Iowa City Rated top 10 town by OUTSIDE

[flyhighcy]

Outside Magazine just rated I.C. as a top 10 outdoor university town in the U.S. I can already hear my hawkeye neighbor bragging this to my cyclone neighbor when we meet tonight for friday beers in my Garage. (hey give me a break I have a 50" LCD in my garage)

Link to TV segment

http://kwwl.com/Video/home_video_frame.php?display=no&id=13075

 

[ISUclones33]

thats hard to believe, i hate their campus

 

[bos]

The campus sucks, but the ped mall is nice. I would like to see Welch turn into a nice area like that.

 

[Cyclone62]

It depends on how you defined a "University/Campus Friendly" Town. If it's through integration of campus and town, IC would be right up there. Hell, half the city is part of the campus.

 

[tube1]

Outside Magazine just rated I.C. as a top 10 outdoor university town in the U.S. I can already hear my hawkeye neighbor bragging this to my cyclone neighbor when we meet tonight for friday beers in my Garage. (hey give me a break I have a 50" LCD in my garage)

Link to TV segment

http://kwwl.com/Video/home_video_frame.php?display=no&id=13075

Just tell that loser how we have the most popular mascot in the NCAA. They can have their top 10 ranking and we'll keep our #1.

 

[bos]

Just tell that loser how we have the most popular mascot in the NCAA. They can have their top 10 ranking and we'll keep our #1.

Too funny.

 

[CYdTracked]

I'll give the pedestrian mall, that is pretty nice but for the "complete package" I still think that town lacks in a lot of areas. First off their campus layout sucks. Didn't ISU win something not long ago for one of the best central campus areas in the country? It's so much easier to get around and very enjoyable views all seasons of the year. And culturally Ames holds the Iowa Games, Summer Breeze (the hot air baloon festival, I lived in the apartments right across the street from the field they do this and the night burns are quite something) and not to mention Hilton and CY Stephens gets concerts and all kinds of events which is something Carver Hawkeye doesn't get nearly as much. Plus the tailgaiting in the fall is by far better and probably some of the best in the nation I would think. I've been to several other schools and none of them so far has come close to having the massive tailgaiting that we do. I'm sure there's even more things that go on I'm missing, it's been awhile since I've lived there to remember off the top of my head.

There are some trails in town too, maybe not to the extent that IC has and let's not forgot a couple nice golf courses. I don't even golf but I've heard all kinds of good things about Veenker. Sure I'll admit I have some bias towards Ames over IC since I've lived in one and not the other before but from what I have been in IC I just don't see how it's rated so high considering of you want to go on the outdoor campus theme as the main factor their campus is so spread out the campus it's doesn't nearly feel like you are outdoors as much as ISU's campus. Like I said I'll give them a few things they have over Ames but side to side I think ISU has more of the complete package. Heck I got outdoors much more in Ames that I probably do living in Des Moines.

 

[ICCYFAN]

I live in IC and this ranking surprises me. Other than UI's Pentacrest, they really have nothing that compares with ISU's central campus. Getting credit for "downtown" is also surprising, as it's nothing but a smattering of restaurants surrounded by college bars. Other retail businesses are few and far between - it's all moved to Coralville! They do have a large number of city-sponsored summer festivals...

If you watched the video closely, IC is getting credit for the nearby Coralville Reservoir / Lake MacBride Nature area, which features boating, fishing, bike trails, etc. You have to go quite a bit further to reach the Ledges...

I've lived in both and I prefer Ames, but I'll remain in IC until my kids are out of the house...

 

[CYdTracked]

If you watched the video closely, IC is getting credit for the nearby Coralville Reservoir / Lake MacBride Nature area, which features boating, fishing, bike trails, etc. You have to go quite a bit further to reach the Ledges...

Saylorville is right down the road basically, probably not as close as the stuff in IC obviously but if you are going to count the surrounding area then I think that might be a big enough stretch to qualify!

Some of these things that come out with these ranking are just pi$$ing contests just like us winning the most dominate mascot poll. There is nothing scientific to any of it. I'm sure you could have Better Homes and Garden or any other "outdoor" publication come in and give their lists using the same thing and you'd probably get completely different top 10 lists and probably no 1 campus would make every single list.

 

[ornryactor]

They talk about it being an "outside university", but it sounds like the university has nothing to do with it. A better interpretation is "best college towns for outdoor activities". It has nothing to do with the UI itself (though you could argue the university contributes to the intellectual atmosphere of the city). It talks about recreational things offered by Iowa City, Coralville and surrounding communities and Johnson County. Honestly, I would agree with that. I love Iowa City for some of those same reasons. Lake MacBride/Coralville Lake, the bike trails, and the Jazz Fest are three of my favorite things to do during the summer.

I think this is a perfectly valid award for Iowa City, but don't let Hawk fans trash-talk you with it: this award has nothing whatsoever to do with the caliber of the university (though I'm sure all are fine schools). (See below.)

1- UCSC, Santa Cruz, CA
2- Colorado, Boulder, CO
3- Middlebury College, Middlebury, VA
4- Warren Wilson College, Asheville, NC
5- Montana State, Bozeman, MT
6- Simon Fraser, Burnaby, BC
7- Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH
8- Virginia, Charlottesville, VA
9- Northern Arizona, Flagstaff, AZ
10- Iowa, Iowa City, IA

Also of note-

18- Wisconsin, Madison, WI
19- Hawai'i, Hilo, HI
36- Minnesota, Duluth (not Twin Cities), MN

 

[Wesley]

Oh, I see. I have been to Hanover, Charleottesville, Boulder, Middlebury, Santa Cruz, Flagstaff, Iowa City, and Boulder. Boulder is much better than the others. Like a nothing contest. UNI has a better campus than Iowa City in some ways.

 

[flyhighcy]

I didn start the thread and I must mention that it wasn't about the "campus" it was mostly about the college town.

With that in mind I will say that ISU has a FAR better campus by FAR and it aint even close...But having lived in BOTH places the area of I.C. is way way better. The city itself is really really cultural. Ames is a great town but it is not Iowa City. ISU has a much better campus.

The comment regarding hancher is baseless since Hancher is a world renowned ballet center...(state center cant touch em) what Hancher lacks in variety they gain in cultural noteriety. Isu Campus is better but outdoor recreation isn't even close. But the big difference I think is food establishments. Iowa City KILLS Ames when it comes to cuisine. IT isn't eve close..Unless you think Hickory park (after decades and decades) is the bling.....which it is not. Don't get me wrong Hickory park is great....but ...ahem some people think wall drug is great too.

 

[AirWalke]

As much as I love ISU, the Iowa City area is a wonderful place for outdoor activities. And if there's one thing I dislike about Ames, it's what flyhighcy said, Iowa City has an enormous variety of restraunts to choose from compared to Ames. I also like the fact that I could bike anywhere. I think being built by the Iowa River also gives the city something natural to build around. It's very much a pedestrian friendly city, something that Ames isn't because the campus is so seperated from the downtown area.

Tell you what though, if ISU was connected with downtown, and the campus still retained its look, Ames would be number one on that list. No doubt. :biggrin9gp:

 

[jdoggivjc]

19- Hawai'i, Hilo, HI

The fact that Hawai'i at Manoa isn't up there is a complete sham. Hawai'i has one of the most beautiful campuses with one of the most beautiful surroundings, and it's just a couple of miles from Waikiki (which IMO is an overrated beach - the best beaches are North Shore, but it's there), Manoa Trail and Diamondhead are incredible climbs, and there are parks all over the place. Plus Manoa's right in Honolulu, so you've got every benefit of living in a city. It's just a beautiful campus and surroundings.