-holiday76

Ok, I'm been going back and forth as to weather I was going to post this or not in case this doesn't happen, but what the heck. I have a job offer that would have me relocating from my lifelong home in and around Philadephia,Pa to the Bay Area. More specifically the Los Gatos/Saratoga, CA area. I know there are probably some of you around there.

What I want to know is, what kind of bike stuff do I have to look forward to out there? Any great shops? Any great trails? Anything else I should know about riding in the area? I assume it's hilly right? I've been to SF a half a dozen times but never San Jose unless you count the airport.

My wife and I will be visiting there arriving one week from tomorrow and spending the weekend. I know that's a limited amount of time, but is there anything I have to see that might help me decide if I need to move there or not?

I do know bigbossman lives somewhat in this area, but I'm still open to checking it out anyway.



Talk to me.

We will be going out next week, then if I accept the offer we'll be back to find somewhere more permanent to live, in the meantime living in company owned housing somewhere in the area. Are any area's better for riding then others?

I won't tell you whom I might be working for, but I will tell you that I'd like to be in bike commuting distance to 2065 Hamilton Ave, San Jose, CA

bigbossman 

World class cycling, lots and lots of great riding territory. Lots of big climbs, and close to lots more great cycling territory. Expanded riding season (all year), as compared to where you live now. Pretty dense population in that part of the Bay Area.... lots and lots of humanity, which means lots and lots of traffic. Hope you make lots of money - Saratoga/Los Gatos is not a cheap place to live.

BTW - that would be about an hour's drive from me, so you wouldn't be close enough that I'd have to move. It will be easy for us to never meet.

eBay, huh? Don't know much about their working environment/culture, but I sincerely hope for your sake that it isn't like Cisco's.

-holiday76

heh, thanks bbm.
I am aware of the cost of living increase and so forth. Rents are generally twice as expensive there as here. I also know Los Gatos is especially expensive. I mentioned that simply because my new boss/old friend lives there and it is where I'll probably look first. I guess I'll find out more on that front when we get out there.

x136 

If you like climbing, the Whitman campus is a few miles from the base of Mt. Hamilton. 20 or so miles of up. If not, most of the immediate area is pretty flat. Saratoga and Los Gatos are right at the edge of the flat, and there are a ton of beautiful mountain roads all around. Pricey, of course (both housing and... craigslist.), but it's great.

khatfull

Good old Collin2424 never seems to have much problem picking up fun and interesting bikes. He's in San Jose proper (and works for Cisco ).

I'd like the all year riding weather...but the lack of seasons would probably bore me after a while....I wouldn't mind trying it though!

Good luck whatever you decide.

-holiday76

which CL would be the right one for the San Jose /Los Gatos area? this one?

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/

x136 

Yep, that's the one. You can even narrow it down further than just South Bay. Lots and lots to choose from, of course, but the prices are probably a bit (or a lot) higher than you're used to .

illwafer

i lived in SF/Palo Alto for a short while. your mind will be blown. take the opportunity and experience the west coast.

imo, you may want to have a multi-modal commute and live further up north. you would be doing yourself a injustice living too far from SF (and OAK/Berkeley). you can ride the train north/south.

noglider 

You two guys must have some history I'm not aware of. I hope you're just ribbing. Eh. You probably are, so I'll relax.

seedsbelize 

You know, khatfull, I thought that too. But I've been in the tropics and subtropics for ten years now, and have yet to come anywhere close to boredom. We still have seasons; just different kinds. All of them warm, which is very, very nice. We're just now sliding into Winter, which consists of 5 months of perfect riding weather.

Whatever you decide, holiday, will be correct. Enjoy the process.

-holiday76

jesus man, havent you read enough crap from me to realize almost nothing I type is serious ? ha

Thanks for the feedback guys! Much appreciated.

fender1

Is this all just a ruse to skip town with my pedals??? You are pure evil........

-holiday76

No, I already sold those on Ebay.

noglider, I'm just joking here again. I wouldnt do that.

