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Boston?

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
So how's the bike life in and around the Boston area? I've got an interview in a few weeks with a small start up company near Boston, Woburn, MA I think is the town. I know from reading the ride reports forum a lot of you NE monkeys ride "vietnam", Lynne woods, and places like that. Those trails look awesome. What's it like living, working and riding around there. I'm currently living in the DC-Baltimore metro area if that helps give you a point of reference.
 

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
63
behind the viewfinder
i thought baltimore was kinda nasty when i was there in november. i think the boston area is one of the best areas around for trail riding opportunities in the country. tons of great trails within a 30 mile radius of the city (and keep in mind about 40% of the radius is covered by the atlantic ocean).

i love living here, to tell you the truth.
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
Just looking at a map. It looks like it's about 90 miles to heart of the White's from Woburn. It's about 90 miles to the nearest 500 ft hill for me now. I think I'll have to seriously consider this!
 

BadDNA

hophead
Mar 31, 2006
4,257
231
Living the dream.
I would seriously consider it. The riding around here can't be beat IMO and as you're noticing, there's even more great riding within a day-trip's distance. If you do make it up here, be sure to drop us northeast monkeys a note and we'll get you hooked up on all sorts of fun rides.
 

Slugman

Frankenbike
Apr 29, 2004
4,024
0
Miami, FL
JDSCHALL - I used to live there, it's got some awesome riding all over the place. Just look at Splat's write ups in the 'ride report' forum.
 

mdc

Monkey
Jul 8, 2006
243
15
Uxbridge
The more I travel around the more I realize that I will never leave New England. The riding is awsome, places like Vietnam, Lynn Woods etc get lots of PR but realistically there is tons of great rides all over the place ( I live 20 minutes from Nam but haven't ridden there in months- to many other fun places to go!) Skiing is close by and the beaches on Cape Cod aren't to far either. The biggest down side? Housing costs- the closer you are to the city, the poorer you can expect to be....
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
I'll keep you guys posted. The biggest issue (besides actually getting an offer) is the salary vs. cost of living. I'm hoping it works out.

I hate to ask, but how is actually getting to the trails? Around here, the closest set of trails is probably 25 miles but if you try to get there after work it can take ~1 hour to get there because of traffic. I imagine boston is similar? In Boston, I've only driven from the airport to downtown and that was a nightmare. Can I expect the same if work was say near the intersection of 95 and 93?

So many what if's. I'm not sure why I'm even asking about this stuff yet. Just gives me stuff to think about I guess.
 

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
63
behind the viewfinder
jdschall, traffic can be no picnic, that's for sure. the fells is the closest, and thus most heavily used trail network near boston. i live about 30 miles away from boston, so i don't get sucked into the traffic mess. if you are working in boston and want to ride after work, yr best bet is to try to leave early, at 4 or 4:30

the intersection of 93 and 95/128 can be a real headache, but there are trail options around. where would you be working?

and remember, rides on weekends where you don't have to worry about traffic, as mtbtom says, are abundant.
 

intensified

Monkey
Mar 31, 2004
519
6
Canton,Ma
i lived in woburn for a year,, at that time the fells was the nearest best trailridin for me..I am in quincy now and blue hills is the best nearby.. Wompatuck is about 35 minutes from woburn w/o traffic..with traffic a lot longer..cost of living can be okay in the burbs if you look around.. hland isnt far from woburn either with a chairlif,,also rt 2 that gets you out to some good spots west of the city..
 

Old Man G Funk

Choir Boy
Nov 21, 2005
2,864
0
In a handbasket
(this is actually mudgrrl writing from OMGFs account)


We JUST moved to Boston (Friday) from DC.

We're in Waltham..

maybe we could do a whole " we're all lost in this area" type of thing?
we already found a good Indian restaurant, and if you want to hang out, send us a pm....

:)

(mudgrrl off)
 

narlus

Eastcoast Softcore
Staff member
Nov 7, 2001
24,658
63
behind the viewfinder
welcome! i'm a bit of a distance from waltham (north andover), but can certainly get together at some point for a ride, beer, or whatever.
 

