Some girl wants me to move to Port Macquarie. Reckons its like cycling heaven yada yada. I'm sceptical though. Its a bloody long way to go for a dud root.

Port Mac is a hole - and be careful, did she say cycling or bike riding?

'Coz there's some ripper roads up there for motorcycles and STi's

__________________
The good news is - I can treat the injuries I am about to inflict.

Well you could be right because I've been told property values have actually fallen there?? If that is the case I may even be able to seel my caravan, move there and upgrade to a portable cabin on stumps with patio.

I dont want to get greedy though.

Well its only cold (relatively) what 6 mths of the year?

Rest of the time, there is a great network of cycle paths, on and off the roads. A world class (I think) MTB track at Stromlo.

I have been quite miserable this winter. With the right gear, I still rode in below zero mornings ..... Its a nice smallish city with great infrastructure.

Keep stroking it Thommo.

These are good people. I'm having a sift through a bit longer list too.

I've got to work through the teacher registration process (its just like ours thankfully) etc before sounding out jobs etc.

Bike importing....I see from ebay that sellers won't sell to Aussie's because it cost too much to get a bike in to Aus. How would I get on re cost getting my 4 bikes sent there? (may be I could sell one....or two....)

BBB

Better.

__________________
http://jonathanlovelock.blogspot.com/

Sure is. The only one left. Perth has good weather, plenty of wide and quiet roads and cycle paths with no pedestrians, lots of other cyclists, drivers no worse than anywhere else in Aus, even has some hills, contrary to popular belief. You can even get ludicrously well-paid work to support your cycling habit if you need to, although finding somewhere to live is admittedly a bit tough at present.

Adelaide is superb


you can ride to the hills instead of driving and there are enough of them to do a different ride every week.
the flat rides are good and follow the coast north or south
cars are stupid everywhere although incidents seem to be happening less frequently
Coffee is great.
Stuart O'Grady was able to carve a nice carreer from his early years in Adelaide.
its not too cold or wet that you cant ride during most of winter.

one thing there is no mountains, only hills.

+1

Adelaide offers a variety of terrain & plenty of beautiful scenery. One of my regular rides begins with some hills, then valleys/undulating roads, goes down a great big hill with glorious views of the ocean & beaches, then a nice long flat ride along the esplanade roads & back to town. You can mix it up as much as you like because we've got all types of terrain and all close to town. It's just a great place for century rides.

There's a good network of bicycle paths if you want to take a break from traffic. One useful one runs alongside an expressway and takes you from the southern fringes of the city all the way to Mclaren Vale wine district.

There's cafe's galore & lots of places to have good coffee. We have good restaurants with cheaper prices than eastern states. We have wine districts both north & south of the city which are nice to ride around. There's a vibrant arts/cultural scene with regular festivals throughout the year.

We have the Tour Down Under & as a local you'll be able to follow it every year, ride to the stages each day, do the challenge tour etc.

You can ride all through winter with the right clothing. The summers do get hot but just get yourself into the hills and its typically 5-7c cooler up there or just head out early. I've been out at 7 and home by 10 even on a day when the mercury hit 46.

I'm joining in late but I'm another Canberra region local putting in my two bobs worth. I actually live in Queanbeyan which is in another state from Canberra but I'm only 16 km from the Canberra city centre so I'm actually closer to the city than many Canberrans.

Canberra has a really good road cycling scene and plenty of on road cycling lanes and off road cycling paths to take you wherever you want to go.

Yes it gets a bit cold in winter but honestly its not that bad. If you want to cycle commute then yes, its cold on those winter mornings but by midday its usually clear, sunny and not too cold to go out for a ride and its quite pleasant to go riding on a winter afternoon in Canberra. Wearing some warm gear of course. Winter isn't really that long here and we actually have an extended Autumn here which is the nicest time of year in Canberra.

Anthony

Shepparton, Victoria. A larger country town

Has a great winter climate, lots of connecting secondary roads, lots of schools, Strong cycling fraternity and with clubs in neighbouring towns. There is a velodrome. Mostly flat land, but terrain changes to hilly less than an hours drive away. Just get on your bike for interesting day and half day rides. Good freeway access to Melbourne (2 hours and a bit by car) Lots of seasonal work in the fruit / vege / farming industries

You could do a lot worse.

__________________
The best revenge is to live well.

[QUOTE=Bigbananabike]My wife and I are considering moving over the 'ditch' to live in Aussie.
We're doing it for work, and a change of life.

Bowral NSW is one of best road riding areas in Australia. 80 minutes on the M2 motorway south of Sydney airport. Bowral and the Southern Highlands are picturesque with rolling hills, village atmosphere and plenty of schools. You can ride in any direction from Bowral for 30-80km circuits and encounter very little traffic especially when most of us ride at 0530-0630. Gets a bit cold in winter but still lots of riders. Active road cycling club, good bike shops including one owned by Brad McGee's brother. Friendly and lots of training rides including the 40km circuit cheesecske rides ever yMon, Wedsand Friday at 0540.
check out the cycling clubs's website, weekly races and inter club meets.

http://www.southernhighlandscc.com.au/

Good luck Richard

I would suggest large country towns such as Albury/Wodonga, Wagga Wagga, Wangaratta, Shepparton, Bendigo.

Actually, if you're thinking country town, I would suggest Tamworth in northern NSW. (I am currently here in the 9th month of a 12 month posting)

It is large enough to have most (but not all) of the advantages of a city but still retains that friendly rural feel. There is an active cycling club and even a triathlon club! The roads out here are quite good and the terrain is quite varied with some decent steep climbs not far out of town.

There are several schools in the area - public and private, so you shouldn't have trouble finding work.

The only downside is that it is the home of the Australian Country Music Festival, which takes place in late January and renders the place hideous for about 10 days - but that would be the ideal time to head back over the ditch to visit the family, I reckon. Unless you're a country music fan in which case you will be in seventh heaven.

__________________
The good news is - I can treat the injuries I am about to inflict.