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Ale_Capone "1 Beer 2 Many" Posts : 1550 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 24, 2007 OK, here's the story, and I'll try to keep it brief. I lived my whole life in Michigan until I moved to Vegas this past June. I hate it here and have decided I am leaving. I've spent the past week or so sending my resume everywhere west of the divide. I now have quite a few options, which oddly all came in a flood teh past couple of days. ... First, I have to go back to Michigan and take care of a little business, and mull over which job to take. {I may stop over in CO on teh way home for a little party.} I'll give you my leading candidates, and if you could, give me some +/-'s that i may be missing. or, just your opinion in general. At this point I pretty much have a job offer locked in for each location. I am more concerened about the quality of life. I am just having a hard time deciding where I wantto spend the next five years, at least, of my life. #1 Salt Lake city, Utah. +'s not a very big city. greatest snow on earth. pretty decent year round climate. greatest snow on earth. great community. greatest snow on earth. low cost of living. pretty darn close to alot of awesome hills, with the greatest snow on earth. -'s lower pay then some of the bigger cities, inversion days, no dogs in the canyons. not really worried about teh alcohol% of the beer, I'll make my own. And mormons are good people, so that doesn't bother me either. #2 Seattle, Washngton. +'s Mt. Baker and 1000's of inches of snow! close to vancouver and whistler, ocean kayaking and whale watching. it's not in the desert. Seattle loves dogs! freshest sushi around. -'s rain, traffic, rain, frasier, rain, high cost of living, and it rains alot. volcanoes... well, just the active ones. I have always been kinda partial to the north wet. But, I haven't spent enough time there to know if I really like it or not. I wont give my opinion about the rest of my list, but then, I am only listing places I would actually want to live in, and got a job offer from anyways. #3 South west, Montana. #4 San Jose #5Portland Oregon #6 Spokane WA #7Boise ID #8Reno NV Places that aren't really making the cut< but I am throughing them out there anyways.... Minniapolis.... Boston... Washington dc... Kansass MO... All tooooo far east. Offered to me by national companies that I applied to.

leer13 Posts : 108 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 24, 2007 Dude - quite the little dilemna you got there. One thing about Seattle - if you have experienced a lot of sun for several years, the dreary winters can weigh heavily. Also I have heard that Seattle is a tough town to make friends in. HAving said that - Baker is close, but not hat close, you may end up a Stevens or Snoqualmie a little more. I would have a serious look at Portland. I think that you are pretty close to Hood and the climate seems a little less drizzly than Seattle. And if you look at the pay - flip it round an check the cost of living. High pay in an expensive place will not get you much further ahead. Also - Seattle has horrific commuting!
	Why do you never see this headline: "Psychic Wins Massive Lottery"?

PowderKeg Posts : 79 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 24, 2007 Sounds like a thread from last year: http://snowboard.colonies.com/forums/topic/6750/ I lived in Salt Lake City for 5 years. Don't have much experience with the other towns on the list, but as far as sheer quality of riding available in a short distance, SLC would be a first choice. Cost of living isn't too high, but it's a bit isolated. It's a long way to the ocean or any other major cities from there, but it is a Southwest hub, so you can get cheep flights out. The inversion DOES suck, and if you're working in the city it can really get to be a drag (I was working in Park City when I lived there, so I drove out of it into the clean mountain air every day).

Ale_Capone "1 Beer 2 Many" Posts : 1550 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 24, 2007 Leer, you pretty much hit the nail on the head with two of my biggest concerns regarding Seattle. The rain, and the commute. My job is mainly an outdoor job and highly dependant on dry weather. I also usually commute alot to differant locations. I drove across the US once, and I swear it took me longer to get through Seattle then Montana. I could live with riding more frequantly at a closer resort with only occasional trips up to Baker.... But man, I LOVE Baker! I've really only went riding at Baker and Crystal in Washington. I'll look into Portalnd a little more. I hear the cops there are kinda cool. Powderkeg... I checked out the thread you copy/pasted... hahaha, Yeah, I see some simularities!! Like I said a year ago, who wouldn't dream of moving to Salt lake? A few differances though are, I am not bound by ties to my family like Shed.. He has a daughter to take care of on the east coast. I have dogs.... I also have already left my home, and for a place I hate, so I might as well go somewhere I want to be. I had a job interview today with a company from Salt lake... A job that I have for the taking... they loved me. I could start tommorow if I wanted. Seattle is the only other 100% sure thing. Lots of union activity, and I have a decent connection As soon as I show up, I have a job. The rest are just solid leads.

