Anyone have an opinion on State College, PA?

Do it!! I used to live there and I ran weekly with the Nittany Valley Running club. They are a fantastic bunch of people and very welcoming of newcomers.

Also - the area is beautiful for running with easy access to trails and quiet roads.

It's a great town. But it's a college town. ~3 hours to Philly or Baltimore and 2+ to Pittsburgh.

Some people want to stay forever, some love it for awhile and that's enough, some never like it.

I like it but prefer somewhere like Chapel Hill with quicker access to larger metropolitan areas (Triangle or Triad)and an airport

I'm warning you. It gets f*ing cold in the winter. I moved from SoCal to State college the summer before last. But the running community is great; the Nittany Valley running club has multiple group runs in any given week and races pretty much every weekend. You can run in various gamelands, trails, golf courses, and also in Tussey Mountain (home of the USATF national 50 mile championship). Rebecca Donghue coaches the high school girls distance team, and Luke Watson lives in town as well. Penn State has an indoor track you can use in the winter. There is a local sports store that can fit you in nice shoes.

That being said, if you're looking for any type of diversity, you aren't going to find it. You are, however, close to NYC and Philadelphia. There is a small mall and a few good restaurants. There is the Bryce Jordan center which has regular concerts. But you have to be cautioned about the amount of school pride this town has. At times it gets almost ridiculous, with over the top tailgating and such.

Are you ready to pray at the altar of JoePa? If not, look elsewhere.

Great college town! Go for it!

Rodger Kram wrote:

- it is often 90F and 90% humidity in July/August.

It has NEVER been 90/90 in State College.

Not Me wrote:

Who can stand that cold weather ?

The winter is the best part. The snow slows you down. Bundle up, run on quiet snow-packed trails, and get a good sweat on.

ideal conditions for the Arts Festival !0-miler (if it still exists)

http://www.statecollege.com/news/local-news/hot-weather-forecast-as-arts-festival-opens-see-our-live-camera-feed-465318/

No it isn't. Cold Sucks.

Anyone who considers State College HOT in the summer is either insane or Canadian. Or both.

I coached at PSU for several years. Job aside, I liked the small town atmosphere & low cost of living. State College has nearly everything you could need in daily life (but not multiple examples).

Running is easy with many options. If you can find a copy of Dr. Lucas' book of running routes in town, it is a great primer. All of the routes begin and end at Rec Hall. If you can't find the book, just hang out at Panera Bread between 7am-9am and you probably will meet "another former coach" who will give you plenty of local info & gossip.

I would second the earlier suggestion that you take an extended winter visit to town to get a better idea of the setting.

Good luck!

The weather in Pa sucks for 5 months. I've lived here for 19 years.