thinktubes 

I grew up in Crystal Lake. Sterne's Woods, was "Old Man" Sterne's farm at the time. Used to blast through there on a dirt bike. Fished at Moraine Hills. Couple of good hills out in Bull Valley.

Doesn't compare to what I've seen in the PNW.

non-fixie 

Here in Holland we have an excellent cycling infrastructure by pretty much any standard:



And I don't like it much.

It's flat, it's windy, it's often busy, very safe and - frankly - pretty boring as well.



I much prefer the ancient roads of southern Europe, meandering from town to town through the hilly countryside. So whenever I get the chance I take my bike to France or Italy.

amedias

I’m from the UK, and there’s a few things I always find alien when they get discussed by you (mostly US) guys:

1 - fenders/mud guards, some of you get it as you have similar climate, but I’m always baffled by the concept of being able to ride a bike without them except for 3-4 weeks in the height of summer.

its not even that I ride in the rain much, it’s the fact that the roads are always a ‘bit’ wet as it probably has recently rained and not dried out yet, it’s the water from underneath we need protection from not above.

2 - gearing... now this is not just about elevation, it’s about gradient.

i honestly struggle to imagine living in a place where there are no hills, I saw a ride posted by a guy the other day, 100miles and 1000ft if climbing, we average 1000ft per 10miles here!

But overall elevation isn’t as high as most mountainous areas so on top of that it’s not done as alpine climbs at 6-7% for a long time, it’s all short sharp twisty stuff... 10% is a gentle hill here, the steep ones are 20% and the horrible ones are 30% (not all of the UK is like this, just my local bit)

so.... I find it hard to relate to people who can ride standard doubles, compacts are even a struggle on long or hillier rides here, and I’ve been met with incredulous looks when I’ve suggested a 1:1 crawler gear is a good idea, people think or assume I’m just lazy.

3 - tyres, our roads are bad, really really bad. 23mm tyres are for crits and main roads only for short periods. 25-28 is much better but if you venture into our county lanes then the bigger the better. This is another one of those ‘you don’t get it till you’ve ridden it’ things.

dkatz1

Oh, I have found I can get flats on a wide variety of surfaces! Though (knocking on wood) I haven't had many lately, and fact, not any. But have had plenty at one time or another.

dkatz1

I spent a year with tubeless. Never again.

obrentharris 

Let me add another dimension to our discussion. It's not just weather and terrain that make our rides different. It's also our personal history.
My first 50 mile ride was in 1965. I've been riding the roads of the greater San Francisco Bay Area steadily since then. I'm used to the sometimes-narrow shoulders and heavy traffic on our coastal Highway 1 and our other rural roads. I don't pay much attention to it. I'm somewhat baffled by the newer riders with lime green jackets and flashing lights front and rear in broad daylight. I'm sure they are equally baffled by me and are sure that I'm going to be mowed down by a wayward Prius just around the next bend. I can't count the times I've been riding with other cyclists, having a fine time, when one shouts something about a passing vehicle like "Oh my God! That car almost ran us off the road!" We all have different expectations.

I commuted to work by bicycle for a few years. I was warned by fellow cyclists about the municipal buses. At first I was intimidated by how close the bus drivers, driving their wide buses in narrow lanes, would come to me as they passed. After a while I learned that those bus drivers know exactly how wide their bus is, even if it is only 18 inches away from my handlebars. It's the cars you have to watch out for: The only times I've been run off the road were by cars who thought they could safely make that turn in front of that "slow" bicycle. (also the BMW coming around a blind turn on the wrong side of the road) I completely understand those urban riders with flashing light front and rear while riding at night in San Francisco.

Brent

rccardr 

We should ride sometime.
I usually do the W&OD once a week, one week east from Vienna (32 miles round trip, about 2 hours), the next week west to Purcelleville from the lot at Pacific (42 miles round trip, anout 2 hours 20 mins).

BEC111

Definitely. When do you do these rides? My informal group does our five or ten mile rides on weekdays. Longer rides are for weekends, though we’re discussing a weekday when the others can take the day off from work. I’m retired so that’s not an issue for me.

walnutz

Totally agree. Rain in central Texas actually just means it's storming and it also probably came out of nowhere, so you can't plan for it anyway. I ride all the time and commute and don't have fenders either. You just don't want to be out when it rains.