Killclimbz "Backcountry addict" Posts : 4258 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Reno would be interesting. While not the greatest town, the terrain close by is world class. Mt Rose is good for a fix. Squar, Sugarbowl, Alpine Meadows are within 45 minutes. Tons of world class backcountry. Just about every snowboard and ski film has a major Tahoe area segment. It also just pukes there.
	If there is a more pointless place to argue than the web... I don't know about it.

ult Posts : 1681 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 The grey seattle winter might be an issue, if you think it could be. Folks I know in Seattle generally laugh about it's reputation to be rainy...not that it isn't...but they tend to think that reputation is over blown. When it is clear it can be mighty pretty. When it is wet it can be mighty grey. From the little I know of that city...the traffic is insane....with not much sign of getting better either. Seatlle and Portland aren't that close to mountains...not like SLC...but day trips are do-able...just like denver though...you have to fight traffic. Where in SW Montana? Hamilton? SLC has the good riding that's for sure. The 'city' isn't that big...for better or worse. And mormon girls...all I've gotta say is..."stay moral...go oral." Like someone pointed out...SLC is a southwest and Delta hub...so airplane tickets are cheap...you're close to the mountains and the desert...it's really a central location for a lot of good stuff...that said...it's also in the middle of no where to some degree, yet close to so much. If that makes any sense...and obviously depends on your definition of 'close'.

Ale_Capone "1 Beer 2 Many" Posts : 1550 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Mike, Yeah, I am just looking for input... I'll still be doing much research for the next week or two before I make up my mind. Killer, I thoguht Reno sounded kind of intersting too. But, I don't know much about it other then it's location, and all the great riding nearby. It's one of the few places listed that I have never been to. Funny, but the guy who offered me a job in Salt lake said I could possibly start out working an out of town job in Tahoe... Ult, By Southwest Montana, I meant pretty much ALL of Southwest Montana, and then some. Mostly only the bigger towns. I stupidly turned down a job earlier this year that gave me the choice to work in Kalispell, Missoula, Helena, Greatfalls, Billings, or Lewiston. The current offer is for Bozeman or Billings. If money, and other job prospects weren't an issue, Montana would be the #1 choice. Even so, It's still running a close third. I've had sooo many good times in Montana, even when I did get blanked in the snow department.

ult Posts : 1681 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Don't bother with Billings, unless you want to be driving a camaro and brewing meth in 3 yrs. No real skiing nearby (2 hr drive to Red Lodge? Might be wrong on that...still...I'm not wrong on it's nick name...rock dodge.) I'm told Helena is great in the sense of lot's of good paying jobs, cheap housing, and it's kind of a pretty area...but the town is uber mellow and not much skiing near by either. Kalispell would put you skiing Big Mountain...some folks love it. I'm not one of them....but it does get good snow and isn't 'bad' per se....just not much long vert with out getting on a road cut. Close to glacier though...and abuot 3 hr's from Fernie. MMMMM...Fernie. Great Falls is an air force base town. I haven't been to their hill, but I'm told it isn't much. Lewiston...?? ID? Do you mean Livingston? No real ski areas close by...but bridge would probably be under a long hour away. Missoula? Only if you're into young college girls, grey winters, and a south facing/low lying hill with lift's that break down a lot. Which I happen to be. To each their own.

