This American Ride
This American Ride Podcast... Two Everyday Red-Blooded American men talking about everything and anything that pertains to you and our Country
Whether you're a die-hard conservative, a curious independent, or even a skeptical liberal looking for alternative viewpoints, our podcast offers something for everyone. So tune in, subscribe, and join the conversation as we navigate the complexities of American politics and culture, one episode at a time.
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This American Ride
Detroit Life, Pizza Passions, and Football Fervor
Have you ever pondered the true essence of Detroit living? Join us on "This American Ride" as our lifelong friend Justin, affectionately known as JL, makes his podcast debut and sets the record straight. From middle school memories to his exciting career move from New Jersey to Detroit, Justin's journey is nothing short of captivating. We laugh over our unforgettable night at the Peacock Bar in the Waldorf Astoria, reflect on our mixed feelings about New York City, and dive into Justin's quest for the perfect slice of pizza in a city not typically famed for its mom-and-pop pizzerias.
Ever wondered what makes New Jersey's pizza landscape so unique? Prepare for a mouth-watering discussion that traverses from New York-style pizza in the north to the thin, crispy Trenton-style in the central region. We throw in our experiences at places like Pepe's Pizza and DeLorenzo's, and even a shoutout to a Detroit pizza joint that earned high praise from none other than Dave Portnoy. A lighthearted note on a uniquely shaped bourbon bottle adds a fun twist to our culinary journey.
Shifting gears, we dive into the sprawling urban landscape of Detroit, contrasting it with the dense confines of Manhattan. From the trials of being a Detroit Lions fan to the fierce college football rivalries in Michigan, our sports discussions are as passionate as they are insightful. We touch on the polarizing figure of Jim Harbaugh, the evolving dynamics in college football due to NIL deals, and even the complexities of political affiliations with a sprinkle of bourbon and craft beer appreciation. Join us for a blend of humor, nostalgia, and thought-provoking discussions that offer a little something for everyone.
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Welcome back to this American Ride podcast, where we talk about issues that affect you, the average American. What's up everybody? Welcome back to the show. George here with Bert and this American Ride podcast, and we are here with a buddy of ours, lifelong buddy actually. We're going to call him JL today, that's what we got?
Speaker 2:do we have like like? Do we have a different voice? Is he like a voice effect?
Speaker 1:I should have like, uh, like shadowed his face off.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I could probably still do that the documentaries when they're talking with, like, uh, you know the hell's angel member that doesn't want to be seen that'll make more sense as uh, as we get into this mess.
Speaker 1:But uh, give you a little background on justin. I've known justin probably since sixth grade, maybe it's been, maybe seventh it's. It's been a while. It's been a minute. Um, high school for me, high school for you, um he uh, first time on a podcast, yeah and you're gonna, you're gonna get close to the mic there, buddy, sorry, yeah, yeah, because the podcast cherry, that's it. Man and uh, born in jersey but living in detroit not actually in detroit, though. This is something people don't know about Detroit. Explain Detroit to people.
Speaker 3:Well, if I told you I lived, you know, outside Detroit, in the actual city I lived in, nobody would know where the hell I live.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 3:So a lot of people claim I'm from Detroit. But it's really the burbs that are outside Detroit. So yeah, I was born and raised Jersey, went to school here and got offered a job outside Detroit, just moved my butt out there and everybody's like why Detroit? And I'm like why not?
Speaker 2:I got reasons.
Speaker 3:I got to get out of my parents' basement eventually and they're offering me money. Money is good.
Speaker 2:I want money, I like money.
Speaker 3:So off to Detroit. I went and I said worst case, I'll come home and live in the parents basement.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but left college for the automotive industry and um lifelong career in the automotive industry yeah I've been out there since well listen february 99 time out before you get into the topic yeah, we're not gonna.
Speaker 2:Before you get into your topic and before you guys start man crushing on each other, can I just say real quick, for those of you watching on YouTube, two things. A, it's only what may.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:So I apologize for the pasty legs and be the light makes you look a lot more pasty than it really is.
Speaker 3:Blaming the light already.
Speaker 2:And I'm done. You guys go ahead.
Speaker 1:While we're talking about that, justin brought us over a bottle of will it. Yeah, nice, while we're talking about that, justin brought us over a bottle of Will it that you made something with Some Manhattans. Manhattan with Amarillo.
Speaker 3:You haven't had Manhattan Sprint.
Speaker 2:I have. I hate New York.
Speaker 1:I love New York. I hate New York. Funny thing about Manhattans Justin and I have had a manhattan at the bar that invented the drink, invented the manhattan, yeah and that was the um the peacock bar at the waldorf astoria.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so how do we know that the bar invented that it was because they said so it was yeah, it was a known thing it was.
Speaker 3:It was a this this is the bar that invented it george looked at me one day and said you want a 20 manhattan.
Speaker 2:I'm like sure, let's go was this like elf, where on the door it said world's best cup of coffee and you're just like congratulations you did it.
Speaker 3:It's at the waldorf. You got to believe them, right, I mean?
Speaker 2:yeah, because rich people never lie.
Speaker 1:No, they never no, no, they never do. But it was like, uh, it was like 25-year Elijah Craig, which, if you were lucky enough to see 25-year Elijah Craig in a liquor store, it's probably going to be about $175 for the bottle. And then it was the 150C Grand Marnier.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I was going to say Grand Marnier was in it.
Speaker 1:And then it was some kind of yeah, but it was like barrel aged, some kind of crazy sweet vermouth and bitters that they made in-house. Okay, there are a lot of distilleries now that are getting into the craft bitters thing, but the Waldorf is one of those things. I think bars years ago because bitters don't stay well for very long that they always kind of controlled their own bitters.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we got there right before they closed. Now it's like a hotel, now it's residences. Yeah, we got there just before they closed For illegals.
Speaker 1:Actually probably Probably now In the city of Manhattan.
Speaker 2:So I'll say I've only been to New York City. I think twice, Once with me. I think both times with you.
Speaker 1:No, Both times you didn't go yeah, because you, you, the four of us, went the first time, and then we went back for the bike, for the bike show.
Speaker 2:That was the second time. That was the second we went. When did we? We saw the christmas tree? Was that that was?
Speaker 1:the first time that was the bike, that was the bike show.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah so the point of that being, I don't like new york, but the bars there do make some killer drinks. We had the um old fashions at that one little side, alley bar that that was. That was pretty bang, that was killer. They make them properly, which is really cool. They take pride in their profession, at least a little bit.