3alarmer 

There really are more garage hanger treasures here in NorCal/Bay area
than I can begin to describe. I hope you don't ride a 58cm.

Actually, strike that. I just bought a Holdsworth today in Santa Clara
that my wife is certain I did not need, so you would probably be doing
me a favor.

All I can say is look for a house with a large garage or storage area.

And everything BBM said about length of season and avilability of
varied terrain....from climbs in the foothills to genuine mountain
biking in the Sierra to slow flat touring in the Delta is all laid out
at your pleasure.

I'm in Sacramento...I think maybe BBM is too. We've not met,
because this town ain't big enough for the both of us.

wrk101

I moved several times in my career, and welcomed the adventure and experiences in a new area. BUT, I had several people working for me that had never moved, and they made that first move, and it was often a disaster. Why? They were not prepared for all the change, both little and large: moving away from family, moving away from where you knew where everything was and a certain comfort with it, changing doctors, dentists, changing and opening a new bank account, safety deposit box, setting up new utilities accounts, packing and moving, etc. And of course, the dreaded: comparison with how things were back home. The food was better, the taxes were lower, the people were nicer, etc. And in your new town (and new job), people don't want to hear it. Little crap bothered them and their families. As if setting up a new bank account is a big deal. OK, moving away from family is certainly a big deal.

I watched people move 100 miles and you would have thought it was some total freakin disaster!!! Meanwhile, every move I made was at least 800 miles, and several were across the country. "Lifelong home" is a red flag to me. I grew up in Illinois, and sorry midwest guys, I couldn't wait to get out of dodge. So my first move was to Seattle.

So my advice to anyone considering that first move, is to look around the room a while. How close are your ties to the area? Family, church, hobbies, whatever? How about family members? Moves are usually a lot harder on family members than the person moving for a job. You will have work to meet people and occupy your time. Meanwhile, the family could be sitting in a hotel room (or apartment), moping and griping.

Kind of funny story, when I lived in Mountain Top, PA, I had a neighbor tell me they were homesick, and were going to sell their house and move back home. And where was home? Wilkes Barre, about 10 miles away........

noglider 

Well Bill, when you're used to being able to drop in on your folks several times a day with minimal travel or planning time, and when that's the most important thing to you, 10 miles can be a deal breaker.

Or you get used to the different life and you deal.

I haven't ever moved far. I moved from Manhattan (NYC) to Boston to go to college. I stayed there for a year afterwards. Being about 225 miles from New York, Boston was a comfortable distance. I wanted to be far from my parents, but not too far.

I moved back to New York, because it made sense for me. I lived there for a few more years. Then after getting married, my wife (my first wife) convinced me we should move to the suburbs in New Jersey. I had to buy my first car. She had to learn to drive. But we liked it.

At some point in my early adult life, I decided I didn't want to move out of the NYC metro area, because I didn't want to be far from family. Maybe it would have been a good idea to move then, but as time progressed, it became a decision that solidified, and I'm not going to do it, if ever, until my parents and my wife's parents die. They only have a few years left.

That's why I advise you (Brian) to consider moving now. It's easier now than it will be later. And look at how many grandparents manage to visit and love their grandchildren across such distances. How about people who move to this country from places like India! They go back for a month every year. Or maybe the parents come here and live here half the year. It's hard, but it's rarely a life-crushing move. And you can come back if it doesn't suit you. Just be sure to give it a good try, say, for about a year or two.

I remarried eight years ago, and my wife Carol has been an incredibly good stepmother to my daughters, so much that I call them OUR daughters. My younger daughter says that Carol is her real mother. So anyway, OUR daughters are both in college, and we no longer owe them a place to crash. Money is bad for us, as it is for many people, and we need to downsize. Plus Carol moved out of Manhattan to be with the girls and me. She doesn't love it here. I owe it to her to move where she wants. Of course, we'll come up with an agreement, but she wants to move back, and I don't blame her. It will be an adjustment for me, because I've been in the NJ suburbs since 1987. I figure we'll move in about two years. I'm preparing my mind for it. Or at least I think I am.