shedao Posts : 1245 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Only if you're into young college girls Eww, young college girls! Cover your eyes! Ale, how come you leaving Vegas? Are you not a poker maniac like myself? I lived there for a short term job and although it didn't get any snow it sure was beautiful country. A bit shallow though, not much cultural depth. But you can't beat the fresh 2.99 steak and eggs in North Vegas at 4am.

shayboarder "Represent!" Posts : 6252 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 I'll speak on Seattle's behalf since i lived there for 23 years. First off, Baker is not close by any means, a good 2-2.5 hour commute to head to Baker...so if you live in Seattle, defintely Snoqualmie (Central, West, Hyak and Alpental) is the fastest and easiest drive (30 minutes was my time from downtown Seattle but most take 45 to an hour). Stevens is the best all around and that clocks in about 1-1.5 hour drive from Seattle. Commuting in Seattle sucks. Traffic is bad, even on weekends...and even more where there are events, concerts, football/baseball games. And no one lives near where they work...so everyone commutes there. But when you have lived there long enough, you learn what times and what highway to be on during certain hours. I had it down what lane to be in to the T...and I made it into downtown and north without sitting in traffic. The nice thing about Seattle is there's not one highway...there's a ton you can take, I-405, Aurora, I-5...plus backroads if you know your way through town. For the city life...there's a ton of options, a ton of activities. You can be on the waterfront and then in the mountains in the same day. The Lakes in the summer area beautiful. In the spring and summer and early fall is the best time to hang out in Seattle, Bumbershoot, Folklife Festival, Summer Nights at the Peer, Capital Hill Block Party, so many. Summer in Seattle...is the reason we tell people it rains all the time in Seattle. Summer is breezy but not too hot. Cool Summer days are the best in Seattle. I love Summers in Seattle...so many activities. 70 degrees is normal. Here's the thing...compared to other cities, there are more than rain a lot more...it's the overcast that kills you. It's overcast a lot, really gray days and yeah it does rain...but it's more the overcast and not seeing blue skies for days. Portland is similiar to Seattle, very same feel but damn i hate their bridges and traffic there. 2 lane highways are common and that just sucks. Plus Mt Hood is a good drive and i'm sorry but it's not that great of a mountain. Too flat and wide open for my preference. Great for summer riding but that's it.
	The World of Snowboarding Through Fembot Eyes www.shayboarder.com

dpk "Funny as your mom" Posts : 2580 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Interesting, I was born and raised in Michigan... lived their the first 29 years of my life until moving out West a little over a year ago. I've spent a season at Stevens, living on the "east side" in Leavenworth, but I spent a bit of time in Seattle... job interviews, touristy type trips, shopping, a couple weekends with friends, etc. I've also rode at Baker. For me I could never get over how insanely busy Seattle is. But like Shay said.. lots of things to do in Seattle and I'm really stoked on their music scene. After my seasonal work was done at Stevens I looked at working in town and living in like Monroe (45 min to work and a little over an hr to the mtn). I'd make a lot of money, ride Snoqualmie during the week and buy an RV to spend my weekends at Stevens or Baker. However, after much thought, I just couldn't give up living a simpler mtn life and working at or near the resort. That is just me though, and for others my Seattle scenario is likely their perfect setup. Given some of the things you say about weather, it may not be up your alley. Portland would be an even bigger no-no because Oregon's economy pretty much sucks and yeah, Hood is super fun, but only when you want to ride in June and July :) I'm in Jackson, Wyoming now, but Teton County is much different than the surrounding area given the national parks and resorts. Lots of $$$ compared to the rest of the state and bordering places like Montana and Idaho. I can't speak for the towns you're looking into, but much of those states might be culture shocking to you. They are for me and hence I rarely leave the valley. Resort wise, Sun Valley in Idaho is supposed to be pretty sick. If I wasn't here and continued living my same lifestyle, I'd love to be back at Stevens living on the east side of the Cascades. Tahoe and SLC would be other places I'd consider.

