What's it like in Arizona?

[Jaymzz]

My wife and I have thought about moving to the phoenix area off and on for a few years now that the kids are grown up. I really like the Flagstaff area because from the pictures it reminds me of where I grew up but worried about a job for me there. I have lived in Oregon my whole life but we feel it might be time to move. The taxes are getting out of control here and the meth problem is even worse that everything has to be locked down or it will be gone.
This is going to sound odd but what are the scorpions like there? We read that you have to check your shoes and pillowcases, etc. Is this true? A little spoiled where we live, just have brown recluse spiders that I spray for every year.
How bad are the summers? We are used to fairly moderate temperatures with a lot of rain. Summers do get around 100 with some humidity here but it is short lived.
Crime and drugs bad there? The crime here is getting worse as the tweaker population gets worse. Meth is a huge issue here that the cops just shoo them away when they are causing trouble and not arresting them. Theft is horrible here to the point I try to not leave anything outside. Lawnmowers, shovels, hoses, etc. Wake up every morning wondering if my garage was broken into the night before or if our cars are still in the driveway in one piece.
What would be good areas of phoenix to live in? I work for Caliber collision as a body tech and can transfer to any area there.
The most important of all. How is the car culture there? I know I will have a long drive to do any hillclimbs so how is the road racing there for in between? Is there clubs that let you run track days with them? I used to be extremely involved in Oregon racing clubs (President or Vise president of a couple racing clubs)and want to get back into it.
Thank you in advance. I would love to hear about the areas and any info you would like to share good or bad.