There are several bike stores in the MEM area and each one sponsors a road racing team for USCF club type racing. RB's is a high end, performance oriented place, you'll certainly find triathletes hanging out there.

Outdoors Inc. is the one place to go for other types of gear, but be prepared to pay thru the nose. They have a lock on the market for most types of outdoor gear, and charge accordingly. Many in this area grudgingly support them, as they put on several races and other events in this area.

Shelby Farms has a "dog friendly" area where owners are allowed to let them run off leash. It also has a good selection of trails for Mtn. biking or trail running, if you are into that. IMO, Shelby Farms is one of the really cool things about this city.

This city is not pedestrian freindly, nor is it cyclist friendly. If you do a search on this board for other threads about QOL in MEM, you will find that Memphis drivers have quite a reputation for dangerous driving. If you add to that a generally poor, under-educated population, it means that if you get into an accident, there is a strong possibility the other driver is un-insured.

Fine dining can be found in this city, outside of BBQ. Since International Paper moved here in the '90's the city has made some strides to become more cosmopolitan.

If you like professional sports, we do have a AAA baseball team here and a relatively new park for them to play in, downtown. They are affiliated with the Cardinals, and the pitcher that threw the last strike of last year's world series had played here previously. We also have the NBA, in the form of the Grizzlies, but they are up for sale and in serious turmoil this year.

If you are used to East Coast living, you may find Memphis wanting. Howevever, if you can overlook a few things, then a decent way of life is possible here. It will definitely be cheaper than a lot of other places.

If you like, send me a PM and I can give you some leads to the cycling groups around here.