks home, there is really nothing interesting there to speak of if you are under 40. Ethinically, both MV and SV are pretty diverse, economically diverse as well. Is the root of your question becase you're thinking of moving up here? Honestly, if you can pick you might try something like Santa Cruz, better culture and closer to the really good riding, like I say the only reason I'm still in the valley is because I've got stuff keeping me here. And that's coming from someone who was born and raised here.

 

[bbmj]

Hey, i would take the teaching job, supposed to be one of the best places to work teaching wise, supposedly the pay and benefits are great. I know there are a few other teachers at one of the local jr highs who ride, so you could probaly hook up with them too. anyways there are tons of riders and roadies up here, great place to live
Shoot, we also have santa clara pal, bmx track, pretty sweet track, theyll let you ride your mtn bike there too, good way to train for ds or4x.

 

[Rabie]

Originally posted by bbmj
Hey, i would take the teaching job, supposed to be one of the best places to work teaching wise, supposedly the pay and benefits are great.

Ha, if only it were as simple as 'taking the job.' In my experience, it has been more a matter of 'apply, wait, grow increasingly disappointed, look elsewhere.' It's pretty competitive right now, esp. with more budget cuts. I'll be applying for sure, though.

And MVRIDER, I mostly ride Dh. Shuttles year-round, and Big Bear in the Summer.

 

[MVRIDER]

Originally posted by Rabie
Ha, if only it were as simple as 'taking the job.' In my experience, it has been more a matter of 'apply, wait, grow increasingly disappointed, look elsewhere.' It's pretty competitive right now, esp. with more budget cuts. I'll be applying for sure, though.

And MVRIDER, I mostly ride Dh. Shuttles year-round, and Big Bear in the Summer.

Ok, good stuff then. Not too many shuttle spots, but some great DH just the same, from here you're lookin at 45 mins. to the UCSC stuff, and about the same to Pacifica. Lots o' good fun to be had at both. There's some really short runs at El Corte de Madera in Woodside, but a LOT of pushing to get back out, I go there mainly for some after work type of stuff in the summer. Best of all, only 3 1/2 hrs to...NORTHSTAR

 

[drtbikrr]

I live the bad part of Mountain View, its not that bad really. I just ame very very very careful about where I put my bike. You should try and make it out here, we could always use another person to ride with.
Nick

 

[MVRIDER]

what neighborhood are you in? Have you lived in the view for a long time?

 

[drtbikrr]

A-most a year now, I live off Rengstorff. Gimmie a call 650-996-7359
Nick

 

[911]

I'd consider Santa Cruz, cheap housing may be more difficult to find... but it's out there. You'd be within minutes of some of the better riding in the bay area. SC is also fairly diverse... both economically and socially/politically.

You may also want to look into Pacifica. Again you'd be super close to great downhill riding and I hear there's some reasonable housing pricies out there. You'd also be a stones throw from San Francisco which has about as much diversity as you can handle.

 

[aussiedude]

There is some pretty good riding in the Santa cruz Mountains. Try Alpine Road or Monte Bello. Hope that helps.

 

[Raacerx]

Another vote for Santa Cruz. I just moved here and the riding is great. Tons of dirt jumps as well. It only takes about 20 minutes to get over Highway 17 (which divides Los Altos/San Jose from Santa Cruz so even if your over the hill your close to the riding.

A lot of it is under the redwoods and always nice and cool. Little dark at times but always tons of traction.