It was pretty incredible. Such outrageousness colors the region's history. Aside from such classics as A.C. Greene's memoir A Personal Country, first published in 1969, little of lasting merit has been written about West Texas. He says it's more fun to write about West Texas than any place else. And, of course, West Texas really does have a lot of the crazier things that are so distinctly 'Texan,' from what goes on out at Terlingua with its chili cook-off to The Big Texan Steak House up in Amarillo.
Outsiders think all Texas is like that.
But only West Texas is. The pair worked on an epic essay about West Texas in 1998. What's more, Montford assured the writers the emerging Texas Tech Press would happily publish it. And, of course, I knew all along these guys would bring a special bundle of energy to anything they did. Some of that energy uncovered surprises even for Cochran, famed for his knowledge of the obscure and the offbeat throughout West Texas.