Charlotte vs. Raleigh

[Dingus]

Lots of great info in this thread, thanks everyone!

The Triangle area is a much better place to live than Charlotte if you look at any statistic other than disc golf.

The burbs of Raleigh are consistently ranked as the best places to live in the country. That's why all these *******s keep moving here making traffic worst.

So move to Charlotte we're full.

Those rankings are garbage, the cities pay for their positions in those rankings. Can you point to reasons you think Triangle over Charlotte?

FYI in looking it seems like Raleigh would be more family friendly; it seems like more and better suburban areas. Any comments to that impression?

 

[Tripper]

Lots of great info in this thread, thanks everyone!



Those rankings are garbage, the cities pay for their positions in those rankings. Can you point to reasons you think Triangle over Charlotte?

FYI in looking it seems like Raleigh would be more family friendly; it seems like more and better suburban areas. Any comments to that impression?

I agree with your assessment about Raleigh being more family friendly. I have definitely seen Charlotte on a list for "best city for single professionals". Also, having raised my 2 kids in Raleigh, I can attest that you can barely throw a high speed driver without it landing in a park.

IMO. Charlotte has superior disc golf but Raleigh is trying to narrow the gap. As for being more centrally located for your work region, that would be Raleigh. A previous poster mentioned it is only 100 miles from Charlotte to VA. While that is true, that 100 miles is straight up I-77 to the western part of VA. If you need to go to Richmond, that's 4.5 hrs from Charlotte and only 2.5 from Raleigh.

 

[DavidSauls]

Lots of great info in this thread, thanks everyone!



Those rankings are garbage, the cities pay for their positions in those rankings. Can you point to reasons you think Triangle over Charlotte?

FYI in looking it seems like Raleigh would be more family friendly; it seems like more and better suburban areas. Any comments to that impression?

My outsider impression is that Charlotte is more of a Big City---the Triangle area more of a college town, or a conglomerate of college towns. With all that implies.

Now, Charlotte's not NYC, and Raleigh isn't really a "town", but that's the different flavor I see in them. Which is best? All depends on what you like.

 

[curmudgeonDwindle]

Living in Raleigh the last 20 years, I have not heard about this city rivalry of which you speak.

I would expect that dismissal from a Raleigh person, but the purpose of my comments was to make a stranger feel welcome and add flavor, not to incite or excessively promote.

I would say that in general, the government can at best only aid economic growth, but at it's heart is a wealth redistribution scheme. RTP was created in response to the facts previously stated, as was your wonderful roads system (while Charlotte roads languish). Without its massive public funding, The Triangle would languish in general. As they say in conspiracy films, 'follow the money'...

Were I you, I wouldn't take offense or contradict - you're missing the point. Both offer plenty for prospective residents. It depends on what might be the right fit for a person and their family - thus my suggestion for an actual site visit. And yes, I've lived in both places with experience commensurate with yours.

 

[Dingus]

I would expect that dismissal from a Raleigh person, but the purpose of my comments was to make a stranger feel welcome and add flavor, not to incite or excessively promote.

I would say that in general, the government can at best only aid economic growth, but at it's heart is a wealth redistribution scheme. RTP was created in response to the facts previously stated, as was your wonderful roads system (while Charlotte roads languish). Without its massive public funding, The Triangle would languish in general. As they say in conspiracy films, 'follow the money'...

Were I you, I wouldn't take offense or contradict - you're missing the point. Both offer plenty for prospective residents. It depends on what might be the right fit for a person and their family - thus my suggestion for an actual site visit. And yes, I've lived in both places with experience commensurate with yours.

So you like banks huh?

 

[_MTL_]

The origin of the Raleigh / Charlotte "rivalry" is from the 1990s through early 2000s.

Raleigh had more larger events than Charlotte. PDGA wise, Charlotte only had the points bonanza and a tournament the weekend before / after USDGC (many names).

Raleigh, was running Buckhorn, the Crosstown (which was an NT a few times), Zebulon Cha-Ching and NC State Flying Disc Championship. Throw in Durham events, which was two B tiers and UNC's event, a B tier as well, and Raleigh flat out had the better events both in quantity and quality.