-holiday76

well, I didnt intend this to become an "if I should move" type thing but that's OK.

I just mentioned "lifelong" home to get across the point that I've never moved that far. I've traveled a lot, but I've always lived in the Philly area, went to college here (Temple U) and have roots here. In fact my family has been in Philly proper and surrounding burbs since at least the 1600's as far as I can tell (genealogy is a hobby).

Anyhow, the job opportunity is basically a once in a lifetime opportunity in a lot of ways. The pay is excellent even taking into account cost of living, there is a signing bonus, they're paying for the move, putting us up for a few months until we find something, covering the closing costs on selling my house, there is stock, it that stuff makes sense. It does and will come down to family. If this was 5 years ago it would be a no brainer, but these days I'm married with a 1 and a 2 year old. It will be hard to decide to take my kids away from their grandparents and cousins. And the g-parents are giving all sorts of guilt trips to stay here too, which isnt helping. The wife is ready to go tomorrow.

It will be a hard decision.

I did just find out today I have yet another job offer from a current client that is located 30 miles away instead of 3,000. It's a good one too, but I'm not sure if that makes the choice easier or harder. I'm grateful to have choices, especially in this economy, don't get me wrong...

Anyhow, I don't expect this thread to help me decide, just figured maybe I could hear from some of the local cyclists about the area. Thanks again.

noglider 

I hear you that you're grateful, but be sure to pat yourself on your back and do a little dance or something, because you are so, so, so lucky to have such good choices right now. You must be really good, as well as really lucky.

-holiday76

I've found a lot of things are a good bit of luck, but not being a complete idiot can also help. I mostly rely on the luck....

speaking of that I havent had a lot of it this year, the one that started off with me getting laid off.

DiegoFrogs

HA! You know, that sort of thing is really isolated to that area of the country. I grew up in Scranton and graduated from a small school in Wilkes-Barre.

I know you're a chemist, or chemical engineer or the like. Semiconductor industry? That's what I'm up to out here in the southwest...

DRietz

If you care at all to go on a ride while you're here, let me know. I'd be happy to show you some stuff in the East Bay, or even climb Hamilton with ya!

chaiwalli

The peninsula is a great, great place to live (I just left there - Mountain View - for a job in Charlottesville, VA and miss it sorely). Lots and lots of great rides and clubs, everything from the San Jose Bike Party to the Western Wheelers Bicycle Club: incredible places to ride, from the city to the mountains to the ocean, all within about 45 minutes or so. Saratoga is pricey, but Santa Clara (right next door) is not. If you've got a good offer, there are lots of factors you'll be weighing, but the location - in all kinds of ways - is superlative. I won't even bother mentioning some of the most amazing food in the country, because the demographics give the Bay Area an astoundingly diverse population..... Enjoy yourself!

Kobe 

Go! I'm tired of competing with you for the larger bikes on CL. Wait, maybe you will need to sell some of yours before the move. This could be good for ME.

I have lived in the Philly are for over 30 years, but I have always said if I was going to move it would be to the Bay area. I know you may be thinking now is not a good time to move but your kids are young enough that you don't have to worry about moving them out of school. Once they start it is hard for them to make the switch. We are thinking of moving to a larger house, but with kids in school the area we are looking is within a 2 mile radius.

Your kids are young enough that if it does not work out you can move back before they even start. Good luck either way.

noglider 

Oh yeah, the food. The food!

Glennfordx4

Congrats & lucky you, my wife and I have lived in this area our whole lives, me I'm from Philly but moved to NJ with my mom in 1978 to be closer to the grandparents & a aunt, but everybody in our family is gone now and we want out. I have a uncle that lives in Ashville NC and we would love to live closer to him. My wife is in the realestate/morgage field and finding a job that is steady and pays well or is even hiring is next to impossible, me I can work anywhere you put me.

We had ways of leaving the area when we were younger but stayed because of family & friends, hind site is 20/20.