Speaker 3:That's the funny thing. You mentioned little bars or whatever. I'm in Detroit. They're not used to mom and pop shops out there. When I first moved to Detroit, I'm like, well, where can I get good pizza? Right, because we're a little bit of pizza. They're like new jersey. No, they're like, oh well, you know there's. There's this chain over here that's pretty good, or this other thing over here. I'm like they're chains, dude. I'm like I'm talking like a ricardo you know the name's ricardo's, you know. Or albas. I'm not talking something that's a chain, even if it's local, right, it's like mom and pop shop.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And they're like oh well, this one's good and it's like and for the longest time my wife, who's also from here. We both talked to pizzas. We found okay pizza there, but it's not the same.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And we actually ended up meeting some friends in manhattan. I think it was after my brother's wedding. Yes, we came down from rhode island to manhattan and met some people in the city for the day and we're just walking down. Was it 37th avenue where the dakota arms is?
Speaker 3:yep, yep yep, and we're just walk. We're off the subway, we're walking down the street to where john lennon was shot and my wife just disappears off the side of the sidewalk into a building and it was just this hole in the wall pizza shop in Manhattan. And these guys are like she's like I need a slice, so she goes in and these other guys like, all right, we'll try a slice. And they tried it and they're like, holy crap, you guys aren't lying, it is different, and it's so much better.
Speaker 2:It's something we take for granted. You know, being from the Jersey New York area, that we don't realize that most of the country doesn't have pizza like we have.
Speaker 1:Well, because they don't get excited about it, and that's how you know. It's like when I first time I was working with this company, we were based in Austin, texas. They're like, oh, you want to get pizza? I was like, yeah, let's get some pizza. And like Little Caesars showed up, I was Based in Detroit or some CC's what's? There's one down in Papa John's is another one. Papa John's Little Caesars. There's one down in.
Speaker 2:Texas. That was like a buffet style pizza and it was so oh, like CC's or something. I think it was CC's.
Speaker 3:Oh.
Speaker 2:So brutal. I'm like bro, just I mean, I could just stay home and Maybe one step above that but we actually do have Detroit pizza.
Speaker 1:Detroit has Detroit pizza, though.
Speaker 3:And it is good.
Speaker 1:It's casserole.
Speaker 3:No, no, no, no, no. That's Chicago pizza.
Speaker 1:That's lasagna.
Speaker 3:Detroit pizza is basically a Sicilian-style pizza, here made in a pan.
Speaker 2:Okay, that actually crisps up the crust.
Speaker 3:I thought all Sicilians were made in a pan, but it crisps up the crust kind of differently the way they make it.
Speaker 1:I feel like they put the cheese in the crust or something like that it's not in the crust.
Speaker 3:It's still on it, it's on top though and it gets crispy crust Like Vito's making it. Now he has his own Detroit. He's supposedly got some special pans and stuff that he has to use. He's a pizza guru, he is.
Speaker 1:He was on the Food Network.
Speaker 3:I haven't tried it yet, so I can't vouch for how good it is relative to Detroit pizza.
Speaker 2:They make good pizza, man, but it's good for what it is.
Speaker 3:It's not a bad pizza. Now George mentioned casserole. No, that's Chicago pizza. That's Chicago pizza. That's damn lasagna. Yeah, you go to Chicago and get a Chicago pie and it's literally two inches thick.
Speaker 1:It's thick. That's what she said.
Speaker 3:You're two inches thick and it's thick. You're lucky to have a slice. You know a slice or two and you're done because it's. It's just so heavy and the sauce, you know everything's on.
Speaker 1:It's like inverted sauce on top yeah, it's again good, not not new york pizza it's not new york pizza and we have this whole transition. I think, like you know, north jersey has that new york style pizza and then you get in the trenton and you get into like Mercer County and I feel like the pizza changes. I cause I think you know, in this region I mean it's all like micro regions, right Trenton has its own style of pizza, um, which is really over New York, my favorite, I prefer. I prefer the Trenton like area pizza pizza. And then you get to south jersey and and as you get like south of bordentown, I feel like it changes again to what we kind of grew up with which is the philly influence over here?
Speaker 1:yeah, it's just a little doughier, it's, it's not as uh, right, which is what right? Which is what you like? It's a doughier crust and I like I'm a I'm a thin crust crispy guy. It is.
Speaker 3:It's what I like, it's you know we do have a really good place by us. It does a Connecticut style pizza which is a thin crust like New Haven Like a New Haven. Yeah, the owners actually went out there and learned and then brought it back to Detroit and they do a really good job with it.
Speaker 1:Pepe's pizza in New Haven. I've eaten there recently and it is freaking amazing. It is not Trenton Pizza, it's just a little bit different. But the fact that Pepe's Pizza is coal-fired and that is like New Haven it's like coal firing is a thing when in Trenton coal firing isn't a thing, that's.
Speaker 3:New England right.
Speaker 1:It's pizza, cold heating. Here's coal. Yeah, well, brooklyn, brooklyn's, coal fired. You know, when you get into, like um, I forget the name of the place in brooklyn it's super famous but you get over there and that's all coal fired pizza. But um, trenton is still the oven stuff. And so d lorenzo's, who I sent bert a um an instagram reel and it was um portnoy at DeLorenzo's in Trenton Well, not DeLorenzo's in Trenton anymore, but DeLorenzo's now outside of Trenton, and it's the thin, crispy pizza. What you didn't see on that is, delorenzo's does not cut their pizza in slices.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's all over the place.
Speaker 1:It's in squares. They have a circle that they cut in squares. It's the weirdest thing. I don't know why they do it the one by us isn't.
Speaker 3:Isn't the typical pizza? It's not, it's not, it's not it was in squares.
Speaker 1:You just didn't notice it in the shot, but I noticed it because it was. He held it up. It was a freaking, it was a square, it was like a long rectangle.
Speaker 2:Yeah, look at it again so he did, and he did it look like a slice.
Speaker 1:He did two he did two pizza joints there he did one was jojo's um and which is another place. I took care of the owner, who started that restaurant when I was a young nurse in trenton, and so that place is very dear to my heart. I love their pizza. That's the place that does the mustard pie. We went there to watch a football game once. It kept there. Yeah, that's, that's another trend of thing. I want another story. But he gave, uh, he gave jojo's a pretty good score, but then he gave d lorenzo's like a 9-2. I feel like wow, and they cut their pizza in squares and um yeah, the place that was connecticut style by me.
