Colorado - who can tell me about it?

[thrasherfox]

For the last..... probably 5 years I have been having thoughts of moving to Colorado.. actually longer than that... but really on my mind the last 5 years.

The wife and I both have been wanting to move out of California for awhile now..

One of the cool places I thought would be to work is for NORAD at the Cheyenne Mountain Complex.

Well.. today for some reason I got a thought in my mind to look at the Air Force civilian job web site. Haven’t done that in a few years.

Low and behold.. they have a position one grade higher than I am currently at, the possibility of paying for moving expenses AND I have been working in the same field as a supervisor for 9 years AND I already posses the security clearances that they require


The job position opened on July 6th and closes July 12th so I just happened to look at the right time…



So.. who can tell me about the area? Cost of living, weather? Environment? Etc..



Thanks…

 

[gsferrari]

MOVE!!!

Superb roads to ride on
Superb slopes to Ski on

outdoor dude's dream location!!


Eh...nnot exactly helpful but I would move there without hesitation if presented with the opportunity. Better to wait for someone to reply who is less high on caffeine at 2:00pm

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[rubbersidedown]

T-Fox,thats Revlis's home state. Hit him with a PM.

 

[flrider]

You will need to get used to the altitude. The Springs are over a mile high. In summer thunder storms can come up in a very short time frame. Don't last long but a *((&^&%^ when on a bike. Winter is cold but not too much snow. And the snow is feather lite. Blow it off the car with your breath. Good food places, Good scenery, can't get lost with Pikes Peak in sight all the time. I spent many weeks there during my Air Force civilian career working with contractors. Have been inside Cheyenne Mountain. Quite a place. Peterson AFB is going strong still despite the BRAC crap which closed my base here in Sacramento. All in all not a bad place to relocate to. Good luck.

 

[vincent]

Its cold there. Moved as a kid from SoCal to Denver area. Was kinda cool for the first year then we got hit with a blizzard. Personally I prefer the desert. Just an opinion

 

[DAB]

I live in Colorado and I love it.

Low humidity, lots of sunshine, genuine 4 seasons a year, plenty of open spaces, nice twisties in the foothills and mountains, flat and straight roads as well for the WFO stuff.

Great skiing, snowboarding, hiking, cycling, hunting, fishing etc.

Weather can vary wildly, but the saying here is "if you don't like the weather, give it a minute" because the nasty stuff's over quickly. When it snows in the winter, it's usually gone in a day or two (unlike Massachusetts, Illinois, New York, New Jersey, Ohio or Connecticut - all states I've lived in previously.)

Prices compare favorably if your coming from California, pretty sure you can get a lot more house/lower cost of living for your money.

Best international airport in the world in my opinion.

They're also in the process of fixing the main highway for you with a project called TREX, and light rail is being installed for commuting to Denver.

Lots of new development so plenty of shops, schools, rec' centers and bike paths to choose from.

And there's a Mile High Busa Owners Club....

 

[thrasherfox]

Anyone have links for realstate so I can see what the housing market is like?

dont need anyone to start searching, I can do that if need be. just if someone already has sites booked marked, can you post them up?


thanks



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[thrasherfox]

Oh yeah.. and does anyone know the gun laws?

It is not a deal breaker, but was kind of hoping when I moved I could get away from the stupid gun laws they have here in California...

For example, there are two desert eagle 44 mags, one for California, and one for everyone else (were is the rolling eyes smiley)

 

[moondog]

Lived there for the better part of 35 years....Denver sucks, not a pretty city imo. Dirty, and brown and dry. Snow only stays white for a few hours, after that it's just black mush containing rocks that break your winshield and trash your shoes. Road rage. Not ever enough water, always under water restrictions but they keep building anyways. Way too crowded and property way too expensive. Sold a what would amount to a 1500 sq ft cabin on 1.1 acres off 74 in Evergreen for 309k, and it needed 50 grand put into it yesterday. As a matter of fact, the new owners bulldozed it. Got to take exception to the roads being good to ride on, the freeze/thaw cycle plays havic with the roadbase and the sand usually not totally cleared for months. Air is bad as Denver sits in a bowl and the inversion layer traps stagnant air. One can literally sit in traffic on I-70 on a Sunday afternoon in the high country for hours trying to get home. A day skiing for a family of four can amount to hundreds of $ and hours of frustration standing in liftlines that resemble the lines at Disneyland. Most of the high country I use to hunt and fish on is off limits or privately owned. I can go on and on. However, Colo Springs and south is better, believe it or not, has a more temperate climate. Southwest of the springs toward Canon City is pretty dang nice, property not as high. Busa runs like sh*t a mile high, need to go ghetto for sure. I'll go back to visit as a tourist but hang my hat in NWA...the real sportbike mecca. Mind you....just one man's opinion!!