Old Man G Funk

Choir Boy
Nov 21, 2005
2,864
0
In a handbasket
(This is the real OMGF)

Thanks. I'm looking forward to hitting some trails here. I'm going to have to unpack all my stuff so that I can actually get out there though.
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
I have a phone interview the second week of January. Is it a good sign that they created a new position based around my CV and I have an interview before they officially post the position to the rest of the world?
 

Old Man G Funk

Choir Boy
Nov 21, 2005
2,864
0
In a handbasket
I have a phone interview the second week of January. Is it a good sign that they created a new position based around my CV and I have an interview before they officially post the position to the rest of the world?
It means that they are taking it seriously and are looking to roll if the interview goes well. If they really want you, they can put out the job call written specifically for you, so that you will definitely be the best candidate, which ensures they will be able to hire you. Is it a gov job, or a job with a contractor for the gov?
 

urbaindk

The Real Dr. Science
Jul 12, 2004
4,819
0
Sleepy Hollar
Is it a gov job, or a job with a contractor for the gov?
Neither, it's private industry. They may have some gov contracts though. It's a small tech start-up for a new non-volatile memory technology. They are also looking at building some radiation-hardened memory. Generally speaking, I'm a theorist. I'm not 100% certain why they would want me. Maybe it's to calculate some numbers for their electrical engineers so they can define various operating characteristics of the devices. It will be interesting to talk to them in a week or two and see where I fit into their vision.
 

Old Man G Funk

Choir Boy
Nov 21, 2005
2,864
0
In a handbasket
Neither, it's private industry. They may have some gov contracts though. It's a small tech start-up for a new non-volatile memory technology. They are also looking at building some radiation-hardened memory. Generally speaking, I'm a theorist. I'm not 100% certain why they would want me. Maybe it's to calculate some numbers for their electrical engineers so they can define various operating characteristics of the devices. It will be interesting to talk to them in a week or two and see where I fit into their vision.
That's interesting then that they would want to write up a specific position for you. I've heard of private companies doing that, but generally only when they are employing someone who will work on a contract.

Anyway, good luck. I hope they offer you something, because it's always nice to have options.
 

berkshire_rider

Growler
Feb 5, 2003
2,552
10
The Blackstone Valley
We did look up where Vietnam is... I thought it was near Schenectady for some odd reason...
Not sure what part of Waltham you are in, but it's only about a 40 minute drive from the Waltham area to Vietnam, as long as you don't get jammed up on the pike during the evening commute.

Directions

If you setup an infamous "Splat" tour, you get to park at his house instead, and make a lap or three in his ever-expanding backyard freeride park while there. :thumb:
 

berkshire_rider

Growler
Feb 5, 2003
2,552
10
The Blackstone Valley
So how's the bike life in and around the Boston area? I've got an interview in a few weeks with a small start up company near Boston, Woburn, MA I think is the town. I know from reading the ride reports forum a lot of you NE monkeys ride "vietnam", Lynne woods, and places like that. Those trails look awesome. What's it like living, working and riding around there. I'm currently living in the DC-Baltimore metro area if that helps give you a point of reference.
Bike life is excellent in the Boston area. There's plenty of places to ride, and always someone to ride with. The only real downside to the area is the awful housing prices. There's tons of non-bike stuff to do, as well.
 

Old Man G Funk

Choir Boy
Nov 21, 2005
2,864
0
In a handbasket
Not sure what part of Waltham you are in, but it's only about a 40 minute drive from the Waltham area to Vietnam, as long as you don't get jammed up on the pike during the evening commute.

Directions

If you setup an infamous "Splat" tour, you get to park at his house instead, and make a lap or three in his ever-expanding backyard freeride park while there. :thumb:
Thank you for all the info and stuff.
 

Old Man G Funk

Choir Boy
Nov 21, 2005
2,864
0
In a handbasket
omgf, you like to climb right? here are two rock gyms that are fairly local to you guys.

http://www.metrorock.com/home.html
http://www.bostonrockgym.com/
Actually, MudGrrl and I have already been to metrorock. We checked it out when we came up here to house-hunt, although we didn't have any of our stuff with us, so we didn't climb. We've also done some bouldering at Hammond Pond. She got me a brand new crash pad, and it was warm out (or warm enough at least), and Hammond Pond is only about 20 minutes from our place.

I've heard metrorock is much better than Boston Rock Gym. Do you have any input on the issue?