Speaker 3:It's not your typical. You know like three, like six slice type run through where it's all hitting in the middle. It's's like random Some could be triangles, some could be rectangles.
Speaker 2:It's a weird shape. It's not a square. It's not a normal pizza shape.
Speaker 3:They don't even try, it's just like, yeah, we ran the cutter through the pizza, whichever you get is what you get. That's weird, but they do make an awesome sausage. Pepperoni and sweet cherry peppers on the pizza.
Speaker 1:That's probably good. I'll tell you something about d lorenzo's, though. So portnoy gave this place a 9.2, which score, which is the highest score I've seen him give. I don't know what the highest score he's given has seen it on four, yeah, so a nine, nine two, nine two is like insane. D lorenzo's was so busy when they were in trenton that they did not pick up the phone on thursday, friday, saturday. Wow, that's crazy. You had to go there to order. They did not pick up the phone, they were just not having it.
Speaker 3:I mean Portnoy came to Detroit and tried one of the local pizza joints there and gave it a pretty high remark I forget how high it was, I think high for Detroit would be a six with that doughy stuff. I think they're more of a New York-style pie.
Speaker 1:They style pie.
Speaker 3:They're actually not far from my work. I've got to run over there and try it. I've seen one, but I haven't really tried it, so it looks the case. What are you doing? I just haven't got over there to try it.
Speaker 2:What is wrong with you?
Speaker 1:So yeah, will it, and I want you to keep in mind that, as we get into this podcast, we have essentially killed a 750 milliliter bottle of Will it as we roll into the room.
Speaker 2:It didn't seem. It seemed like a really small bottle.
Speaker 3:It did seem small, but it's supposed to be a 750.
Speaker 1:It's a 750.
Speaker 3:What is this?
Speaker 1:Shape it is, that's a 750. Huh, yeah, yeah, those bourbon people they get creative man.
Speaker 3:It's a weird shaped bottle man.
Speaker 2:Supposedly it's like a copper, a copper pot did we kill it or did we essentially kill it?
Speaker 1:there's, um, there's enough to go into my. Uh oh, you're a catch-all bottle, you greedy bitch. No, but I'm looking at a big wall of I'll just crack your word.
Speaker 3:First, I'm looking at a big wall of bourbon. There's some stuff that's shrinking man.
Speaker 2:I see some shrinking podcasts are killing. He needs to get to the store.
Speaker 1:He's brought over, I think, a bottle. What I think he brought over like one bottle, since we've been doing podcasts.
Speaker 2:I brought one over and I bought you. Well, we always buy. We haven't cracked this Christmas one he's like.
Speaker 1:I brought one over and I got you a Christmas gift.
Speaker 3:So that counts. I brought one over for Christmas.
Speaker 2:Every Christmas the whole group like me, austin, john, we all just swap bottles of bourbon.
Speaker 3:That's why.
Speaker 1:I stock up every Christmas. Detroit bourbon is right there too.
Speaker 3:Staring at me, george, literally staring at me. There's a guy in the face.
Speaker 1:That's it. So how is Detroit, detroit's, good, used to live? Now, this is funny is what people don't realize about detroit. Detroit is laid out like a perfect grid, and now you lived, used to live off of, you were close to what street?
Speaker 3:I was on off a 14 mile road 14 mile yeah, it's actually. Uh, it's like a grid and a spoke and wheel type. Yeah now.
Speaker 1:Now your brother, who also lives in in Detroit, looks a lot like you, born the same time. People can put those together three minutes away. Yeah, he lived closer to like eight mile for a long time he did. He was like on eight mile.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but he was on the west side of town, I'm not gonna lie. Yeah, Now what you don't know is eight miles. Yeah, Now what you don't know is eight miles. The dividing line between Detroit and the burbs, okay, and you cross eight mile and it's kind of shady, especially, you know, now go.
Speaker 2:So if you cross, going south of the city, or to the burbs, to the city.
Speaker 3:it gets pretty shady. All right, yeah, Detroit. Detroit's a weird city, you know, like Manhattan stuck on an Island. So everybody started building up right. You had only so much land to deal with. Detroit has nothing but land, so they had urban sprawl like crazy. So they started with a city that was over a million people, like a million five or something stupid.
Speaker 1:I think it hit its peak. Not that I was like looking at numbers, but I think in 1970, it hit its peak of like 4 million people or something.
Speaker 3:I mean, it hit this huge thing. So the city square square miles wise is huge, but the number of people who live there now is less than like half a million.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:You know and but yet now the city still has to support all that property for lighting and sewers and water and all that. But when you don't have the tax base, they just started imploding Right Cause you. But when you don't have the tax base, they just started imploding right Because you've got this one little house on the middle of the outskirts that you have to support and no tax base to get there. So when I first moved there, a big thing was like snow removal and streetlights not being on and stuff like that. So they've made a lot of headway since I've been there in the last 20 plus years and they're really rebuilding the downtown. All the sports stadiums have moved back downtown that weren't there. The Lions played out in Pontiac, which is like 30 years away, so you're a Lions fan now.
Speaker 3:I do watch them and they're not too shabby. Can't say that.
Speaker 2:It's like recency bias.
Speaker 3:It is a recency bias. You've been there for 30 years. They've been good for two, two of those I live, you know, living in the region, I have to kind of follow who's there to be able to talk. Well, you know, from high school I grew up more of a Vikings fan. Oh my God, I forgot about which. Then I move, which then I move to NFC North Territory. You're at and do you know like? Do you still? Are you still a viking fan?
Speaker 3:not, a die hard as much I follow a little bit, but nowhere near what I used to be. I fell out with. I fell out a lot with the nfl and got more into college stuff especially more as my school got into the big 10. No, michigan, fuck michigan so what's your?
Speaker 2:college team rockers. Oh, come on, stop it.
Speaker 3:I mean like really I root for my college. Yes, you went there, but root for.
Speaker 2:I root for my college team yes you went there, but who do you root for? I root for my college team who do you actually?
Speaker 3:you know I want to see them do well. I don't want to see them be a doormat in the Big Ten. Yeah, I'm a Rowan fan too, but like there's a running joke in Michigan, even when I not even there a day, and they're like so who you for michigan or michigan state, because out there it's life, college football is like yeah man, you're a michigan fan or michigan state fan. Other than that, yeah it doesn't matter, and you're sure as hell, not an ohio state fan yeah, yeah, no, no, that's bad irish, you know um, and the irish go irish.
