[jonKranked]

I am 45 minute away from anything. At least it is the good stuff.

Well, there is shit closer, but not even worth getting into a car for IMO.

i've got 2 sets of trails 10 minutes away. one is on federal land and is in a constant state of needing maintenance, so i've stopped bothering.

the other trails are in a state park, and since covid has been overrun with people hell bent on building trails but not having any fucking clue what they're doing. plus the back half of the trails are downslope from a superfund site so its stupid to be even building there in the first place. the only decent sections of the trails were sanitized by these same assholes. i've written the whole place off.

 

[eric strt6]

This is where I used to live. I miss it but not the 1 hour round trip to the nearest store (does not include "In Store or in town time")

 

[mykel]

Grew up in a small village - about 500 people.
This is where I learned to ride on dirt. If you wanted to get anywhere, the fastest way was trail. There were miles of single track dirtbike trails and also a moto track cut into the local woods that some of the "local" city riders would come out for test and tune days. That made for some awesome riding, we ran backwards, down the big woop covered hills the moto guys climbed.

Moved to a town of 10 000 - riding was ok, some trail, a little practice moto track, overall meh. Still riding home built bikes, this is about 1980

Next was a town of 30 000 and the beginning of The Pines riding area and my first commercial "Mountain Bike" somewhere around 1990.

On to the big city of 400 000, not much known riding, but some interesting underground stuff ie Meadowlily.

Back to the 30 000 and more riding at the Pines.

Now a bit south in a town of 16 000. Local ravine system, "Swance Drain" and about 45 minutes from either The Pines or Turkey Point and an 90 minutes from The Hydrocut. Lift service for the big bike is either Blue or Horseshoe, both of which are 3+ hours away.

Am so jealous of people who have actual terrain and trail systems, not stacked trails built on the Lake Erie floodplain. Hell even @canadmos living a couple hours north has actual rox and hills. Bastard.

 

[jstuhlman]

1974-1988: Bridgewater, CT (pop. 1500), not near any major urban areas. Fancy rural area, but we were not fancy. (preacher's kid). Parents got house in small town in coastal Maine, where we spent summers. They live there now. While I couldn't wait to get out as a kid, seems somewhat idyllic now. Under 2 hours to NY, rolling hills, seems like a bunch of nice mtb trails in the area now. Maybe 2 hours to somewhere like Thunder?
1988-1992: Durham, NC. Loved it. Skated all over downtown. So stoked to get away from the same 20 kids I'd known for the first 13 years of my life. Would live in that area again. Pretty suburban, but has gotten pricey. 3 hours + to mountains though.
1992-1996: Brunswick, ME. College. Whatevs. Stopped skating. Skied a lot at Sunday River.
1996-1998: Chicago. Grad school. Great time in my life to be in a city. Would not want to repeat now. Got my first "mountain" bike to ride on miles of bike paths in the area with my wife.
1998-2003: Charlottesville, VA. College town in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains. In general, an Where I started mountain biking. Some trails near town, but more 1-2 hours into the mountains.
2003-2006: Plantation, FL. NO. just no.
2006-present: Charlotte, NC. Have a house on 1/2 acre inside of city limits. Acres of woods/swamp/river/protected land out the back door. Can't really walk to amenities, but have everything we really need in a 5-10 minute radius. Downtown, with every cultural amenity you could want, 20 minutes. Could ride 1/2 hour to nearby trails, but otherwise, have maybe 15 different trails systems within a 1/2 hour drive - maybe 200+ miles of singletrack total. 1 1/2 - 2 hours to the mountains. 2 - 3 hours to a couple of different lift-served options; 5 hours to Windrock or Snowshoe.

In many ways, this is ideal for us. We have 2 young kids in a decent school system, a good sized house with a nice yard and open land behind it. A lot of nearby trails, mountains (and beach) not too far. Year-round riding, really. Seeing as I work in an art museum, it's pretty ideal. I don't want to live in a bigger city, sacrifice year-round riding, or move further into the South. So we've stayed. I'm always looking for land in the mountains, or a small cabin. Still kicking myself for letting one in particular get away a few years ago. I could really only see moving somewhere in the Pacific NW or mid-Atlantic. But there aren't a ton of jobs in my field at my level that would afford me the lifestyle I have now. Counting my blessings . . .

 

[stevew]

favorite house....could not be seen from road...10 acres of field....

 

[canadmos]

Am so jealous of people who have actual terrain and trail systems, not stacked trails built on the Lake Erie floodplain. Hell even @canadmos living a couple hours north has actual rox and hills. Bastard.

Hey now don't be too jealous, I live in Georgina on the wrong side of Lake Simcoe, so still have to drive a good hour to them gnur and rox.

But yes the hills up this way are much better.

Can't wait until spring to get up there and ride the rox and gnarrrrrrrr. And get eaten alive by bugs.

 

[Nick]

View attachment 153487

favorite house....could not be seen from road...10 acres of field....

I have a sweet aerial view...

it was cozy !

