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Santa Fe?

Last Post 03/23/2018 09:38 AM by Nicholas Arenella. 15 Replies.

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huckleberry

Posts:824

03/14/2018 11:28 AM
A decent place to road bike? A good place to live? Gracias Chris

longslowdistance

Posts:2886

03/14/2018 06:04 PM
That would be NM, correct?

huckleberry

Posts:824

03/15/2018 06:25 PM
Si'

longslowdistance

Posts:2886

03/15/2018 07:15 PM
I've visited as a tourist with my wife, never ridden there. I look forward to other replies from more knowledgeable folks. We've considered retiring there but it may be past its prime for that due to cost and crowding.

Orange Crush

Posts:4499

03/15/2018 10:22 PM
Haven't been there but I have a friend who lives nearby. Works at Los Alamos nat lab. Lives in mountaind off the grid. Looks amazing. Lots of wildlife on his daily commute. Lots of wildfires not so much snow this year.

Nick A

Posts:625

03/19/2018 12:46 PM
I've lived in Albuquerque for almost 20 years. I've been to Santa Fe many times, but really don't know what it's like to live there. I think riding in Albuquerque is pretty great, but don't know as much about Santa Fe. Aside from different roads, paths, it's also about 2000' higher (7000 vs 5000) and 5-10 degrees colder. I'm sure you could have some wonderful rides there on a trip. I don't know what the variety is like if you actually lived there. Housing is pretty expensive up there, unfortunately. At least by New Mexico standards. If you're cashing out a high dollar home, this might not be a big deal. There's some resentment by the old timers towards outsiders driving up costs. It's arty. That's good and bad. There's quirky fun places...because it's arty. There's annoying pretentious people...because it's arty. I'm not sure what the job situation is there, but commuting to Albuquerque for work really, really sucks, as far as I'm concerned. (I have band practice up there once a week and the drive is a lot. Then again, I moved from the east side of Manhattan to the west side for a shorter work commute. LOL. I HATE commuting.) NM is somewhat corrupt and slow to change. The badness of this is obvious. The goodness though? I lived in Fort Collins, CO for a year in the mid-90's. Colorado is so beautiful, but the urban sprawl in Denver and along the front range is horrible. Our backwardness has prevented such "growth", so it does have a positive aspect. Also, when I was in CO, at least for this half Italian from NY, I felt straight up "ethnic" up there, and fit in down here a lot better. I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's "diverse" (Santa Fe and Albuquerque). I suppose some people have turned that into a political word. But I like it. Any specific questions? Maybe I can help. Not as well as someone who lives there. Maybe Gonzo will come read this? LOL. I think he's a native New Mexican. Nick

longslowdistance

Posts:2886

03/19/2018 04:01 PM
If you move to ABQ, watch out for the take out chicken place Los Pollos Hermanos. I hear the management is pretty tough.

zootracer

Posts:835

03/19/2018 11:41 PM
Hah, my wife and I are watching reruns of Breaking Bad on NetFlix....

longslowdistance

Posts:2886

03/20/2018 08:55 AM
Nick, how is the train for commuting? Looked pretty cool from the interstate.

Nick A

Posts:625

03/20/2018 09:32 AM
I've never been on it. That being said, it's a cool bit of mass transit in a non-mass transit place. So, at each end, it basically dumps you somewhere where you need a car (there are exceptions maybe by certain stops). There's also limited service. It's not like they're running both ways all day. I know a couple of people who made it work, but they're inventive folks. One had a POS Geo Metro that was just for the Albuquerque leg. The other brought his bike. (Bike friendly train.) As someone who's lived in NYC and DC, mass transit here sucks. Our last mayor did A LOT for bike lanes in Albuquerque, which is awesome. We still have plenty of those completely car-centric avenues, but more and more interconnected ways to get around by bike. The Rail Runner (light rail you saw) was former Governor Bill Richardson's pet, and our new "rapid bus line", not even opened yet, was the pet of our last mayor. I'm like 51% in favor of both. Both were political in nature, and I'm pretty sure there were financial shenanigans with the bus line (friends in construction), and they're currently difficult to use, because of the difficulty of getting to any of them without a car. Still, you have to start somewhere... I resisted Breaking Bad, because it was SO popular, and now I'm in too deep into my "stand" and have never seen it. Gus' house is on one of my dog walking routes though. Used to see the film crew all of the time. They were a nice bunch of folks. Rather than being all snooty, they'd stop and say hi to the dogs. There's a tour bus that tools around near me too. Our current "plague" is property crime. Petty BS. I had a hitch stolen off of my truck in the Home Depot parking lot. Still, it's sunny all of the time. It's still the US as far as car attitudes towards cyclists, but people are relatively decent, and there's a fair number of cyclists on the road. We're seven years away from paying off the house, so I doubt we're going anywhere for awhile! Nick

zootracer

Posts:835

03/20/2018 10:58 AM
why not locating a couple of LBS's in S.F. and call them up for advice(?)

longslowdistance

Posts:2886

03/20/2018 01:26 PM
Nick, if you change your mind and binge BB you won’t regret it. Just amazing. My wife is a Tony Hillerman fan. Fun to see his name on a school near the petroglyphs.

Cosmic Kid

Posts:4209

03/20/2018 02:05 PM
Nick....you are depriving yourself of arguably the best show ever. Just do it and don't tell anyone....your secret will be safe with us.

Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!

huckleberry

Posts:824

03/20/2018 07:09 PM
I've been here a few days, heading back Thursday. I like it. Don't need to commute regularly to ABQ, and when I do, that hour drive seems pretty reasonable. IMO, It's not the same beauty as where we are n the North Cascades mountains of Washington State, but it's pretty enough and has the opportunities I'm looking for. Housing is no more expensive than we are used to but won't be able to get what we want for our budget. We'll mull it over for the next few months before making a decision.