Boulder is overrated. I want to move.

Back when I was running - for the most part Boulder was great. It had its down sides.

Memorable experiences:

Running west on an out and back course - out in 35, back in 25 on a high wind warning day.

Wet spring snow caking on my chest until about an inch thick, then it would peel off all at once.

Ground blizzards in Boulder, then driving up to Magnolia Rd only to run about 200 yards west, into 30 mph wind and 15 degree temps. Turned around and went home.

Sprinting down South Mesa Trail to the south parking lot, hoping that I wasn't going to get struck by lightning.

Getting knocked out by a cyclist on the creek path. Refused ambulance because I thought I had been in a car wreck and didn't want my car insurance to go up.

Being able to run on a near 100 degree day - not bad relative to humid parts of the country.

Horse Tooth Half Marathon (Ft. Collins), high wind warning day - legs getting sand blasted across the top of the dam. Port-a-potty oriented horizontally. Aid station ... table top facing down, table legs facing up, individual cups of water filled and handed out.

Horse Tooth Half Marathon (another year) - 8 inches of snow.

Trail running above Red Rock Park - stumbled into a homeless camp early one morning. "Zombies" sprang to life out of piles of garbage.

Homeless guys passed out face down in dirt near Settlers Park. I thought they were dead.

Girl freaking out on mushrooms or LSD near Eldorado Springs.

News trucks and live shots everywhere following JonBenet Ramsey murder.

Coach Mac (Bill McCartney CU Football) out on the creek path almost every day at lunch going for a walk,

Seeing Mark Plaatjes (Marathon World Champion) on the creek path.

Mesa trail / Flatirons above the cloud deck at sunrise - incredible. Flatirons in brilliant sunlight, Boulder, unseen under the clouds.

Wife on old school Trek 820 (steel) mountain bike crushing tri-guy with aerobars and rear wheel disc cover.

Riding from Boulder to Lyons and back on 36 at 10:00AM midweek and only seeing about 8 cars.

I can tell your exact story, just a decade or so earlier with different fast runners around (myself included).

The winters are too cold.

Too much snow.

TOO WINDY. I can't state this enough.

California is better. If you can't find a place to be happy, or be happy in CA, good luck.

I live down the road in the Springs. If you don't have any winter hobbies, and your goal is to maximize the number of days you can run outside comfortably, Colorado isn't the state for you. The winter here isn't nearly as bad as winters in the midwest or northeast, but it is still a real winter. I love winter mountaineering, skiing and ice climbing, so I wish winter was longer here. But if I wasn't into that stuff, I'd probably live in California or the PNW.

The sun in winter here is awesome, as are the plethora of 50+ days in January and February.

"28, I am a long time runner..."

Everything that followed this was bound to be "off."

I grew up here and have lived elsewhere before moving back. This has been more like an average winter in the Midwest or mid-Atlantic. The Front Range and mountain areas are getting a real winter this year. Like 1 out of 5 or 10. The last few have been very mild. Have had snow on the ground almost continuously for almost two months now, and more snow and cold on the way at the end of the week. But at least we're getting some 50s this week and spring is on the way. To the newbs, however, March is the biggest snow month of the year and we can get huge blizzards all the way through April. But by these months it usually doesn't last long.

Boulder is okay, might be overrated.

Too hot in the summer. I don't agree with that at all.

Centaur wrote:

I dont mind the wind but sometimes the drastic weather changes take their toll on me. Last night we were freezing but by 3pm today we were maybe in the 50s?

The part about Boulder that does suck for runners is how populated the trail scene is given that's what we all inherently want to do. Parking lots fill up by the early AM which is annoying. Went to the Boulder Canyon outskirts today because I didnt feel like driving to the foothills after seeing what Dry Creek was like on the way home. Out in the Canyon area it is very hard to relax and get in the zone when the mountains are consistently heavy with both car and foot traffic. I would say that for an outsider the amount of traffic does not fit the scenery at all.