Speaker 3:So I'm like I I don't know, I really don't care. I didn't go to either michigan or michigan Maybe State, because they're a state school.
Speaker 1:I'd probably have to pick Michigan just because of the helmets if I had to choose.
Speaker 3:But the running joke out. There is.
Speaker 2:And they win.
Speaker 3:The running joke out there is how do you tell a Michigan fan in the middle of a room of Michigan State fans? Give them five minutes. He'll tell you, Because they are kind of arrogant. But I tell you, Even with all the crap they went through last year with Harbaugh it was the NCAA abusing Harbaugh, not that Harbaugh was being a dork or a pain in the no, it was everybody against Harbaugh. It was unbelievable.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you know when he came home. He's the NFL's problem now.
Speaker 3:When he came back to Michigan, you know there were all kinds of stories about him, like being in a tree and some recruits how a yard trying to get a recruit to come to michigan, like climbing a tree, and I'm like here's the one thing I'll say, though. I'm like if any other coach at michigan did that, they would be crucified. But harbaugh was raised on this pedestal because he was a michigan man, which is the thing you got to be a Michigan man.
Speaker 2:He couldn't do anything wrong, but you know what? The one thing that really speaks volumes is that all his players love him.
Speaker 1:They do they do, they play for him, they play for him and they love him.
Speaker 2:That's not all college coaches no, it's not. You know what I mean. There's a lot of college College coaches where the players can't stand him and his players love him. Take that for what it's worth. I mean it means a lot when you're playing for him.
Speaker 3:No, you can be a great coach for your players and still be a deck.
Speaker 2:Oh, absolutely Well. First of all, his brother and him can both suck a fat one.
Speaker 1:As far as I'm concerned, Such bias that family and you.
Speaker 2:You can't even look at that family right like biased god. They're such whiny little biatches but doesn't mean they're not good coaches no, no, I I can't deny his ability to coach as much as I hate all the other hardball brother and his crappy coach, he their team he coaches for, can't sit here and say he's not a good coach. They've been a solid team his entire tenure, always competitive, always at the top of the league, you know. That speaks for itself.
Speaker 3:And all the stuff Jim went through last year, you know, with the various scandals that happened. Half of that he could have avoided, I think, if he just would have played nice with the NCAA. Yeah, probably, but he wouldn't.
Speaker 2:He could have avoided I think if he just would have played nice with the NCAA?
Speaker 3:Yeah, probably, but he wouldn't. He could have wrapped things up early and gotten all that distraction out of the way, but he wouldn't, yeah, so he caused a lot of his own distractions. He was self-suspended for three games at the beginning of the year and then suspended for three or four at the end of the year.
Speaker 1:Doesn't matter, the guy's a winner man.
Speaker 3:Guy's a winner. But he could have been suspended for four games at the end of the year and probably called it quits, and he didn't.
Speaker 2:He only won three games, not four. That's an ego thing.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and he caused all this other distraction for his team.
Speaker 2:He could have just said you know what?
Speaker 3:I'll do it and go yeah.
Speaker 2:And yet, with all of that, he still wins.
Speaker 1:He still won. Yes, he, he's a winner. I mean, there are coaches that are just winners and he, to me, is one of them.
Speaker 2:I mean he, and he won his last stint in the NFL. He won.
Speaker 1:He did win his last stint. He's been a winner everywhere.
Speaker 3:he's gone, yeah, I mean Stanford, michigan or San.
Speaker 1:Francisco Stanford's been. What was Stanford after he left?
Speaker 3:Like I, mean, while his recruits were still there. They were okay, and then they just, and then they just fell off, fell off.
Speaker 1:I mean, I mean the guy knows. I mean like he can recruit like you said, well, when he can coach, obviously he can recruit, but his players love him and he knows how to get the most out of those players.
Speaker 2:That's the biggest, that's the biggest talent that people don't understand with coaching and college sports. Is that recruiting?
Speaker 3:yeah, and now it's now with the NIL.
Speaker 2:Some guys can do it and some guys can't. My coach at Rowan small Rowan he was a recruiter man. We were division three school that had half of our roster was division one talent because his ability to go recruit and that's what got him moved up. And now he's coaching division one because he has an ability to get kids to like him and want to come play for him.
Speaker 3:you know you can't really yeah it's still that relationship thing Now, the whole NIL thing and how that's going to play going forward in division one. Yeah Well, that's, that's going to be hard.
Speaker 2:The whole thing is about the change real soon that relationship most recent thing with the NCAA settling with some $2.8 billion thing where they're going to pay. It's amateur football is gone, yeah, now these kids are all going to get paid fat money now. Yeah. Yeah, well, now you can transfer every year right Without having to sit out which is the biggest problem, right, the money isn't even the biggest problem. That transfer portal that there is right now is unlimited.
Speaker 3:If they don't do something about that. The money's not regulated, so you can give any kid any money you want. Who? So you can give any kid any money you want. Who did I see? Last year? I saw a stat I think it was the Sims kid who's still down in Texas, texas was making more money than Brock Purdy. That kid was making three and a half million versus like 800,000.
Speaker 2:Not Sims the Manning kid, the Manning kid, sorry.
Speaker 3:But like three and a half million to like 800,000. I'm like and he hasn't even freaking started.
Speaker 2:He's a backup at Texas he will start. That's what's going to happen now. You're going to have, basically, high school kids are going to be getting money. That's where it's going to go.
Speaker 3:The NCAA doesn't seem to be trying to regulate it.
Speaker 2:I think they're really worried about it. I just don't think they know how to regulate it at this point.
Speaker 1:The problem is the cat's out of the bag and how do you reel it back in now? Yeah, it's, students have sued them, that's why we have the transfer portal.
Speaker 3:The transfer portal, I'm fine with, but we talked about that.
Speaker 2:I mean, I think there has to be, I think it has to be, a limit. It has to be like a, like a two max I agree with that.
Speaker 3:I'm fine with having a portal and being able to use it. Your coach leaves.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you should be able to go Right, but there's a point now where you're not.
Speaker 3:You shouldn't be bouncing every year.
Speaker 2:You're just bouncing around and that's what you're having right now. You've already got and this has just started since COVID. So that's 20, right 2020. You've already got kids who have been in four different schools for four different years. Was it COVID out? No, 2020 is when they open that up because of all the the people not being able to play and things like that, and transfer like that's. When it opened up, uh, he transferred, but that wasn't important. That wasn't like a portal thing. You always been allowed to transfer yeah, yeah, but you have to sit out or get
Speaker 1:an exemption.
