New Jersey Sucks

Ladies come visit us in Colorado City, Arizona. It's a great little folksy town.

Watch out for surveys from companies owned by the manufacturers. Example J.D. Powers which is a front for the Detroit jalopy makers.

Bike Man wrote:

I live in Essex Co. Is there anywhere in the county I can ride my bike safely? Public roads here are nuts (or shall I say it is the idiots in their leased BMWs are).

If nothing is safe in Essex, I am not far from Union or Morris - but I would like to avoid throwing my bicycle on a car rack and driving to my riding destination.

If I were only back in the mid-west - I could merely get on my bike at my house and ride in a safe tranquil environment. Oh well ...

Until John Wayne Gacy's boyfriend caught up to you and rammed your bee-hind for your own Christian good.

Let's see, he talks about John Wayne Gacy, Christianity and anal sex - are you a Priest?

yep - they all pretend to be tollerant and they are really filled with hate - same thing in nyc people are forced to interact with one another even though they can't stand each other. they smile & want to slit your throat at the same time.

billy bob has a more open mind the nj garbage

I'll second that, Yanq. I'm a Rockland County boy--first county in NY north of Jersey (just north of Bergen, actually)--and New Jersey is just what it is. Yes, the part of it that abuts NYC can be atrocious; I commuted from Upper Manhattan to Princeton from 1994 to 2000 and drove that stretch of the Jersey Turnpike (exit 18 to exit 9) more times than I wanted to. New Brunswick is nobody's idea of a good time--no runner's at least. Yet even there I'm sure I'm exaggerating; no doubt Rutgers XC has good routes figured out.

Princeton is great running; in the spring it's dizzyingly beautiful along the towpath, the old Erie Raritan canal. If you want mountains, you can find them in the northwestern part of the state, where Vernon Valley / Great Gorge is, or used to be. (I used to drive out there to ski.) I've canoed on Jersey rivers; there are parts of the state that are wild, rustic, almost like Deliverance. (On second thought, that may not recommend the state to doubters.)

I can't speak for the shore, since I don't know it. The "foot" of the state includes the Pine Barrens--which I suspect is great territory for ultra runners--and the "Garden" part of the state: farming country, blueberries and the like. Hammondton. You haven't really seen New Jersey if you haven't seen that part.

It's the Turnpike from New Brunswick on up that gets the state a bad name--the smell is distinctive--and the decaying urban infrastructure in some of those northern city-ettes. Even Newark, though, has its redeeming points. One of the greatest jazz radio stations in the country, WBGO-FM 88.3 (available by webcast), has anchored Newark since 1980. Bob Porter produces "Portraits in Blue" out of the station. I've volunteered there during several fund drives. Great people, great place.

Even the middle part of the state has lots of wooded old small towns. Rich folk, horse people, know all about them. Once I drove from Princeton back to Rockland County via Rt. 202, which meanders up through the state, missing all the "ugly Jersey" stuff.

So, no: anybody who simply writes the state off is doing so from ignorance. They're confusing an admittedly ugly part with the quite varied and often beautiful whole.

I haven't even mentioned all those rural counties to the West, towards Pennsylvania & Bucks County. Hunterdon County? Exurban, small-town America. Horse country. New Jersey has lots of horse country; part of the state rival Lexington, Kentucky and bluegrass country.

According to Money Magazine NJ has the best town in the US.

Do you believe everything you read?

Thanks for the tip on the jazz station. Jersey still sucks though, it just does. By the way, think your taxes are high now - wait till Corzine gets finished figuring out how to get the state out of the financial mess its in. Yields on NJ munis are going to go up up up up up, I've been shattered.

KudzuRunner:

Your piece is well written. However, you do not address the rude, violent and primitive nature of homosapeins in NJ. And its not just the folks in Newark, people of Italian or Jewish heritage, it appears to be almost everyone in this state. Again, if it is so great, why are the people so miserable? Ex- when they vent their frustrations behind the wheel of an automobile.

Can you speak to this? Thank you,

NJ is also ranked as the 5th more livable state.

to the biker from essex..

do you like biking on trails? if so there are many options.. by verona HS, eagle rock reservation, south mountain reservation(your best bet), or by wyoming avenue in millburn

New Jersey does suck. It is just a way to get from NYC to Philly!!!

North Shore is where I was born and bred and I can't think of a better place to raise a family than Middletown-Red Bank-Rumson area. Beautiful homes, caring communities, phenominal schools (save Midd-South) and by far some of the best running I have come accross in my travels around the country. It's a short trip to Rockefeller's estate in Tarrytown NY for the "other" best running location in the country. There was a great post earlier describing the rest of the state and how it can seem like you are in the midwest or south in certain parts of the state, far away from the hustle and jerks of No. Jersey. I'll be the first to admit that there are some dicks from northern Jersey, but the other 75% of the state is not like that, nor will they have a vowel or -berg at the end of their name. So the racist comments need to stop there. I lived 15 minutes north of Deal, and believe me, I know a few Jewish people, but you'd never know. So don't hate.

And I can't end this without showing some Jersey... if you think we're so trashy, stay out, we're taking in too many New Yawkers.

I'm from the north shore so take it from me: we think Seaside, wildwood and Ocean City are just as trashy, if not more, than you. Just like Princeton, those places are for out-of-staters.

Not Money Mag wrote:

Where is Money Mag published ? Probably on the east coast. They sucked up to sell copy. Oldest trick in the business. Not an independent survey.

Money Mag is owned by Time-Warner. ATL based company.

Yeah, I'm glad you're moving. You seem weak. You're not cut out to be a Jerseyan. Stay land locked and don't come back.

Further evidence that New Jersey is the "Garbage State" what a f***ing shithole.

Test scores are in: Northeast still has dumbest drivers

Insurance company exam indicates one in 11 drivers would fail state licensing exam.

May 26, 2006; Posted: 3:00 p.m

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - The tiny state of Rhode Island still ranks rock bottom in terms of driving knowledge, according to a national test conducted by GMAC Insurance. Oregon drivers answered the most questions correctly.

The test revealed that about one in 11 licensed drivers in the United States would fail a state drivers test, according to GMAC Insurance.

Rhode Island ranked last year, also, with an average score of 77. Last year, Oregon's average score was 89, which still placed at the top of the rankings that year.

Based on average scores, northwestern states generally ranked highest while the bottom-ranking states were mostly in the northeast. One exception was Vermont, which ranked third. Washington state drivers ranked second. Drivers in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia ranked at the bottom, with D.C. finishing just ahead of Rhode Island.

The 20-question test was based on questions asked in state driver's license examinations. A score of 70 or higher is required to pass a standard state test.

The failure rate for drivers in northeastern states was about 16 percent, according to GMAC Insurance. The failure rate for drivers in northwestern states was from one to seven percent.

The test and an accompanying survey were completed by 5,288 licensed drivers including at least 100 from each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The survey asked about responses to specific driving situations.

(Cheat alert: The following paragraph includes some answers to the test.)

Approximately one in three drivers said they usually do not stop for pedestrians in crosswalks. At least one out of five drivers did not know that pedestrians in a crosswalk have the right of way. At least one in five also did not know that roads are most slippery when it first starts to rain after a dry spell.

Is NJ any worse than Eugene, known the world over as Meth Town USA ?

NJ is worse than everywhere. When is comes to being the worst, NJ is the best.