Out & About August 2015

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Going

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above beyond

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Out-N-About

CONTENTS

Publisher Scott Pratt Operations Director Dylan Pratt Managing Editor Kelly Hodge Associate Writers Trey Williams Daniel Bratton Ron and Anita Fink Lester Bean Harrison Jenkins Melinda Curry Advertising Emily Jennings Terry Warner Daniel Bratton Cover Design Nathan Wampler Page Design Kelly Hodge

COVER STORY 4

GREAT SCOTT Few men have ever impacted the Northeast Tennessee community quite like Scott Niswonger, the Greeneville entrepreneur and philanthropist. And his charitable work is undoubtedly far from ÀQLVKHG &RYHU SKRWR by Andy Rowe)

FEATURES 8 ONE FOR THE ROAD He burst onto the 1$6&$5 VFHQH DV D à DVK\ NLG IURP &DOLIRUQLD and immediately stoked the emotions of stockcar racing fans. More than two decades later, at -HͿ *RUGRQ LV PDNLQJ KLV IDUHZHOO WRXU +H¡OO drive for the last time at Bristol Motor Speedway as a series regular in the Irwin Tools Night Race.

11 TOAST OF THE TOWN Michael Reedy has blazed his own trail in turning Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars of Kingsport into a regional player in the wine industry. 18 AUGUST Q&A For outdoor adventure, WKHUH¡V EHHQ QR EHWWHU SODFH WKURXJK WKH \HDUV WR VWDUW WKDQ 0DKRQH\¡V 6WRUH RZQHU 'DQ 0DKRQH\ discusses the long journey and more. 21 HAPPY CAMPERS The vote is in on the best VWDWH SDUN LQ 7HQQHVVHH DQG \RX GRQ¡W KDYH WR JR far to enjoy it. 24 IT’S A FLING Area courses are springing up for golfers who prefer discs to clubs. 26 COOKIN’ ON THE FLY )RRG WUXFNV RÍżHULQJ DOO VRUWV RI FXLVLQH DUH Ă€QGLQJ WKHLU VHUYLFHV PRVW welcome. 27 SWEET SMOKE Ligero Cigar Lounge has HVWDEOLVKHG D QLFKH ZLWK WREDFFR DĂ€FLDQDGRV 30-31

OP-ED, LESTER BEAN

Photography Andy Rowe Cartoons Terry Warner Out-N-About magazine is a monthly production of Phoenix Flying Inc. We strive to be informative, entertaining and, above all, interesting. Thoughtful feedback is welcome at outnaboutmagazine@gmail.com. Read online at outnaboutmagazine.com and like us on Facebook. For advertising opportunities, call Dylan Pratt at 423-202-8664.

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The Mover Scott Niswonger makes big things happen, and he’s not slowing down Andy Rowe

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By Scott Pratt

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cott Niswonger is all about things coming full circle, but HYHQ KH FRXOGQ¡W KDYH LPDJined that the circle of life would eventually lead him to saving children, or at least helping to save children. For those who may not know, Niswonger is a resident of Greeneville and the most important philanthropic force in Eastern Tennessee. He and his Niswonger Foundation have donated over $160 million to projects that focus on his two primary objectives: eduFDWLRQ DQG FKLOGUHQ¡V KHDOWK FDUH 'XULQJ D UHFHQW YLVLW WR WKH corporate headquarters of Landair in Greeneville, Niswonger — a formidable man who stands well over six feet tall and whose intellect obviously matches his physical stature — talked about a wide range RI VXEMHFWV WKDW UHĂ HFW KLV DOPRVW evangelical interest in developing and maintaining a healthy and sustainable economic structure in

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‘ Northeast Tennessee, one that will allow the citizens of the region to thrive economically, to maintain their values and to stay connected. At 65, he seems a cross between Moses and Atlas, wanting to lead others to the Promised Land and willing to take the whole world on his own shoulders if the need arises. “I remember telling my mother after I returned home from my Ă€UVW WULS GRZQ KHUH WKDW WKHUH ZDV

August 2015

I don’t sleep well at all. There’s too much I want to do. I can’t seem to turn it off.

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VRPHWKLQJ VSHFLDO DOPRVW XQGHĂ€Qable, about this place,â€? Niswonger said in his smooth, Midwestern EDULWRQH ´, WROG KHU , GLGQ¡W VHH Andy or Barney or Opie, but I knew they were here, and I meant it in the best possible way. The beauty of the natural surroundings, the openness and good nature of the people, it was just special. I could feel it from the very beginning.â€?

LVZRQJHU¡V WHQXUH LQ (DVW Tennessee began shortly after he graduated from Purdue University with a degree in $YLDWLRQ 7HFKQRORJ\ +H¡G JURZQ up in Van Wert, Ohio, a town in the northwestern part of the state that is about the size of Jonesborough. 1LVZRQJHU¡V LQWHUHVW LQ Ă \LQJ ZDV intense and began early in life. He PDGH KLV Ă€UVW VROR Ă LJKW DW WKH DJH of 16 and became licensed one year later. After his education at Purdue, he took a job as the pilot for Robert Maher, who was then the president of the Magnavox Company in Greeneville. He eventually brought his wife, Nikki, to the community, and they raised three children. Niswonger, who has never been RQH WR EH VDWLVĂ€HG ZLWK WKH VWDWXV quo for long, spotted an opportunity less than two years after moving to Greeneville. “TRW built a plant here,â€? he said. See Page 5

partner Edwin Salyer put up 2,000 and we got the rest IURP /DUU\¡V EDQN Âľ ´,¡G NQRZQ 6FRWW IRU D few years prior to that,â€? Estepp said, “and I knew he was unique in that he was able to identify his own strengths and weaknesses. He would surround himself with good people and he would listen.â€? Within a very short time, Landair exploded. “It was unbelievable,â€? Estepp said. “It grew almost too quickly.â€?

Continued from Page 4 ´,¡G PHW WKHLU SODQW PDQJHU Bob Clark, and he told me he really needed someone to haul military truck parts RXW RI KHUH WR 'HWURLW DQG to South Bend. He said he already had enough orders to keep me busy for the next two to three years, so I went to my boss at Magnavox, Mr. Maher, and laid out the plan for him. He said, ‘You QHHG WR GR WKDW ¡ +H JDYH PH a two-year leave of absence from Magnavox and said KH ZRXOG KROG P\ EHQHĂ€WV and keep my seniority in SODFH LQ FDVH LW GLGQ¡W ZRUN out. So then I went out and talked two doctors, Ralph Brown and Kenneth Susong, into buying an airplane. I WROG WKHP ,¡G WHDFK WKHP WR Ă \ WKH DLUSODQH DQG OHDVH LW from them during the week. They could have it for their families to travel on the weekends.â€? $QG WKDW¡V KRZ *HQHUDO $YLDWLRQ 6FRWW 1LVZRQJHU¡V Ă€UVW FRPSDQ\ ZDV ERUQ Between 1973 and 1980, the company “grew like ZLOGĂ€UH Âľ 1LVZRQJHU VDLG

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;OL 5PZ^VUNLY *OPSKYLUÂťZ /VZWP[HS H[ 1VOUZVU *P[` 4LKPJHS *LU[LY PZ H ZOPUPUN L_HTWSL VM :JV[[ 5PZ^VUNLYÂťZ ]PZPVU HUK NLULYVZP[` ´:H KDG SODQHV Ă \LQJ E\ 1980. I ended up selling it just prior to trucking deregulation.â€? With 1980 came the Motor Carrier Act, signed into law by President Jimmy Carter, and with the deregulation of the trucking industry came

yet another opportunity. “The legislation removed a ton of federal restrictions from the industry,â€? Niswonger said. “Almost overnight, we could move goods RQ D WUXFN DW RQH Ă€IWK WKH cost customers were paying to move cargo on airplanes.â€?

In order to move goods on trucks, however, Niswonger needed trucks, and he GLGQ¡W KDYH DQ\ 6R KH ZHQW to Larry Estepp at First Tennessee Bank. “We needed three trucks to start,â€? Niswonger said, “so I put up $2,000 and my

y 1993, Landair was ready to go public LW DQG )RUZDUG $LU another Niswonger company, ZHUH WKH Ă€UVW WZR FRPSDQLHV ever to go public that were formed in Greene County), which meant Scott Niswonger became a very wealthy man almost overnight. “It certainly changed my life,â€? Niswonger said. Over the next several years, he indulged himself a bit. He bought a jet. He bought a yacht. He bought a nice car. See Page 6

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Continued from Page 5 “I have some expensive hobbies,â€? Niswonger said, “primarily planes and boats. But beyond that, a person can only eat a nice meal each day, can only live in one nice house. One should be reinvested in the people and the region that got you there.â€? By 1998, he and his leadership team had decided to separate Forward Air and Landair. Niswonger spent $35 million to buy back half of Landair that was owned by stockholders, making him, once again, the sole owner of the company. Landair conWLQXHG WR RSHUDWH EXW KLV SURĂ€WV QRZ went straight into the Niswonger Foundation, thereby funding the most generous charitable organization this region has ever seen. “We started it after I talked to a young man who failed miserably in college after being valedictorian at one of the county high schools,â€? Niswonger said. “There were no $3 $GYDQFHG 3ODFHPHQW FRXUVes in the county because they just FRXOGQ¡W DÍżRUG LW DQG ZKHQ WKLV young man got into higher education outside of Greene County, he just got smacked in the face. +H ZDVQ¡W SUHSDUHG EHFDXVH WKHUH ZDVQ¡W DQ\ ULJRU LQ WKH HGXFDWLRQ KH¡G UHFHLYHG Âľ Times have changed. Ten years and millions of dollars later, Advanced Placement programs are becoming as much the norm as the exception. “This past summer we got 300 WHDFKHUV FHUWLĂ€HG LQ $3 FRXUVHV LQ WKH )LUVW &RQJUHVVLRQDO 'LVWULFW alone,â€? Niswonger said. “Principals now have to go through mentoring SURJUDPV DQG FHUWLĂ€FDWLRQ SURgrams. The programs for teachers are much more rigorous, just as they are for students.â€? $QG WKH KDUG ZRUN LV SD\LQJ RÍż 7KH )LUVW &RQJUHVVLRQDO 'LVWULFW VWXGHQWV¡ $&7 VFRUHV JUHZ E\ DQ average of six-tenths of a point last year, a nearly unbelievable improvement. ´,¡YH EHHQ WR PHHWLQJV ZKHUH teachers, counselors and admin-

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Andy Rowe

.VVK KLLKZ H[ OVTL! [OL 5PZ^VUNLY 7LYMVYTPUN (Y[Z *LU[LY PU .YLLUL]PSSL [VW HUK [OL :JV[[ 4 5PZ^VUNLY *VTTVUZ H[ ;\ZJ\lum College, where more than $50 million has been invested. istrators are all there, working together, with one purpose in mind, and that purpose is to improve the quality of education in Northeast 7HQQHVVHH 7KH\¡UH QRW MXVW WU\LQJ WR improve at their school or in their county or their city. They recognize WKDW HYHU\RQH EHQHĂ€WV ZKHQ WKH\ work to help each other.â€?

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nother area in which he and his foundation are having an impact is in instrumental music, a program he took on with great enthusiasm after hearing the results of a study recited by the late Paul Harvey. ´,¡P GULYLQJ WR WKH *HQHUDO

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Morgan Inn to meet Buzz Thomas IRU OXQFK %X]] 7KRPDV ZDV WKH executive director of the Niswonger )RXQGDWLRQ IURP ,¡P OLVWHQLQJ WR 3DXO +DUYH\ DQG KH¡V talking about a recent survey of successful kids that showed the nexus between them was instrumental music. Buzz and I started talking about it and he had actually read the study. It showed, very convincingly, that children who were exposed to instrumental music programs at an early age developed better cognitive skills. They were better able to cope with a wide range of intellectual challenges. $W WKH WLPH QRQH RI RXU *UHHQH

county high schools had an instrumental music program, let alone the elementary and middle schools. So we started at Mosheim Elementary, ZH WKH 1LVZRQJHU )RXQGDWLRQ got them some used instruments, a wonderful band director and got WKH WKLQJ JRLQJ ,W¡V WXUQHG RXW WR be extremely rewarding. I hear from parents and teachers all the time about how good the program has been for the students and schools alike. And two years ago, for the Ă€UVW WLPH HYHU HYHU\ FRXQW\ KLJK school had a band at the Christmas parade in Greeneville. That was a wonderful moment.â€? But that was just the beginning. As Niswonger looked around his community, he saw needs, and he set about addressing them. Education remained a top priority. “The largest reason kids continue to drop out of school or underachieve,â€? he said, “ is the relevance EHWZHHQ ZKDW¡V EHLQJ WDXJKW DQG what they want to do for a living. 2QH VL]H MXVW GRHVQ¡W Ă€W DOO 6R ,¡P focused on personalized education right now. We have to quit thinking that every kid has to get a liberal arts GHJUHH 7KHUH MXVW DUHQ¡W DQ\ MREV LQ PHGLHYDO OLWHUDWXUH :H¡YH JRW WR focus on education to career. The community colleges are the unsung heroes in Tennessee right now.â€? $QG VLQFH WKH\¡UH XQVXQJ KHURHV WKH\ KDYH DOVR EHFRPH EHQHĂ€FLDULHV of the Niswonger Foundation. Six million dollars is currently going into a Walters State campus in downtown Greeneville. ´,W¡OO EHQHĂ€W WKLV FRPPXQLW\ Âľ Niswonger said. “Just as an example, Worthington Industries is expanding. They need 200 welders. Where are you going to get 200 welders? My own company was short 30 diesel mechanics. These are jobs that start at $18 an hour DQG ZLOO JR WR ZLWKLQ Ă€YH \HDUV Where are you going to get them? :H¡UH IRFXVLQJ RQ GHYHORSLQJ WKRVH kinds of programs. Right now, at :DOWHUV 6WDWH WKH\¡UH WUDLQLQJ D hundred kids who will come out See Page 7

just a bit bigger than the one in Greeneville, in Van Wert, 2KLR +H¡V DOVR JLYHQ PLOlions to Purdue University.)

Continued from Page 6 ZLWK ZHOGLQJ FHUWLĂ€FDWHV will get good jobs, and will always have a skill they can fall back on. Those are the NLQGV RI WKLQJV ZH¡UH GRLQJ right now and will continue to do.â€? At the other end of the educational spectrum is the Niswonger Scholar program. Begun in 2002, the program pays for the collegiate education of young people who show academic and leadership promise. “We take the brightest young leaders in Northeast Tennessee, provide them the opportunity to receive the best college education possible, and supplement that education with four years of leadership development activities,â€? Niswonger said. “The plan is to see these young people come back to the region with not only strong earning potential, but an entrepreneurial spirit and overwhelming desire to return their talents and energy to the region.â€? So far, the plan is working. As of June, 57 Niswonger Scholars have graduated and returned to the community. Another 20 are currently in college. ´%HIRUH \RX NQRZ LW ZH¡OO have 200 of them back here, working in the region,â€? Niswonger said. “Professionals, business people, teachers, nurses, entrepreneurs. Can you imagine the impact that will have?â€?

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iswonger also turned his attention to Tusculum College, a historic institution in the heart of his adopted hometown. “They were struggling in the 1980s,� he said, “so we decided to help. I was

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Andy Rowe

2PKZ H[[LUKPUN H Z\TTLY 57(* JHTW NH[OLY HYV\UK 5PZ^VUNLY K\YPUN H ]PZP[ particularly interested in growing their evening adult education program.â€? And help he did. Niswonger and his Foundation have poured more than $50 million into Tusculum College. A beautiful commons area, named for Niswonger, VHUYHV DV WKH FDPSXV¡V VRcial center. The athletic facilLWLHV DUH Ă€UVW FODVV LQFOXGLQJ a baseball stadium that was so beautifully constructed that it immediately attracted the Houston Astros Major League franchise. The Astros rookie-league team has led the Appalachian League in attendance for 11 straight years. ´,W¡V D ELW LURQLF Âľ 1LVwonger said, “but the baseball attendance draws almost the exact same number of people that come to the Performing Arts Center.â€? The Niswonger Performing Arts Center, known as NPAC, was also constructed with funds provided by Scott Niswonger. But not by his foundation. A large portion of the money used to build NPAC came out of his personal bank account. Opened in 2004, the venue hosts a variety of events,

from bluegrass to ballet. The center, which seats 1,150, is attached to Greeneville High School and used primarily by the school. ´7KH\ WKH VWXGHQWV FRPH Ă€UVW Âľ 1LVZRQJHU VDLG ´DQG WKHQ ZH EDFNĂ€OO LQ WKH UHVW of the schedule around WKHP ,W¡V XVHG DV ERWK DQ educational facility and a performance venue.â€? Indeed, the day we visited with Mr. Niswonger, a camp was being conducted for 60 elementary and middle-school aged children. They had built sets, learned lines, and were about to perform a full, three-act production of “Cinderella.â€? “They did everything in a week,â€? said Angie Cook, managing director of the center as a group of children gathered around Niswonger for a photograph. “From picking students for characters to learning the lines and the blocking and building the sets and learning about lighting and back-stage SURGXFWLRQ :H¡UH GRLQJ two camps this year and we provide scholarships for WKRVH ZKR QHHG WKHP ,W¡V just a wonderful learning experience for these kids.â€?

