Ames compared to other Big 12 College Towns

Wesley · 02-26-2008, 07:01 PM

Is not Ames the best Tailgate town?

Flag Guy · 02-26-2008, 07:05 PM

Originally Posted by clone2011

6.) Lubbock--not much to see here, folks. no, really, not much. they are rejuvenating the campus area with expansion and a bunch of nice new buildings but we didn't get away from the campus area much to see what else was around. been told by students there that we didn't miss much. The "Depot District" has some good bars and clubs, and the entry age is 19+.....but you can't buy any alcohol in town unless you're at a bar. found that out by visiting a gas station and realizing there wasn't an alcohol section.

Ahhhhh yes.... we were wandering around a grocery store in all of our red and yellow glory... finally stop to ask where the beer is and were informed that we'd have to drive several miles out of town to "The Strip". Seeing as how we had driven all through the night just to make it in time, we didn't have time to stop. After the game... it was too late to buy hard liquor (They stop selling it at 9 or 10)... could have gone to get beer (stop selling at midnight), but yeah...

Construction made that place interesting too... the town is probally the definition of "Urban sprawl" and you really weren't missing much in it

Jbone4State10' · 02-26-2008, 07:25 PM

I am curious as to what people from other Big Twelve schools think of Ames. Anyone have any friends from other schools that shared their opinion?

Cy Hard · 02-26-2008, 07:29 PM

I've never known any out of town friends to be unimpressed with ISU and its surroundings on Game Day.

AirWalke · 02-26-2008, 07:37 PM

The only town I've been to was Lawrence, and honestly, I wasn't there long enough to get any good impression of it. I'd love to visit Lincoln for the stadium sometime, as well as seeing Austin for the town.

madcityCY · 02-26-2008, 07:39 PM

City of Austin is incredible. The campus is nice, but not great.

Manhattan reminds me of Ames, although the town away from the campus is kind of run down- as someone else suggested. Other similarities as well since KSU is a land grant, state Agriculture and Sciences

Lubbock is a hell-hole. flat, $hitty, nothing but hwy interchanges. The campus however was decent (relative to the city)

Something that many people might not know, but should be proud of:

Thomas Gaines, in The Campus As a Work of Art (1991), proclaimed the Iowa State campus to be one of the twenty-five most beautiful campuses in the country. Gaines noted the park-like expanse of central campus, and the use of trees and shrubbery to draw together Iowa State's varied building architecture.

In 1999 a national landscape architects' group selected Iowa State's central campus as a "medallion" site. The park-like central lawn was among three central campuses selected for special recognition by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA).
To commemorate its centennial, the ASLA selected more than 300 significant landscapes across the country as medallion sites. Thirteen sites were on college campuses, but only three are central campus sites - Yale University, the University of Virginia, and Iowa State.

"The sites were selected because they represent places that were to the heart and soul - places landscape architecture had something to do with making them what they are," Dunbar said.

Iowa State University Campus and Buildings

madcityCY · 02-26-2008, 07:41 PM

ranking up w/ Yale, and Virginia- older, presitgious, east coast schools- That's pretty impressive

msadams82 · 02-26-2008, 07:45 PM

Been to all but College Station.

The Worst - Texas Tech
The Best - Colorado

lakeliving · 02-26-2008, 07:50 PM

Without someone hammering on me....has anyone else been to Madison? I have found that to be a great college gameday atmosphere. The establishments downtown were also great fun.......................20 years ago

I also personally like Boulder, but because of the natural surroundings while around the stadium.

Clone96 · 02-26-2008, 07:53 PM

Of where I've been

Austin- Great town, great atmosphere. Friendly people.
Norman- Great stadium, good college town feel. Can't comment to much on the nightlife since we spent most of our time in OKC, and feeling I got was that's where the students went to. People were mostly nice, but I was with an OU alum so that may be it as well.
Lincoln- Not as bad as you would think,but parking is a mess.
Lawrence- Only saving grace is that it's not that far from KC

madcityCY · 02-26-2008, 07:57 PM

Originally Posted by lakeliving

Without someone hammering on me....has anyone else been to Madison? I have found that to be a great college gameday atmosphere. The establishments downtown were also great fun.......................20 years ago

I also personally like Boulder, but because of the natural surroundings while around the stadium.

funny you should ask.

Gameday in Madison is like that of Iowa City's on HGH- urban atmosphere as the university is sandwiched between the lake and the city/ capital. It's pretty insane, and Camp Randall is a great place to watch football

ajk4st8 · 02-26-2008, 07:59 PM

Originally Posted by cybsball20

I have been to them all. I would put Ames right around the middle. The WORST is bny far Waco. The next teir would be Lubbock, Stillwater, and College Station. Lubbock is in the middle of nowhere, same with College Station. In fact, with CS the campus is pretty much the only thing there. Stillwater has Eskimo Joes and that is IT... The low middle would be Ames, Manhattan, Norman, Lincoln. Upper Middle Columbia, Lawrence. Then a slight uptick to Boulder and Austin far and away the best college town in the big 12.

Agreed. Waco sucks. I actually kinda liked Lawrence. Manhattan and Lincoln are aweful too.

Cant wait for my first trips to Austin or Boulder.

Phaedrus · 02-26-2008, 11:09 PM

I don't really have time to read the entire thread, but here is my take on it:

Ames is what it is. I just am not interested in comparing it to "other college towns", even though I've been to lots of college towns. In its own way, Ames is an excellent environment, and a wonderful place to live while you're going to college, or if you're lucky enough, it is a cool place to live and work.

There are all sorts of drawbacks to living in Ames, but every place has it's trade-offs and drawbacks. Just be glad you once had the opportunity to live there, and quit with the desire to compare.

I've found this attitude has served me well in life.

jjisu · 02-26-2008, 11:23 PM

Originally Posted by lakeliving

Without someone hammering on me....has anyone else been to Madison? I have found that to be a great college gameday atmosphere. The establishments downtown were also great fun.......................20 years ago

I also personally like Boulder, but because of the natural surroundings while around the stadium.

Madison is pretty fun, gamedays/nights are insane, Camp Randall has a great atmosphere. and lets just say Halloween up there is an awesome time

jdoggivjc · 02-27-2008, 08:30 AM

Originally Posted by madcityCY

ranking up w/ Yale, and Virginia- older, presitgious, east coast schools- That's pretty impressive

That's what happens when you hire the landscape architect that designed Central Park in New York City to design your central campus

I had heard that ISU ranked in the top 3 most beautiful campuses in the US. Always wondered which two were above us. The fact that it's Yale and Virginia impresses me.