Anyone from Knoxville, TN

[Angelo1]

I have a great opportunity with a UT radiology medical group but have zero clue about the area. It’s not worth it...if the schools, crime, environment, etc. are poor. Any honest insight would be greatly appreciated. I do know one thing and i would live on the east side of town “Farragot”sp area with my family. From the reviews I’ve read seemed mixed. Things like “they hate anyone that’s not from there” to “crime goes unreported” and the water and air will kill you because it’s bad. I’ve also heard the opposite and great it is for raising a family.

 

[mct75]

@IronCladLou

 

[jynx]

Hey man, my wife's family lives in Farragut and she grew up there for the most part. Just to clarify, Farragut is on the west end of Knoxville proper, and is, I believe, it's own entity.

Not being from there, just visiting from time to time, it is a nice area. On the east coast Knoxville and the surrounding area is going to be about as close to CO as I could imagine. Now, it is absolutely nothing like it in actuality, but it is a stones throw from the Smokies and there are lots of hiking and out door activities to be had in the surrounding area.

As far as schools, I will check with my wife, but I think the schools are pretty good. Farragut is a little on the high brow side I think, or it was when my wife was going, but her folks didn't come from money and she made it just fine.

Crime, I will be honest, I don't think it is too bad. I mean it is a larger City, so there will be some, but on that side of town it is pretty minimal I would expect. Just judging from watching local news for the Nashville area vs. their local news when we are visiting, I definitely don't see the same type of crimes, and definitely not in the same quantity.

The air and water are like any other area. I drink it and bathe in it and haven't had anything fall out. Most of the treatment plants are on the Lake (TN River) and will be above average in quality for the area I suspect. Air quality isn't bad, but I think if there is fire in the mtns or if it is really hot, they may have an occasional air quality alert, but as a whole it is a nice area.

I will ask my wife if she has any other input. Also, you might check over in the TN- Appalachia Cruisers
That is the East TN clubhouse and those guys all live in and around the Knoxville area. @bluehawk @Goode @nofomoco @cphillips @RSHARPfzj80 are all in the K-town area and pretty active as a club. I am sure they would be happy to answer any questions in more detail.

Good luck

 

[Angelo1]

Thanks for the great reply. I will copy my tread to the Knoxville group. Looking forward to your wife’s input as well.

 

[IronCladLou]

Coming from Colorado, East TN will be quite a bit different (landscape and culture), but I am confident you could find a spot and be perfectly happy. I live in Farragut and have two kids in the Farragut schools. Very good schools. Last year, according to the US News and World Report data, Farragut High School was #5 in the state of TN behind 4 private schools (the #1 public high school). Farragut has miles of green ways and parks (I believe there are 7 parks within 2-3 miles of my house).

Crime is almost nonexistent in west Knoxville (especially Farragut) unless you count shoplifting at Kohl's or a purse stolen from the front seat of an unlocked car.

UT medical center is about 20-25 minutes from my house depending on traffic. Another area to look that is closer to the mountains with good access to UT Medical Center is Maryville, TN. Good schools also.

To be honest, if I was moving to Knoxville and the commute worked out, I would suggest Farragut. Median household income is close to $100k per year (about 3 times the TN average) and the area reflects that. Not a bunch of snobs, though. I have chickens and drive old Toyotas.

 

[Angelo1]

Coming from Colorado, East TN will be quite a bit different (landscape and culture), but I am confident you could find a spot and be perfectly happy. I live in Farragut and have two kids in the Farragut schools. Very good schools. Last year, according to the US News and World Report data, Farragut High School was #5 in the state of TN behind 4 private schools (the #1 public high school). Farragut has miles of green ways and parks (I believe there are 7 parks within 2-3 miles of my house).

Crime is almost nonexistent in west Knoxville (especially Farragut) unless you count shoplifting at Kohl's or a purse stolen from the front seat of an unlocked car.

UT medical center is about 20-25 minutes from my house depending on traffic. Another area to look that is closer to the mountains with good access to UT Medical Center is Maryville, TN. Good schools also.

To be honest, if I was moving to Knoxville and the commute worked out, I would suggest Farragut. Median household income is close to $100k per year (about 3 times the TN average) and the area reflects that. Not a bunch of snobs, though. I have chickens and drive old Toyotas.

Thank you for responding. We have an offer in Scottsdale, Az and like it there but it’s so damn pretentious that i don’t want my girls thinking everyone is rich. You will see a ton of of Bentleys, Ferrari’s, etc daily. I prefer the southern hospitality. The recruiter told my wife that if she sees a crack on a sidewalk in Farragut and calls it in, the city is out the next day repairing it. We are looking forward to coming out and check out the area.

We eat eggs daily, so I might be over.

 

[IronCladLou]

Well, you might see a Ferrari on occasion around here, but part of the beauty of this area is that you can eat at a fine dining restaurant and then drive for ten minutes and it feels like you're out in the middle of nowhere (and you sort of are). Lots of things to do also - mountains, lakes, parks, hiking, SEC sports, etc.

One of the biggest adjustments people not from the southeast have to make is the summer heat and humidity. Knoxville is not nearly as bad as the deep south, but it is still hot and humid in the summer. We do have four good seasons here, though. Heck, it snowed yesterday.

 

[Angelo1]

Well, you might see a Ferrari on occasion around here, but part of the beauty of this area is that you can eat at a fine dining restaurant and then drive for ten minutes and it feels like you're out in the middle of nowhere (and you sort of are). Lots of things to do also - mountains, lakes, parks, hiking, SEC sports, etc.