%XW WKHUH¡V DQRWKHU DGYDQtage to the community for Niswonger, who always seems to have a plan. “People come here from all over now,â€? he said. “I run into people at the GenHUDO 0RUJDQ ,QQ ZKLFK KH owns because he thought the city of Greeneville needed a nice hotel) and they tell me they discovered this area through the NPAC. More and more of them are retired, have disposable income, and are buying small amounts of acreage and moving here.â€? Even the performers themselves become enamored with the community. “It happened with Kenny Loggins, the Beach Boys, Brian Culbertson and several others,â€? Niswonger said. “They want to come back and they want to take an extra day or two, check the place out, and relax. It goes back to what I was telling P\ PRWKHU WKDW Ă€UVW QLJKW about the feeling of community that exists here, of neighbors helping neighbors. They feel it and they like it.â€? 1LVZRQJHU KDV DOVR EXLOW a performing arts center, one

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f you ask Niswonger what his top priority is right now, however, there is no hesitation. ´7KH FKLOGUHQ¡V KRVSLWDO Âľ The idea of becoming inYROYHG LQ FKLOGUHQ¡V KHDOWK care developed because of the Niswonger Scholar program. “We had a young man we had interviewed for a scholarship who developed leukemia,â€? Niswonger said. “It was treatable, but the only treatment available was in Memphis at St. JuGH¡V +H KDG WR PRYH WKHUH for 18 months. He survived, but it tore his family apart. His mother went with him. The dad split. The grandSDUHQWV FRXOGQ¡W DÍżRUG WR go. His brothers and sisters FRXOGQ¡W JR 6R ,¡P WDONLQJ to Buzz Thomas about this DQG ,¡P DVNLQJ Âś:KDW FDQ ZH GR"¡ “I called Laughlin Hospital and talked to Chuck :KLWĂ€HOG WKHUH DQG KH WROG me Mountain States was trying to raise some money WR EXLOG D FKLOGUHQ¡V KRVpital. So I call up there and we talk about it, but I want to get a relationship going ZLWK 6W -XGH¡V 7KHUH ZHUH RQO\ Ă€YH 6W -XGH¡V D΀OLates in the world. I want to get something going here. So I met with Bill Evans, 6W -XGH¡V &(2 DQG , WHOO KLP ZH¡UH JRLQJ WR EXLOG D FKLOGUHQ¡V KRVSLWDO , WHOO KLP LI KH¡OO EULQJ KLV GRFWRUV ,¡OO EXLOG LW WR KLV VWDQGDUGV Long story short, it eventually works out and they now lease a third of the space. Now ZH DUH WKH VL[WK 6W -XGH¡V

See NISWONGER, Page 28

Out-N-About

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Bristol Race Week

1LɈ .VYKVU OHZ NVUL MYVT Âş>VUKLY )V`Âť [V H YLZWLJ[LK ]L[LYHU Bristol Motor Speedway

*RUGRQÂśV WLPH KDV Ă€ RZQ E\ By Trey Williams 7KH IDFW WKDW -HÍż *RUGRQ LV ROG HQRXJK to end his career strikes Lori Worley about as oddly as him being old enough WR VWDUW LW ZKHQ VKH Ă€ UVW VDZ KLP LQ &KDU lotte in the early 1990s. Worley, the communications director for the Bristol Chamber of Commerce, wrote for the Bristol Herald Courier 97) before spending 16 years at Bristol 0RWRU 6SHHGZD\ 6KH ZDV DW 1$6&$5¡V annual media tour in Charlotte in 1991 or ¡ ZKHQ &KDUORWWH 0RWRU 6SHHGZD\ JHQ

eral manager Humpy Wheeler introduced Gordon in impromptu fashion. *RUGRQ ZKR LV LQ KLV Ă€ QDO VHDVRQ DV a full-time NASCAR driver, was then racing in the Busch Series, although he looked more suited for a soapbox derby. ´7KH Ă€ UVW WLPH , HYHU ODLG H\HV RQ KLP ‌ Humpy Wheeler brings in this scrawny-looking kid with bangs,â€? Worley said. “I mean, honestly, he looked like he was about 14 years old. And he brings him to this media press conference and announcHV WR DOO WKH PHGLD VRPHWKLQJ WR WKH HÍż HFW WKDW WKLV JX\ -HÍż *RUGRQ LV JRQQD EH WKH

next big thing. He basically interrupted another press conference to introduce us to this kid that looked like he weighed 100 pounds. “Well, all of us kind of laughed. He looked so young and nobody really took it seriously. And I remember thinking, Âś2K KHUH ZH JR DJDLQ ¡ EHFDXVH +XPS\¡V always thinking he knows the best drivers coming up. But the fact of the matter is he knew what he was talking about.â€? Indeed, Gordon debuted in Winston

Saturday, Aug. 22 7:43 p.m. (NBCS) 8

Out-N-About

August 2015

See GORDON, Page 9

-HÍżHUV ULJKW in the mix for telecasts

Gordon Continued from Page 8

By Trey Williams :KHWKHU LW¡V VSULQJ RU $XJXVW 1$6&$5 races in Bristol are always the homestretch RI $QG\ -HÍżHUV¡ VHDVRQ A former Science Hill baseball player and JUDGXDWH RI 7HQQHVVHH -HÍżHUV LV LQ KLV 11th year helping televise NASCAR races. :RUNLQJ ZLWK WKH OLNHV RI 'DUUHOO :DOWULS /DUU\ 0F5H\QROGV DQG 0LNH -R\ -HÍżHUV LV essentially the same “stage managerâ€? his father Lyn was before becoming fatally ill with cancer in 2005. $ JUDFHIXO JHQWOHPDQ¡V JHQWOHPDQ /\Q ZDV SURXG RI KRZ $QG\ Ă€OOHG KLV VKRHV 2I course, Andy was basically following in his footsteps even while growing up around the likes of the late Benny Parsons. $QG\ ZDV WKHUH LQ ¡ ZKHQ 3DUVRQV LQ D ELW IRU KLV ´%XÍżHW %HQQ\Âľ IHDWXUH RQ Chucky Trading Company restaurant, rafted in on the Nolichucky River. ´7KH VWRU\ ZDV %HQQ\¡V ORRNLQJ IRU IRRG LQ D UDIW Âľ -HÍżHUV VDLG ´+H¡V FUXLVLQJ WKH Nolichucky, and right when he was supposed to get out he rolled in the water. ‌ That was how Benny was bigger than life. There was something magical about the guy. He could laugh at himself falling out of a boat into the river, but then you could turn around and have one of the most serious conversations with him.â€? Parsons, who died in 2007, also did a ´%XÍżHW %HQQ\Âľ DW 5LGJHZRRG %DUEHFXH 7KH IUHH H[SRVXUH GLGQ¡W ODQG 3DUVRQV D free meal at the popular restaurant, and the FKHFN¡V DUULYDO DSSDUHQWO\ GUHZ D IXQQ\ reaction from Parsons. ´7KRVH OLWWOH IHDWXUHV DQG VWXÍż ZHUH ZKDW made me want to get in the business,â€? VDLG -HÍżHUV ZKR KDV DOVR ZRUNHG LQ YLGHR production with Tennessee football and basketball and once interviewed Hank Aaron. ´, ZDV OLNH Âś'DG WKLV LV ZKDW ,¡G OLNH WR GR ¡ <RX FRXOG WHOO VWRULHV DQG GR WKHVH OLWWOH featurettes.â€? Parsons was all business when necessary, OLNH WKH WLPH -HÍżHUV DQG RQH RI KLV KLJK

Andy Jeffers

(UK` 1LɈLYZ PZ Ă…HURLK I` -V_ IYVHKJHZ[LYZ +HYYLSS >HS[YPW SLM[ 4PRL 1V` and Larry McReynolds, right. school buddies were making too much of a fuss over country singer Terri Clark. “We were back there like, ‘Oh my gosh, 7HUUL &ODUN ¡¾ -HÍżHUV VDLG ´7KH\ ZHQW WR commercial and Benny turned around and VDLG Âś$QG\ VHWWOH GRZQ EDFN WKHUH ER\ ¡ He could be serious. ‌ And then afterward KH ZDV OLNH Âś6R WKDW JLUO JRW WR \RX KXK"¡¾ 6RPH \HDUV ODWHU -HÍżHUV IRXQG KLPVHOI ZRUNLQJ LQ WKH ERRWK ZLWK 'DQLFD 3DWULFN WKLV VHDVRQ 6KH ZDV RQH RI Ă€YH GULYHUV WR ZRUN VRPH ;Ă€QLW\ 6HULHV UDFHV 7KH RWKHUV were Kevin Harvick, Brad Keselowski, Clint %RZ\HU DQG -HÍż *RUGRQ ZKR ZLOO HQWHU WKH booth full time next season. ´<RX QHYHU NQRZ ZKDW \RX¡UH JRQQD JHW IURP WKRVH JX\V Âľ -HÍżHUV VDLG ´7KH\ DOO brought their own little spice. Gordon was UHDOO\ FRRO EHFDXVH KH¡V UHDO ODLG EDFN GLG KLV WKLQJ +H¡V YHU\ LQTXLVLWLYH ÂŤ ´,W¡V JRQQD EH LQWHUHVWLQJ +H WROG WKH VWRULHV EURNH HYHU\WKLQJ GRZQ ,W¡OO EH IXQ working with him next year.â€? -HÍżHUV ZRXOGQ¡W EH VXUSULVHG LI *RUGRQ races again at Bristol or Martinsville a time or two after retiring from full-time status. ´7KHUH¡V VRPHWKLQJ DERXW WKH H[FLWHPHQW D VKRUW WUDFN EULQJV Âľ -HÍżHUV VDLG ´<RX KHDU 'DOH (DUQKDUGW -U VD\ DOO WKH WLPH Âś:H QHHG PRUH VKRUW WUDFNV LQ WKLV VSRUW ¡ 'ULYHUV UHDOO\ ZDQW WR ZLQ WKH QLJKW UDFH LQ Bristol). ‌ ´$QG , WKLQN *RUGRQ¡V VWLOO DQ XQEHOLHYSee JEFFERS, Page 25

&XS UDFLQJ LQ ¡ LQ $WODQWD and although he wrecked DQG Ă€QLVKHG VW WKDW GD\ he was on the fast track to a new era. That Atlanta race ZDV 5LFKDUG 3HWW\¡V ODVW and Gordon was soon dethroning the new King, too. 'DOH (DUQKDUGW ZRQ KLV IRXUWK SRLQWV WLWOH LQ Ă€YH years and seventh overall in 1994, but it proved to be his last. Gordon won the title in Âś WKH Ă€UVW RI IRXU LQ VHYHQ years. The Southern-fried Earnhardt, a high-school dropout known as the InWLPLGDWRU ZRXOG¡YH SUREably rather pass the torch to anyone other than this boyish, well-spoken outsider from California by way of Indiana. ´(DUQKDUGW FRXOGQ¡W VWDQG KLP HDUO\ RQ DQG FDOOHG KLP Âś:RQGHU %R\ ¡¾ :RUOH\ said. ,W GLGQ¡W KHOS PDWWHUV when Gordon won the inaugural Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis. “I was up there for that Ă€UVW %ULFN\DUG DQG (DUQhardt wanted that more than anything,â€? Worley said. “He wanted to be the Ă€UVW ZLQQHU DW ,QG\ DQG WKHQ KHUH \RX JR \RX¡YH JRW Âś:RQGHU %R\¡ FRPLQJ in, and he ends up being the Ă€UVW ZLQQHU , GRQ¡W WKLQN anybody at the time really looked at Gordon like he was the one unseating the seven-time champion or anything, but buddy, it was GHĂ€QLWHO\ ZKDW ZDV KDSpening.â€? Worley recalls Earnhardt ZKHQ KH ZDV RQ 'DYLG /HWWHUPDQ¡V ´/DWH 6KRZÂľ DIWHU ZLQQLQJ WKH ¡ %ULFN-

yard 400 saying he was the Ă€UVW PDQ WR ZLQ LW EHFDXVH Wonder Boy won it the year before. Some of it was surely wry gamesmanship. Gordon edged Earnhardt by 34 points for the points title in 1995, a year in which he ZRQ WKH Ă€UVW RI IRXU VWUDLJKW spring races in Bristol. Gordon won the BMS night race in August of 2002. At his peak, when his brightly painted No. 24 'X3RQW &KHYUROHW DQG 5D\ Evernham-led “Rainbow Warriorsâ€? crew were rolling, Gordon was the most-booed driver at BMS. Success played the primary role in disfavor. Being polite and HYHQ WHPSHUHG GLGQ¡W KHOS either in a sport with a testosterone-driven fan base. Worley was stunned when Gordon blew his fuse and shoved Matt Kenseth after Kenseth wrecked his WRS Ă€YH Ă€QLVK RQ WKH Ă€QDO lap of the Food City 500 at Bristol in 2006. But it PLJKW¡YH JDLQHG KLP UHVSHFW with old-school fans. “Kenseth comes over to Gordon to apologize and Gordon shoves Kenseth hard,â€? Worley said. “That shocked the NASCAR world because Gordon GLGQ¡W VKRZ WKDW NLQG RI HPRWLRQ +H¡G DOZD\V EHHQ cool as a cucumber.â€? Of course, Worley also recalls Gordon being on the other end of two similar scrapes with Rusty Wallace. “Rusty Wallace was really good at Bristol, and there ZHUH WZR UDFHV ZKHUH -HÍż basically did the bumpand-run on Rusty when Rusty was leading at Bristol — bumped him and went right past him and won the races,â€? Worley said. “Rusty

August 2015

See GORDON, Page 25

Out-N-About

9

Beneath the

Tahitian Sunset THE HOPE GALA

AUGUST 15, 2015

Presented by:

Join us at sunset for an elegant evening with dinner, dancing, live entertainment, auctions, and more, while we raise funds to help the American Cancer Society finish the fight against cancer.

To purchase tickets, call 423-975-0635.

Hampton Pharmacy

BROOKSIDE Pharmacy

339 Hwy 321 Hampton, TN

Pharmacist Paige Overton, Pharmacy Manager

725-2327 Pharmacist Wayne Copp, Pharm D, Manager

Pharmacist Chester Blankenship, Founder

Since 1963 222 E. Watauga Ave. @ I-26 Johnson City

926-4801

Pharmacist Lanny Peters, Pharm D, Manager

1901 Brookside Drive Kingsport, TN

We now carry Case Knives

246-2424

Reedy Creek rises Winery blazes its own trail in Kingsport By Kelly Hodge

Y

RX FDQ¡W SURGXFH FODVVLFDO wines in the hills of Northeast Tennessee. Michael Reedy kept hearing the conventional wisdom from the exSHUWV D GHFDGH DJR EXW KH GLGQ¡W EX\ it. Science, and intuition, was more compelling. Reedy became convinced something special could in fact rise from otherwise infertile parcels of land, full of shale and slate, on his sprawling Kingsport property. From there, it would be up to him. These days the grapes are growing DQG WKH ZLQHV DUH Ă RZLQJ Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars is raising eyebrows in the industry with the caliber and diversity of its RÍżHULQJV ,W currently maintains 16 grape varietals on more than 200 acres at two tracts in Sullivan County. And, yes, the luscious reds of California and Bordeaux are prominently in the mix. 5HHG\ VWLOO Ă€JKWV WKH VNHSWLFLVP DQG VWLJPD RI WU\LQJ WR PDNH Ă€QH wine in Tennessee, a state with perhaps 50 wineries total. But vintage by YLQWDJH KH¡V ZLnning over the critics. Sitting poolside at his estate in late July, surrounded by 300 rolling acres of vineyards, woods and farmland, Reedy smiled when asked about the challenges that have been laid before him. They began with the premise that elite winemaking grapes — Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, ChardonQD\ Âł VLPSO\ ZRXOGQ¡W WKULYH KHUH “When I moved back and started doing the actual science, I reached out to the University of Tennessee DQG VDLG Âś+HUH¡V ZKDW ,¡P WU\LQJ WR GR ,¡G OLNH \RXU IHHGEDFN ¡¾ KH VDLG

Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars

4PJOHLS 9LLK` [LUKZ [V [OL ]PULZ VU OPZ WYVWLY[` /PZ ^PULY` THPU[HPUZ V]LY HJYLZ VM NYHWLZ ´$QG ZH¡G JHW LQWR WKH FRQYHUVDWLRQ DQG WKH\ ZHUH OLNH Âś<RX FDQ¡W GR WKDW ¡ )DQWDVWLF 7HOO PH ZK\ Âś:HOO 0LNH HYHU\RQH NQRZV \RX FDQ¡W JURZ WKDW KHUH 7KDW¡V QRW JRLQJ WR ZRUN ¡¾ Undaunted, Reedy continued to do his research and press his case over time. “Several weeks, several conversations,â€? he said. “I told them, ‘I really do value your decades of plant VFLHQFH ZRUN -XVW WHOO PH ZKDW ,¡P PLVVLQJ ¡ ,¡YH JRW WKH DFWXDO VFLHQFH LW VD\V , FDQ , Ă€QDOO\ JRW WKHP WR DGPLW WKDW WKH UHDVRQ , FDQ¡W JURZ these grapes here is because no RQH KDV $QG , VDLG Âś7KDW¡V WKH ODVW WKLQJ \RX WHOO PH Âł WKDW LW FDQ¡W EH GRQH EHFDXVH LW KDVQ¡W EHHQ GRQH EHIRUH ¡¾ 5HHG\¡V JODVV LV KDOI IXOO DSSURDFK

is paying dividends. His company now sells hundreds of tons of fruit to wineries across Tennessee, Virginia and North CarROLQD $V IDU DV WKH Ă€QLVKHG SURGXFW sold under his own labels, the results have been delightful. A trip to the MeadowView Convention Center, where the Reedy Creek winery and tasting room has set up shop in a partnership with the City of Kingsport, is proof. Many of WKH GLÍżHUHQW ZLQHV LQ SURGXFWLRQ are available for tasting. 7KH WDVWLQJ URRP LV RSHQ 7XHVdays and Wednesdays from 11 a.m. WR S P 7KXUVGD\V )ULGD\V DQG Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 6 p.m. Selected wines are featured in the Stir Fry restaurants in the Tri-Cities and :HOOLQJWRQ¡V LQ -RKQVRQ &LW\ 3OD]D

Package at Boones Creek and Pit Row Wines & Spirits in Bristol also stock some lines.) )URP WKH /D 'LDEOD EOHQGV WR WKH $GGLVRQ¡V 5LGJH 5LHVOLQJ WR WKH )DOOHQ 2DN 6\UDK LW¡V D FROOHFWLRQ PRVW wine lovers will enjoy working their way through. How good are the Reedy Creek wines, relative to industry standards? ´,W¡V DOZD\V WRXJK WR FRPSDUH Âľ says the proprietor. “The reason ZH¡UH FRQĂ€GHQW ZH DQG WR D OHVVer extent the state, are on the right WUDMHFWRU\ LV ZH KDYHQ¡W FKHDWHG in terms of how we compare ourselves.â€? Reedy has entered his wines in California competitions and been

August 2015

See WINERY, Page 12

Out-N-About

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Winery Continued from Page 11 encouraged. He has also staged “Tennessee versus the worldâ€? dinners in Chattanooga and Nashville with some of his restaurant partners. A Reedy Creek Chardonnay, for example, would be matched against a Chardonnay from Burgundy in a double-blind tasting. (YHQ WKH VHUYHUV GLGQ¡W NQRZ which was which. ´:H¡G OHW WKH FRQVXPHUV at those wine dinners vote,â€? said Reedy. “A, can you identify the one from Tennessee? B, which one do you like better? This past January we did four consecutive Thursdays in Nashville with about SHRSOH :H GLGQ¡W ORVH D VLQJOH Ă LJKW DJDLQVW WKH RWKHU Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars wines. ;OL JYVWZ OH]L ILJVTL IV\U[PM\S LUV\NO [V ZLSS HIV\[ [VUZ VM MY\P[ [V V[OLY “People asked me, ‘What wineries in the region each year. ZRXOG KDSSHQ LI \RX ORVW"¡ , VDLG Âś<RX GRQ¡W XQGHUVWDQG high school sweethearts, caught the wine bug,â€? said the process of making wine, I won because people were Reedy. “I had worked for from the roots up. He gained decided they wanted to raise even talking DERXW LW ¡ :H a company that was based plenty of knowledge about their young daughter closer can stand toe-to-toe with the industry through his in San Francisco for a long to family, so they packed up RXU FRXQWHUSDUWV QRZ ,¡P DFTXDLQWDQFHV DURXQG ' & and went home to Tennessee. time, so I spent a lot of time never going to be better than “The northern Virginia in Napa, in Sonoma ‌ I A new chapter in their a Napa Cabernet. But better wine industry is very maworked on a lot of projects in lives was about to begin. than is relative. Can I be a WXUH WKHUH DUH ZLQHULHV Europe. So I loved wine.â€? “We were looking for great East Coast Cabernet? LQ 9LUJLQLD Âľ KH VDLG ´,W¡V MXVW GLÍżHUHQW WKLQJV WR GR DQG , Reedy began to focus on Absolutely.â€? 5HHG\¡V EOXH H\HV OLJKW XS and he smiles again. ´7KHUH¡V QRWKLQJ PRUH satisfying than proving someone wrong,â€? he said, “or convincing them of something and seeing that light bulb come on. Until There are 19 people put the product in WKHLU PRXWK WKH\¡UH QHYHU wines currentgoing to believe.â€? ly made by

R

eedy is a 44-year-old Bristol native who graduated from Virginia Tech and had already made his mark as a defense contractor and “technoloJLVWÂľ LQ WKH :DVKLQJWRQ ' & area. He and wife Kristen,

12

Out-N-About

Reedy Creek under three labels. The La Diabla red blend is one of the most WVW\SHY

August 2015

Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars

an advanced wine culture, in arguably the best market for ZLQH LQ WKH ZRUOG WKH ' & area. I got to know a lot of winemakers in the vineyards there, thought that I was going to invest in something up there and actually participate that way, but then had a chance to move back.â€? The landscape, and culture, in Tennessee was much GLÍżHUHQW For starters, the climate varies so dramatically from region to region. So does the soil. Most of the wines being produced were of little distinction. The thought of trying to grow temperamental grapes, ZLWK D Ă€YH \HDU ZDLWLQJ SHULRG EHIRUH DQ\ SD\RÍż and then turning them into award-winning wines frankO\ ZRXOGQ¡W KDYH RFFXUUHG WR many entrepreneurs in the state. “When you get out of these mountain counties, the rest of Tennessee is cotton country, soybean country, corn country,â€? said Reedy. “Soils are too deep, too humid, too KRW &DQ¡W GR LW 6R ZH VDZ an opportunity here. No RQH ZDV JURZLQJ Ă€QH ZLQH grapes in our radius. They can grow hybrids, they can grow American varietals, they can grow muscadines, some of that, but no one was growing Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sauvignon Blanc. I can do that here.â€? 7KH Ă€UVW 5HHG\ &UHHN vines were planted in 2006, and the waiting game began. It would be 2011 before the inaugural harvest and the fruits of their labor would be realized. 7KHUH¡V QRZ D DFUH block of vineyards on the Reedy estate that features the reserve-class grapes that are sold under the Fallen Oaks label. The commercial vine-

See WINERY, Page 13

Winery Continued from Page 12 \DUGV DUH Ă€YH PLOHV XS WKH URDG RQ a 700-acre farm along Highway 11W between Bristol and Blountville. ´7KDW¡V WKH 5HHG\ &UHHN Ă DJVKLS up there,â€? said Reedy. “Of course, Reedy Creek runs right through the middle of it. My family was one of WKH RULJLQDO VHWWOHUV WKH\ ZHUH KHUH as part of the Arcadia settlement

Malbec, Cab Sauv, Cab Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot,â€? said Reedy. “We have the biggest blocks of Riesling anywhere outside of New York State on the East Coast. Sauvignon Blanc does fantastic. ´, GRQ¡W WKLQN ZH¡YH IRXQG RXU VLJQDWXUH \HW EXW , GLGQ¡W SODQW D KDOI DFUH RI GLÍżHUHQW YLQHV EHFDXVH WKDW¡V QRW D IDLU WHVW $Q\ERG\ can grow a half-acre of anything, and \RX IRFXV RQ LW DQG LW¡V SHUIHFW :H KDYH Ă€YH DFUH PLQLPXP EORFNV RI everything.â€?

Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars

The winery and tasting room are located adjacent to MeadowView Convention Center. that came out of Virginia and settled right up here about three miles. So SDUW RI ZKDW ZH¡UH RQ QRZ LV ROG family land, then six or seven farms WKDW ZH¡YH SXW WRJHWKHU RYHU WKH SDVW decade.â€? Reedy admits that some of the soil is so rocky and inhospitable to YHJHWDWLRQ ZHHGV GRQ¡W HYHQ JURZ in it, much less grass. Grapes? Most of them seem to love it. The last decade has proven to be a case study in Tennessee viticulture. ´:H¡UH WKH RQO\ ZLQHU\ DQG YLQHyard in the Southeast that grows all Ă€YH RI WKH %RUGHDX[ UHG YDULHWDOV Âł

R

eedy Creek produced about 2,500 cases of wine last year. Reedy expects the number to rise to about 4,000 in 2016 and may eventually double that. ´0\ JXHVV LV ZH¡OO QHYHU EH ELJJHU than 7,500, 8,000 cases, which makes me small by East Coast standards,â€? he said. There are about 30 employees involved in the operation during peak times, harvest and planting. The number includes “a pretty robust migrant labor force,â€? Reedy said, with a core of 10 to 12 workers on the

vineyard side, plus three foremen. Success is never a given in the winemaking business. There are too many variables from year to year. The last two winters, for example, were unusually harsh and took a toll on the vines, forcing Reedy to prune more aggressively. ´,¡P JRLQJ WR KDYH D YHU\ VPDOO crop this year,â€? he said. “If I want to make more Chardonnay this year, ,¡P JRLQJ WR KDYH WR OHDQ RQ IULHQGV somewhere else to augment so we have product. ´, OLNHQ JUDSH JURZLQJ WR Ă \LQJ DQ airplane — a whole lot of boredom in the middle with sheer terror on either end.â€? The crops have been bountiful enough that Reedy Creek supplies all sorts of other wineries in the region ZLWK IUXLW 7KDW¡V KRZ WKH EXVLQHVV was built. Once he knew he could grow the grapes, Reedy went around to the neighboring states and started making connections. “We sell 300-plus tons of fruit HYHU\ \HDU RÍż RI WKHVH DFUHV WR other wineries,â€? he said. “I keep a relatively small amount for what we do. And I sell to a hugely diverse group of winemakers. They all do GLÍżHUHQW WKLQJV ZLWK WKRVH JUDSHV Âľ For years, Reedy has supplied Arrington Vineyards, a Nashville winery owned by country music DUWLVW .L[ %URRNV 7KHUH LVQ¡W PXFK RI a winemaking fraternity in Northeast Tennessee. Corey Ippolito Winery in Blountville has been around for about two decades. Countryside Vineyards also RSHUDWHV LQ %ORXQWYLOOH EXW WKDW¡V about it. Reedy continues to blaze his own trail in what he calls the “mountain South.â€?

“Put a dot on Kingsport and do a six-hour radius and draw a circle,â€? he said. “Anything inside that footprint, I consider to be my PDUNHW 7KDW JHWV PH ' & 1DVKYLOOH Charlotte, Atlanta and everything in EHWZHHQ 7KDW¡V D ORW RI SRSXODWLRQ and not a lot of people doing what we do — in the mountains, 2,200 feet above sea level on average between our vineyard blocks, in some of the best and worst slate and shale soil imaginable.â€? If you show up in his tasting room, 5HHG\ LV FRQYLQFHG KH¡OO KDYH D ZLQH to suit your palate. He welcomes curiosity during the discovery process. He wants to dispel any notion of “snobberyâ€? that can pervade the winery experience in places like Napa and Sonoma. “Approachable elegance is what we talk about,â€? said Reedy. “I want SHRSOH WR NQRZ WKLV LV FRRO LW¡V JUHDW ZLWK IRRG DQG GRQ¡W EH DIUDLG WR DVN questions.â€? Kristen Reedy, an East Tennessee State University graduate, takes an active role with the business once the JRRGV DUH LQ WKH ERWWOH 6KH¡V D SUHVence at gatherings like the inaugural Kingsport Wine Festival on Aug. 8. ´6KH¡V YHU\ DFWLYH ZLWK WKH SODQning part, events that we do, and helping me at the winery,â€? her husband says. “She gets out in the YLQH\DUGV WRR EXW WKDW¡V QRW KHU focus area.â€? 7KH FRXSOH¡V GDXJKWHU QRZ QLQH is also getting interested in the family business. She already has one small FODLP WR IDPH WKH $GGLVRQ¡V 5LGJH 5LHVOLQJ KHU IDWKHU¡V IDYRULWH LV named after her. Michael Reedy is already thinking about the next generation. “Growing grapes is something you do for your grandkids,â€? he says.

Kingsport Wine Festival Tennessee wineries will strut their stuff at the inaugural Kingsport Wine Festival on Saturday, Aug. 8. 7KH HYHQW WKH ÂżUVW RI LWV NLQG LQ WKH VWDWH ZLOO EH KHOG DW 7KH Social on Main Street from 1 to 6 p.m. Tickets are $25. $OVR DYDLODEOH LV D Âł6LS 1

Stroll� package with a gourPHW OXQFK EDVNHW IRU WZR DQ assortment of wine paired with foods such as special meats, cheeses and fruits. The $250 package also includes two event tickets and two wine glasses. At least a dozen wineries

from across the state will participate with samples of their ODEHOV 9LQWQHUV LQFOXGH $SSOH Barn Winery, Arrington Vineyards, Beans Creek Winery, Cades Cove Cellars, Countryside Vineyards & Winery, Eagle Spring Winery, Goodwater Vineyards, Hillside Winery,

Mountain Valley Winery, Paris Winery, Reedy Creek Vineyards & Cellars, Stonehaus Winery and Sugarland Cellars. Âł$ ORW RI WKRVH ZLQHULHV DUH P\ grape customers, and we’re goLQJ WR VHH ZKDW HYHU\ERG\ GRHV ´ said Michael Reedy, owner of KRPHWRZQ 5HHG\ &UHHN Âł:HÂśOO

see their artistic spin, whatever it LV DQG WKDWœV IXQ ,WœV QHYHU EHHQ GRQH EHIRUH ´ Visitors can stroll from tent to tent and enjoy wines, Southern foods and music. The work of ORFDO DUWLVDQV ZLOO EH RQ GLVSOD\ 7LFNHWV ZLOO EH DYDLODEOH DW the door.

August 2015

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Bringing the Squonk to Founders Park Time Out New York called them a “a blazingly unique spectacle.â€? USA Today dubbed them “Surreal. Poetic.â€? The New York Times reviewer Ben Brantley found their family-friendly mĂŠlange of music and madness “ingenious, hallucinatory, hypnotic ‌ a place where squares and hipsters alike can seek refuge.â€? Since 1995, composer Jackie 'HPSVH\ DQG YLVXDO DUWLVW 6WHYH 2¡+HDUQ Âł IRXQGHUV DQG DUWLVWLF GLrectors of Squonk Opera — have created and presented more than a dozen journeys of music, mechanism and imagery the world-round. This year, Squonk is touring an outdoor extravaganza called Pneumatica, which features a 40-foot steam-breathing Lady Pneumatica crowned by a wind turbine and mane of sun-colored sails, a cannon drum that shoots VPRNH ULQJV DQG GR]HQV RI LQĂ DWDEOH tentacles — all powered by air, vortex

14

Out-N-About

‘We wanted something a little wild, crazy and fun, as well as an outdoor event, to kick off fall semester and to share with the community. This will be a blast.’ — Anita DeAngelis Mary B. Martin School director fans and blowers. As its fall season opener, Mary B. Martin School of the Arts at ETSU has scheduled Pneumatica Friday and Saturday, Aug. 28 and 29, at Founders Park, on State of Franklin Road near downtown Johnson City. The free PLQXWH VKRZV ZLOO OLIW RÍż )ULGD\ DW 4 and 7 p.m. and Saturday at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. “We saw a performance of Squonk Opera several years ago during a PHHWLQJ DQG ,¡YH ZDQWHG WR ERRN WKHP VLQFH Âľ VD\V $QLWD 'H$QJHOLV

August 2015

director of Mary B. Martin School. “We wanted something a little wild, crazy and fun, as well as an outdoor HYHQW WR NLFN RÍż IDOO VHPHVWHU DQG WR share with the community. This will be a blast.â€? In this case, the Pittsburgh, Pa.based group does not mind being called blowhards. “Pneumatica is an event about air, made of air and powered by air,â€? squonkopera.org says. It is inspired by a 2,000-year-old work by Heron of Alexandria, about the Ă€UVW SHUVRQ WR XVH VWHDP WR SRZHU

automated machinery. 7KH VXSHU VL]HG 'U 6HXVVLDQ spectacle — a combination of concert, circus and theater — is accompanied by original music played on electric guitar and bass, vertical accordion, keyboard, drums and electronic bagSLSHV %HWZHHQ ULÍżV 6TXRQNHUV LQĂ DWH OLNH EORZĂ€VK DQG PXVLFDOO\ DFWLYDWH head tubes that wave in the breeze. With Pneumatica, “The Squonkers continue to pursue the most American and democratic of art forms: the public celebration, with boisterous music and surreal image. Squonk taunts and whispers, bellows and caresses, using the very medium of sound: air.â€? Two years in development, this show took 15 people six months to build and work out the music and timing at a production cost of nearly $70,000.