cpsafety Posts : 1610 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 I've lived in a few of Canada's bigger cities, and I really want to move to the west coast (to the mountains). But despite this, I don't want to live in Vancouver (fairly similar to Seattle). For me being stuck in a rainy, traffic-congested city isn't appealing (even if it is close to a ton of great riding). I'm willing to put up with some rain as long as I'm not stuck in a busy city. I plan to move to a place between Vancouver and the resorts. It'll make riding easier, and I'll be able to get to the big smoke when I need to go. If I was going to live in the US, I think Washington State would be at the top of my list, but I wouldn't want to live right in Seattle.
	It itches down there...

shayboarder "Represent!" Posts : 6252 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Oh yes i forgot to mention...check out Bellingham, washington if you want to live near the mountains, near the canadian border and in a college town with a decent amount of stuff to do and college women.
	The World of Snowboarding Through Fembot Eyes www.shayboarder.com

Killclimbz "Backcountry addict" Posts : 4258 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Hookers, blow, and weed? MPD would be like a pig in shit in Vegas...
	If there is a more pointless place to argue than the web... I don't know about it.

cpsafety Posts : 1610 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Posted by mpdsnowman Scottie anywhere you go will be fine. Take the job that best suites you not the location. You can have the most awesome place to live, many would say vegas is that place however if you end up not liking the job look what you have wasted.... I don't know about that. Unless you work 24/7, you want to live in a place you like to enjoy the time when you're not working. I'm not suggesting that you take a job you hate just to live in the ideal place either... just that you need to find a balance between an ok job and an ok place to live. It sounds like Ale has a few job options he'd like, so it only makes sense to choose the one that would be in the best place (for him) to live.
	It itches down there...

ult Posts : 1681 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 Yeah...don't listen to MPD...he's trippin'...some more. Work to live...don't live to work. Pick a place you want to be, because if you like the job even a little it'll work out well since you'll be loving where you live and the job a bit. If you pick a place you don't like, and love your job...you'll be happy when at work...but bummin' out of work...which is really most of your time. No one ever died saying that they wish they'd spent more time at the office....a few probably have said they wished they'd spent more time on the hill though. Oh yeah...and vegas is gross...depressingly slimy town...at least in the toursit zones I've seen. Scratch at the glitz and you'll see the scum pretty quickly. As always...just my opinion.

wrathfuldeity Posts : 204 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 As for Bellingham: Its fairly nice little town...more of family oriented instead of single type and becoming more of a retirement village; it rolls up pretty early eve...lots of things close between 7-10 pm, housing is pricey at least 240k for a 1-2 bedroom dog house if you can find one; nature is in the backyard, kayaking, sailing, hiking, mt bike and biking, scuba diving but no surfing (5 hrs away cold water surfing...10mil required); 45 min to vancouver, 4-5 hrs to whistler, 75 min to baker; seattle 90 mins if you don't get snagged in parking lot style traffic. Just buy gortex rain gear to deal with the mist and ocassional downpour; winter temps are usually in the 40's and summer is the 70's. There are a fair amount of folks that commute to the northend of seattle and there are some that telecommute a few days a week...wages are fairly low compared to cost of living because lots of over-educated folks want to live here...it takes about 1-2 yrs to get integrated and most folks are farily friendly but reserved and people are known to read alot, its a liberal democratic base county, with a fair amount of political and environmental action. And for MPD, hear tell some of the world's best organic in them thar hills. [Edited by wrathfuldeity on 1/25/2007 at 5:39 PM]

Killclimbz "Backcountry addict" Posts : 4258 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 I vote for Reno. I need some Tahoe peeps again. I could almost gaurantee a once a year visit if ale moved there.
	If there is a more pointless place to argue than the web... I don't know about it.

rippey54rider Posts : 704 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 If you select SW Montana, definitely go with Bozeman. It is clearly the smallest town on your list. There is what I would call an adequate bar scene...well, not so much a scene, but some decent watering holes. In Bozeman, you're 25 min to Bridger Bowl, 45-50 minutes to Big Sky & Moonlight...not to mention just under 2hr to Yellowstone N.P. The town is literally surrounded by different mountain ranges and a number of National Forests & Protected Recreation areas...a few blue ribbon trout streams...etc. The town is quite diverse...all kinds of different white people. That's my take. If you can tolerate having to fly or drive all day to real snow...Minneapolis is a kick-ass town...just not much for riding...unless 300' vert on man-made is your thing.

