[corey_rideDC]

i'm perpetually looking for a new place to live it seems. the wife loves water... i love mountains. a coworker mentioned charlotte to me this morning and i've been doing a little digging. seems nice. very cheap (compared to DC). lake norman is friggin huge, blue ridge is nearby. the town of huntersville seems like a nice little place. i'm content with suburbia as long as i have room for my bicycles and sportbikes.

so what is the riding like near charlotte? i mostly ride DJs, street/park & DH now... nothing too pedally. would i have fun in charlotte?

anybody need a good graphic/web designer down there?

thanks for the input as always!

 

[legend_killer]

charlotte's freeride scene from what I know sucks but the scene in raleigh is good and getting better, check out www.trianglemtb.com and www.smallbrowndog.com

JT

 

[zod]

Corey, the Charlotte region is real nice, good local riding scene, good job market, primo riding up in the mountains, and beach trips only take a few hours too. If I were you I would look outside of Mecklenburg County as to escape the tax rape which would mean going farther out than Huntersville. Land on Lake Norman is far from cheap so plan on trips to the lake unless you are wealthy or like being in major debt. There are several cheap counties in the surrounding area and commutes are not bad. I live one county out of Charlotte and drive 35 minutes to work.

The local riding scene rocks.....good urbans, an abundance of trails within 1 hour, a good amount of freeride/north shore is popping up all the time, there is a strong local XC race series, and the mountain trails are to die for.....especially the less known routes.

As for DH.....Charlotte ain't exactly geographically condusive to DH but the mountains have some really nice stuff. That being said I suggest you start pedalling and stop missing out. There is some good stuff up in them hills and you can't shuttle 95% of it

 

[Mr Tiles]

charlotte's freeride scene from what I know sucks but the scene in raleigh is good and getting better, check out www.trianglemtb.com and www.smallbrowndog.com

JT

I don't guess you've been to PeeWee's then. There's enough "freeride" there to keep anybody busy for a while. Also, about 30-45 NW of Charlotte are some insane freeride lines in Hickory Park.

Sometimes we organize a "Big Sunday Urban." The smallbrowndog crowd usually has a good showing anywhere from 10-20 riders. Also, there is a pretty good crowd of trials riders in Charlotte that ride with pretty much anybody so there always an opportunity to hit up a good street session. There are some pretty good skateparks in the area too. Come on down, we'll show ya around - good luck!

 

[brian wilkinson]

you want dirt jumps, winstons got dirt jumps, can i get an AMEN somebody?

 

[legend_killer]

I don't guess you've been to PeeWee's then. There's enough "freeride" there to keep anybody busy for a while. Also, about 30-45 NW of Charlotte are some insane freeride lines in Hickory Park.

Sometimes we organize a "Big Sunday Urban." The smallbrowndog crowd usually has a good showing anywhere from 10-20 riders. Also, there is a pretty good crowd of trials riders in Charlotte that ride with pretty much anybody so there always an opportunity to hit up a good street session. There are some pretty good skateparks in the area too. Come on down, we'll show ya around - good luck!

i siad "from what i know" so i guess i don't know sh!t

JT

 

[escapeartist]

you want dirt jumps, winstons got dirt jumps, can i get an AMEN somebody?

A-Fricken-Men

 

[zod]

PeeWee's in L-town right outside Charlotte also has some nice dirt jumps.......
Catawba right in Charlotte has a DS course and a DH course but Catawba is closed while they build the lazy river for the US Whitewater Team

 

[corey_rideDC]

awesome, thanks for all the info guys! are the taxes in n meck really THAT bad? i mean, i'm coming from the super-hyper-over-inflated northern VA region here... looks like the cost of living is 16% lower than up here. while the jobs only pay 6% less.

the riding scene is definitely just what i'm looking for, that's definitely good news!

thanks again!

 

[zod]

It's all relative I guess.......

If you like having your taxes raised on a whim then Mecklenburg County is the place for you.......otherwise I would seriously suggest looking at living in one of the surrounding counties.

You get a lot more bang for your buck as far as real estate goes when you get out of Charlotte as well. My house is about 2000 sq.ft. on 3.5 acres, cost a little over 200K several years ago, the same house in Charlotte would likely cost close to 300K on a half acre lot. I hate the suburbs, neighborhood covenants, nightlife, and like living in the country away from crime......so staying out of Charlotte is a no brainer for me.

It's all in what you like though, a lot of people in Charlotte would hate living out where I live and would gladly pay higher taxes and housing. Just be sure to do your research; I know a lot of people who have moved out of Charlotte to the surrounding counties after getting sick of the way Charlotte is run.

 

[Mr Tiles]

I hate the suburbs, neighborhood covenants, nightlife, and like living in the country away from crime......so staying out of Charlotte is a no brainer for me.

Yeah, but you are a hermit that lives on a pleasure mammal stunt ranch. You're not like everybody else...

I live further out in the sticks than Zod does and Charlotte is still only a 25-30 drive. It's nothing for us to throw an urban ride in Charlotte together on a weekday night just because it's convenient.

 

[NCBMXPRO]

Hey there. Ive lived in Huntersville for about 15 years now. When I moved here the population was around 3,000, now its up to 30. Great place to live if you dont mind traffic, coming from DC im sure your used to that.

The riding is good. At least for me. I race bmx and 4x. There are great trails about 20 min. away but are pretty tech. BMX track about 20min away. About 3 MTB trails within 20min. Some good north shore stuff at pee wees about 45 minutes away. You can get to the slopes for some good downhill in about 2hrs and get to the beach in 3.

Anymore questions? Hit me up NCBMXPRO@AOL.com

Will

 

[skurfer333]

theres great urban stuff here, theres some dirt jumps in parks and stuff, but the real stuff is privately owned/maintained....its all about who you know

 

[T-Pirate]

Greenville is closer to the mountains. We have lakes Hartwell, Keowee, and Jocassee within an hour. Pisgah and Asheville are under an hour and a half. You can be at the beach in 3. Just a thought. The scene is whats lacking. Secret DJ spots abound.

 

[Mr Tiles]

Greenville is closer to the mountains. We have lakes Hartwell, Keowee, and Jocassee within an hour. Pisgah and Asheville are under an hour and a half. You can be at the beach in 3. Just a thought. The scene is whats lacking. Secret DJ spots abound.

well, it's been a while. I need to talk to you about your camera when you get a chance. Drop me a line at superlight@gmail.com. And I still haven't forgot about a road trip to G-Vegas. PZ keeps us busy as you may know. Later.

 

[biggins]

yo corey whats up dawg? well, charlotte is two hours from here. and not far from the beach either. There is a pile of 3rb0n a55ault riding there. You will be close to lots of cool places as well and just think, if you are heading out to lake norman you might get to bump into nascar super stars like Dale Jr.! GO NUMBER 8!!!!!!

 

[corey_rideDC]

yo benny, damn... you uncovered my whole strategy for moving to charlotte, i just want to be a nascar groupie!!

yeah, sounds like a super cool place, i've yet to hear a really bad thing about it. we might pack the baby up in some months and go for a visit.