Ames compared to other Big 12 College Towns

Jbone4State10' · 02-26-2008, 04:52 PM

For the people that have been on a lot of road trips to other college towns, how does Ames stack up? I've never been to another Big 12 college town and am curious what the other ones are like and whether or not you prefer Ames.

mike4cy · 02-26-2008, 04:54 PM

Lawrence was kind of dissappointing (good thing I was able to go to Kelly's bar the night before) and Lincoln is not very fun at all. Those are my experiences.

Wesley · 02-26-2008, 04:56 PM

Worse is Texas Tech - the tumbleweeds knowck you down crossing the street.

Jbone4State10' · 02-26-2008, 04:58 PM

Originally Posted by mike4cy

Lawrence was kind of dissappointing (good thing I was able to go to Kelly's bar the night before) and Lincoln is not very fun at all. Those are my experiences.

That's interesting about Lawrence. I've heard it's not too bad of a town. I knew Lincoln left a little to be desired and from what I've heard Manhattan is lame as well, granted i heard this from a Jayhawk fan.

CRcyclone6 · 02-26-2008, 04:58 PM

Boulder is beautiful. Lawrence, Norman, Stillwater, Austin all have their great night spots. Had great hospitality at all. A few more snobs at KU. "All Pay Heed to the Phog", or however it goes in their building.

alaskaguy · 02-26-2008, 04:59 PM

If we are comparing "towns" and not campus's Boulder would be at the top of my list, but that is probably because I prefer being next to mountains as opposed to.....

jjisu · 02-26-2008, 04:59 PM

Not real sure about the towns in general but i know our "student" tailgating lot is one of the best

cybsball20 · 02-26-2008, 05:00 PM

Originally Posted by Jbone4State10'

For the people that have been on a lot of road trips to other college towns, how does Ames stack up? I've never been to another Big 12 college town and am curious what the other ones are like and whether or not you prefer Ames.

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.

Jbone4State10' · 02-26-2008, 05:00 PM

For the sake of being interesting lets break it into two categories, town and campus.

CRcyclone6 · 02-26-2008, 05:02 PM

Originally Posted by Jbone4State10'

That's interesting about Lawrence. I've heard it's not too bad of a town. I knew Lincoln left a little to be desired and from what I've heard Manhattan is lame as well, granted i heard this from a Jayhawk fan.

Yeah, if you listen to a Jayhawk, their town is the best, their girls are the best, their campus is the best, bla, bla, bla. Lawrence is the center of the universe in everything. That's why lots, not all, Jayhawks can keep their distance.

jjisu · 02-26-2008, 05:03 PM

Originally Posted by Jbone4State10'

For the sake of being interesting lets break it into two categories, town and campus.

looking at just the campus category i would say Ames is pretty high on the list

Wesley · 02-26-2008, 05:04 PM

I think Austin has it for town and campus. It is also a great retirement place. Bouder has it for Kool.

cyco2000 · 02-26-2008, 05:04 PM

I've been to Lubbock, Manhattan, Norman, Columbia, and Lawrence for ISU B12 football road games.

I will agree with Wesley regarding Texas Tech. I did have a fun time there until the game day and game--I got enough crap going into the stadium to make a sailor blush.

If you think Nebraska or parts of Iowa are flat, it is nothing compared to that part of Texas. As one of the locals told me, "Go outside of town, stand on a can of tuna, and you'll see the back of your head."

I did hate Manhattan, as well. Their tailgating was the closest thing to ISU's tailgating, though.

Much of my disdain for other towns may be the fact that our football team regularly gets their butts handed to them on the road.

Ames is the smallest B12 town, and it definitely shows as far as restaurants, bars, entertainment, shopping, etc. I wish the council would do something about that...but that is another topic.

EggMcClone · 02-26-2008, 05:13 PM

I think Ames is bigger than Manhattan and Stillwater but not by much.

It's kind of tough to compare towns like that (around 50K) with places like Lawrence, Norman, or Columbia (around 100K) and close to impossible to compare it to a place like Austin (1 mill+). They all have their advantages and disadvantages. I maintain that if you can't have a good time in any of those towns you're not trying hard enough.

CRcyclone6 · 02-26-2008, 05:16 PM

Originally Posted by EggMcClone

I think Ames is bigger than Manhattan and Stillwater but not by much.

It's kind of tough to compare towns like that (around 50K) with places like Lawrence, Norman, or Columbia (around 100K) and close to impossible to compare it to a place like Austin (1 mill+). They all have their advantages and disadvantages. I maintain that if you can't have a good time in any of those towns you're not trying hard enough.

great points. It's not hard to have a good time in a college town.