What's in Abilene?

I've gone through abilene many times, and I can honestly say that nothing sticks out in my mind. I20 skirts the main part of town, if you want to stop somewhere interesting, you might be better off taking the 355/84 route through downtown (I want to say it's called "business 20" or something but I can't be sure.)

I took that route once to break up an otherwise monotonous drive. Added about half an hour to my trip, but it could be worth it if you are looking to stop somewhere in the vicinity to stretch your legs.

Look out for State Troopers right around Merkel, just west of Abilene. I was stopped for speeding and searched for no good reason other than I "acted suspiciously." I know they're doing their job, but still....
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I was in Abilene on Wednesday... The drive from Ft. Worth is somewhat senic, check out the castle on the hill in Thurber(?) just west of Weatherford..

http://www.dupontcastle.com/castles/greyston.htm

Now as for Abilene, I didn't see anything remarkable, especially along 20 on the north side of town. The southwest corner of town has a lot of growth so there may be something there..

Todd

 

What's in Abilene? - are you into cowboy stuff?? - roping, barrels, etc. - lots of that type of activity. Several museums, dragstrip off I-20. Ran a motorcycle enduro at Thruber eons ago. The only thing John ever mentions is the drag strip!

Carol

 

Actually you can expect a fairly high concentration of "road-side assistance", of both state and local varieties, on I-20 between Eastland and the Hwy 84 cut-off to Lubbock. Not the place to have a heavy right foot.

Other than a horse show many years ago, I have no experience off of I-20 and there's not much out there.

John

 

I went to college in Abilene. There is nothing really remarkable about the town. As you come in from the east, you will pass the "million light, drive-thru Christmas park" about two miles west of Clyde. The exit from I-20 into Abilene is a left exit. Nothing at all on the far east end of town. The Taylor county fairgrounds, Taylor county coliseum and the Abilene Zoo are just as you enter the eastern edge of town, near the Abilene Airport. They have some pretty interesting metal sculptures near the railroad depot on North 1st street.

If you stick around long enough at the west end of town you can see some low passes over the highway by B1 bombers as they land at Dyess AFB. If you are just needing a rest stop on a trip west, I would recommend the Chevron station in Clyde at the Cherry Lane exit. Nice folks run the place and it has a grille inside for some greasy burgers etc.

Hope that sheds some light........:>)

 

I'm going to be moving to Abilene later this year/early next

 

And there still won't be any reason to go there

j/k, Abilene is quite a bit closer to DFW than SA.

 

Yeah, nothing to do in Abilene........ I will think of you the first time I scam a ride on a B-1 It's a job though and somebody has to do it, flying around the world picking up chicks and all that.

I hope to make it to more of the get togethers

 

Mark, you will be 186 miles west of Dallas when you are in Abilene. About three hours if you drive the speed limit.

Run over to Sweetwater, 40 miles west, when they have the Rattlesnake Roundup. It is a cool thing to see. Really, it does exist, live rattlesnake milking, snake handling exhibits and fried rattlesnake (tastes like fried chicken, just greasier).

Go out to Buffalo Gap, 15 miles south of town and see some of the history of the area.

If I can think of something else to throw your way I will chime in........

 

What is the drive like? I looked at some satelite pics and it looked like pretty open running, is it the kind of road you can use some throttle or are there lots of cops?

I'm gonna be in Little Rock for four months so I probably won't be getting to Abilene until Febuaryish. Dunno what things will be like but I imagine that I will be out and about flying around at least half the time but will definitely see the sights when I am around.

 

My parents live on their ranch just north of Eastland/Ranger, which is about 45min east of Abiline. I honestly don't know what people do out there

 

Be careful going around Weatherford and then between Ranger and Eastland. There is a nice hill that you will be going up just before Ranger but the topography really does not change much. Between Baird and Clyde is another spot you will need to watch.

I generally make the trip to Big Spring, which is another 108 miles further west from Abilene, in about 3 1/2 hours. It is 295 miles there. This includes one stop at the Chevron station at the Cherry Lane Exit in Clyde, which is about 1/2 way to Big Spring. If I did not stop I would make it in about 3 hours 15 minutes, so it is pretty clear running most of the way. The highways are good, except in the one spot, I believe just after Ranger, which is undergoing about 10 miles of construction that you will have to slow down for.

If you make it further out west, the stretch between Odessa and El Paso is wide open territory. The area heading out toward the Davis Mountains is a hoot to drive. This is where they hold the "Wide Open" high speed runs that were discussed several months back.

Let me know how it goes.....

 

If you make it out to Midland, which is 140 miles west of Abilene, call Carty Beal at BTA in Midland and tell him you would like to meet him. Use my name. Maybe you will be the first F/Cer to see his newly painted McLaren F1. Take a look at his 2WD Diablo also. Cool guy with cool cars...............