The question always posed was "why does Raleigh have the better events, more events and way less courses?" Also, except a few people, Charlotte players would not travel a lot for events.

The Charlotte club ran weeklys, doubles and other non-sanctioned club events. Their approach was "why would we leave this area when we have it all?"

Raleigh also, at the time, clearly had the better players. LArry Leonard and Walter Haney were clearly the two best in the state and in their peak, were both top 10 in the world. Stan was really good, but not quite at their level.

It was nothing ever serious and always just friendly jabs. Most of the old school players from both cities were and still are good friends.

 

[Tripper]

I would expect that dismissal from a Raleigh person, but the purpose of my comments was to make a stranger feel welcome and add flavor, not to incite or excessively promote.

I would say that in general, the government can at best only aid economic growth, but at it's heart is a wealth redistribution scheme. RTP was created in response to the facts previously stated, as was your wonderful roads system (while Charlotte roads languish). Without its massive public funding, The Triangle would languish in general. As they say in conspiracy films, 'follow the money'...

Were I you, I wouldn't take offense or contradict - you're missing the point. Both offer plenty for prospective residents. It depends on what might be the right fit for a person and their family - thus my suggestion for an actual site visit. And yes, I've lived in both places with experience commensurate with yours.

You misunderstood me. I am only saying that in 2 decades in Raleigh I have not heard of or experienced any rivalry between the 2 cities.

 

[gradus]

Living in Raleigh the last 20 years, I have not heard about this city rivalry of which you speak.

Raleigh doesn't concern itself with Charlotte, but the rivalry is more prevalent living in Charlotte. Makes sense being that Raleigh is the center of government. As curmudgeonDwindle suggested, Raleigh gets more than its fair share of government financing while Charlotte is the largest contributor to state tax revenues.

 

[_MTL_]

My outsider impression is that Charlotte is more of a Big City---the Triangle area more of a college town, or a conglomerate of college towns. With all that implies.

Now, Charlotte's not NYC, and Raleigh isn't really a "town", but that's the different flavor I see in them. Which is best? All depends on what you like.

Pretty accurate.

 

[KenanFlagler01]

I definitely agree with the assessment that Charlotte is more of a pro sports town (and larger city) and Raleigh is more of a collection of college towns, with the state capital and big IT, medical, and biotech hubs thrown in.

There is a Charlotte/Raleigh rivalry outside the realm of disc golf and a lot of it is political. "The State of Mecklenburg" gets thrown around a lot -- as a badge of honor in Charlotte and as a put-down in Raleigh. Charlotte pols run afoul of state legislators often, get slapped down, and the feud continues. HB2 is the most glaring example.

 

[Tripper]

I definitely agree with the assessment that Charlotte is more of a pro sports town (and larger city) and Raleigh is more of a collection of college towns, with the state capital and big IT, medical, and biotech hubs thrown in.

There is a Charlotte/Raleigh rivalry outside the realm of disc golf and a lot of it is political. "The State of Mecklenburg" gets thrown around a lot -- as a badge of honor in Charlotte and as a put-down in Raleigh. Charlotte pols run afoul of state legislators often, get slapped down, and the feud continues. HB2 is the most glaring example.

I must just play too much disc golf. With disc golfers that talk about disc golf.

 

[New013]

Lots of great info in this thread, thanks everyone!



Those rankings are garbage, the cities pay for their positions in those rankings. Can you point to reasons you think Triangle over Charlotte?

FYI in looking it seems like Raleigh would be more family friendly; it seems like more and better suburban areas. Any comments to that impression?

I pretty much just said that but you refuted it with rankings are bs then confirmed it with more and better burbs. You're arguing with yourself.

Yes rankings like crime rates, school quality, standard of living, per capita income are bs if you care about any of those things. Who needs that info when deciding where to live.

 

[pmay5]

I definitely agree with the assessment that Charlotte is more of a pro sports town (and larger city) and Raleigh is more of a collection of college towns, with the state capital and big IT, medical, and biotech hubs thrown in.

