1. Amarilloans Are More Patriotic Than 20 Captain Americas
While most Americans recently got themselves in patriotic gear for the fourth of July by dusting off and putting their flag on display, it was no sweat for the folks of Amarillo, who make displays of patriotic pride an everyday routine.
The Texas Panhandle is an incredibly patriotic area in an already patriotic state. Driving through Amarillo you’ll find Texas and USA flags pretty in every direction, and it’s not uncommon for locals to stop and thank military vets for their service upon spotting them.
And the Fourth of July? The people of Amarillo put your nominal, once-a-year sparkler lighting patriotism to shame with their myriad of events, including the enormous Amarillo Globe News Fireworks Display.
2. Amarilloans Are Crazy Proud Of Their Cowboy Culture
The history of Amarillo is deeply embedded in cowboy culture and mythology, since many of the residents are descendants of 19th century ranchers who settled there when the city boomed as a cattle market. Of course, agriculture is still a huge part of Amarillo life, with the meat packing industry being a huge employer, and the surrounding area serving as outposts for crops and milk production.
People of Amarillo celebrate accordingly with cowboy pride events ranging from the traditional, like the yearly World Champion Ranch Rodeo sponsored by Working Ranch Cowboys Association and open cattle auctions, to the oddball, like the annual World Championship Chuckwagon Roundup, where teams of chefs compete to prepare the perfect traditional cowboy meal.
To the people here, the cowboy lifestyle isn’t a romantic relic reserved for Westerns where the bad guy wears a black hat—it’s part of everyday life.
3. Amarilloans Have A “Friday Night Lights”-esque Passion For Football
If you aren’t familiar with “Friday Night Lights,” it’s the book-turned-movie-turned-TV show about how football it Texas is the closest thing to religion just shy of, well, actual religion. In fact, Tascosa High School from Amarillo actually shows up in the book as a playoff opponent of the protagonist Permian High School.
In season, high school football games are huge events with students and locals coming out in droves to support their team. Want proof that high school football is serious business for folks of Amarillo? Look no further than Amarillo Independent School District’s Dick Bivins Stadium, which seats 15,000 and underwent a massive $5.7 million renovation in 2005 to support the droves of fans that come out on Friday nights.
4. Amarilloans Are Real Pro Wrestling Fans
Despite football’s huge popularity, it would still be hard to definitively call it the most popular sport in the city’s history, considering the grip pro wrestling—the Hulk Hogan kind, not the cauliflower ear and headgear kind—has had on the folks of Amarillo.
After being heavily promoted in the area during the late ‘50s and early ‘60s by wrestling legend Dory Funk, and passed down to his sons Dory Funk, Jr., and Terry Funk, pro wrestling became a huge part of the area’s culture. While wrestling doesn’t draw crowds in the thousands like it did in the ‘70s, the people of Amarillo still have ample opportunities to watch people getting suplexed, body-slammed and cobra-clutched at NWA Top of Texas matches.
5. Amarilloans Laugh At The Out-of-towners Who Try To Eat Their 72 Oz. Steak
Even the raised-on-beef people of Amarillo know that a bout with a 4.5 pound steak is a losing battle, which is why they tend to chuckle at anyone willing to take on local steakhouse Big Texan Steak Ranch’s infamous Texan King 72 oz. steak challenge—even if they “win” by downing the mammoth piece of meat, with a side of bread, baked potato, beans, shrimp cocktail and a salad in an hour.
While the challenge is one of the things Amarillo is best known for in popular culture, and has featured on “Man v. Food” and “No Reservations,” it tends to be a tourists-only endeavor, with the people Amarillo occasionally looking on just for kicks.
6. Amarilloans Are Hardcore Antique Hunters
In many ways, Amarillo is a very contemporary city, with modern art, architecture and education and research facilities, including the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center. But driving around town, it’s clear that the people of Amarillo still appreciate old and vintage touches around the city.
Take for instance, “The Nat.” The Route 66 building started off as a public pool in the early 20th century, was eventually converted into an enormous dance hall, and now serve as a huge vintage and antiques marketplace featuring handmade goods from over 100 local Amarillo vendors. Besides The Nat, which gets heavy tourist and road-traveler traffic, the city hosts countless antique and vintage stores and outlets that locals frequent, including the outdoor Amarillo Antique Mall & Auction Barn.
7. Amarilloans Are Eclectic (And Occasionally Weird) Art Connoisseurs
Amarillo is known for the oddball public art projects sponsored by the very recently deceased local millionaire and slightly crazy person Stanley Marsh 3, who’s responsible for the landmark Cadillac Museum, featuring a series of Cadillacs brightly painted and buried alongside the side one Interstate 40, and the Dynamite Museum, a public art project responsible for mock traffic signs throughout the city
But when it comes to weekend arts activities, Amarillo tastes hit every end of the brow spectrum. Locals are also hugely supportive of the fine arts, hosting an opera, a symphony and a ballet at a time when even large cities are having a hard time maintaining all three.
8. Amarilloans Are Tex Mex And Barbecue Snobs
Take your Taco Bell and Chili’s elsewhere. The people of Amarillo are all authentic and no-nonsense when it comes to their two most beloved cuisines: Tex Mex and Texas-style barbecue.
Locals will tell you that Abuelo’s and Leal’s are unbeatable spots for world-class Tex Mex, and Tylers and Dyer’s will make all of your pit-fired Texas bbq dreams come true. It’s also super common to find drool-worthy aromas emanating from houses around town, since these food traditions and recipes have been passed down to the folks of Amarillo through the generations.
9. Amarilloans Are Rodeo Experts
What would a Texas cowboy city founded on cattle business be without a little rodeo? Luckily, the good people of Amarillo have that covered and them some.
Every year Amarillo folks pack the Amarillo National Center and Amarillo Civic Center for major rodeo events like the Tri-State Fair & Rodeo and The World Championship Ranch Rodeo to root on local and national rodeo stars.
The city’s also home to an enormous, 20,000 square foot honky-tonk spot called Midnight Rodeo Amarillo, although, to be clear, no actual rodeo takes places on the premises. A lot of drinking and dancing does, though.
10. Amarilloans Are Wicked Weather Survivalists
Snow, sleet, rain, thunder and any other wrath the gods feels like throwing their way, all in the same day? Sure. Tornados swirling around so frequently that the entire city equipped with an outdoor siren warning system? Yep.
Chicago’s “windy city” situation doesn’t touch Amarillo, which, because of the extended flat areas around it, constantly ranks as one of the windiest cities in America. But, being the even-tempered folks that they are, they mostly get on without much complaining, be it during an out-of-season blizzard, or an above 100 degree day.
Did we miss anything? Tell us what you think about Amarillo in the comments below! 
