Bozeman vs. Burlington

To test the legitimacy of Bozeman’s claim as one of the best towns around, we decided to compare it to similar small cities across the country. First up: Burlington, Vermont, home of the University of Vermont and minutes from New England’s premiere ski resorts. Burlington has a long-standing reputation for an eclectic art scene, outstanding quality of life, and mop-topped students living on shrooms and trail mix. Should be a good matchup.


Avg. Snowfall
Bozeman: 84 inches
Burlington: 76 inches
Eight inches might be significant enough, but we’ll give the East-Coasters the benefit of the doubt.
Edge: even

Landmark
Bozeman: The Bridgers
Burlington: Lake Champlain
Snow skiing vs. water skiing? C’mon now.
Edge: Bozeman

Best Local Band
Bozeman: The Clintons
Burlington: Phish
Sorry, Clintonians. When 65,000 people abandon their cars on I-90 and walk miles to your farewell show, we’ll reevaluate.
Edge: Burlington

Medical Marijuana
Bozeman: Legal
Burlington: Legal
In VT, patients can grow up to 3 plants. In MT, it’s 6.
Edge: Bozeman

Movie Filmed
Bozeman: A River Runs Through It
Burlington: Me, Myself & Irene
Brad Pitt or Jim Carrey? Robert Redford or the Farrelly Bros.?
Edge: Bozeman

Local Ice Cream
Bozeman: Moo Casa
Burlington: Ben and Jerry’s
If Moo Casa had a factory tour complete with free samples, it might be closer.
Edge: Burlington

College Nickname
Bozeman: Bobcats
Burlington: Catamounts
Similar animal, different locale. But in the wild, a cougar would take a bobcat any day.
Edge: Burlington

Average Commute
Bozeman: 14 minutes
Burlington: 17 minutes
Three minutes is close enough.
Edge: even

Average Rent
Bozeman: $494
Burlington: $562
What’s $68, you ask? 6 cubes of Icehouse, that’s what.
Edge: Bozeman

Local Ski Resort
Bozeman: Big Sky
Burlington: Sugarbush
Big Sky: 3,600 acres, 4,380-foot vertical drop. Sugarbush: 508 / 2,600. This should be worth 5 points.
Edge: Bozeman

Yuppie Invaders
Bozeman: Californians
Burlington: New Yorkers
At least ours aren’t Yankees fans.
Edge: Bozeman

Trademark Vehicle
Bozeman: 1985 Subaru Wagon
Burlington: 2003 Subaru Forester
Gotta go with the original.
Edge: Bozeman

Local Publication
Bozeman: Outside Bozeman
Burlington: Outdoors Magazine
Decided by better-looking editorial staff.
Edge: Bozeman

Final tally: Bozeman 7, Burlington 3.
Let’s hope for a little competition next time.