Why does Fort Riley get such a bad rep?

Great post and close to Manhattan,KS which has a great selection of restaurants. I am a big fan of the "Chef", try the eggs Benedict and corn beef n hash. One could do a lot worse that Fort Riley.

Listen Fort Riley is not bad as people think it is, I was stationed at Fort Riley, KS myself and my family. We bought a home in Ogden KS, just outside the base. The only thing that was wrong about Fort Riley was this ass hole of major who we knew that he was smoking weeds when we left to go too Germany and train. We caught his ass smoking in Germany one night, and also fucking around his wife, while we were training in Germany. And when he found out that I and others new he wanted to come down on us, but we beat him fast by requesting a transfer over seas. Maybe the old baster is dead by now. I hate to talk bad about any of my fellow soldiers, but as an E6, this major should of been deleted from the Army.

PV2 (Join to see), I think it has to do with what someone likes to do there. I was stationed there for three years and personally did not like it. It's in the middle of nowhere, you have to drive so far to get anywhere, it's cold (including camp function), you have to deal with the traffic on the loop and Junction City needs some work. Manhattan has improved, but you have to understand that most of the big stores there have recently been built. The olive garden built there is from 2009.

Fort Riley can be good if your an outdoor person, try to explore some of the college campus area, and prefer peace and quiet. Those are just my thoughts.

PV2 Kinder, I'm really happy to hear you like Fort Riley. That post is one of my favorites. It is rich with history and tradition. The area is beautiful and there is plenty of entertainment within a reasonable drive. If you haven't taken a trip to Abilene to see the Eisenhower Museum, I highly recommend it. Abilene is about 30 minutes west on I-70. I hope you continue to enjoy your time at that wonderful post. Take care, best wishes to you and your family.

They probaly think Ft Riley is "too" country for them. I personally think I would like it there. I was born there, and will most likely be stationed there after Im done with Korea. I personally hated Ft Hood, but thats just me

Ye dude the same thing they said about fort Hood once I finish AIT. Turn out I love fort Hood except for all the lock down and constant auto accidents. Been here 3 years and love it. Don't let the place, people drag you down just make the best out of it

I was never assigned there but I stopped by several times driving across the USA. The housing in beautiful, albeit 1/2 underground. The airfield was full of smiling helicopters. Colleges down the road...I could have done 4 years there easy. Glad you love it PV2 (Join to see) Make the best of every situation.

PV2 Kinder, things have changed ALOT since some of the Soldiers who told you "Fort Riley Sucks, or they themselves just had a bad time here). You’ll hear a lot about how BAD Fort Riley is, there is nothing to do here/there or you have to travel to see things. Well, after coming here in 2003, being deployed multiple times from here and being Medically Retired from Fort Riley, I have seen it grown to what it is today. Yes, it does have the “Isum” attached to it, like any other installation, but it’s what you make of it.
There is great hunting, fishing, boating and a great many places to go and see from the installation alone! And now that Schlitterbahn Water Park has now opened (with the worlds tallest water slide, the Verruckt, 168‘7“ drop!), Gray Wolf Lodge, Bass Pro Shop and Kansas Speedway all in the same area. And about a 2 hour drive.
But this is about Fort Riley itself, yes you have the ranges going at all hours sometimes. But it’s the Army, stay sharp and keep on point. Right. Again, its what YOU make of it and how YOU push yourself through your career.

Maybe cause of that artillery or whatever they shoot off on the weekends? I lived in Manhattan for a few years while growing up. The windows rattled while I tried to sleep in on the weekends...

I was stationed there 96-99 and really did not like it, Ft Riley barracks were sub par at the time I lived there, It felt more like a prison if you were single soldier and put into the subpar barracks at that time. The post itself was fine and there was plenty to do however my bad experience wasnt limited to just the living conditions where we hung our heads but our chain of command namely a bad NCO who loved to torture anyone lower ranking than himself, he was the reason I left military instead of continuing to retirement as planned. The COC can have a huge impact on moral and even keep people in, had I had a better NCO I probably would had still been in but this NCO was so bad that 20 years later I still have nightmares of the treatment we got from him. I wish I would have had a different post to start out, looking back I regret leaving to an extent, It was what I wanted to do, but that base was a living nightmare because of him. Go figure that an army cook would have that bad of an NCO that he would drive nearly all the new recruits who came into his control not keeping a single one of us (we all left at end of our terms)