 

[mykel]

Hey now don't be too jealous, I live in Georgina on the wrong side of Lake Simcoe, so still have to drive a good hour to them gnur and rox.

But yes the hills up this way are much better.

Can't wait until spring to get up there and ride the rox and gnarrrrrrrr. And get eaten alive by bugs.

Ya, the bugs suck, but at least we don't have anything actively trying to kill us.

 

[stevew]

I have a sweet aerial view...
View attachment 153489

it was cozy !

oddly enough....we were not in that house but for like 4 years before my dad was threatened with "you have two choices....nashville or chicago"....chose nashville...

after nashville for about 6 years....the choice was chicago or fuck off....chose fuck off...

 

[StiHacka]

Having lived on both sides of the big pond for considerable time, I don't think that the Murican experiences are very relatable in Yurp. I would love to live in an old center of an old small-ish city/large town in the EU (let's say 50-150k inhabitants), I just cannot imagine enjoying anything similar in the US. US - get as far away from the large cities as you can get away with while still being able to hang on to your career dreams. EU - old city/town centers FTW.

 

[jdcamb]

I have always lived in Cities. Not for any reason. I am currently planning a change. I loved living in Somerville mass. And would like to live there again.

 

[StiHacka]

I loved living in Somerville mass. And would like to live there again.

 

[SkaredShtles]

Spent the 1st 18 years of my life in the sticks of Michigan's Thumb area
College was in Kalamazoo, MI - around 100K population
Moved straight to suburban Front Range after college
Would *love* to do life as a "resident tourist" in many places in Europe - thinking small-ish cities (20K-50K residents), moving every now and again to somewhere new.

 

[jdcamb]

Davis Sq is pretty cool. Even now.

 

[Westy]

Spent the 1st 18 years of my life in the sticks of Michigan's Thumb area
College was in Kalamazoo, MI - around 100K population
Moved straight to suburban Front Range after college
Would *love* to do life as a "resident tourist" in many places in Europe - thinking small-ish cities (20K-50K residents), moving every now and again to somewhere new.

Having lived in two mid-west states explains why you are so worldly

 

[iRider]

I am pretty close to my ideal setup:
- commute to work in less than an hour by bike (<30 mins by car)
- as much distance to neighbors as I can afford
- property big enough to have some jumps/a pump track on
- enough workshop space
- fairly good mountain bike riding within riding distance (two spots less than 5 km away)
- quiet roads for road riding
- grocery store/bakery within 5-10 mins by car
Only thing I am missing are proper mountains in day trip distance, but this is Denmark.

 

[velocipedist]

I was born in Colorado and mostly grew up in South Dakota and Wyoming (Paha Sapia?) and moved to Tokyo for my initial try at higher education. As has been mentioned cities are much nicer to visit than live in.

Moved to Seattle after returning to the states and Bellingham after, which was awesome. Chasing work took me to Yuma Arizona (really sweet singletrack surprisingly) in the Summer and Fall and Winter in Maryland and Spring in Seattle/Factoria. That was fun for the six odd years it continued.

Moved to Nikko in Tochigi (80,000 population, third largest 'city' by landmass in Japan, I miss getting chased by wild boar and monkeys while riding) when my eldest was born.

I desperately want to get back, but jobs and all. It was 45min car or train to a city of 700,000 (Utsunomiya) so a sweet spot of ultra rural to ultra urban that felt unique to Japan (maybe similar in the EU?).

Sadly Fukushima fukushima'ed my life up and I wound up returning to South Dakota to finish my degree. Was hesitant to take a job in Georgia, but the density of worldclass bouldering was way better than the Ohio/Indiana options. I live in a cabin on a rural mountain, lucked into some sweet trail options within 30min and Chattanooga is only 40mi north if I need/want 'city'.

Current job in Steele Alabama with a 65mi one way commute had me looking closer, but COL and general crime stats made me think otherwise. And the moto gets awesome mpg and makes the commute funner.

Thanks to covid Japan has suspended all tourist visa immigration (might reopen in the Spring, doubtful Americans will be allowed given our winning trends).

Midterm/longterm goal is to find work in the outskirts of Utsunomiya, preferably before my kids start high school, which depressingly seems less and less likely, at least they get to live in Japan...

Life sucks make hard choices and find your happiness, things and places help, but only you can decide the input variables that might make that happen.

TLDR: with train access I would keep an eye out for your riding centric dream spot, city/suburb life drags on you mentally and no amount of 'convenience' is worth that to me.