Killclimbz "Backcountry addict" Posts : 4258 OFFLINE	Posted on Jan 25, 2007 ^^^Ooooh that's a good choice there too. I would also make that trip to poach your couch ale!
	If there is a more pointless place to argue than the web... I don't know about it.

Ale_Capone "1 Beer 2 Many" Posts : 1550 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 26, 2007 Posted by rippey54rider The town is quite diverse...all kinds of different white people. Ok, I read everything, but I am to buzzzzzed to respond to everything. This quote just made me chuckle. I've probably spent about a month in Bozeman total. LOOOOve cafe zaidico(sp), bozeman brewing, ummmm place downtown that serves a ton of differsant micro's, the sausage factory(?!?), got stuck in Hyalite canyon and pushed out By a bunch of super friendly colege kids(and drank their Pabst), Yellowstone is THE best national park in America, Wolf pack is one of my favorite brewries in America, the list goes on and on....... WHY is Bozeman not first on my list?!?

ult Posts : 1681 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 26, 2007 Posted by Ale_Capone WHY is Bozeman not first on my list?!? Cause Bridger is Flat. leaves ducking

eanx32 Posts : 763 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 26, 2007 Hate to see you go, but I of all people understand why you would want to go. I only live in Vegas, I work everywhere else except there. I think you should make a decision based on geography and $$$. Decision based on 50% money 50% geography. I also plan to leave when my kids get a little older. I don't want them going through their teens there. I still have my home in Florida but I don't think I'll ever go back. Gotta be somewhat near th snow. If I can help in any way let me know. I know a lot of people in a lot of places in our industry. [Edited by eanx32 on 1/26/2007 at 9:47 PM]
	Don't stand in the way of your dreams. Believe and trust that it will happen. What does chicken taste like?

shrederjen Posts : 128 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 27, 2007 Heya Ale, Two inputs, here. One, this is kinda dorky, but it might help you. Be totally honest when you answer the questions. When I did it, I came up with 6 cities in Montana and about 8 in Colorado! http://www.findyourspot.com/ It gives you the top 20 cities suited to YOUR needs! Two, I loved Reno. Reno is the BIG little city. Yea, they have traffic on the mixmaster that might last 10 minutes at rush hour. It doesn't usually get too hot or too cold. You are 30 minutes from Mt Rose and 45-60 minutes from most of the other Tahoe resorts. Great hiking in the summer. I would have done almost anything to have stayed there. The only thing that throws me from Reno/Tahoe is the snow is not always light and fluffy. heheheeh Guess thats why they call it Tahoe Cement. But, then again, it can be light and fluffy upon occation. It can dump 4 feet at a time. And, it is a very, very beautiful place. Hey, I have a house you can rent in Kings Beach!!! Good Luck on your decision. Its a tough one. Cheers, J [Edited by shrederjen on 1/27/2007 at 10:20 AM] [Edited by shrederjen on 1/27/2007 at 10:21 AM]
	Rock and Roll and Ride! www.bagznbeadz.com/rentalcondo.htm

Ale_Capone "1 Beer 2 Many" Posts : 1550 ONLINE	Posted on Jan 27, 2007 I took the test and it gave me Ogden as the number 1 city. Then Spokane, followed by Great falls Montana. Most of the 24 places whre in Utah, Montana, and Washington.... Go figure. Thanks Eanx, too bad we never got to go riding together. Anyways, I can hear sheryl crowe singing in the background. It's time for me to go. See some of you in a couple of days, and more of you in about a week.

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