See SQUONK, Page 15

CONCERT SCHEDULE AUGUST Johnson City The Down Home (downhome.com) 1 — Church Sisters; 8 p.m.; $14 5 — Chris Knight; 8 p.m.; $22 advance ² 7UH\ +HQVOH\ DQG 5RE ,NHV 8 p.m.; $16 advance 8 — Jenna and Her Cool Friends; 8 p.m.; $12 15 — Bill Kirchen; 8 p.m.; $20 advance 21 — Folk Soul Revival; 8 p.m.; $16 advance 28 — Howlin Brothers; 8 p.m.; $14 29 — Humming House; 8 p.m.; $16

&RQWULEXWHG

;OL UL^ :X\VUR 6WLYH ZOV^ Pneumatica, was two years in the making.

Squonk Continued from Page 14 Previous Squonkian creations include Mayhem and Majesty, Bigsmorgasbordwunderwerk, Rodeo Smackdown, Squonk Opera’s Inferno and Night of the Living Dead: The Opera. These endeavors have been supSRUWHG E\ WKH 1DWLRQDO (QGRZPHQW IRU WKH $UWV VL[ times) and the Jim Henson Foundation, among other grant funders. “We roll up our sleeves and develop work that attacks and celebrates the idiosyncrasies of our world,â€? the Squonk website says. “We will create work that is fast, funny, shameless and inclusive: an art that will include the cheap thrills of a monster truck show, as well as the fragile beauty of the hotKRXVH Ă RZHUV FUHDWHG LQ DUWLVW ORIWV Since Pneumatica will be performed in the park, audience members are encouraged to bring lawn FKDLUV EODQNHWV DQG UHIUHVKPHQWV 'H$QJHOLV VD\V as well as be prepared to be “squonkedâ€? by an airSXÍżHG WHQWDFOH RU WZR In addition to the performances, each show will be IROORZHG E\ D WDONEDFN ZLWK 'HPSVH\ 2¡+HDUQ DQG the rest of the Squonk Opera band on the science of Pneumatica. For information about the event or ETSU Mary B. 0DUWLQ 6FKRRO RI WKH $UWV FDOO 7.76 or visit www.etsu.edu/martin.

Acoustic Coffeehouse (acousticcoffeehouse.net) 1 — Freddy Redmon, 8 p.m.; Colony Park, 10 p.m. ² ,JQREOH S P 7 — Carrie Morrison, 8 p.m. 8 — Leather Guinevere, 8 p.m. 9 — Michael Corwin, 8 p.m. 12 — John Patrick Halling, 8 p.m. 13 — Jenkins Twins, 8 p.m. 14 — Troy Batey, 8 p.m.; Zack Joseph and The Society, 10 p.m. 15 — Chris Jamison, 8 p.m.; Heppy Kats, 10 p.m. 16 — Tiffany Huggins Grant, 8 p.m. 18 — Jonathan Foster, 8 p.m. 19 — Anne E. DeChant, 8 p.m.; January May, 10 p.m. 22 — Stephaniesid, 10 p.m. 23 — Jake and the Comet Conductors, 8 p.m. 26 — Ellie Carpenter, 8 p.m.; EULHI $ZDNHQLQJ S P 27 — Ben Cosgrove, 10 p.m. 28 — Carolina Express, 8 p.m. 29 — Matt Paesler, 8 p.m. 30 — Wisewater, 8 p.m. Willow Tree Coffeehouse and Music Room 1 — Jerry Garcia Birthday Bash, 8 p.m. 7 — John Suites and Mountain Empire, 8 p.m. 8 — 49 Winchester and Jake and the Comet Conductors, 8 p.m. 14 — Guy Marshall, 8 p.m. 15 — All the Little Pieces, 8 p.m. 21 — Songwriters in the Round with Amythyst Kiah, Martin H.

Phillips, Austin Barrett and Tyler Luttrell, 8 p.m. ² -RQ &KDPEHUV DQG IULHQGV ² /HWWHUV WR $ELJDLO Capone’s (caponesjohnsoncity.com) 1 — Promise the World 8 — Folk Soul Revival 15 — Pulse 21 — Below Seven 22 — Disillusioned ——— Jonesborough Music on the Square (Free shows starting at 7 p.m.) (musiconthesquare.com) 7 — Grits and Soul 14 — Ash Breeze 21 — Rachel Baiman Band 28 — Johnson City Community Concert Band ——— Bristol Paramount Center for the Arts 28 — Steep Canyon Rangers, 7 p.m.; $25 reserved/$50 VIP Border Bash, Downtown 7 — Desert Noises, 7 p.m.; Fly Golden Eagle, 8:30 p.m.; free Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center (Concerts are free and begin at 7 p.m.) 4 — Cedar Valley 6 — Gomer and the Three Pyles 13 — American Floyd 27 — Music Memories Birthplace of Country Music Museum (birthplaceofcountrymusic. org) 8 — Friends of 1927 Concert Series presents Jonathan Edwards; 7 p.m.; ticket prices TBA 9 — Second Sunday Concert Series presents the Honeycutters; 2 p.m.; $15 Quaker Steak and Lube 1 — Borderline Band, 8 p.m. 6 — Wyldeheart, 6 p.m. 7 — Fairview Union, 8 p.m. 8 — Johnson Depot, 8 p.m. ² 6RXWKHUQ 5HEHOOLRQ p.m. 14 — Stolen Rhodes, 8 p.m. 15 — Wyldeheart, 8 p.m.

21 — James Meadows, 8 p.m. 22 — J.B. Five & Dime, 8 p.m. 27 — From the Edge, 6 p.m. 28 — My New Favorites, 8 p.m. 620 State (Shows begin at 9 p.m.) ² $QQLH 5RELQHWWH 14 — Wren 28 — Shake it Like a Caveman Foundation Event Facility The Pickin’ Porch Show (Shows begin at 7 p.m.) 3 — Tim White CD release party 10 — VW Boys 17 — The Gospel Two 24 — Sapling Grove 31 — Carolina Express ——— Asheville, NC The Orange Peel (theorangepeel.net) 1 — Secret Agent 23 Skidoo; Noon; $10 advance/$13 day of show ² 7KH %UHDNIDVW &OXE S P $12/15 ² &RDO &KDPEHU S P $20/23 5 — Zoso: The Ultimate Led Zeppelin Experience; 9 p.m.; $12/14 9 — Col. Bruce Hampton and The Aquarium Rescue Unit featuring Jimmy Herring, Oteil BurEULGJH -HII 6LSH 0DWW 6ORFXP p.m.; $27/30 10 — Hellyeah; 8 p.m.; $20/23 15 — Satisfaction; 9 p.m.; $10/12 27 — Big Smo; 9 p.m.; $17/20 ——— Charlotte, NC Time Warner Cable Arena 29 — Motley Crue; 7 p.m.; $2099.50 PNC Music Pavilion (pncmusicpavilion.org) 7 — Lady AnWHEHOOXP +XQWHU Hayes and Sam Hunt; 7 p.m. ² ,QFXEXV 30 p.m. 14 — Florida Georgia Line; 7 p.m. ² 7RE\ .HLWK DQG (OL <RXQJ Band; 7 p.m. ² 1LFNHOEDFN S P 29 — Darius Rucker, Brett (OGULGJH DQG %URWKHUV 2VERUQH 7 p.m.

August 2015

Out-N-About

15

NPAC NISWONGER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

G N I C OM ASON! E S S THI

August Q&A: DAN MAHONEY

JC icon stays ahead of the game

F

RU PRUH WKDQ Ă€YH GHFDGHV 0DKRQH\¡V has anchored the intersection of Knob Creek 5RDG DQG 6XQVHW 'ULYH LQ Johnson City. From its humble beginnings as an army surplus store — way out in the country — to its current stature as a bustling supplier of all things outdoors, it has always been a family DÍżDLU 'DQ 0DKRQH\ KDV called the shots for the last 40 years, while son Sean and wife Katie have taken on integral roles in WKH FRPSDQ\¡V GD\ WR GD\ operations, which includes a store in Abingdon, Va., that specializes in hunting equipment. 6WXÍżHG ZLWK PHUFKDQGLVH wall to wall in 20,000 square IHHW RI VSDFH 0DKRQH\¡V has always been intuitive in its appeal to customers of all walks of life. It has FRQWLQXHG WR Ă RXULVK Âł DQG expand three times — despite competition from the big-box retailers. 'DQ¡V SDUHQWV +DUROG and Irene, could never have envisioned what their son would make of their little army surplus store. Mahoney, 72, has also been a tireless public servant for countless civic organizations and other groups. He spent almost two decades in Johnson City government, including six on the school board and 12 as a city commissioner. The former mayor recently sat down in his FURZGHG R΀FH ZLWK OutN-About managing editor

18

Out-N-About

Grant Kerley

Dan Mahoney joined the family business in 1970. Kelly Hodge to discuss his FRPSDQ\¡V VWD\LQJ SRZHU secrets to success and views on the community he has served so well through the years. KH: There are few businesses in the region with the name recognition of 0DKRQH\¡V , NQRZ \RXU parents started it as an army surplus store in 1960. Can you trace the long and winding road from there to where we are now, nearly

August 2015

six decades later? DM: It started in June , WKLQN , ZDV LQ KLJK school. This was not even near Johnson City ‌ we were out in the country. 6XQVHW 'ULYH DQG .QRE Creek Road were just little, unimproved two-lane roads, so to speak. This was all farmland. My dad built this RXW KHUH DIWHU KH ÀQLVKHG building some homes in the subdivisions behind us. He decided that was getting too much for him, so he

settled into an army-surplus W\SH VHWWLQJ +H¡G VHQG PH to Fort Bragg, Fort Jackson and Atlanta, the depot GRZQ WKHUH DQG ,¡G WDNH a truck and load up with DUP\ VXUSOXV VWXÍż Âł WKH pistol belts and the canteens DQG WKH Ă€HOG MDFNHWV :H¡G bring a load home and sell here. He also got to selling FDQQHG YHJHWDEOHV :H¡G JR down to Bush and Stokely in Newport and buy their cans that were dented — no internal damage but just dented — and back then people bought that VWXÍż )RRG ZDV D OLWWOH ELW higher priced in relation to \RXU SD\ :H¡G EULQJ EDFN truckloads of dented cans of peaches, green beans. I GRQ¡W NQRZ KRZ PDQ\ FDVHV I loaded and unloaded for people. Then the railroad came LQ -RKQVRQ &LW\ ZDV D ELJ railroad town back then. We had a deal with Southern Railway where, if they had a car with sugar or food that got damaged or rainwater came in a corner of LW ZH ZRXOG EX\ VWXÍż ULJKW RÍż WKHLU FDUV ELJ ER[FDUV I remember we used to buy a lot of sugar. It would come in 50- and 100-pound EDJV DQG WKHUH ZRXOGQ¡W be anything wrong with it. You know who we sold that sugar to? The bootleggers. You never knew who they were, but we knew who WKH\ ZHUH 7KH\¡G EX\ WKDW sugar in Mason jars from Bush and Stokely. Then from the army surplus days, all of the ‘60s, we did foam rubber. We

had a foam rubber machine and would go down to the big plant that made foam in Morristown, looked like a loaf of bread. Back then, upholstering was a big thing for homeowners. You upholstered your own furniture, you made your own pillows, you made your own mattresses. You pretty PXFK UHSDLUHG HYHU\WKLQJ \RX GLGQ¡W EX\ VRPHWKLQJ new, it was all self-repair. So we had a good business back then in foam rubber, in the ‘60s and early ‘70s. One place in the store we had a big slicing machine about six feet wide and had a big steel table that was RQ UROOHUV :H¡G EX\ WKRVH what we called loaves down in Morristown and bring them here and slice them into mattresses. We could go up to a queen-size mattress, VOLFH WKHP IRXU Ă€YH VL[ inches deep. Oh, man, that was good sleeping back then. All the upholsterers in East Tennessee would buy IRDP UXEEHU WKH\¡G FDOO us and give us dimensions DQG ZH¡G FXW LW WR VKDSHV DQG WKH\¡G FRPH SLFN LW XS 7KH\¡G XVH LW IRU WKHLU couches and pillows and chairs. So foam rubber was a big deal back then. We even had a contract with J.C. Penney at one time — GLGQ¡W ODVW ORQJ EHFDXVH WKH labor was just too much for us — but we made foam rubber pillows for them. We had an assembly line outside up at my house of about eight or 10 people and See Q&A, Page 19

Q&A Continued from Page 18 ZH¡G UXQ WKDW SLOORZ GRZQ through the assembly line. :H¡G ER[ ÂśHP XS DQG VHOO them to J.C. Penney. 7KHQ LQ ¡ Âł , JRW RXW RI WKH $UP\ LQ ¡ DQG FDPH EDFN WR -RKQVRQ &LW\ P\ dad wanted me to help him with the business — in the Ă€UVW \HDU , JRW LQWHUHVWHG LQ outdoor sports. We started JHWWLQJ LQWR Ă€UHDUPV ZH got into camping through the army surplus side and we got into some footwear, boots, and we got into some clothing. It just started little by little right then. The name changed WR 0DKRQH\¡V 6SRUWVPDQ¡V 3DUDGLVH DQG WKDW¡V ZKDW D lot of people still thinking of us as. We started getting into outdoor sports and Ă€UHDUPV DQG KXQWLQJ 7KDW was probably the thing that VWDUWHG XV RÍż LQWR D OLWWOH ELW bigger thing than what we were. And we kept adding new sports, and as we addHG QHZ VSRUWV ZH¡G EXLOG a little bit more on to the building. The original building that you see over there has been added on to three times, so it was thirds. KH: What was the square footage of what you started out with? DM: It was 900 square feet. KH: So as the business expanded, the building expanded. Was there ever any thought to moving someplace else? DM: 1R , GRQ¡W WKLQN ZH ever thought about it. We had a competitor downtown, Mr. Fields at Fields 'HSDUWPHQW 6WRUH 7KH\

VROG D ORW RI RXWGRRU VWXÍż too, camping and things. That was our competitor downtown, Fields and LonGRQ¡V , UHPHPEHU )LHOGV talking to my dad one day and he said, “Mahoney, why are you building a store out there on Knob Creek Road?â€? +H VDLG ´7KDW¡V D ORQJ ZD\ IURP -RKQVRQ &LW\ \RX¡UH four miles from Johnson &LW\ <RX FDQ¡W PDNH DQ\ money out there.â€? My dad VDLG ´:HOO ZH¡UH JRLQJ WR JLYH LW D WU\ DQG ZH¡OO PDNH a go out of it.â€? We just kept adding on VSRUWV DQG ZKHQ ZH¡G JHW LQWR D QHZ VSRUW ZH¡G JHW LQ GHHS :H ZRXOGQ¡W MXVW mess around with the top part of it. If people were JRLQJ WR KXQW ZH¡G KDYH everything that was new in hunting, everything that was new in archery and FXWOHU\ DQG DOO WKLV VWXÍż About 1980 when we got more and more into the camping part — where the ladies department is now, that was camping — and we had a woman that ran that. Her name was Maude Piston. She was a big hiker and got us into the camping business big-time down there. Ten or 11 years ago we added the last part to the store, the new part here. We KDG DQ 2XWĂ€WWHUV VWRUH RXW on North Roan that we put LQ ZLWK FDPSLQJ ZH WRRN LW out of the old store because ZH GLGQ¡W KDYH HQRXJK room. We were out there about 11 years in the Peerless Center, and it did good. But we had the opportunity to build this and said, well, OHW¡V MXVW EULQJ WKH 2XWĂ€WWHUV back over here. Back, you might say 15 years ago, we had two different kinds of customers. 7KH KXQWHUV WKH Ă€VKHUPHQ