Speaker 2:I felt like he didn't sit out, but maybe he might have had exemptions there's always been waivers for certain reasons, but right now like there's nothing stopping a kid now from going one place and playing at a great university, winning a national championship, and then realizing oh well, all the senior like especially for basketball, all the seniors are graduating, we're going to suck next year. Now you go, look and you find where is there another real competitive team that needs my position? Oh, now I transfer over here. I win another national championship. My position oh, now I transfer over here. I went another national championship over here. Oh, all those guys are leaving. I'm only a sophomore and you just keep doing that. And then you've just bounced around and you've been at every school and you've won everywhere you went, but just because you keep bailing, yep, and I think that's garbage.
Speaker 3:You can essentially build a dream team Now you're making tons of money, yep. You know how long has you know? It's always been a thing with, like Kentucky and Duke and basketball right, they're one and dones, but everybody still wants to go there.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Right, but now you're going to have all this money that can say you Big time For all the SEC schools. Right, there's always been talk of SEC schools and money right yeah, now it's legit, you can do it.
Speaker 2:The difference between college, what's always been the difference between college and the pros is that school pride playing for national championships, representing your school and that's gone now.
Speaker 1:Now it's who is going to give me the most money to come there and I'll play there and then I'll leave the next year right and then until I go into the pros and I'll go into the pros as a millionaire- they're making more money than they would in the pros, which some of the college kids are going to stick around for all four or five years now, because they'll make more money there, which shows, I mean, look at these guys showing up at the draft, some of these guys showing up at the draft, some of these guys that showed up at the draft I was like holy crap, man, it's like they've already made it. They've always done that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they've always showed out because the but it was always borrowed stuff. Yeah, the agents gave them money or something.
Speaker 2:But now, it's like legit, like these guys, they've got money and it's crazy and it's going to affect the NFL because now these guys are going to have money and an ego going in to where they're going to. They're going to start seeing a lot more. I think of the situation with um eli manning where, like he was, like I'm not playing there right and you might draft me, but I'm not playing for you they're. These guys are going to start calling their shots before that it's going to affect the draft.
Speaker 1:They thought that was going to happen in chicago. They thought it was going to happen in chicago.
Speaker 2:Caleb Williams said he wanted to. It could have.
Speaker 3:Yeah, Last year Caleb Williams said he wanted a piece of the team that was going to draft him.
Speaker 2:He wanted ownership. The thing there was that was before. He had a horrible season.
Speaker 3:I'm like yeah, but still.
Speaker 2:Not statistically, but team wise. They had a horrible season, but still you want a piece of the team. Who do you think you are Exactly? But that's where it's going to, where they're getting bigger egos and they're thinking they're more important than they are. It's going to get bad.
Speaker 3:But I'm wondering are you going to see more of them stick around school? Because those borderline guys aren't going to jump to the NFL anymore, because they're going to make more statement in college, which in turn, how's that feeder system going?
Speaker 1:to work now, but that could be a positive thing, it can be that could be a positive thing for the, for the, for the, for the.
Speaker 2:NFL and the NCAA because, these guys are sticking around. Some of these guys need to stick around longer before they go to the NFL and they know how that works Well, a lot of them make that decision based upon, like the strength of their position in draft class I mean right, that that's people don't understand that shit.
Speaker 1:That's what makes that decision for them. I mean, if there's a weak quarterback class coming and you're a junior and you're your senior year is going to be a stronger quarterback class and you've got a shot at going maybe first round early, second round you come out right.
Speaker 3:A lot of guys have done that, you know right, but you've got to play that, you know that's. That's just being smart.
Speaker 1:I feel like knowing you're I feel like it happens with running backs and receivers more than happens probably with any other position, I mean, but that's just yeah, but how many?
Speaker 3:yes, how many people do you know? That's what everybody worries about how many kids you see every year. They get somebody talking to their ear. They've always been, you know, the number one guy. Wherever they've been in high school or college, they're like the guy. So they got all these people telling them hey, you're good, you're really really good. And then at the, at the nfl level, they're probably mid-level at best.
Speaker 1:So they make the jump and then they fail yeah, there was a bill belichick uh interview pretty recently, I feel like or maybe it's just like the clips are coming up of it. But talking about dealing with arrogance, um, and he says, yeah, he says they're. They're all you know, when these new recruits come out, they're pretty arrogant until they get hit in the mouth and they, they realize that they're no longer the best guy in the field. He says that arrogance lasts. He says arrogance lasts about a week in the NFL and then it's gone.
Speaker 3:And Bill's one of the few coaches that have always been that way. He's like I don't need your shit, get out of here. Yeah Right, he would trade anybody.
Speaker 2:Yeah, he was smart enough to realize, you know no matter where you were drafted it doesn't matter, if you don't fit in, you'll be gone. But listen, we didn't bring Justin here to talk about football it was talked about anything it doesn't matter. I know we can't, but I also know that this could be a four hour podcast, so somebody's got to be the adult here. I'll be breaking this one down into uh part a, part b into three weeks worth of podcast content bad thing.
Speaker 1:I mean it's kind of a bad thing yeah yeah, I love it.
Speaker 3:Burt's got to be the adult in the room.
Speaker 1:I'm scared he's already cracked open he's already through the second drink cracked into the Elijah and he's like. I hate to be the adult here.
Speaker 2:I hate to break the news, but I was drinking beers while I played Madden all day, son of a bitch, I'm taking a nap.
Speaker 1:I haven't bought Madden in a couple years. It kind of makes me want to buy it this year. Well, I'm super.
Speaker 2:So the funny thing we're talking about is NIL sports stuff. The one good thing about this NIL bull crap.
Speaker 3:NCAA 24.
Speaker 2:NCAA football is coming back, baby.
Speaker 3:Is it coming back? It's coming back this summer, yeah.
Speaker 1:I got to be honest. I didn't know. They did away with it.
Speaker 3:They did because of the pain 2015,.
Speaker 2:I think was the last time one player started complaining about not getting compensated for it, so I guess I got to buy some NCAA.
Speaker 1:So I always loved it.
Speaker 2:I always loved it, just because I love. I like NFL is my thing Like it is. I love Notre Dame. I root for them. I like college football. I watch college football as much as possible, but NFL is is what has my heart. Um, but the game itself for playing was cooler with NCAA, just cause there's so many more options Like there's so many more options.
