Where should I go? Help me choose my destiny...

Where do you live currently?

Doesn't meet #1, but if you want a good triathlon community, I understand the best of the best is Boulder, CO

Oh, not far from me :P

What you have to take into account living near a beach or in a tropical area is the cost of living shoots through the roof..chances are you will barely make ends meet with a simple job like waiting/bartending. 

If I were to do something like you are wanting to, I would probably go somewhere like Costa Rica..The exchange rate is great, and cost of living is super low. 

Within the next few years, the company I work for is opening a property in South Vietnam and they will be transferring people from the states, It will definitely be something I will consider when the time comes.

No, I'm not.

That's awesome.  I have been to thailand and cambodia not vietnam. Who do you work for?  

And not to sound like a ...but I am not all that concerned about cost.  I have a good financial situation from doing well at work the last couple years.  And I'm ready to live with less.

I work for a casino company(the new casino that just opened up here in BR)..

Even better if your financial situation is good, you dollar will go MUCH further somewhere like Costa Rica than somewhere like CA or Hawaii, what you would probably pay for a low end apartment somewhat near the beach stateside, you could get a very nice apartment on the beach outside the country..not to mention Costa Rica is gorgeous, and would be an awesome place to train IMO.

I have thought about something like that.  It's possible, but i think i want to do something way out of my element! Anyone...?

My favorite international location is Barcelona. It's warm, its gorgeous, and I think they have a triathlon community. They also speak Spanish, but it's a second language to Catalan there, which actually makes it easier for me to understand their spanish than people from non-catalonia. 

Good luck!

I think Australia is my #1.  I was thinking NSW because I know a person in Sydney who says the beaches are amazing.  Never considered Perth, any good resources to read up on? From a first look it sounds great!

I think Australia is my #1.  I was thinking NSW because I know a person in Sydney who says the beaches are amazing.  Never considered Perth, any good resources to read up on? From a first look it sounds great!

Perth is very isolated which some people love and others hate.  Coming from Europe, it was a bit hard to adjust but now I would have to be dragged away kicking and screaming.  Sydney is fabulous too, you get the beaches etc but it's much bigger and therefore there's more to do. I've never lived there, only visited.  I love Perth's frontier feeling and can-do attitude.

Try here for info on working here.

http://www.migration.wa.gov.au/Pages/LivingInWesternAustralia.aspx

Check out the Triathlon WA website, especially the event calender for what's available race-wise.

My situation is different from yours; I'm a working Mum so the family-friendliness of this place suit us.  I love that I go out at 5am and there are hundreds of cyclist of all abilities zooming about, I love that I can cycle for 100km on the freeway bike path or join scores of others going round the river which Perth is settled on.  I love that there are 5 x 50m pools within 10 mins of where I live, that there is a park 2 minutes run away where I can run through the bush, that I can choose from an entire coastline of beaches, that there 3 triathlons clubs I can join. We are very multicultural; there are over 20 nationalities at my son's primary school of only 300 kids. People are incredibly friendly and laid-back.  You have the whole of Asia on your doorstep and it's only a four flight.

Dislikes?  They say WA stands for 'wait awhile' and that is true, most things move here at a glacial pace.  The other things they say is that the time difference between Sydney and Perth is 3 hours and 20 years and that's true too.  The attitude towards women, minorities and gay folks is a bit behind what I was used to but is catching up.  The cost of living has sky-rocketed in the past few years as a mining boom drives a two-tier economy.  As a science researcher, I'm feeling the pinch but reckon the amazing life-style is worth it.  What is your job in New Orleans?

I'm in Melbourne, Victoria Australia - climate not as nice as Perth nor Sydney.  Pete Jacobs lives in Noosa, Chris McCormack and Crowie live in Sydney.  Tri community anywhere in Australia is thriving.  Just bear in mind it's a long way from ANYWHERE!  I am from the UK - it's a long way.

BUT it is a wonderful place to live, I've not got over to Perth yet - on my list.

I read your post yesterday and for some reason, I woke up thinking about it, and was gonna suggest Australia to you. I had a cousin live there for a few years and she LOVED it. 

Assuming you didn't just win the lottery, it should probably be a developing country where things are cheap. As for SE Asia,  I DO NOT recommend southern Vietnam! Uncomfortably hot except for maybe (seriously) a few weeks a year, rainy season can sometimes make ourdoor biking and running difficult or dangerous, most beaches are pretty polluted, next to no tri community, and some of the worst driving on the planet. On the plus side, coconuts, beer, and massage are really cheap! But you probably know that already!

Some of the pros (Brett Sutton's group?) as well as several SE Asia tri clubs, do training camps in or near Phuket, Thailand. Haven't been personally, but it might fit the bill. You could probably find some work teaching English or something. Westernized/developed enough that you can get familiar foods, probably okay medical care, etc. There is a facility there (Thanyapura?) that hosts workshops and camps as well as training facilities. Not cheap, but Singapore has a huge tri community, lots of events, and some excellent coaches.

But if price was no object, I'd be off in a minute to train my brains out in Hawaii. Personally I love Honolulu, even though it's not really tri paradise (not the best beaches, crowded roads for biking), but it's just a super place to live (biased--I went to grad school there). The Big Island is also nice but a bit isolated and more expensive. Plus an odd climate--very wet on one side (Hilo) and very dry on the other (Kona); doesn't seem to be much of a happy median. Enjoy--I wish I'd had that chance (or that I'd even discovered triathlon--really, how did I manage not to living in Hawaii???) when I was younger.

I lived in Gold Coast, Australia for a year and that was great for training too.  Lots of pools and the (shark infested!) ocean if you want it.  You can bike from your home and do a completely flat course by heading north/south or in the mountains by heading west.  Also theres a 36km oceanside walkway that I did all my runs on.  The weather is fantastic aswell for year round outdoor training.

If I had to choose somewhere in the US for training it would either be Hawaii, SoCal or Clermont, FL.  But I have never been to Boulder so would love to check that out to see why so many people recommend it.

Currently in a small town in England and while its miserable training weather I would not rather share the roads with anyone than the drivers round here.  Nothing thrown at me, nothing shouted at me and significantly reduced near passes/honking versus USA and Australia.

Something to think about if you are wanting to go overseas is what visa can you qualify for and will it let you work?

One of my friends did exactly what you're planning the year before she started law school, and she went to Sydney and said it was perfect. She's not a triathlete but is very into the outdoors.

Me, I'd go to the big island without a doubt.

X1000.  I'm dreaming of doing the same thing only it will have to be after the kids have left the house and I'm an empty nester.....Wish I was half my age but oh well...

Good luck and best wishes!!