 

[BusaCruise]

One of the cool places I thought would be to work is at the Cheyenne Mountain Complex.

Sorry, the Stargate program is currently full...but we'll let you know if/when a position opens up!

 

[busagirl]

Thrasher ~

Well I've lived here pretty much my whole life (off & on) and I've ridden here my entire riding time and I LOVE IT!! I learned to ride in the Rocky Mountains and love them still.

I can't tell you about housing markets & all that but that kinda stuff you can look up on the web if you really want good & true numbers.  

I personally live downtown Denver and like the "bigger" city life but Colorado Springs is also a GREAT town! I lived there years ago & miss it at times.  It has more of a "small town" feel to it but they are growing like wildfire.  We just opened up our 2nd restaurant down there last month with another one planned for later this year!!

As for the weather... it's Colorado... what do they say somthing about if you don't like it wait 15 mintues....!  LOL  I think CO has something like 300+ sunny days a year!  A lot of people I know ride year round for the most part because snow fall tends to melt off fairly fast at our lower elevations but sticks up in the hills.  In winter we can get several 60+ degree days that make for good riding!

Last summer & this spring we've had some heat waves.  Last year it was 100+ for a over a week straight. And already this spring we've had a week where it was in the 90's everyday!  Kinda crazy weather for us but like I said .... it's colorado!  LOL

As for guns... again I don't know, but I'm sure you can find all that on the web as well.  If you have any more questions let me know & I'll try to help you... you know where to reach me!

reean

 

[Big Wall]

Looks like pretty much everything has been covered.

Denver proper has some pretty strict gun laws but the surrounding cities do not. Don't know too many details on that though.

 

[Charlesbusa]

If you're going to be working at NORAD, then you'll want to live in Colorado Springs not Denver. COS was my second favorite city I lived in, San Diego was #1. Cold in winter, roads will get iced over(red roads) for a few days. You'll get snow, but it melts soon causing lots of icing crap. I saw some of the most unique weather there, but the thunderstorm cells move very quickly!

I'm not sure if its still the law or not, but its a no fault state. Meaning in an accident the cop doesn't determine fault, the insurance companies do. I got totally reamed by that, his and my insurance company just basically got together and said its no one's fault. Neither one of us had comp. so neither one of us got any money from the insurance companies

If its still a no fault state.

I had a lot of fun there. COS is in the middle of the southern ski resorts and the northern ski resorts. And you can ride in late spring, summer, and early fall!! Summers get hot, but not as hot as Hanford.

We've thought about moving back out there some day also. COS and DEN are large airports I could work at :;:

 

[jessup]

I used to live in Fountain CO when I was stationed at ft. Carson. I loved it there. Everyone is right about the weather it can change in a heartbeat but I would move back there in a second. People are really nice and mellow... The roads are great to ride on...Plus there are a ton of places to go off roading.

 

[MrGxr]

I'm about 5 hours from Colorado Springs and I find myself up there a lot. The riding is great and the weather is rider Friendly. This time of the year when the storms come in, you go get bite to eat, when you done eating the storms are gone. (most of the time). Actually, just got back from a trip up to Denver with the Family to visit some Friends and play at Six Flags. Denver is a great town with lots to do.
I don't live up there, but I like to go up.
Like I said the riding is great and the small towns all around are fun to visit.
Not sure about property and pricing... hear its high.

 

[Rhythm]

Can you say Sweeeeeeeeeeepers.

I had a blast hangn out with a few board member last yr in Colorado.

 

[Wag]

Check out Realtor.com and Realty.com.

That should get you started. However, make sure you get a good real estate agent working for you so you don't have to do tooooo much legwork. Someone in that area may be able to refer you to a good one. Also, plan to make at least one visit out there. Looking at pictures of houses on the internet is very helpful but you know what they say: A picture may be worth a thousand words but being there is worth a thousand pictures.

Best thing of all? You're a lot closer to Albuquerque!

--Wag--