Speaker 1:There's so much more going. There's so many more teams. There was the option number one.
Speaker 2:Let's take South Dakota. I don't think that'll be in the game. I don't think that'll be a thing now.
Speaker 1:I guarantee you there's some small school that they have, that they'll have an option playbook, for I'll bet you there is. At NCAA you had all the small schools. I mean they had different playbooks.
Speaker 3:That's the fun part of NCAA. It's like let's take South Dakota State and see if I can beat Michigan, you know, or whatever.
Speaker 2:There was legit teams running it Well, so there has to be, because they'll have Navy and Air Force.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I was going to say Navy Air, force, army, navy Air.
Speaker 2:Force Army do still run that. I think they're like the only ones Army definitely Air Force may the most.
Speaker 3:Yeah, progressive.
Speaker 2:Just because they still. Yeah, they're like the biggest of the three, but maybe an Army for sure. Army definitely, or hardcore, so that'll be in there.
Speaker 1:Air Force, I feel like runs a lot of eye, a lot of pro formation when you watch them, a lot of eye formation is the Air Force.
Speaker 2:I'd be lying if I told you I knew, because I don't really get to see them, army is definitely option. I mean, I always watch the Army-Navy game every year, so I know for a fact that game is crazy just watching a couple of wishbone freaking option teams. Yeah, rushers always played.
Speaker 3:Army for the longest time and people are like, why are you playing those guys? Because it's like this bastard offense and people get hurt every year playing them.
Speaker 2:It's funny to watch these good teams struggle just because they don't practice that, and all of a sudden. I'm playing Army and we've got four days to figure out this option thing, and it's just not what you normally do. How?
Speaker 3:hard, is it, though? It doesn't matter your talent.
Speaker 2:There's a lot of reads.
Speaker 3:It's all reading that it all takes one misread and he's running that thing for 50 yards.
Speaker 1:I mean, what happened to? You got running back, you got quarterback. It's not that simple. Is it more complicated?
Speaker 3:than that, it is Quarterback running back, running back running back.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's more complicated.
Speaker 3:Don't get the wide receiver that might sweep around for you.
Speaker 2:Because they're all so used to just frigging pass right. Everything is, like you know, tackle on the way to pass rushing nowadays. Because the game is so pass heavy and you get this team out there that throws like seven times in the game they actually have a fullback and that's like a fullback that's a heavy passing game actually so I'll tell you, like when you went to ruckers it was a whole nother thing, because at that time you know,
Speaker 1:to date people, how old, how old we all are. Ruckgers was in the Big East and the Big East had football and going to Rutgers games. We got to see some serious players play. I mean, we got to see Donovan McNabb at the college level and I think at the college level it was insane. Syracuse, pitt, miami, west Virginia. We saw Ricky Williams as a running back in college. I never forget watching that guy play. Holy cow man who Ricky Williams, yeah, ricky Williams, ricky Williams in college was like and Ricky Williams in college playing Rutgers was like holy crap. Why were they playing Texas? I don't know, but they played.
Speaker 3:Texas Out of conference because we were a patsy at the time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, they played Texas. He was so good at Texas.
Speaker 2:It was insane. That's what got me back to liking Texas. It was insane.
Speaker 3:It was insane and then I jumped on it, I was on the Texas train for a while, and then I came back to Notre Dame. He was good enough to get Dick to spend all his draft days. Donovan was great too in college.
Speaker 1:I feel like Donovan and my thing is if you don't know, when you're watching this, these guys know. If you don't know and you're watching this, these guys know. I've been an Eagles fan forever but I feel and my love for Donovan just is not there. But I feel like Donovan. College Donovan, rookie year Donovan, the first three-year contract, donovan was a slimmer Donovan and then when he bulked up, things got weird. His throwing motion got weird, Stuff went into the dirt. I mean, the guy's going to the hall of fame whatever he's put up the best numbers he had the bulk of any eagles quarterback.
Speaker 1:But I mean, he's touchdown interception ratio is like, probably going to be one of the best in nfl history. But he threw a lot of balls into the ground and that's why I didn't have the interceptions. But go ahead say it no, I was just gonna.
Speaker 2:I just wanted to take a minute to apologize to my sister Bonnie. Why? Well, because she's a huge fan of the podcast and listens every week, and I know she's hating this conversation, oh my God. So I'm sorry. I'll give her the heads up.
Speaker 3:Blame it on me. Fast forward 40 minutes to the 40 minute mark.
Speaker 2:Take it on me, cause I just saw her today and I said I was coming over here and she was like it's about time. I was about to write to the Better Business Bureau that you guys haven't been consistent. I was like I'm sorry we just did three like in a row. Like you got some stuff coming up you got some stuff, man.
Speaker 1:I think they listen and you listen to the podcast.
Speaker 3:I do, my wife does even thank you, which is not even like because I make her my wife does I gotta say I'm kind of shocked.
Speaker 1:The wife listens to the podcast. I'm kind of shocked, man. I know. I know the descent there, you know.
Speaker 2:So not so conservative I'm thinking not so much, she's just very supportive of her friends, which is very admirable, I will say.
Speaker 1:So if you listen to this, Tina, we thank you.
Speaker 2:Appreciate that view. One of 30 a week.
Speaker 3:We all have our views, and views are the beauty of our country. We can have our opinions, even if they're wrong.
Speaker 1:Well it is. It is Exactly Interesting. So Trump last night, while we're talking about the variance of views, trump spoke and I haven't seen the actual speech yet, which is kind of weird that I haven't seen clips of it. But he spoke at the Libertarian National Convention in Washington DC.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I heard you kind of got booed and jeered a little bit.
Speaker 1:Well, and that was the thing.
Speaker 3:Well, I would expect them to which, of course, is what the mainstream is reporting.
Speaker 2:Libertarians just boo everybody because they're big giant fence-sitters that don't take a stand on anything.
Speaker 1:Well, I mean they believe in liberty but not abortion, so I mean it's like they're pro-life butarian Party came out and was like listen, you know, we are not liberals. We, you know, respect the views of other people. And this was, you know, what he said to the folks that were there, and he says we are libertarians. He said we are used to being surrounded by people whose views we either don't totally agree with or completely disagree with, and that's who we are. So don't lose who we are because you've been taught to dislike the guy who's about to get up here on stage. I thought that that was. I don't know.
Speaker 3:That's a good message from his standpoint.
Speaker 1:It was a decent message.