WKH ERRW SHRSOH ÂŤ ,¡G FDOO WKHP WKH JRRG RO¡ ER\V They were the salt-of-theearth people that liked that NLQG RI VWXÍż 7KHQ RXW DW WKH 2XWĂ€WWHUV WKDW ZDV WKH granola eaters. That was the Birkenstock crowd, the Patagonia crowd, the North )DFH FURZG $QG WKH\ GLGQ¡W mix. We had two distinctly GLÍżHUHQW FXVWRPHUV $QG HYerybody kept saying, “Why GRQ¡W \RX SXW WKHP WRJHWKHU"Âľ $QG , VDLG ´:HOO LW¡V never worked anywhere else.â€? And besides that, Patagonia said if you ever put them next to a hunting VWRUH WKDW WKH\¡G MHUN WKH line. Birkenstock was like that, too, and some of the RWKHUV 7KH\ VDLG ´:H GRQ¡W want them to match. We have strictly our own trends WKDW ZH¡UH ORRNLQJ DW Âľ Anyway, we did it, but we kept that crowd downstairs. The upstairs here was all the ROG VFKRRO DOO WKH VWXÍż WKDW brought us in back then. It was interesting because some of the companies WKDW ZH GHDO ZLWK GLGQ¡W say much, because the reps WKRXJKW WKH\¡UH FRPSOHWHO\ VHSDUDWHG E\ D Ă RRU DQG GLVWDQFH DQG ZH¡UH JRLQJ WR OHW them try it. All of a sudden, WKH JRRG RO¡ ER\V Ă€JXUHG out what the granola eaters liked and the granola eaters Ă€JXUHG RXW ZKDW WKH JRRG RO¡ ER\V OLNHG 6R QRZ WKH\¡UH DOO PHUJHG ,W ZDV right in that time period when you started seeing the big boxes come up, and the big boxes would merge hunting and golf and athletics, and nobody said anything about it. But they never did have specialty RXWGRRU WKHUH¡V YHU\ OLWWOH specialty outdoor in the big boxes if you look at their OLQHV ,¡P WDONLQJ DERXW WKH real hard-core specialty

that caters to the outdoors person that really wants to stay in that part of it. The reps told us we were one of the only ones in the country that could make it work, and it worked. 1RZ ZH¡YH JRW VSHFLDOW\ outdoors and you might as well say all of the outdoor lines. The only thing we GRQ¡W GR LV EDVV Ă€VKLQJ DQG WKDW¡V SUREDEO\ EHFDXVH where would you put it? We GRQ¡W KDYH URRP :H¡UH RXW of room now. KH: You still have the store in Abingdon? DM: 7KDW¡V DERXW \HDUV ROG QRZ ,W¡V DOO KXQWLQJ DQG KDV VRPH RI WKH 2XWĂ€WWHUV OLQHV LQ LW ,W¡V JRW ERDWV SDGGOLQJ 2I FRXUVH LW¡V just right down from South +ROVWRQ /DNH ,W¡V JRW DOO RI the hunting lines, cutlery, DUFKHU\ ,W¡V D ELJJHU DUFKHU\ store probably than what we have here. Sean manages it. He got out of college in ¡ DQG FDPH WR ZRUN KHUH KH: Where along the way did your dad turn things over to you? DM: 0\ GDG GLHG LQ ¡ He had slowed down a year RU \HDU DQG D KDOI EHIRUH KH FRXOGQ¡W ZDON $UWKULWLV got him. I probably got to spend seven years with him in the business before taking it over. KH: At that point, was there a grand vision for the business? What were your expectations? DM: We just wanted to have fun. Most all of the cities around us have wanted us to put a satellite store in at one time or another. Kingsport asked us within two months ago. And Greeneville, Bristol.

KH: What was special about Abingdon? DM: There was a building up there that had an outdoor store just like our front section is. They went out of business and the owner called me. So we just took it RYHU DQG LW¡V EHHQ JRRG KH: And Sean oversees that operation? DM: He does the buying for that side of it, the overall EX\LQJ IRU DOO WKH Ă€UHDUPV archery, cutlery, safes, camo Âł DOO WKDW VWXÍż XS LQ WKHUH <RX PLJKW DV ZHOO VD\ ,¡P over the new-building side Âł PHQ¡V FORWKLQJ DOO WKH IRRWZHDU DQG WKH 2XWĂ€WWHUV SDUW WRR ,¡YH JRW PDQDJHUV in each department, but WKDW¡V KRZ ZH GR LW :H work as a team, and my wife does the ladies department. KH: When you started seeing the big-box stores spring up, did it change your approach? How have you managed to maintain your hold in the market? DM: Service. Price-wise ZH¡UH FRPSHWLWLYH ZLWK DQ\ RI WKHP ZH¡UH DW RU EHORZ most of their prices. But PRVWO\ LW¡V VHUYLFH 3HRSOH want to have somebody to WDON WR ,I WKH\¡UH JRLQJ WR buy a $200 pair of boots, WKH\ ZDQW WR NQRZ ZKDW LW¡V PDGH RXW RI ZK\ LW Ă€WV OLNH LW GRHV ZKHWKHU LW¡V JRRG ZLWK DQ DUFK ZKHWKHU LW¡V good on concrete or on tin. They want to know about a tent. They want to know DERXW Ă \ Ă€VKLQJ WKH\ ZDQW you to tell them exactly what they want to know. The gun department is the biggest department in the store, and they want to talk to someone who knows.

August 2015

See Q&A, Page 20

Out-N-About

19

Q&A Continued from Page 19 When you start talking about specialized sports, SHRSOH ZLOO Ă€QG \RX RXW UHDO IDVW ,I WKH\ WKLQN \RX¡UH EOX΀QJ WKHP RU ZKDWHYHU WKH\¡UH QRW JRLQJ WR SD\ much attention to you after WKDW 7KDW¡V ZKDW ZH KDYH to be ahead of the game on here. KH: You have a good mix of employees, between those that have been around for years and have longterm relationships with customers, and a younger group that constantly turns over. DM: We hire a lot of FROOHJH NLGV EHFDXVH ZH¡UH right next to them. And if you go to college at ETSU, you probably love the outdoors in some facet. So ZH JHW WKH SDGGOHUV WKH Ă \ Ă€VKHUPHQ WKH FOLPEHUV DQG WKH KLNHUV 7KDW¡V PRVWO\ WKH college kids. KH: <RX¡YH WDONHG DERXW DOO WKH SURGXFW OLQHV \RX¡YH added through the years. Is there one in particular that sets you apart these days? DM: ,W¡V D FROODERUDWLRQ (YHU\ \HDU LW¡V JRLQJ WR EH D GLÍżHUHQW OLQH 7KUHH years ago it was a shoe line FDOOHG 7RPV ,I LW¡V QHZ DQG ORRNV OLNH LW¡V JRLQJ WR EH D KLW ZH¡UH XVXDOO\ WKH Ă€UVW WR KDYH LW ZKHWKHU LW¡V LQ footwear, clothing, any of the camping sports. Guns, , NQRZ ZH¡UH ZD\ DKHDG RI the game. KH: What do you attribute that to? DM: My people go to all WKH VKRZV DQG VHH ZKDW¡V new. We belong to two buy-

20

Out-N-About

LQJ JURXSV 1DWLRQ¡V %HVW Sports out of Fort Worth, Texas, and Grassroots out of North Carolina. We just NQRZ ZKDW¡V FRPLQJ XS and my buyers have a pretty good eye for what they think is going to be the next trend. And like three or four years ago when Toms came up, we were the only ones WKDW KDG LW IRU WKH Ă€UVW \HDU :H FRXOGQ¡W NHHS WKHP LQ stock. We still have the line, but other people have it. A OLQH WKDW¡V KRW ULJKW QRZ LV &KDFR DQG ZH¡UH WKH GHDOHU for East Tennessee. :H GRQ¡W XVXDOO\ JHW WR VWD\ Ă€UVW IRU ORQJ EXW ZH¡UH XVXDOO\ WKH Ă€UVW WR have it. People are going to FRPH KHUH Ă€UVW WR VHH LI ZH KDYH LW %XW LW GRHVQ¡W WDNH long for people to jump on WKH EDQGZDJRQ WKDW¡V WKH ZD\ LQ DQ\WKLQJ LI \RX¡UH LQ WKH VDOHV EXVLQHVV :H¡UH trying to stay one step DKHDG DQG WKDW¡V RQH RI our secrets to staying in tune with things. KH: How many of the sporting activities that your store supports are you personally involved in? DM: ,¡YH DOZD\V OLNHG outdoors, but it depends on the time of the year. I could either be snow skiing, waterskiing, hunting, hiking, paddling canoes or kayaks, VFXED GLYLQJ DUFKHU\ ,¡G like to be able to do a lot more, but you know how that is. KH: I read somewhere that your military service has shaped your life in profound ways. Can you elaborate? DM: Well, if my dad KDGQ¡W DVNHG PH WR FRPH back and take over the business, I probably would have stayed in the military. I

August 2015

left as a captain in the Army and enjoyed it. It taught me a lot, a young second lieutenant, brand new in the service, and I was put in charge of a company of 250 men, Thais in Thailand. All we did was haul bombs. We hauled every bomb that hit Vietnam in 1968. I was just 22 years old and had big responsibility. It taught me D ORW RI VWXÍż UHDO IDVW D ORW RI VWXÍż ,I , KDGQ¡W KDG WKDW RSportunity in the military, I GRQ¡W NQRZ LI ,¡G EH LQ WKLV business or what I would have done. But it did good for me. It changed my outlook on a lot of things — the way you do business, the way you treat people and the way you treat the world. And I saw a little bit of the world when I was in the military. KH: 'LG WKDW H[SHULHQFH feed right into your commuQLW\ VHUYLFH DW KRPH" <RX¡YH been so active with so many organizations through the years. DM: I always considered LW DV IXQ ,W ZDVQ¡W D MRE LW ZDVQ¡W D FKRUH LW ZDVQ¡W IRU recognition. It was fun. I probably got started in the service business with the Salvation Army and one thing led to something else. The university has always kept me busy, the alumni. I got into public service with the school board — six years with the school board and 12 years on the commission. KH: What did you take away from the politics? DM: Right now I can tell you that when things happen in the world, on the news, everybody has got their mind made up, just by reading the paper or OLVWHQLQJ WR D Ă€YH PLQXWH

QHZVFDVW DW QLJKW 7KH\¡YH already got their minds made up on how everyWKLQJ QHHGV WR EH ,I WKHUH¡V DQ\WKLQJ ,¡YH OHDUQHG LQ life, being in public service, LW¡V GRQ¡W JLYH \RXU RSLQLRQ until you see the other side RI WKH VWRU\ 7KHUH¡V DOZD\V more to the story, so look at it. As a commissioner in -RKQVRQ &LW\ WKDW¡V RQH RI the things public service WDXJKW PH , GRQ¡W OLNH WR see politicians pandering, catering to special interests and lobbyists without thinkLQJ WKLQJV WKURXJK 7KHUH¡V always another side of that VWRU\ DQG \RX¡YH JRW WR seek it out before you make a decision. I admire people who make a decision after WKH\¡YH VWXGLHG LW , PD\ QRW agree with them, but I know ZKDW WKH\¡YH JRQH WKURXJK to get to that point, because I had to do it. KH: You have such a broad perspective of the community here. Where is Johnson City right now? DM: ,W¡V JURZLQJ ,W ZDVQ¡W PDQ\ \HDUV DJR WKDW Kingsport really wanted to overtake Johnson City, and WKH\¡YH GRQH D GRJJRQH good job of getting their city in order. But Johnson City has grown in spite of all that. It has become the restaurant town, it has beFRPH WKH UHWDLO WRZQ :H¡UH not dependent on any one VLQJOH LQGXVWU\ :H¡UH JHWting such a diverse collection of people in here now with the medical and the XQLYHUVLW\ WKDW¡V JURZLQJ and the service industries, the restaurant industries. It is going to become a mediFDO PHFFD RQH RI WKHVH GD\V that is really going to take RͿ ,W¡V MXVW LQ LWV LQIDQF\ ULJKW QRZ ZLWK ZKDW ZH¡YH done to get started and

ZKDW¡V FRPLQJ LQ KHUH research and development RSSRUWXQLWLHV WKDW WKH\¡UH getting into out there right QRZ ÂŤ LW¡V JRLQJ WR EH D ELJ medical community. KH: As a region, Northeast Tennessee seems to have a lot going for it. DM: 7KHUH¡V DOZD\V VRPHWKLQJ KHUH <RX¡UH LQ the middle of the outdoors for all four seasons when \RX¡YH JRW VQRZ VNLLQJ Âł IRXU RU Ă€YH SODFHV WR VQRZ VNL Âł \RX¡UH LQ WKH PLGGOH RI WKH ODNHV \RX¡YH JRW WZR of the best trout streams LQ WKH FRXQWU\ KHUH 7KDW¡V coming from people that NQRZ <RX¡YH JRW ELF\FOLQJ so many venues in these mountains and around. I GRQ¡W WKLQN D ORW RI SHRple really realize what they have. The one thing I thought about in the early Âś V ZDV WKDW ZH¡UH LQ WKH best outdoor sports area in the country, why not expand the outdoor sports. /RQGRQ¡V +DUGZDUH GRZQtown, where the Trek bicycle shop is now, they toyed with a little bit of that. They had the hunting and a little ELW RI WKH EHWWHU VWXÍż %XW WKH\ QHYHU KDG D ORW WKH\ never took it to the next level. So we started taking it to WKH QH[W OHYHO 7KDW¡V ZKHUH it started. KH: So we can all assume 0DKRQH\¡V LV JRLQJ WR EH right here on this corner for many years to come? DM: Well, you never know. If Walmart ever decides they want to buy us ÂŤ $Q\ZD\ LW¡V EHHQ IXQ IRU me, and Sean enjoys it and my wife enjoys it. We try to hire the people that walk the walk and talk the talk. I just hope the fun stays with us.

HAPPY CAMPERS

$ ORRN DW Ă€QH parks in area, and our vote IRU VWDWH¡V EHVW By Ron and Anita Fink All state parks are not created equal. Heading Out-N-About, the Happy Campers have been exploring a few of the nearby parks to share information about some great Tennessee destinations. In this region of the country we are fortunate indeed with the quantity and quality of our state parks. 2Q D UHFHQW GD\WULS WR 'DY\ &URFNett Birthplace State Park in Limestone, we found a bevy of activity. The gracious campground host invited us to take a look around. We found a mostly full campground. Tent camping is available right along the Nolichucky River. RV sites are separated by a driveway from the river, but are mostly pullthrough sites that easily accommodate large rigs. The campsites are very close with no privacy vegetaWLRQ EHWZHHQ WKHP WKH\ GR KDYH paved pads and hookups. It was a warm day and the VZLPPLQJ SRRO DW '&%63 ZDV IXOO operation. There were also people dipping in the Nolichucky along a gentle stretch near the historic log cabin. The easy access to the river makes this a great area for canoeing, ND\DNLQJ DQG Ă€VKLQJ 7KHUH DUH several picnic shelters that are available for reservation by the general public. The park has capitalized on its namesake and includes interpretive signs noting the historical account RI WKH OLIH RI RQH RI 7HQQHVVHH¡V PRVW famous residents. Not far down the interstate, near Morristown, is Panther Creek State

Roan Moun[HPU :[H[L 7HYR VɈLYZ WHUVYHTPJ views into North Carolina from Round Bald, left. Many of [OL JHTWsites there have streams Y\UUPUN WHZ[ Ron Fink

Anita Fink

Park. This is a beautiful park on Cherokee Lake. While the campground itself is not actually on the lake, there are walking trails leading there. Panther Creek has recently gone through some construction upgrades and now has all paved pads.

It is a small campground with only one loop. Many of the sites are out in the open, but a few on the outside of the loop have trees and some privacy. All of the sites have electric and water hookups, and the sites on the inside of the loop also have sewer hookups.

,W PD\ VHHP WULYLDO EXW 3&63¡V new construction included a complete revamp of its bathhouses. Oh, man! These are, by far, the nicest bathhouses of any campground we have seen. PCSP has a large swimming pool we took advantage of during our stay. It has picnic shelters available for rent. The day we were there, a group was using one of the shelters for a baby shower. They had it decorated with streamers and balloons. I had not thought about the fact that shelters are available to the SXEOLF \RX GRQ¡W KDYH WR EH WKHUH camping to use one. There is also a boat ramp for those inclined to bring their boats for recreation. Several hiking, biking, and horse trails meander through the park. Overall, LW¡V D YHU\ QLFH VWDWH SDUN 6LPLODUO\ .LQJVSRUW¡V :DUULRU¡V Path State Park is a very nice park. :DUULRU¡V KDV FDPSLQJ KLNLQJ VZLPPLQJ JROĂ€QJ ERDWLQJ DQG picnic shelters.