The curse abides.

Rain every summer day in the mid-afternoon loses its novelty after about the third one.

Tampa Bay is a much better Bay. Cali is a sh1t hole state.

Good. Stay in Florida.

I did Sunday runs from the dorms for a couple years. Weather permitting, I'd do Mesa Trail to Eldorado Canyon and back, or Mesa Trail dropping down to Table Mesa wherever that point is. One year, I saw ONE other person while running this, probably around the hours of 8-10 a.m. Different now, huh?

First off, you need to decide whether you're moving to train or work. As the old proverbial saying goes..."You can't have your cake and eat it to". I've known many runners who have lived and trained in Boulder. They were ok with it for a couple years and then moved for the aforementioned reasons stated. Wind is a MAJOR pain in the ass for runners, then throw in some sub-freezing temps and or un-runnable trails/roads due to snow and you have a deal-breaker.

California is clearly the BEST weather wise. Many options as everyone already knows. The BIG downside is cost of living, especially the Bay Area. If you can afford it, Palo Alto is awesome!! The surrounding area has many trails and the weather is awesome year around. Great downtown with a very cool college vibe (Stanford).

In my honest opinion the BEST year around training is Albuquerque, NM. Mild winters, not too hot summers, and amazing trails. The city itself is a mile high which includes the Rio Grande River (Bosque) trails and a very cool downtown college scene (UNM). The best trails are in the Sandia Mountain Foothills above the city. The downside to ALBQ is very little job opportunities. If you're a pro runner with a little sponsorship money it's the best!

My 2 cents

:)

Ciro wrote:

Too hot in the summer. I don't agree with that at all.

Front Range is too hot. But up in the high country it's pretty nice.

Bay Area.

Shorts and t-shirt all year. trails. It's all here...

Can't run in the summer because it is too hot in Boulder? Oh, my little snowflake. Come down to the Gulf Coast in August if you want to know what summer is.

Move to Santa Fe, NM. It is higher and drier. It is windy in the spring, but not bad at all for a town in the mountains the rest of the year. Trails are not crowded. Summer is warm, but lows are consistently below 60. Easy trip to Taos for great skiing. Half day's drive to Telluride for world class skiing. It is a tourist town, but with nice small towns you generally have a choice between tourists and college students. At 28, you will find that you are getting too old for a college town and won't mind tourists so much. Real estate is not cheap, but compared to the Bay Area it is very affordable. The only big downside is that New Mexicans can be a grizzled bunch and you are constantly reminded of the atrocious poverty that many Native Americans live in on the reservations.

CO native wrote:

Ciro wrote:

Too hot in the summer. I don't agree with that at all.

Front Range is too hot. But up in the high country it's pretty nice.

And it's pretty easy to beat the heat for running. Just get up early and run! It's rarely above 75 at 8 AM. So if you start at 6:00 or 6:30 you can get in a great run and have the rest of the day.

You chose Boulder over the Bay Area? First mistake. Boulder was once a cool college town, the downtown is still ok but it has become sprawling suburbia with strip malls and chain restaurants for miles - like everywhere else...

If it's too hot can't you just drive a few miles west and it'll be way cooler at 8000'+?

This is turning into another "mountain town affordable blah" thread.

But yes, unless you're coming to it from Indiana or something, Colorado/the Front Range/Boulder aren't all that special. California has a place for everyone, and you can find very affordable spots nearly everywhere. If you can work remote like someone said the other day, this is simple.

There's a reason why so many are here already.

I've been there once wrote:

If it's too hot can't you just drive a few miles west and it'll be way cooler at 8000'+?

Good option, takes 30 to 45 minutes (actually easier to get out of Denver or C Springs compared to Boulder) and it will be several (5 to 15) degrees cooler. Downside for hot afternoons of course are thunderstorms and lighting that roll in off the peaks by about 1 or 2 every afternoon.