spelger

stink. i can't stand them. i like curvy roads. i'll even take straight with hills just so long as i can't see too far up ahead. long straight road bore me and makes the ride seem longer.

what is your take?

BoraxKid

wow, of all people, a weab discriminating against the straights? I never expected to find such hypocrisy on this welcoming, internet forum for bicycle riders. what has the world come to?

I like all kinds of "roads" straight, not-straight, somewhere in between...they're all beautiful from my saddle

Troul 

I like straights that makes it easy to see other moving objects. If it's straight & it impedes my ability to be assertive, rather be on the swinging roads.

livedarklions

Into a headwind, boringest ride ever. With a tailwind, I'm Superman. Calm, I have to make it interesting. I tend to push myself really hard on such roads, and I find it fun to see how fast I can go on the flat. Also, kind of depends on the scenery off of the road.

Reflector Guy

In some parts of the country, almost all of the roads are straight.

sarhog

...yet in others, almost none of them are...

Reflector Guy

An amazing corollary! Something to consider for those seeking to move to where the roads are more to their liking.

indyfabz

Look at the DOT map of North Dakota. Lots of grid roads. At least there is some undulating terrain in places.

indyfabz

Crossing the country I sustained 32.5 mph riding with four panniers and a tent on the platform of my front rack on the High Line in north central Montana with a massive tailwind. Talk about straight and flat. The only curves and hill I remember on that particular 20 mile stretch were for the bridge to get you over the railroad. Finally got into the red zone for too long and had to dial it back to 28 mph.

I was trying to catch our tour leader who had a long head start. Almost did, but I ran out of real estate.

Flip Flop Rider

wish I had a stretch of 5-10 straight miles with no traffic. Would love to close the interstate and ride for miles

caloso

Depends. If I'm doing long intervals, a long straight road makes it easier to maintain a steady power.

BHG6

It bugs the $*%& of me lol. All we have here are straight roads with 90 degree turns. Maricopa County is basically a 10,000 square mile grid

Tusk

Family friend was a fighter pilot based in North Dakota prior to solid navigation systems. During hard maneuvers, the nav system would lose its calibration. They would line up with a 'mile road' and recalibrate, Straight and due north.

Personally, I prefer curves. Straights just go on forever and suck my life force.

downtube42

I grew up in Indiana, where navigation is in squares, even hundred named county roads can be counted to go for miles, fifty roads only go a mile or so, and twenty-five roads can dead end. Occasionally a hundred road might tee into a state highway, but you can count on another fifty or hundred road soon.

Now I live in western Oregon, where you can't count on roads doing anything predictable. Twisting curving, following rivers and terrain, zigzagging up for miles only to dead end. You might even find yourself riding on the interstate shoulder for a long while.

I'll take the hilly twisties over the straight flats, though the highway miles detract.

indyfabz

Likely Minot. There is a big Air Force base just north of the city. We had a day off there. IIRC, we made a right out of the state park, an eventual left and then an eventual right to reach the city. We had more turns to reach the campground, but still. Hard to not find a city when you have only three turns.

indyfabz

I remember that from crossing the country. Several of the ACA Northern Tier map panel for IN are just straight lines with cross roads at 90 degree angles.

Koyote

I lived in rural Nebraska for many years, and it was the same. Once I got out of our small city, I could do a 45-mile (or shorter, or longer, whatever) loop that involved only three or four right turns. For variety, sometimes I would do it in reverse and practice my left turns.

nicovlogg

Use them to practice meditation?

canklecat

I like roads.

50PlusCycling

I used to live in South Florida. The roads are all straight, the tallest climbs are road overpasses. The scenery was nothing to write home about, and the summer heat and humidity were pretty bad. But there wasn't much traffic, and I could ride long distances without having to stop. Now I live in Tokyo where the roads curve and turn, but where there are traffic lights one minute apart, and the traffic is always heavy. And the heat and humidity are as bad as South Florida. On the positive side, afternoon thunderstorms are rare, drivers in Tokyo give cyclists room to ride, and there are lots of bike shops.

spoofer

I live in a valley in the fingerlakes. The roads are mostly straight with hilly and mountainous areas. Pretty, but tough.

Troul 

The most I could go with a continuous cadence without being tentatively impeded by something is probably 1 mile. Always something to toss a brick at the momentum.

fietsbob

See : I 80 east of Wendover Nevada ..
crossing the Great Salt Lake desert.. home of Bonneville Speed weeks ..