# Moving to Charleston, SC



## nathasm (Aug 6, 2004)

I'm probably going to be reloacting to Charleston SC and after checking out the race scene, I am fearing that move. It seems that for me to get my racing fix I have to travel over 4-5 hours one-way each weekend. Is that true? Do other cyclists reside in Charleston? How do you guys deal?
.nathan.


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## DieselDan (Sep 14, 2002)

I'm not in Charleston, but close. The only racing I know of, outside a triathlon, is a crit at The Ciditel in the fall and a short circuit race at MCAS Beaufort in June. There is a professional crit in Walterboro in April. They may still be weekly racing in Columbia, SC at the old Columbia Speedway, a paved 3/8th oval that ceased auto racing operations in 1979.


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## Sadlebred (Nov 19, 2002)

My website has links to the Charleston area. http://www.southeasterncycling.com. Check out the Low Country Velo website. It's one of the larger racing teams in the Charleston area. I know there are a few races, but you are also only a few hours from some great racing in Charlotte, Greenville, Augusta, Savannah, etc.


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## badback1 (Nov 29, 2005)

*Charleston race scene*

I live in Hickory now but was in Charleston up until this past August. I still race on the Charleston race team ( www.lowcountryvwracing.com )

They have an active race team and host 2 crits in April ( I'on and Hampton Park).

Also www.coastalcyclists.org is the recreation club and the host club of the race team.

Ok now the bad news: Riding in Charleston is terrible.....narrow roads, rude/******* drivers, pot holes everywhere. We had a teammate get killed by a car two years ago (Garrett Wonders), I was hit by a car, a teammate was hit (hit and run) by a car less than a month ago. Also, it is flat as a pancake.

The good: weather is mild.


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## merckx56 (Aug 16, 2004)

DieselDan said:


> I'm not in Charleston, but close. The only racing I know of, outside a triathlon, is a crit at The Ciditel in the fall and a short circuit race at MCAS Beaufort in June. There is a professional crit in Walterboro in April. They may still be weekly racing in Columbia, SC at the old Columbia Speedway, a paved 3/8th oval that ceased auto racing operations in 1979.


The Columbia Speedway sucks. It's short, poorly paved and very dangerous. If you want to do the weekly race in Columbia, it's every Tuesday night at the Columbia Industrial Park (Bluff Rd. off of I-77N). This will be the fourth year of the crit series. No cash or prizes, but it'll be some of the hardest and fastest racing you'll do. 

A lot of guys come up from Charleston to do it.


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## rab (Apr 15, 2005)

nathasm said:


> I'm probably going to be reloacting to Charleston SC and after checking out the race scene, I am fearing that move. It seems that for me to get my racing fix I have to travel over 4-5 hours one-way each weekend. Is that true? Do other cyclists reside in Charleston? How do you guys deal?
> .nathan.


I moved to Charleston from Atlanta in 2000, and found the riding to me the worst of any place I have lived, granted I have been spoiled by some pretty nice locales. 

As already mentioned, the roads are usually narrow, lots of a-hole drivers (both intentional and unintentional), and it is really flat (except for the bridges which are usually littered with debris. If you like mtn. biking too, you can pretty much forget it. They call it the lowcountry for a reason which is quite obvious. I watched my riding dwindle the point where my bikes went almost unused for two years before moving back to the atlanta area. 
Positive sides: there are a couple good clubs/teams already mentioned--good people no doubt, and the weather is quite nice. Can be fun to ride along the barrier island beach roads when the onshore winds aren't strong. Hate to say it, but in my opinion, it just isn't a really good place for serious cycling...although any scene is what you make of it, right?
good luck!


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