Speaker 3:But everybody there had to know Trump was going to be there speaking.
Speaker 1:So if you don't agree with him, why are you going?
Speaker 3:to go there and just boo him. Well, he said, he got up there and pay the money or whatever to show up.
Speaker 1:He started out and he said listen, there's two types of people in this room. There's libertarians, and people came here to support Trump. That's who's in this room and that's how he started out his speech, which I thought was so what about Trump?
Speaker 2:do libertarians not like?
Speaker 1:I got to tell you you I don't think I'm equipped to answer that question. I know libertarians believe. From what I know about libertarians and I have a buddy who's libertarian, I don't know if I could get him to come on this podcast or not. I might be able to but they don't believe. They believe in the country, the country at home, the liberty that we fought and died for, and that's what they believe in.
Speaker 2:They do not believe that we should be at all meddling outside of our borders yeah, that's true, but there's a lot more to them there is more to them, because I kind of feel like they're like the, the party of like no laws, because anything the government tries to, you know, restrict us on is wrong. The department of no regulation there, anything the government tries to, you know, restrict us on is wrong.
Speaker 1:The department of no regulation?
Speaker 2:there, definitely no, no government regulation which is essentially the same as no laws well, regulation of laws.
Speaker 1:I think you could probably draw a line between, but can you?
Speaker 2:yeah, I mean I mean you give me a speed limit, that you're regulating my speed yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 1:The epa tries to regulate what goes on in west virginia, which they've obviously lost, the cases, which is something definitely we need to talk about at some point. But you know, the epa tries to push regulations upon states which are not laws. They're regulations but then they fine you for not. You know, by those like relations, but there are no way laws, so they're regulations. Right, I've tried to like figure them out because I've there's.
Speaker 2:There's definitely things about libertarians that I agree with, but then so then the last election cycle, I guess 2020 we have a friend from high school, a girl from my I don't want to say her name, but we have a girl from high school who's like a libertarian, okay, and I'm, you know, friends with on facebook so see all her stuff and like kind of conversing back and forth about it and she's like trying to like push me into. You know well, check this person out, check that person out. And there was like somebody running, I guess somebody, whoever was running in the Libertarian Party as the VP or whatever she told me go watch this guy. So I went and watched some of his stuff and he was completely open borders and I was like I gotta tell you, oh, hell, no, I gotta tell you, that's weird. Yeah, I gotta tell you what. I'm not gonna say her name, but I was like it doesn't matter, I don't care how many things of his I agree with, he completely lost me at open borders. Yeah, you know, um, what was his name?
Speaker 1:like benny, something I feel like that's not forget his name, but core libertarian view. I feel like that, well, this guy was like running on that hardcore and I'm like which is fine, but I mean whatever that's his belief, that says, because I know how they're like.
Speaker 2:But you know, government stay out of my business. Yeah, things like that, which I'm 100, you know I'm in on that. But then they go off on these weird little extra spots where I'm like I can't get behind that.
Speaker 1:We should try. I should try to see if I can get a libertarian on the podcast.
Speaker 2:It would be interesting. I mean because some things I would just like to ask questions.
Speaker 3:I'm not against somebody else's views.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm fairly open. I'm against a lot of people's views.
Speaker 3:I'm open to hear them. I may not agree with them.
Speaker 2:they can have them but yeah, I'm not open to some people's views.
Speaker 1:But I feel like libertarians have a lot of stuff.
Speaker 1:Right, but I think I think there's a lot of points that I could probably get behind. I mean, you know, when it comes down to it, though, I live in a state where or maybe I hold a belief where right now, we're at this two party system and every vote not given to a Republican at this point, I two-party system, and every vote not given to a republican at this point, I believe, is a vote given to a democrat, and I I just I can't like I could never I almost could never split my vote, like I feel like the republicans especially where we leave, live need everything that they could possibly get. I mean, I don't, the libertarians are strong enough where they're always going to get enough votes, I think, to be able to become a party from somewhere, because they need so many votes to be able to run Right. But yeah.
Speaker 1:I feel like, where we live, like I can't, like, like I can't bring myself to what I would consider split a vote, you know, and vote libertarian instead of Republican. I just I just can't do it. I just I think we need all the republican votes we can in the state I mean, not without them being like a legit contender. We're we're a hot mess and I think that you know. We've talked about this in the podcast a lot of time. Man, all of a sudden this got serious politically. Um, we talk about this in a podcast all the time. The democrats tina just turned it off. I know, there you go. They, the democrats, stick together. They play the long game. They stick together and they're going to stick together stupidity sticks together, though they have a game plan and they're running it the.
Speaker 3:Republicans have been so fractured even in Michigan last time around for the governor election. It was a nightmare. There was no way in hell the Republican would have ever won the way they ran the election. She was in from the get go and a lot of that one actually came down mostly to abortion related stuff. Well, she took a hard stance on abortion and you knew that wasn't going to fly with any of the any of the middle ground people and the.
Speaker 1:The hard, hardcore conservatives weren't enough so, yeah, it's, it's sometimes, you know, when you, when you're in a dynamic like that, where you have a lot of middle ground, it's uh, it's tough, and I feel like in jersey right now, like we're, we're probably at a a point where we have a lot of middle ground. Um, before you're too much into jersey, let's um. Legendary usa. Their selection of leather and denim jackets, vests, gloves, chaps and riding shirts are 100% made in the USA with a lifetime warranty.
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Speaker 2:All right, and we're back I have no idea what just happened or what you guys just heard, but hopefully it's back to normal now. I don't listen, man we're recording this.
Speaker 1:We don't have a producer.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well cut us some slack.
Speaker 3:Yeah, there's no man behind the curtain we're going off of george's limited talents.
Speaker 2:you know what I mean. Very, very, very limited, I kid, but we did have a problem there, so hopefully you guys are still with us. Anyway, we were rambling about libertarians and and the plans is.
Speaker 3:you know, liberals have an actual plan, Republicans kind of disjointed lately.
Speaker 1:Like I was saying I just I can't, like I'm not saying I disagree with all of what they have to say. I think I definitely agree more with somebody who's a libertarian than I do with somebody who's a liberal at this point. Um, but I can't. Living in a state where, you know, I, I just feel like we just need to have as much of a conservative you know showing as we can at the polls.
Speaker 2:I mean well, I still don't have much faith for the state, but we just had the biggest. It's nice to see. Maybe, maybe, even if we have a shift it'll be nice to see.