There is a Charlotte/Raleigh rivalry outside the realm of disc golf and a lot of it is political. "The State of Mecklenburg" gets thrown around a lot -- as a badge of honor in Charlotte and as a put-down in Raleigh. Charlotte pols run afoul of state legislators often, get slapped down, and the feud continues. HB2 is the most glaring example.

I became aware of the rivalry back in 1997 when the Hurricanes moved to NC. They played in Greensboro for 2 years while the arena was built in Raleigh, a Charlotte station was running "how many empty seats at the hockey game last night?" contests.

But we all know that Charlotte will always be 2nd best, the Queen City, not from the classic definition (largest city in the state that is not the capitol), but because Raleigh has the FIRST, and only, major sports Championship in the state. Stanley Cup - 2006. :clap:

 

[biscoe]

As an outsider who at one point traveled to NC a lot for dg- there is definitely a rivalry.

 

[hoppedup]

As someone who has lived in Greensboro all my life, but spent a lot of time in Raleigh and Charlotte, I like it here in the middle better. Less traffic, lower cost of living, cool neighborhoods and still plenty of quality restaurants and night life opportunities. Greensboro proper is **** for disc golf, but is centrally located to hit all the goods in the state.

 

[Dingus]

I pretty much just said that but you refuted it with rankings are bs then confirmed it with more and better burbs. You're arguing with yourself.

Yes rankings like crime rates, school quality, standard of living, per capita income are bs if you care about any of those things. Who needs that info when deciding where to live.

I was not arguing with anyone, I was honestly looking for you to give me reasons other than tourism department funded "nicest to live" lists. I am the one without a horse in this race, I am in the market for a horse!

 

[Dingus]

As someone who has lived in Greensboro all my life, but spent a lot of time in Raleigh and Charlotte, I like it here in the middle better. Less traffic, lower cost of living, cool neighborhoods and still plenty of quality restaurants and night life opportunities. Greensboro proper is **** for disc golf, but is centrally located to hit all the goods in the state.

Yeah what is Greensboro like? Map location looks promising, does it have proper suburbs with suitably WASPy residents?

 

[gradus]

I was not arguing with anyone, I was honestly looking for you to give me reasons other than tourism department funded "nicest to live" lists. I am the one without a horse in this race, I am in the market for a horse!

Any real basis to your conspiracy theory? In my limited travels, I haven't seen too many crappy towns racking up rankings. Is there a distinct advantage for #3 over #30? Probably not.

People who live in Greensboro seem to like it. Cost of living is less. I prefer something a little more vibrant.

 

[Olorin]

Yeah what is Greensboro like? Map location looks promising, does it have proper suburbs with suitably WASPy residents?

Going by what you've written so far I think you would like Winston-Salem better than Greensboro. But this would put you half an hour further from the part of VA and MD that you need to travel to for work. To use your words, as a general rule W-S is much more "WASPy" than Greensboro.

The biggest DG downside of W-S is that you might not be all that close to any course for a home course. It would depend where you live, but Johnson Street in High Point is in the area, and Armfield Civic Center in Pilot Mountain is accessible. I would be glad to have either of these for my home course and would enjoy playing them often. Many people rag on Patriot in Kernersville but I would rate it higher than most have; I like it. I think I could play there regularly, but I may also be minimizing its flaws. Personally, I would get tired of Horizons pretty quickly, and I wouldn't regularly pay to play The Rock at Stonewall.

Although there are some top quality courses not too far from Greensboro, the options for a home course to play regularly are much more sparse.

But as far as standard of living I think that most would say that Winston-Salem is preferable to Greensboro. I would not live in Greensboro (sorry G'boro folks. No hate mail please.)

As others have said repeatedly, if the highest number of high quality dg courses or even just courses is your top criteria then Charlotte is the place to live. I call it DG Mecca for a reason!

 

[markmanchette]

I live in Mint Hill, east side of Charlotte. I routinely travel to Raleigh to visit my daughter at NC state. Nothing wrong with either choice. But if you like mountains more than oceans, Charlotte has a clear advantage. It's a long long drive to Asheville or Boone or even Wilkesboro, from Raleigh. Mint Hill to Raleigh is about 2 hrs and 15 minutes, taking 49 and 64. You will pass great courses on that route! I like Charlotte more. Good luck!