August 2015

See CAMPERS, Page 22

Out-N-About

21

Campers Continued from Page 21 Yes, we are lucky to live in an area of such beauty that has portions of land set aside for public use. ——— Here is a secret that we, +DSS\ &DPSHUV GRQ¡W UHDOly want to give away: There is one state park located very close by that is the crown jewel of the system. There are so many things about Roan Mountain State Park that make it such a great place to visit. Several obvious reasons are the incredible balds at 6,000-plus IHHW DQG WKH IDPRXV UKRGRdendron gardens for which the annual Rhododendron Festival is held. However, there are many little things that add together to make this our choice for the best state park. The campground has WKUHH VHFWLRQV 7KH Ă€UVW ORRS LV RQ D Ă DW DUHD RQH VLGH UXQV DORQJ WKH 'RH 5LYHU and has campsites right on the river. The sites on this lower loop are more open to each other, but they have plenty of room for large rigs. -XVW RÍż WKLV ORRS LV SHUhaps the nicest tent camping area we have ever seen. 7KHUH DUH Ă DW JUDYHO SDGV for pitching a tent and large open areas for the picnic WDEOH DQG Ă€UH SLW (DFK VLWH abounds with vegetation to provide the feeling that it sits alone in the woods. There are two more loops that go up into the hills. The campsites there are nicely forested for a feeling of privacy between each site. There are two creeks that run along the sides of these loops so at many of the sites

22

Out-N-About

Anita Fink

/HWW` *HTWLYZ LUQV` H JHTWĂ„YL HUK [OL YOVKVKLUKYVU ISVVTZ PU [OL MVYLZ[ you can listen to the peaceIXO VRXQGV RI ZDWHU Ă RZLQJ The beauty of these rhododendron, pine and hardwood forests is enough to give this campground the designation as “bestâ€?, but there is more. All the campsites are paved, well drained and fairly level. Why is that important, you ask? RMSP is on the leading side of the mountain, where most days there is an afternoon shower RU PRUQLQJ RU HYHQLQJ Anyway, there is a lot of water crossing this ground, and it is very nice to have D Ă DW SDYHG DUHD WR VHW XS \RXU WUDLOHU RU WHQW DQG not have mud and gravel washing past. All of the sites have concrete picnic tables on a concrete pad, but sometimes water does wash mud under the tables — at least the camper area stays clean. The daily rain showers are

August 2015

just a fact of life and they keep the creeks singing. Another of the “trivialâ€? WKLQJV WKDW \RX GRQ¡W WKLQN of until you are there is the fact that the Roan Mountain campground has daily trash pick-up. There are trash cans every couple of campsites, and someone comes through every day to empty them. Most campgrounds have dumpsters near the exit and you must carry your trash out. As I said, this is trivial, but it makes for an easier, cleaner campsite. No other campground that we have visited has this service. To enjoy nature, you can sit in your own campsite LQ WKH ZRRGV ZH¡YH VHHQ whitetail deer, and a vast variety of birds) or you can get out into the park and explore. An eight-mile drive up the mountain connects with the Appalachian Trail,

and you can hike across the majestic grassy meadows known as “balds.â€? The distances you can see on a clear day are incredibly beautiful and amazing. On the back side of Grassy Ridge, there is a spring that has been running since the Happy Campers were mere children backpacking there. The Rhododendron Gardens are accessible by car just a few PLOHV SDVW &DUYHU¡V *DS The road splits to a parking lot at the summit beside the site of the former Cloudland Hotel, which was a popular tourist destination at the turn of the century. Many hiking and mountain biking trails are located closer to the campground. 7KH\ RÍżHU D YDULHW\ RI hiking experiences, from DQ HDV\ VWUROO DORQJ WKH 'RH River to strenuous climbs up the ridges. RMSP has its

share of history, too! Hiking trails lead to the century-old Miller Homestead and to the ruins of an old iron ore mine — both examples of life in the mountains in a bygone era. 7KH YLVLWRU¡V FHQWHU KDV exhibits explaining the geology and more of the history of the region. The park has a large swimming pool, tennis courts, playground and picnic shelters. And I would be remiss if I failed WR PHQWLRQ WKH Ă€VKLQJ DORQJ WKH 'RH 5LYHU According to the park ZHE SDJH WKH 'RH LV FRRO enough year-round to be home to three species of trout. Native brook trout and rainbow and brown trout are stocked regularly. There are cabins, each with wooden rockers on the front porch, available for rent if campgrounds are too rustic for you. The Ranger programs throughout the season are WHUULĂ€F :H WRRN D PRRQlight hike to learn about nocturnal animals and their adaptations. Besides leading hikes, the rangers regularly provide salamander “hunts,â€? art activities, and animal tracking for kids of all ages. Other attributes adding WR 5063¡V DSSHDO DUH WKH campground hosts and SDUN VWDÍż +DUROG DQG 3DP KRVWV DQG %UHQGD SDUN VWDÍż DQG WKH RWKHU SDUN VWDÍż HPSOR\HHV DUH WKH friendliest, most helpful, nicest people you would ever want to meet. It is very obvious that they take great pride in the park and really care about it and the people visiting. They, along with the spectacular natural beauty, make this our choice for best state park.

Derek Cartozzo/Prospective Horizons Media

+PZJ NVSM PZ H ZWVY[ VU [OL YPZL PU V\Y HYLH Winged Deer Park, above, and Warriors Path have had courses for years, but sevLYHS V[OLY ]LU\LZ OH]L ZWY\UN \W SH[LS` HZ interest increases. Derek Cartozzo/Prospective Horizons Media

Throwing for birdies, or better By Trey Williams In an era when East Tennessee skies are getting more heavily SRSXODWHG ZLWK Ă \LQJ VDXFHUV =DFK Melton is soaring toward the top of his craft. The 27-year-old Gray resident has been playing disc golf since 2008, a duration during which area courses have gone up like anthills. The Warriors Path course opened in 1980, and :LQJHG 'HHU 3DUN DGGHG LWV FRXUVH LQ ¡ %XW WKHUH DUH QRZ QR OHVV WKDQ 15 courses from Roan Mountain to Morristown, and the vast majority of those have come along since Melton began playing seven years ago. 7KHUH¡V VRPHWKLQJ VRRWKLQJ DERXW WKH ZKRRVK ZKHQ D GLVF¡V ODXQFKHG and the shimmering neon trail it leaves sailing through sunlight. And LW¡V H[KLODUDWLQJ ZKHQ D JUDQG JOLGing descent results in a chain-rattling touchdown. ´,W¡V DGGLFWLYH Âľ 0HOWRQ VDLG ´:KHQ \RX Ă€UVW WKURZ LQ WKDW ORQJ VKRW RU JHW D KROH LQ RQH RÍż WKH WHH

24

Out-N-About

Derek Cartozzo/Prospective Horizons Media

SDG LW¡V KDUG WR SXW LQWR ZRUGV Âś0DMHVWLF¡ LV SUHWW\ RQ SRLQW Âľ 0HOWRQ¡V FDUHHU KDV WDNHQ Ă LJKW RI ODWH +H Ă€QLVKHG WK LQ D QDWLRQDO tournament in February, the Memorial Championship in Fountain Hills, Arizona. There are seven national tournaments this year. Only the 10 PDMRUV DUH PRUH SUHVWLJLRXV WZR RI those are in Europe and a third is in

August 2015

Australia. 0HOWRQ¡V SHUIRUPDQFH LQ $UL]RQD earned him $940 and an encouraging HQGRUVHPHQW GHDO ZLWK 3URGLJ\ 'LVF He no longer has to purchase his equipment and he has an opportunity for bonus money. *UDQWHG 0HOWRQ¡V D ORQJ ZD\ IURP quitting his day job with the YMCA, which he enjoys. But there are those who make a living playing disc golf. 6XFK LV WKH FDVH ZLWK 0HOWRQ¡V buddy, Will Schusterick, who lives in Nashville. A three-time U.S. Open champion, Schusterick traveled to Arizona with Melton and broke the endorsement news to him on the drive back. ´:LOO LV IURP .QR[YLOOH DQG KH¡V one of the best players in the world, HDVLO\ LQ WKH WRS Ă€YH DQG \RX FRXOG put him in the conversation for top three,â€? Melton said. “He was ranked No. 1 in the world a couple of years DJR +H¡V RQH RI WKH EHVW SOD\HUV DQG KH¡V VWLOO D NLG SUHWW\ PXFK , WKLQN KH¡V ÂŤ “He was really excited for me in

Arizona. We were driving back — it seemed like the longest drive of my life, over 30 hours to come back — and he woke me up in the back seat and said, ‘Hey, man. I was gonna wait till we got back, but I just wanna WHOO \RX WKDW \RX¡UH RQ 7HDP 3URGLJ\ ¡ $QG ,¡P OLNH Âś<HV ¡ DQG WKHQ rolled over and went back to sleep.â€? 7KHUH DUH Ă€YH OHYHOV RI FRPSHWLWLRQ LQ WKH 3'*$ WLHUV $ % DQG & UDQN beneath world and national events. 0HOWRQ ZRQ KLV Ă€UVW $ WLHU WRXUnament, the St. Louis Open in June. 7ZR ZHHNV ODWHU KH Ă€QLVKHG WK LQ his next National — the Maple Hill Open in Leicester, Mass. 0HOWRQ ZLOO EH DW KLV Ă€UVW PDMRU RI WKH \HDU WKH 3'*$ :RUOG &KDPSLonships, Aug. 1-8 in Pittsburgh. He LV JRLQJ ZLWK 6FKXVWHULFN DQG WKH\¡OO practice 4-5 days beforehand. “I actually played the World Championship in 2012 because they were in Charlotte and I was not ready for that,â€? Melton said. “Out of

See DISC, Page 25

Disc

Gordon

Continued from Page 24

Continued from Page 9

VL[ URXQGV , IHOW OLNH Ă€YH ZHUH WKH ZRUVW RI my life. It was an eye-opener. ‌ ´,¡P H[FLWHG WR JHW D OLWWOH UHGHPSWLRQ , ZRXOG ORYH WR Ă€QLVK LQ WKH WRS Âľ The Tri-Cities has provided a good launching point for aspiring disc golfers. $PRQJ WKH DUHD¡V HOLWH IURP WKH UHFHQW SDVW and present, Melton says, are Tim Barr, Jason Light, Tim Owsten, Weston Isaacs and &KULV 'LFNHUVRQ “Tim Barr is a mentor,â€? Melton said. “He UXQV RXU FOXE :DUULRUV¡ /DNHIURQW 'LVF *ROI &OXE 7LP¡V LQ KLV PLG V DQG VWLOO D UHDOO\ good player. “Jason Light went to Sullivan South. He was the best player when I started coming up. That was the guy that I was aiming for. He pushed me to get better. And Tim Owsten was another one that was really good. ,¡G VD\ WKRVH ZHUH WKH EHVW WKUHH ZKHQ , ZDV getting started.â€? 7KH IXWXUH¡V EULJKW IRU WKH \HDU ROG 'LFNHUVRQ ZKR LV DOVR VSRQVRUHG E\ 3URGLJ\ “Chris has gotten really good really fast,â€? Melton said. “Last year he was playing amaWHXU DQG QRZ KH¡V SOD\LQJ 3UR 2SHQ Âľ ,W GRHVQ¡W KXUW WKDW 'LFNHUVRQ OLYHV QHDU +DUPRQ +LOO 'LVF *ROI &RXUVH LQ )DOO %UDQFK Melton describes the 27-hole private course DV WKH DUHD¡V JHP ,W LV ORQJHU WKDQ PRVW DQG has plenty of par 4s and a par 5. For decades, courses were almost exclusively par 3s, but Harmon Hills is a picturesque example of the trend toward length and variety. ´,W¡V EHDXWLIXO Âľ 0HOWRQ VDLG ´, EHOLHYH at the end of last year it was ranked No. 7 LQ HLWKHU WKH FRXQWU\ RU WKH ZRUOG ,W¡OO NLFN \RXU EXWW DQG \RX¡OO KDYH D JUHDW WLPH ZKLOH \RX¡UH RXW WKHUH Âľ Melton said the late Jerry Harmon designed, built and owned the course, and Aaron Prozac took it over after his death. 'RQDWLRQV DUH DSSUHFLDWHG WR KHOS ZLWK WKH expense of mowing and maintenance. “People love that course,â€? Melton said. “People from Asheville love to drive over the mountain and play it.â€? 2WKHU DUHD FRXUVHV RÍżHU SOHQW\ RI FKDOlenges. 7ZR RI 0HOWRQ¡V IDYRULWH KROHV DUH 1R DW :DUULRUV 3DWK DQG 1R DW :LQJHG 'HHU The hole at Warriors is slightly downhill DQG VRPH IHHW 7KH QDUURZ IDLUZD\¡V perhaps 20-25 feet wide and heavily wooded on either side.

IHHOV OLNH KH ZRXOG¡YH ended up with 11 wins if WKDW KDGQ¡W KDSSHQHG +H ZRXOG¡YH EHHQ VHFRQG WR 'DUUHOO :DOWULS DW %ULVWRO Âľ Gordon has become somewhat of a sentimental favorite during his swan song, as one-time haters now hate to see him retire. “I think there are a lot of people rooting for Gordon this year,â€? Worley said. “I would like to see him go out with a championship. I think it would be cool for him to leave the sport RQ KLV RZQ WHUPV ZLWK D title).â€? Gordon was always accessible and courteous with :RUOH\ 6KH¡G RFFDVLRQDOO\ look him up at various racetracks to tape spots for Speedway in Lights or RWKHU 6SHHGZD\ &KLOGUHQ¡V Charities. ´,¡G JR WR GLÍżHUHQW WUDFNV to the back of the hauler and show him the scripts,â€? :RUOH\ VDLG ´$QG KH¡G want to memorize the script EHFDXVH KH GLGQ¡W ZDQW LW WR sound like he was reading, DQG KH¡G JHW LW LQ WKH Ă€UVW

&RQWULEXWHG

AHJO 4LS[VU VM .YH` OHZ YHPZLK OPZ game to be a contender in national [V\YUHTLU[Z /L ^VU PU :[ 3V\PZ ´,W¡V MXVW D UHDOO\ WLJKW ZRRGHG VKRW Âľ Melton said. “You step up and throw a disc right down the pipe on that hole. You can WDNH DQ\ZKHUH IURP DQ DFH RQ LW WR D Ă€YH LI you hit a tree early and kick far out.â€? 7KH HLJKWK KROH DW :LQJHG 'HHU LV DSSUR[imately 400 feet downhill. A tree line is to the right on an otherwise relatively wideopen shot. ´,W¡V D IXQ KROH WR WKURZ Âľ 0HOWRQ VDLG “Right out of your hand you pretty much NQRZ ZKHQ \RX OHW JR RI WKDW GLVF LI LW¡V D good shot or a bad shot. Those challenging holes where you throw the shot you want and you park it — those are really rewarding.â€? The nine-hole course at Steele Creek Park in Bristol is longer than most nine-hole courses and has two tee pads per hole. ´,W¡V SUREDEO\ WKH EHVW QLQH KROH FRXUVH ,¡YH SOD\HG Âľ 0HOWRQ VDLG Roan Mountain, East Tennessee State UniYHUVLW\ /DXUHO 5XQ 3DUN &KXUFK +LOO .LQJ 8QLYHUVLW\ 5DOSK 6WRXW 3DUN 0RXQWDLQ City) and Tusculum College also have ninehole courses. Other 18-hole courses include .LZDQLV 'LVF *ROI &RXUVH -RQHVERURXJK DQG %RUGHQ 3DUN .LQJVSRUW “This sport is still really in its early stages,â€? Melton said. “And there are a lot of peoSOH WKDW KDYH PDGH LW WKHLU OLIH WKDW¡V WKHLU job. They make enough money to travel around the country and the world playing.â€?

-HÍžHUV Continued from Page 9 DEOH GULYHU , GRQ¡W WKLQN KH¡V ORVW D VWHS ,¡G SXW KLP LQ P\ car if I was an owner.â€? %ULVWRO DOZD\V RÍżHUV IRRG IRU WKRXJKW IRU -HÍżHUV Those that make their living traveling with NASCAR are HDJHU WR Ă€QG ORFDOO\ RZQHG HDWHULHV DQG -HÍżHUV LV D go-to guy for Bristol — and slightly beyond. +H¡OO UHFRPPHQG DQ\

take every time. I like him and respect him a lot. ´+H¡OO VWD\ LQ WKH VSRUW +H¡OO EH LQ WKH ERRWK +H¡OO EH JUHDW DW LW ,¡P VXUH +H¡V RQH RI WKH QLFHVW JX\V \RX¡G ever want to talk to, complete professional always. +H¡V D JHQWOHPDQ Âľ Gordon and Earnhardt ZHUHQ¡W IDVW IULHQGV but Worley recalls them growing closer in the years OHDGLQJ XS WR (DUQKDUGW¡V GHDWK DW 'D\WRQD LQ which, by the way, was the last year Gordon won a title. “They became business partners and they became good friends,â€? Worley said. ´,W ZDV WRWDOO\ GLÍżHUHQW I guess it was just kind of Earnhardt was getting older, and even though KH GLGQ¡W ZDQW WR DGPLW probably to anybody else, he knew Gordon was a great driver and he respected him. And when Gordon talks about Earnhardt WRGD\ WKHUH¡V D ORW RI UHYHUence there. ‌ ´,W¡V MXVW VR ZHLUG WR WKLQN -HÍż *RUGRQ¡V \HDUV ROG and getting ready to retire from the sport.â€?

number of places, but his Mount Rushmore, if you will, is Ridgewood BarbeFXH LQ %OXÍż &LW\ DQG WKH Johnson City trifecta of CafĂŠ 3DFLĂ€F &DIp /ROD %LVWUR DQG Gourmet and Company. ´<HDK LW¡V DOZD\V D MR\ to go home,â€? he says with a chuckle that somehow seems to assure you that 3DUVRQV DQG /\Q -HÍżHUV are out there somewhere smiling.

