Nashville Bicycle Lounge held another photo contest last night. You may remember my last contest attempt. The last prize was a bike seat but this one was for “private tour of the Yazoo Brewery, swag, and beer.” The stakes were much higher. The contest was announced to begin at 7pm so I planned on being on the road by 7pm to get a head start. I made it to James Robertson when the photo was posted. I didn’t know where the location was but figured it must be downtown because of the old building and stone road.
My first guess, Printer’s Alley, was a bust. Most of the alleys downtown I thought were paved in stone instead had concrete pavers. I continued to zig-zag all over downtown to check out every little alley I thought may fit the description. I went out to Broadway and then south of Broadway on 1st. Then I thought it may been near the brewery so I hoofed it to The Gulch and came up empty handed.
There still wasn’t a winner this morning so the following posted on the shop’s Facebook wall.
really? no one knows where this is? it’s not that hard. we thought it was actually kinda easy. don’t let the CMA tourists get in your way (hint hint)
This confirmed that the photo was taken downtown. I went to Google Maps and studied an area I suspected between 1st & 2nd. Yesterday I thought the alley going North & South was the location but it was not paved in stone. The end was fenced for the CMA Music Fest so I didn’t ride through there and continue around on 1st. But today, with Google’s help, I noticed a sign hanging on the back of the Fuel Bar & Nightclub building that could be the sign peeking in the corner of the original photo.
I felt good enough with my hunch to tell my coworkers that I was going to run an errand at 10:15 this morning. I enjoyed my ride so much last night that I decided to ride to work today and test this heat. (It wasn’t bad!) So I flew down Broadway, jumping on the sidewalk to bypass backed up cars. Broadway at 5th was closed so I walked, then slowly rode, through the crowd. I made it to 2nd, barely hitting a family of four I apologized to. The alley looked different in the picture because of the added fences but the missing pipe in the window. I snapped the photo and emailed it to the shop with “I skipped out of work” as the subject. 20 minutes later I was confirmed the winner.
I haven’t toured the brewery before so I’m very excited. The “swag” hasn’t been defined; I’ll be happy to replace the Yazoo glass I broke last year.
The obvious followup question is “Who are you going to take with you?” and I don’t have an answer yet.
Tour de Nash & Other Cycling Conclusions
I remember the 2009 Saturday in May there I saw cyclists buzzing around town through intersections directed by police officers. I didn’t have a bicycle at the time but I still wanted to be part of whatever was going on around me.
Tour de Nash (Taken with Instagram at Vanderbilt Track & Field)
Nashville Bicycle Lounge has regular contests where an obscure photo is taken of a place in Nashville and the first person to submit a photo, with their bicycle at the place, wins a prize. Yesterday, a limited edition Brooks B17 was being offered. They hinted about the latest content yesterday so I watched their Facebook page throughout the afternoon until they said the photo would go up at 7pm.
I was eating dinner when the photo was posted. I looked out the window and knew exactly where it was. I heehawed around for a 10 minutes as Beth told me to go. Do I bike there? Should I throw it in my car and go? (That would be lame!) I just ate sausage and eggs. How is that going to feel fresh in my belly?
I finally threw on a hoodie, slipped on slip-on shoes. and peddled like a badass for Snodgrass tower’s plaza. It was tough getting up the hill it sits on after dinner and riding home a hour before. I got to the top and saw no one around.
Later I read that it was a tough place to locate for a handful of Facebook commenters. I thought I had it in the bag but I got an email back this morning that said I earned second place by less than 10 minutes. I was really hoping to show off my new, green seat Saturday at the Tour de Nash.
Biking In #Nashville (Taken with Instagram at Werthan Lofts)
Our building has installed a bike rack! (Taken with Instagram at Palmer Plaza)
I want to restore an old bicycle.
Commute (Taken with Instagram at Marathon Village)
The 7th Annual Tour de Nash
Hopefully there won’t be a flood this year.
Today
- We got to the grocery store early and bought yummies (ribeye, sea bass, ton o’ produce) for the meals that I have planned this week. Beth has been planning recently so it felt good to shape the week and channel my inner Iron Chef.
- I got out on my bike for the third Sunday in a row. The previous two rides were around up and down East Nashville to check out neighborhoods. Today I did my typical look around TSU and through Percy Warner Park. But today I came up through Vanderbilt on Natchez Trace. I haven’t been through the Hillsboro-West End neighborhood before so I guess I continued my streak of exploring new places in Nashville.
- Tonight I made a big ol’ ribeye for Beth & I. I had swore to myself to never cook cuts of meat (burgers do OK) in my cast iron skillet again because of the smoke and poor ventilation. I put our fan on the table and opened the window to help. I have finally learned that I usually get my skillet much hotter than the recipe authors intend.
:-)
I finally visited The beautiful Radnor Lake this afternoon.
I want to haul my children on a huge bike someday.
- We drove to Lieper’s Fork Saturday afternoon to have lunch at Puckett’s Grocery. I was hoping for an experience that would bring me back but everything was average. The first two employees we spoke with were incredibly welcoming. (I loved that you got your own drink before paying.) The third employee harshly explained that they didn’t have the potato salad I ordered. (I misidentified the chicken salad in the cooler.) She quickly swapped it out for sweet potato fries but still had something up her ass. My burger didn’t have the cheese or bacon I ordered but did have the pickles and mustard I didn’t order. I sucked it up. It would be a great place to ride a bike to because the area is beautiful but I probably won’t be back for a while.
- I rode 36 miles today around TSU, down Belle Meade Boulevard, through Percy Warner (hills!), up Music Row, down Lower Broad, around LP Field, past our old apartment and past an apartment I want to live in.
- I enjoyed seeing trick-or-treaters but not those without a costume. I would have given them something lame if they came to my porch. “This ain’t candy!” “That ain’t a costume!”
- Our grocery checker complemented us this evening on our cotton grocery bags folded and stacked neatly. It felt good to hear someone appreciate an obsessive compulsive behavior.
- Tuesday will be the first opportunity to find out if I need to change the accent color of our baby blog.
- I’m renting the 24-120mm f/4G AF-S VR for the wedding I’m shooting in a couple weeks.