Good luck

 

[narlus]

Like a Bronte novel, but with lifted pickups.

perfect.


i grew up in a suburb (outside Spfld MA before that area became a true shithole), went to college in a small city (Providence), and then moved to Boston when i got a job. moved to the 'burbs when family generation was starting, and lived there for a long time, outside of a 15 month stint in dublin. got divorced, moved to the city, and now i'm in a shittier cheaper city (lowell) because i was out of work for 9 months and paying cambridge rent didn't make sense to me because all the good things about living in a city (restaurants, concerts, hanging with friends) became a moot point.

so, thinking about the three possibilities for living (boonies, 'burbs or bustling city), in a normal like i would probably default to city living. i don't have to worry about kids or school, so there is one major decision aspect eliminated. i do like the energy of a city but the noise and hearing people above and/or below you can get old real fast. (note - my current apt is the best place i've ever lived in, and old mill bldg w/ brick and giant exposed beams, 12' ceilings and newly renovated, but my windows look out to the rail and bus station and idling buses start up around 4:45AM each day). easy access to bike trails, ski areas, hiking trails, esp is important but i could never live in the sticks... i would go insane. the burbs? the upside is that you get a yard and garage and more space, but the burbs are pretty boring and generally homogenous. at least around boston. oh, and having an airport kinda close by is a big plus too. nothing like facing a 2 hr drive home after you've flown across an ocean.

so, i've made up my mind.

do you prefer the Fairies or Motorhead's version?

 

[boostindoubles]

I have lived the country life almost my entire existence. I did college towns for a decade but even those were po-dunk rural communities. I've traveled the American West extensively and some traveling back east also. I have been to various countries around the world and its the same everywhere. Visiting cities is fun, there is lots of stuff to buy and food to try.

Not only am I a country bumkin, I am also a Rez rat. That means I am wired for elbow room. I can go outside and yell for my dog without worrying that someone else can hear me. It's dark at night and you can't hear cars or people. Town is 15 minutes away. I asked a 90 yr old man once if he would be willing to move into a nursing home in town. His response also sums up mine - "You want to live in town? FUCK town."

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

If its any consolation, your ridiculous housing market is probably not unique to your area. The proliferation of cheap money has lots of people entirely too comfortable borrowing more than they could ordinarily because financing costs are so low. Eventually rates will go up, house prices will fall, people will now be underwater on their loans, and things will crash, again.

I agree on the insane housing markets everywhere.
But its not just people buying way more than they can afford.

A lot of wealth is accumulated in the form of real estate by those able to borrow money at the inflation rate or under.
There is a bunch of really rich people with 9 digit credit lines at 1-2%/year buying at the major markets worldwide, which in turn drive the price up in smaller markets. The low homeownership rates in prime markets like NYC or San Francisco suggest that.
I dont think its a bubble, it just reflects the amount of cheap money out there.

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

On the topic.

I grew up in a fairly large house in a suburban ghetto right in the middle of a 10 million people city. (back then It was probably half that), which had all the benefits of suburban/small city living and large city living.
Something way out of reach for a mere mortal nowadays with the insane housing markets everywhere.

Then at 17 I moved to New York City and then to Alabama for college.
I have also spent some months living in southern florida, venezuela and then in a display of very questionable decision-making I moved back to Lima at age 23, and now at 37 I live in a 1500sq ft appartment right back in the same suburban ghetto in the middle of a huge city, no more than 200 yards away from the house I grew up in.
Where I live is pretty much defined by my occupation. I have never lived more than 15 minutes/5 miles away from work.

I also have spent some time in several big cities in the world. LA, SF, Dallas, Tokyo, Nagoya, Frankfurt, London, Paris, Sao Paulo, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, etc...

If I could make a lot of choices again... I´d probably choose a lifestyle that allowed me to live in a small town and quite possibly a rural area.
I was in New Orleans on vacation a few years ago with my wife... and we would daydream about moving to a place like fairhope, alabama (a tiny town next to the beach) or to the hills right out of Stuttgart, which is probably as big of a city I would like.

 

[boogenman]

i grew up on the border of the burbs and farm land out in western PA in a one road town, maybe 40 minutes outside Pittsburgh. spent a lot of time in PGH (oakland especially) in HS.

I never knew that you are a yinzer

 

[jonKranked]

I never knew that you are a yinzer

yup.

 

[rideit]

Iron City Inbred

 

[scrublover]

Town of about 10k in Oregon growing up. Spent a year in HS as an exchange student in Berlin. That certainly opened my eyes a bit as a dumbass 15 year old American kid.

Moved to Eugene after HS for a few years.

Denver metro for a year. Boston metro for two years. Back to Colorado for near six years, but north of Boulder. Then to wester CT, an hour north of NYC about 14 years ago. Not anyplace I'd ever have thought to end up, but here we are. Have travelled and vacationed enough in big and small places.

The compromise between Mrs. Scrub and myself. I'd be quite happy back more west/smaller town/mountainous. She'd go for the big city urban thing. Here isn't perfect for either of us, but it's pretty good for the two of us. Easy enough to go play in the woods, though drivetime is needed for lifts, sustained mountains, backcountry sort of stuff. But we also have the benefit of the art/culture/food/music of being this close to NYC.

One big thing for the both of us is lack of shitty commutes. Both our workplaces are within 3 miles of our little house. Close enough to a couple major airports. Big box stores and lots of little Mom and Pop places.

The single thing I absofuckinglutely hate here is the humidity in summer. Ugh.

If she dies or divorces me, somewhere Western Slope might be the spot.