August 2015

Out-N-About

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:SHTTPUÂť :HTT`ÂťZ HUK *HYPIILHU .YPSS HYL [^V VM [OL ^LSS RUV^U J\SPUHY` Ă„_[\YLZ PU [OL HYLH ;OL SH[[LY PZ Z[H[PVULK UL_[ [V 4HOVUL`ÂťZ

EATING OUT

the Caribbean Grill that is VWDWLRQHG QH[W WR 0DKRQH\¡V RQ 6XQVHW 'ULYH LQ -RKQVRQ The food truck phenomCity, describes his food as Jaenon is thriving here in the maican, Peruvian and Puerto Tri-Cities, just as it does in Rican fusion. metropolitan areas of the Operating for over two country. years with a steadily growing 7KHVH IRRG RQ WKH Ă \ business, he says his father vehicles provide a variety, taught him how to cook. +H¡V DGGHG KLV own special touches. “I make a jerk chicken, ox tail stew and even a Puerto Rican twist on the classic Cuban sandwich,â€? Ramos said. “I wanted to bring a difFacebook ferent taste to -PYL PU [OL /VSL THRLZ Ă„UL WPaaHZ Johnson City. He even makes his own quality and convenience that is unique in the restaurant in- twist on the classic sweet WHD E\ IXVLQJ Ă€YH GLÍżHUHQW dustry. They often serve local teas together to make a truly EXVLQHVVHV DQG R΀FH EXLOGings that do not have kitchens unique concoction. “I call this my Yankee tea, he says with DQG RÍżHU HYHU\WKLQJ IURP a grin, “I am from Jersey and Caribbean to classic Southern I make no apologies about cuisine. being from the North.â€? 'DYLG 5DPRV RZQHU RI

By Daniel Bratton

26

Out-N-About

August 2015

0RELOH NLWFKHQV ÂżQG their culinary niche

With a simple yet poignant “be blessed,� it was clear that this man enjoys his occupation and appreciates each and every customer that has made his business a success. Caribbean Grill is open for business from noon to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday and until 2 p.m. on Saturday. The preparation begins about 6 each morning to have everything ready to go by noon. 'DYLG 3LHUFH RZQHU RI WKH 'L[LH 2XWSRVW IRRG WUXFN sees his business as a way to network. He has a store located at 3172 Highway 126 in Blountville and has a full catering service available since he started utilizing a food truck. “I catered for the Cleveland Browns, the Cleveland arena football team, the Gladiators, and even for NASA,� Pierce said. Now he can be found mainly at local breweries, Northeast State Technical University and private events such as weddings. “I was even able to cater for the National Geographic show Southern Justice that followed the lives of Sulli-

YDQ &RXQW\ 2΀FHUV RQ WKHLU beat,� he said. In describing his food style, Pierce says can cook whatev-

er the venue calls for it. “We can do bratwurst,

See MOBILE, Page 28

Register Now! 282-2540 studiodancejc.com

Ligero Cigar Lounge

:LYPV\Z JPNHY HĂ„JPVUHKVZ LUQV` [OL MLSSV^ZOPW H[ [OL 3PNLYV SV\UNL

Love cigars? Ligero may be your place By Daniel Bratton

now pondering the possibility that renowned Cuban cigars could soon become available in the United States. Nickels is cautiously optimistic. “Although it is hard to predict when the embargo will be lifted, LW¡V P\ JXHVV WKDW ZH ZLOO VHH &X-

For many years, smoking cigars has been a way for people to unwind at the end of a hard day or just relax with a group of friends and family. One of the best cigar lounges in the business is right here in Johnson City. Joey Nickels, owner of the Ligero Cigar Lounge, Libation Station and Plaza Package liquor store next door, saw an opportunity a decade ago. “In 2005 when we opened Libation Station, there was nothing like it in the area,â€? Nickels said, Ligero Cigar Lounge “and in 2011 with -SH[ ZJYLLU ;=Z HUK IPSSPHYKZ HYL HTVUN [OL the Ligero Cigar Lounge, again it club’s amenities. was something that ban cigars in the U.S. market in the was truly unique. I wanted to open next two years,â€? he said. “Since the a place where people could connect embassies in both countries have been over their love of cigars and develop UHRSHQHG WKH LPSRUWDQW Ă€UVW VWHSV DUH FRQQHFWLRQV WKDW ZRXOG EHQHĂ€W WKH community.â€? See LIGERO, Page 28 0DQ\ WREDFFR DĂ€FLRQDGRV DUH

August 2015

Out-N-About

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Ligero Continued from Page 27 in motion. ´7KH LQĂ X[ RI TXDOLW\ &XEDQ WREDFFR will be great for the consumer. This will cause a dramatic reduction in price and an increase in choices from all of the tobacco-growing regions of the world. To put it VLPSO\ VHOHFWLRQ LV ZKDW LW¡V DOO DERXW Âľ At Ligero, located in the back of LibaWLRQ 6WDWLRQ DW 1RUWK 5RDQ 6W LW¡V easy to be impressed by the hardwood Ă RRUV Ă DW VFUHHQ 79V SRRO WDEOH DQG other amenities that members enjoy. The heart of the lounge, however, lies in the membership. A cross-section of the Tri-Cities is well represented, and there DUH VWLOO KXPLGLĂ€HG ORFNHUV DYDLODEOH for anyone wanting to join. The Ligero memberships are $400 annually for locker memberships, which include substantial discounts on cigars and accessories, along with free admission to all events. The cost is $250 a year for those who just want access to the lounge. “When I visit large metropolitan DUHDV VXFK DV :DVKLQJWRQ ' & WKH\ are always surprised at the level of events that we have when they hear I am from Johnson City, Tennessee,â€? said Tom Conrad, a scout for the Washington Wizards. “When I tell them I have met Bobby Newman and Liana Fuente,

Mobile Continued from Page 26 pulled pork and burgers when we are at breweries,â€? he said, “and make a point to prepare foods that pair with the beverages that are being served.â€? Having served everything from Mexican food to ice cream, this company has proven that they have more in their repertoire than typical bar style food and can create a menu to serve any VSHFLĂ€F QHHGV WKDW \RXU HYHQW ZRXOG require. 7KH RZQHU RI 6ODPPLQ¡ 6DPP\¡V Sandwiches, Logan McMeans saw the food truck industry as an opportunity when he and his father started the business just over a year ago. “We wanted to create something new WR WKH DUHD WKDW ZDVQ¡W WKH W\SLFDO EULFN and-mortar establishment,â€? McMeans

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their jaws just drop.â€? For the uninitiated, the two are among the oldest and largest makers of FLJDUV LQ WKH 'RPLQLFDQ 5HSXEOLF DQG their products are on top 25 lists every year in the most prestigious cigar publications. /HH +RXVH D Ă€QDQFLDO DGYLVRU IRU (GZDUG -RQHV VHHV D VLJQLĂ€FDQW GLÍżHUence in selection and prices at Ligero compared to other similar businesses. “I walked into a nice cigar lounge in downtown Atlanta, where the membership is $2,000 a year,â€? he said, “and they had a humidor of only about 15 boxes and the cigars were about 30 percent higher than what I pay here.â€? Ligero members, and the public alike, can shop in the attached Libation 6WDWLRQ¡V KXJH ZDON LQ KXPLGRU DQG shop for cigars from all over the world, LQFOXGLQJ WKH 'RPLQLFDQ 5HSXEOLF Nicaragua, Honduras, Mexico and the United States. Cigars can range in price from $2 a stick to upwards of $50, but the majority of cigars available are in the $6 to $10 range. There are many factors that go into the price of the cigars — everything from the quality and rarity of the tobacco, to the limited number of cigars made and even the shape of the stick, which could require the work of a master roller with many years of experience. House and many other businessmen

use cigar lounges to entertain clients. With some in the larger cities also VHUYLQJ GULQNV LW¡V HDV\ WR UDFN XS D large tab. “I love the fact that the Ligero is BYOB,â€? House said. “I can grab a bottle of scotch from next door, have a glass or two and put the bottle in my locker for QH[W WLPH ,W¡V DOVR D JUHDW SODFH WR HQtertain clients or just get away to a quiet place when I have to make phone calls.â€? Sean Campbell, a project specialist, KH VHHV WKH EHQHĂ€W RI EHLQJ D ORXQJH PHPEHU D OLWWOH GLÍżHUHQWO\ ´7KLV LV WKH Ă€UVW ORXQJH , KDYH EHHQ WR WKDW KDV D SRRO WDEOH DQG VKXÎ Hboard,â€? he said. “It really promotes a feeling of community that brings people in for more than just cigars.â€? Another long-term lounge member is -HÍż *UHHOH\ D PDQXIDFWXULQJ VDOHV UHS in the area. “I have visited a few other lounges around the country, but none have the atmosphere and by no means the knowlHGJHDEOH DQG IULHQGO\ VWDÍż WKDW PDNHV Libation Station and the Ligero Cigar Lounge such a great place to be,â€? he said. “Among the many attributes, certainly a bonus, is having become friends ZLWK WKH PHPEHUV DQG WKH VWDÍż Âľ The Ligero Cigar Lounge is open six days a week, and Libation Station has a huge walk-in humidor that is sure to have the perfect cigar for your smoking pleasure.

said. The menu is “mostly Southern cuisine with a modern twist, mainly sandwiches, but we rotate everything from chicken tenders to crab cakes.â€? $V ZLWK 'L[LH 2XWSRVW 6ODPPLQ¡ 6DPP\¡V SDUNV IUHTXHQWO\ DW ORFDO breweries like Sleepy Owl in downtown Kingsport and beer bars like the Atlantic Ale House in downtown Johnson City. Freshness is at the forefront of his success, and he said he typically works 18 hours a day to get to local farms, come up with recipes and advertise with social media. “We use Facebook to let people know where we are going to be,â€? McMeans said, mention his stops at Sleepy Owl. “We set up and there are people that drove to see us or came to Sleepy Owl. Both businesses get customers that we may have not otherwise had.â€? )LUH LQ WKH +ROH LV D ZRRG Ă€UHG SL]]D vendor that is also very active in our

area. Shawn and Jennifer Stanley own the operation, which is in high demand for the top-quality pizzas it produces. Shawn Stanley spoke about his beginnings in the business. “My brother bought the oven and did some catering before he left for Chattanooga,â€? he said. “I got a food truck and just took things over.â€? Stanley had spent many years in the chain-restaurant business and in his words, “I just got tired of not being able to express myself. I can with my food truck.â€? Stanley is very interested in giving back to the community that helped him get started. He set up a gofundme campaign, and the community raised enough money for him to get a trailer. “I really enjoy doing The Farmer and 7KH &KHI HYHQW WKDW EHQHĂ€WV WKH 6HFRQG Harvest Food Bank,â€? he said. “It is my way of giving back to a community that was so helpful to me.â€?

August 2015

Niswonger Continued from Page 7 D΀OLDWH KRVSLWDO :H ZHUH IXOO WKH Ă€UVW GD\ WKe hospital opened the 1LVZRQJHU &KLOGUHQ¡V +RVSLWDO¡V 69-bed facility. Like the Performing Arts Center, the money he donated for the facility at Johnson City Medical Center came out of his pocket, not from the foundation. ´, KDYHQ¡W Pet anyone with more passion for improving the quality of life for our region,â€? said Mountain States Health Alliance CEO Alan Levine. “Whether it is in education achievement for young people, healthcare for children or expanding culture through the arts, Scott Niswonger is a hero to many people, quietly going about making life better for othHUV ZKLOH GHĂ HFWLQJ WKH FUHGLW WR others. He is a great man.â€? On a visit to the hospital with 'HQYHU %URQFRV DQG IRUPHU 7HQnessee Volunteers quarterback Peyton Manning, Niswonger walked into a room and encountered a young couple. “They had an infant daughter,â€? Niswonger said. “She was all tubed up, terribly ill. I started talking to the parents and very quickly found out her name was Peyton. The father was wearing an Indianapolis Colts cap and said he just loved Peyton and WKDW WKH\¡G QDPHG WKH JLUO DIWHU KLP 6R , DVNHG WKHP LI WKH\¡G like to meet him. They both smiled and said, ‘Yeah, sure, it would be great to meet him VRPH GD\ ¡ 7KH\ KDG QR LGHD he was talking to someone in the hall. So I went out and got Peyton and brought him into the room. You should have seen the look on their faces. But then I told Peyton that this child, this very, very sick child, was named Peyton in his honor and he immediately teared up. He sat down and talked to them for a long time. It was a beautiful

See Page 29

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Continued from Page 28 PRPHQW VRPHWKLQJ ,¡OO QHYHU IRUJHW ¾

S

FRWW 1LVZRQJHU¡V VORJDQ LV “Learn, Earn and Return.â€? Lots of people have slogans DQG SKLORVRSKLHV EXW WKH\ GRQ¡W SUR vide elementary schools with band instruments so students can become EHWWHU OHDUQHUV 7KH\ GRQ¡W Ă€ QG ZD\V to fund educations for welders and diesel mechanics needed by indusWULHV 7KH\ GRQ¡W IXQG FROOHJH VFKRO arships for the best and brightest and ensure they return to their communiWLHV 7KH\ GRQ¡W EXLOG SHUIRUPLQJ DUWV centers and baseball stadiums and FKLOGUHQ¡V KRVSLWDOV “Scott embodies the best of all the things I would like to be as a human EHLQJ Âľ VDLG 'U 1DQF\ 'LVKQHU current executive director of the Niswonger Foundation. “Sure, he is generous. But I have known a lot of generous people who never put their hands in the work. Scott leads by example. One Friday afternoon, Scott gave me a call to complete some business of the week. I told him he needed to go home and stop trying to save the world. He responded, ‘I GRQ¡W ZDQW WR VDYH WKH ZRUOG Âł MXVW PD\EH D OLWWOH FRUQHU RI LW ¡ And that is exactly what I believe he is doing.â€? Richard A. Roberts, State of Tennessee Commissioner of Revenue and a founding member of the Niswonger Foundation, may have summed it up best when he said, “Scott dreams the impossible and then makes it happen.â€? And ETSU President Brian Noland says, “Through his leadership and vision, Scott has transformed both this region and the lives of the people who make it their home.â€? And how does Niswonger sleep? 2QH ZRXOG WKLQN D PDQ VR Ă€ OOHG ZLWK kindness and generosity would drift RÍż SHDFHIXOO\ HDFK HYHQLQJ ´, GRQ¡W VOHHS ZHOO DW DOO Âľ KH VDLG ZLWK D VPLOH ´7KHUH¡V WRR PXFK , ZDQW WR GR , FDQ¡W VHHP WR WXUQ LW RÍż Âľ ´,¡YH QHYHU PHW DQ\RQH TXLWH OLNH him,â€? said Larry Estepp, the banker who was instrumental in helping /DQGDLU JHW LWV VWDUW ´+H¡OO GR WKLQJV I advise him not to do. He takes risks. ,I KH WKLQNV LW¡V JRRG IRU WKH FRPPX nity, he does it.â€?

AUGUST 1-2 — Restaurant Week, downtown Johnson City at Old South Restaurant and Venue; $25 per ticket at Washington County Economic Development Council, 300 E. Main St. (downtownjc. com or 423-202-3510.) 1-10 — Virginia Highlands Festival, $ELQJGRQ 9D YDKLJKODQGVIHVWLYDO RUJ

1 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 5 — An Evening with Mark Dawidziak, %DUWHU 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 6 — Music & Movies in the Park: Bark LQ WKH 3DUN &XPEHUODQG 6TXDUH 3DUN %ULVWRO EULQJ \RXU IXUU\ IULHQG PXVLF DW 6:30, movie (Beethoven) at 9 7 — First Friday (Our Northeast Tennessee Great Outdoors), Downtown Johnson City (downtownjc.org) 7-8 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) 8 — Kingsport Wine Festival, downtown at The Social, 1-6 p.m.; tickets $25 ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 10-15 — Greene County Fair, Greeneville (greenecountyfair.com) 11 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 12 — Opening of Spit Like a Big Girl, %DUWHU 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 12 — Opening of The Blind Man’s 7DOH %DUWHU 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 13 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 14-15 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) 15 — Hope Gala: Beneath the Tahitian Sunset; American Cancer Society fundraiser at the home of David and Linzi Hatley; dinner, dancing, live entertainment and more; call 975-0635 to purchase tickets ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 16 — Mountain Stage with Larry *URFH %DUWHU 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 18 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 18 — Opening of Consumed, Barter 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 19 — Bush’s Beans 150, Bristol Motor Speedway, 6:15 p.m.; UNOH 200, 8:30 p.m. 20 — Food City Family Race Night, Downtown Bristol, 1-9 p.m.