One of the biggest adjustments people not from the southeast have to make is the summer heat and humidity. Knoxville is not nearly as bad as the deep south, but it is still hot and humid in the summer. We do have four good seasons here, though. Heck, it snowed yesterday.

Is it Texas hot and humid(San Antonio, Dallas or a little more mild. I’m not a fan of walking out of the house into a swap immediately. We love wearing shorts and would most likely have a pool put in. The more we hear about the area, the more excited we’re getting. They are putting us up at the Tennessean hotel, just trying to figure out which 3 day we’re coming out. I will definitely join a 200 or LC club to get me exploring the area. No rock big crawling crazy stuff though.

 

[IronCladLou]

I used to have to go to Houston on occasion (Johnson Space Center) and it was so freakin' hot and humid I don't see how people live there. We'll have hot days and it is humid compared to Colorado, but it's not like Texas or Mississippi or Alabama (and I lived in Alabama for 20+ years). Plus, you can go to the Smokies on the weekend (I can be in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in less than an hour from my driveway).

One difference between TN and out west is the lack of open, public lands. A buddy of mine goes and hikes 14ers in CO every summer and raves about the open public lands out there.

Come check out TN, though!!

 

[Angelo1]

I used to have to go to Houston on occasion (Johnson Space Center) and it was so freakin' hot and humid I don't see how people live there. We'll have hot days and it is humid compared to Colorado, but it's not like Texas or Mississippi or Alabama (and I lived in Alabama for 20+ years). Plus, you can go to the Smokies on the weekend (I can be in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in less than an hour from my driveway).

One difference between TN and out west is the lack of open, public lands. A buddy of mine goes and hikes 14ers in CO every summer and raves about the open public lands out there.

Come check out TN, though!!

Good to hear. I can handle the humidity if that’s the case. My 14 daughter has climber 3 14ers and hardest was the Pikes Peak climb. Camped at the base and started hiking at 1:45am. A lot of boulder scrambling towards the top. We will fly back to CO a few times a year, so it won’t be that missed. Why is their a lack of public land So? Is the state just protecting it from overuse or something? I’m looking forward to off-roading through beautiful scenery with these he family and camp away from other people.

 

[IronCladLou]

I think the eastern states are a lot different than out west. Here, every bit of land is pretty much owned by somebody. There aren't vast tracts of land (like BLM property) that is designated for "public use". Having said that, there are a lot of places to go - it's just not like CO or Utah.

 

[jynx]

Yeah, I think the lack of public land is due to the way the country was settled. Most of the land east is/was pretty usable for something and was settled pretty quickly as the country grew, where as out west settlement was slower and there were/are thousands of acres that no one really wanted or could "settle" back in the day so the BLM was developed to manage these vast tracts. We have lots of state and federal parks and they are "public" just not like BLM areas. Not sure about the planning and visiting, but if you happen to be in town around May 14-19, the Great Smokey Mtn Trail Ride is that week at Windrock park a little north of Knoxville. Bunch of east coast cruiser heads will be bumming around the woods of Oliver springs that week.

Let us know when you guys get headed this way and perhaps some of the Knoxville crew could catch you for lunch and maybe answer any questions from a more "local" perspective.

 

[Angelo1]

Yeah, I think the lack of public land is due to the way the country was settled. Most of the land east is/was pretty usable for something and was settled pretty quickly as the country grew, where as out west settlement was slower and there were/are thousands of acres that no one really wanted or could "settle" back in the day so the BLM was developed to manage these vast tracts. We have lots of state and federal parks and they are "public" just not like BLM areas. Not sure about the planning and visiting, but if you happen to be in town around May 14-19, the Great Smokey Mtn Trail Ride is that week at Windrock park a little north of Knoxville. Bunch of east coast cruiser heads will be bumming around the woods of Oliver springs that week.

Let us know when you guys get headed this way and perhaps some of the Knoxville crew could catch you for lunch and maybe answer any questions from a more "local" perspective.

I will certainly let you know when we’re headed out there. Most likely in the next couple of weeks.

Who is comparable to Slee Off-road in your neck of the woods that has the expertise to modify 200 series?

 

[jynx]

I will certainly let you know when we’re headed out there. Most likely in the next couple of weeks.

Who is comparable to Slee Off-road in your neck of the woods that has the expertise to modify 200 series?

Not 100% sure about local to Knoxville. I know @IronCladLou had some killer work done (custom bumpers and such by a local shop), but in my opinion ACC in Atlanta is THE cruiser shop in the south as far as I know. They just recently did some work on a LX570 they had in the shop, and they basically pioneered the GX airbag delete for @DanKunz before the GX was a thing. They are good people and do top notch work. Maybe some of the Knoxville guys can chime in, but I know folks who send their rigs there from out of state. They have a thread in the vendor section that @BMThiker keels pretty current with what's going on in the shop.

What's going on in the ACC Garage. . .

The 570 work is on page 3.

 

[IronCladLou]

To be honest, I don't know of any shops in the Knoxville area. That doesn't mean there aren't any - I'm just not aware of them.

I actually did all of my mods myself.

 

[IronCladLou]

I will add, though, that there are a lot of great Land Cruiser guys in the Knoxville area (check out Appalachia Cruisers) with lots of knowledge and wrenching experience on all things LC. I even see a modded 200 series on occasion around here with a lift and custom bumpers. It actually changed my opinion of 200 series - that thing looks legitimate.

 

[jynx]

Mike, that's on me, I had your rig confused with travismo. He had a shop called Rocky Top Customs do his bumpers and such.