AUGUST 24-29 Music lineup Monday Scott McCreery, 8 p.m., $15 reserved seats Tuesday Cole Swindell, 8 p.m., $15 reserved seats Wednesday Michael Ray, 7 p.m., $10 Chris Stapleton, 8 p.m., $10 Thursday Charlie Daniels Band, 8 p.m., $15 reserved seats Friday Dailey & Vincent, 8 p.m., $10 reserved seats Saturday Matthew West, 8 p.m., $10 reserved seats 20 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 21 — Food City 300, Bristol Motor Speedway, 7:30 p.m. 21-22 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) 22 — Irwin Tools Night Race, Bristol Motor Speedway, 7 p.m. ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 24-29 — Appalachian Fair, Gray Fairgrounds (appalachianfair.com) 25 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 27 — Opening of Shake, Rattle and 5ROO %DUWHU 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 27 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free ² 3QHXPDWLFD E\ 6TXRQN 2S era, Founders Park; 30-minute shows at 4 and 7 p.m. on Friday; 11 a.m., 2 and 5 p.m. on Saturday; free admission

28-29 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) 29 — Dragon Boat Festival, Warriors Path State Park (mshafoundation.org/ events) ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. SEPTEMBER 1 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 3 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 4 — First Friday (Main Street America), Downtown Johnson City (downtownjc.org) 4-5 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 8 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 10 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 11-13 — East Tennessee Celtic )HVWLYDO (OL]DEHWKWRQ XSSHUHDVWWQFHOW icsociety.org) 11-12 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) 12 — Watauga Lake Triathlon, Butler (wataugalaketriathlon.com) 12 — Opening of The Three MuskeWHHUV %DUWHU 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 14-19 — Washington County Fair, $ELQJGRQ 9D ZDVKFRIDLU FRP

15 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 17 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 18-20 — Bristol Rhythm & Roots ReXQLRQ 'RZQWRZQ %ULVWRO EULVWROUK\WKP com or 423-573-1927) 18-19 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m. 21 — Taste of Johnson City, JCCC 22 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 24 — Full Moon Jam, Downtown Center, Bristol; 7 p.m.; free 25 — Opening of Curtains, Barter 7KHDWUH $ELQJGRQ 9D 25-26 — Comedy Zone, Holiday Inn, Johnson City (shows at 8 and 10:15 p.m.) ² %UHZV DQG 7XQHV -RQHVERU ough, 1-5 p.m.

August 2015

Out-N-About

29

Commutations are a small step in right direction By Melinda Curry

Mandatory minimums KDYH EHHQ HÍżHFWLYH By Harrison Jenkins 'RHV DQ\RQH UHPHPEHU (QULTXH ´.LNLÂľ &DPDUHQD" ,I \RX GRQ¡W ORRN KLP XS +H ZDV D '($ DJHQW ZKR ZDV NLGQDSSHG WRUWXUHG and murdered by a Mexican drug cartel in the early 1980s. How about what it was like in New York and Chicago and Los Angeles when the crack FRFDLQH HSLGHPLF ZDV DW LWV SHDN" 'R \RX UHmember? Children and other innocents were being shot and killed during drive-bys almost every weekend. 'R \RX UHPHPEHU ZKHQ 0LDPL ZDV NQRZQ more for piles of white cocaine than for its white-sand beaches? In the early to mid-1980s, this country enGXUHG D ZDYH RI YLROHQW FULPH VXFK DV KDGQ¡W been seen since the days of Al Capone and the Prohibition boys. The violent crime wave was FDXVHG IRU WKH PRVW SDUW E\ WKH KXJH LQĂ X[ of cocaine into this country, and our Congress responded by enacting tough laws that SXQLVKHG WKRVH ZKR ZRXOG Ă€OO RXU VWUHHWV ZLOO blood in order to line their pockets with huge SURĂ€WV IURP WKH VDOH RI GUXJV 7KH ODZV TXLFNO\ EHJDQ WR KDYH DQ HÍżHFW DV

30

Out-N-About

August 2015

young men of all races began to face serious jail sentences. But then, almost as quickly as WKH ODZV ZHQW LQWR HÍżHFW WKH KXJH SURĂ€WV EHLQJ PDGH IURP FRFDLQH EHJDQ WR Ă€QG WKHLU way into the pockets of crooked judges who were willing to go easy on certain criminals HVSHFLDOO\ ZKLWH RQHV ZLWK SROLWLFDO FRQQHFWLRQV LQ H[FKDQJH IRU KHIW\ EULEHV &RQJUHVV¡V reaction? Mandatory minimum sentencing laws. Congress took discretionary power away from trial court judges because the judges had shown they were vulnerable to the old cash-in-the-envelope ploy. And mandatory minimums have been HÍżHFWLYH 7KH IHGHUDO V\VWHP LV QRW EURNHQ DQG Congress should not soften penalties for drug WUD΀FNHUV RQH ELW Because of mandatory minimums, this country has experienced a steady, dramatic reduction in violent crime, including murders, UDSHV UREEHULHV DQG DVVDXOWV 7KDW¡V QR FRLQFLdence. Mandatory minimum penalties are the FRUQHUVWRQH RI IHGHUDO HÍżRUWV WR LQĂ€OWUDWH DQG GLVPDQWOH GUXJ WUD΀FNLQJ RUJDQL]DWLRQV Those promoting the weakening of federal

See JENKINS, Page 31

3UHVLGHQW 2EDPD¡V ODUJHO\ symbolic commutations of 46 IHGHUDO SULVRQHUV¡ VHQWHQFHV in mid-July is an attempt, I believe, by the president to call attention to a very real and very important issue, which is that we incarcerate far too many of our citizens in this country because of drugs. 7R EHJLQ OHW¡V FRQVLGHU MXVW a few facts: — The U.S. prison population is more than 2.4 million. Âł 7KDW¡V PRUH WKDQ quadrupled since the seventies, when Richard Nixon declared war on drugs. — More than one out of every 100 American adults is behind bars. — About 14 percent of the prison population is in federal prison, or around 340,000 men and women. — The single most important factor in the increase in the federal prison population is longer sentences for drug RÍżHQGHUV PRVW RI WKHP non-violent. — The average inmate in minimum-security federal prison costs $21,000 each year. The average inmate in maximum-security federal prisons costs $33,000 each year. — Federal prison costs are expected to rise to 30 percent RI WKH 'HSDUWPHQW RI -XVWLFH¡V budget by 2020. The release of the 46 prisoners means nothing, really. Thousands more will continue to languish in our prisons while the fortunate few will VRRQ EH UHOHDVHG 7KH\ ZLOO

not be pardoned, however. They will still not have the civil rights restored that are stripped away once one is convicted of a felony in this country.) The commutations do nothing to solve any of the real problems we face, because the draconian drug laws and mandatory-minimum sentencing laws remain in place. As soon as those 46 folks are released from prison, they will no doubt be replaced by 46 more. But are the commutations a start in gauging public outrage, public interest, and in nudging lawmakers to begin rethinking the entire idea of mass incarceration as an answer to social problems like drugs? I think they are, and I applaud the president for having the courage to do what he did. And lest one begin screaming from the rooftops that Obama is an anarchist who is randomly releasing dangerous criminals from prison without giving consideration to the havoc such actions will inevitably wreak upon the rest of us, keep in mind that Obama has been, by presidential standards, a stingy commuter of sentences. If you want to see some real presidential activism in terms of commuting sentences for crimes, go back to Frankin 'HODQR 5RRVHYHOW DQG ORRN what he did when Prohibition was stuck down. Roosevelt granted 3,687 pardons during KLV WHUPV LQ R΀FH ZLWK PRVW of them being granted to peo-

See CURRY, Page 31

Lester Bean

$ Ă DJ Ă DS WXUQV XJO\ “My goodness, Lester, what happened to you?â€? The question came from Emmylou, P\ EXGG\ +RPHU -RQHV¡V ZLIH DV , walked in and plopped myself down RQ P\ IDYRULWH VWRRO DW 0LVV .LWW\¡V +RQN\ 7RQN DQG /DXQGURPDW RÍż )URJ Hollow Road. Homer was over in the corner throwing darts with a couple of other fellows I knew and Miss Kitty was behind the bar. “Nothing,â€? I said as I asked Miss Kitty for a mug of that new brew from the Yee-Haw brewery in downtown Johnson City. ´1RWKLQJ"Âľ (PP\ORX VDLG ´<RX¡YH got a fat lip and a black eye and scrapes all over you. Looks to me like someERG\ JDYH \RX D JRRG ZKXSSLQ¡ Âľ ´7KH\ GLGQ¡W JLYH PH QRWKLQJ Âľ , VDLG ´,¡YH SDLG IRU HYHU\ EUXLVH Âľ ´6R \RX¡YH EHHQ Ă€JKWLQJ" $W \RXU age?â€? ´,¡P QRW DOO WKDW ROG DQG EHVLGHV just because a man starts to get a little ORQJ LQ WKH WRRWK GRHVQ¡W PHDQ KH FDQ¡W JHW LQWR D JRRG ROG IDVKLRQHG knock-down, drag-out if the occasion calls for it.â€? ´'R \RX PLQG LI , DVN ZKDW \RX ZHUH Ă€JKWLQJ DERXW"Âľ I cringed just a little at the question. 1RW WKDW , ZDV DVKDPHG RU DQ\WKLQJ LW ZDV MXVW WKDW ZKDW ,¡G GRQH did seem a little silly, now that it was over. “Flag,â€? I said. “Beg your pardon?â€? “Flag! I got into a scrap over a stu-

SLG Ă DJ Âľ Miss Kitty had sidled over by that WLPH DQG , ZDV QRZ Ă DQNHG E\ WZR women, both of whom, I could tell, were licking their chops over the prospect of making me feel like a fool. ´:KDW NLQG RI Ă DJ"Âľ 0LVV .LWW\ asked. ´:K\ GRQ¡W , MXVW WHOO \RX WKH VWRU\ VR , GRQ¡W KDYH WR VLW KHUH DQG DQVZHU a bunch of damned silly questions,â€? I said. Miss Kitty looked at Emmylou and they both smiled. ´2ND\ Âľ (PP\ORX VDLG ´/HW¡V KHDU it.â€? “Well, I went to the grocery store Saturday evening to stock up on beer for the NASCAR race on Sunday,â€? I said. “I had me a case in the cart when I walked out of the store into the parking lot and this red pickup truck GULYHV E\ PH ,W¡V JRW WZR &RQIHGHUDWH Ă DJV DWWDFKHG WR WKH EHG DQG Ă XWWHUing in the breeze. Now this was just a week or so after those black folks were murdered in church by that white boy down in South Carolina and the hoopla DERXW WKH &RQIHGHUDWH Ă DJ ZDV JRLQJ on. So I walked over to the truck and there were two young fellers sitting in it — they were maybe twenty — with a girl sitting on the seat between them. One of the young men was getting out of the truck to go into the store and , VDLG Âś+H\ WKHUH EXGG\ GRQ¡W \RX WKLQN LW¡V D ELW GLVUHVSHFWIXO WR EH Ă \LQJ WKDW Ă DJ DIWHU ZKDW MXVW KDSSHQHG LQ

6RXWK &DUROLQD"¡¾ ´,¡OO EHW KH WROG \RX WR PLQG \RXU RZQ EXVLQHVV GLGQ¡W KH"Âľ 0LVV .LWW\ said. “What he said was more along the lines of telling me to do something to one part of my body with another part of my body that I would consider both repulsive and physically impossible.â€? “So he told you to go screw yourself,â€? Emmylou said. “Well, I sorta asked them if they had any idea about the real history of that piece of colored cloth they seemed to be so proud of, and then I gave them a little history lesson, and then I sort of implied that they were racist pigs.â€? “Lester! You really called them racist pigs?â€? ´, EHOLHYH , GLG ,¡G KDG D IHZ EHHUV while I was sitting on the lawn mower before I left the house so my memory might be a little fuzzy, but as best I can remember, yes, I sort of called them racist pigs.â€? “And what did they do?â€? “They got out of the truck. Even the girl got out of the truck. And you know what? They were big racist pigs. I mean I found out real quick those boys were well-fed. And the girl kicked like a mule.â€? “So they attacked you right there in the parking lot at the grocery store?â€? ´6XUH GLG 7KH\ GLGQ¡W VD\ KDUGO\ D ZRUG MXVW VWDUWHG D ZKRPSLQ¡ DQG D VWRPSLQ¡ , Ă€QDOO\ KDG WR UROO XQGHU their truck to get away from them.

Curry

Jenkins

Continued from Page 30

Continued from Page 30

ple who violated Prohibition laws. States are reforming marijuana laws. 'LVFXVVLRQV DQG GHEDWHV DUH EHLQJ KHOG regarding rehabilitation versus incarceration when it comes to law enforcement SROLF\ DQG GUXJV ,¡P QRW VD\LQJ ZH¡YH WXUQHG D FRUQHU EXW WKH SUHVLGHQW¡V FRPmutations are at least a step in the right direction. Perhaps, in the near future, there will once again be some sanity in our drug laws.

VHQWHQFLQJ GHVFULEH GUXJ WUD΀FNHUV DV ´QRQ YLROHQW GUXJ RÍżHQGHUV Âľ 7KHUH LV QR VXFK WKLQJ DV D QRQ YLROHQW GUXJ RÍżHQGHU EHFDXVH YLROHQFH LV LQKHUHQW LQ WKH V\VWHP 6WUHHW OHYHO WUD΀FNHUV GHDO ZLWK D FOLHQWHOH desperate to obtain their product and who are willing to commit violence to get it. Those further up the distribution chain use violence to protect their inventory, which, in many cases, is worth millions of dollars. Just look at the news coming out of Mexico every day. Thousands upon thousands have been slaughtered in WKH GUXJ ZDUV WKHUH DQG WKH ZDUV DUHQ¡W EHWZHHQ WKH

When this woman started hollering that she was calling the police on her cell phone, they got back in and took RÍż 'DQJHG QHDU UDQ RYHU P\ OHJV when they did it.â€? ´'LG VKH FDOO WKH SROLFH" :HUH WKH\ arrested?â€? “Nah, I told her to let it go.â€? “Why, Lester?â€? “I started it. And besides, what they did sort of proved my point about ZKDW WKDW Ă DJ VWDQGV IRU ,W VWDQGV IRU YLROHQFH DQG KDWUHG $LQ¡W JRW QRWKLQJ WR GR ZLWK VWDWHV¡ ULJKWV RU IUHHGRP RI any kind.â€? ´%XW GRQ¡W \RX WKLQN WKH\ VKRXOG pay for hurting you like that?â€? ´:RXOGQ¡W GR QR JRRG Âľ , VDLG “People like them have already made XS WKHLU PLQGV 7KH\¡UH LJQRUDQW DQG WKH\¡UH VWXSLG DQG WKH\¡UH DOUHDG\ WRR old to change.â€? “Well,â€? Emmylou said, “I hate to think that they got away with it scotfree.â€? ´7KH\ GLGQ¡W Âľ , VDLG ´7KH ZRPDQ who threatened to call the police gave me their tag number. I have a couple RI EXGGLHV LQ WKH VKHULͿ¡V GHSDUWPHQW VR , PDQDJHG WR Ă€QG RXW ZKHUH WKH fellow who owns the truck lives. Me and your husband took a little trip out that way late last night.â€? “Lester!â€? Emmylou said. “What did you get Homer into?â€? ´1RWKLQJ VHULRXV /HW¡V MXVW VD\ Ă DJ EXUQLQJ FDQ EH IXQ ZKHQ \RX¡UH EXUQLQJ WKH ULJKW Ă DJ Âľ

FDUWHOV DQG WKH FRSV WKH\¡UH EHWZHHQ WKH FDUWHOV DQG the cartels. Anybody who lives in a community plagued by GUXJV FDQ WHOO \RX WKDW YLROHQFH DQG GUXJ WUD΀FNLQJ are inseparable. The pain of addiction, the crime generated, the lost productivity and the costs to our health care system are immeasurable. In spite of that, more WKDQ FRQYLFWHG GUXJ WUD΀FNHUV ZLOO EH UHOHDVHG early from prison over the next two years because the EOHHGLQJ KHDUWV VD\ ZH FDQ¡W DÍżRUG WR KRXVH WKHP , VD\ ZH FDQ¡W DÍżRUG QRW WR :H SURFHHG ZLWK JUHDW caution before dismantling laws that have helped keep our nation safe.

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2106 N. Roan Street, Suite 2 * Metal Detectors Johnson City, TN 37604 * Prospecting Equipment * Rocks, Gems & Fossils ZZZ 7UHDVXUH+XQWLQJ2XWÀWWHUV FRP * Books * Pay Dirt Bags $FURVV IURP WKH -& 0Dll) * Accessories

(423) 342-2522

Serving NE Tennessee & SW Virginia’s 3URVSHFWRUV DQG Treasure Hunters

Discover the Only Hobby That Can Bring History to Life and Actually Pay For Itself!

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