Speaker 3:I just don't see us really take it over, but that's just it's a hard one in jersey, I know, but I mean even michigan, you know, with all the, all the union labor out there, they've, they've gone Republican yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:It's not impossible.
Speaker 2:While we were having technical difficulties, I was checking my phone. I did notice today Today is actually while we record this. You guys are going to hear us after the fact, but today is Memorial Day, so hopefully everybody took a moment to. You know, just think about what this weekend's about. Everybody took a moment to, you know, just think about what this weekend's about and, you know, give thanks for the millions of men and women who have sacrificed and paid the ultimate price for us to be able to have a long weekend. But couldn't help but notice that both the president and vice president, on their social media accounts, posted today to you know or posted this weekend. You know, enjoy your long weekend, but no mention of what the weekend's about. So again, that's how much our president and vice president care about our military men and women and those that have sacrificed for freedom of this nation. So just putting that out there. Take what you will from it.
Speaker 3:Meanwhile you got Rolling Thunder going on down.
Speaker 2:That was pretty cool. I watched some of that today on YouTube, did you? Yeah, I'd like to do that one day. I would love going on down.
Speaker 3:That was pretty cool.
Speaker 2:I watched some of that today on YouTube, did you yeah?
Speaker 3:I'd like to do that one day.
Speaker 2:I would love to do that.
Speaker 3:That'd be cool.
Speaker 2:If you're doing it, sign me up. I'm in.
Speaker 1:Ride to the wall would be cool too. I mean, those guys come all the way across the country.
Speaker 2:Listen, that's what Robert Patrick wrote all the way.
Speaker 1:Listen, you ever hear this and you want to come on our podcast.
Speaker 2:You, you have a front row. We are fans, definitely, but yeah, I've you know, if you follow him on social media and instagram, that he just, you know, set out like last week from, uh, california, because obviously he lives in california and he's a, an actor and an owner of a harley dealership out there. But he, he does the, the rides of the wall and and, uh, he did that. He did, he kind of documented his whole trip out there. I think they're actually doing. He documented it on Instagram with, you know, posts like we would do, but I've pretty sure come to find out they're actually documenting it to make like a, like an actual documentary type movie out of it.
Speaker 2:Um, so he wrote all the way out, um, and he is a member of a, an MC, which a lot of people don't realize, you know, um, but he wrote out to the wall, he, to do all you know to honor the, the, the fallen and troops and whatnot. So, and then he, you know, did it. He went up into Ohio because he's from there and went back to, like his, his, see, his mom and her house and stuff like that. But he did, he came out for that reason to do the, the ride to the wall and whatnot, so pretty cool. I'm a big fan of his big fan is.
Speaker 1:There was a tv series he was in not long ago with, uh, one of the winners of american idol or um, I can't remember the name of it. Stacy would know the name of this, but it was about some smart kids who were geniuses and they were like kind of MacGyver-ing stuff and the dude from American Pie was in it Shipwreck from American Pie. Okay, he was in the series.
Speaker 2:He's been in so many things.
Speaker 1:He's been in a lot of stuff.
Speaker 2:But it was the most recent one I've seen him. It was the, the new version of preacher that series he was. He was a bad guy on there. Um, always, he always plays a good bad guy I'm horrible with with celebrities and we're talking about, excuse me, or patrick?
Speaker 3:yeah, I know the name. I don't know as much, so he was the he was the, the terminator dude that was after arnold schwarzenegger when he was super young.
Speaker 1:That's robert patrick oh, okay, yeah, scorpion is the name of the series.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, yeah, that's. That's been done, for it's been done a while. But yeah, yeah, yeah, I watched I started watching it and then it kind of lost me it did.
Speaker 1:I didn't watch not because of him just but it just it got, yeah, it got old.
Speaker 2:It was like he's been in a bazillion things. I know the name.
Speaker 3:I just I'm horrible with placing famous people with her.
Speaker 1:Dude's a rider man, I feel like he had.
Speaker 2:I feel like he had a little bit, a little scene or two here and there in Sons of Anarchy which carried over into Mayans, the Mayans, okay, but I mean, other than that he's been in a bazillion things, yeah, but yeah, that was the Terminator. One was when he was super young. You know he was the dude that was after him, the liquid Terminator.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, I see why people would like, will it?
Speaker 3:That's actually really good.
Speaker 1:That's my first time having Will it. The bite is not. It's kind of smooth. It kind of reminds me of a Blanton's a little bit.
Speaker 3:I feel like I had. That's why I just hit the Blanton's.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I feel like years ago when I had it I was like, not a fan necessarily, but like I guess I mean more refined in my bourbon drinking as I get older. But the uh, the will it and the and the it's. I would relate it to Blanton's Because I just had this Woodford and I was like, whew, woodford's got that bite to it.
Speaker 3:I've been favoring the Old Forrester 1920 lately.
Speaker 1:Which is a really good bottle.
Speaker 3:It's not here anymore. If you're a bourbon fan, you owe it to yourself To try the 1920.
Speaker 1:I think the Old Forrester 1920 Is probably one of the best bourbons in the market right now.
Speaker 3:It's on my favorite list and a friend of mine just actually gave me some Larceny barrel proof. Yeah, yeah, okay.
Speaker 2:So I had that First of all. That's expensive.
Speaker 3:I'm a good friend. What can I say?
Speaker 1:Anything barrel proof is not cheap, but that's what Ron brought over A Larceny barrel proof brought over A Larceny Barrowproof man that had some kick to it.
Speaker 3:That was warm. It's not as smooth as the 1920.
Speaker 1:After you're done with that, you need to try what I have up here on the shelf, which is Woodford 128, which is a very rare bottle which I only I'm worthy. I don't bring that down Worthy, I'm worthy of the 120.
Speaker 2:It hasn't been offered to me, justin, I can down for the worthy. I'm worthy of the ones. It hasn't been offered to me, justin, I can't I can't.
Speaker 1:He's like a bourbon. I have to know him longer. He's like. He's like a bourbon vacuum, though, like you crack something open. I cracked open a bottle of uh, of uh bell me the other day and I think I had like a glass of bell me and I was like what happened to the bottom?
Speaker 2:okay, I guess I should probably contribute he's like a.
Speaker 1:So now my bad, no, no, yeah, the woodward 128 hasn't come down, but honestly, you know, the weird thing is, I got into scotches for a while I know, yeah, I like them, I really did enjoy some scotches, but they're so pricey they're pricey bourbon's getting there but bourbon was a nice.
Speaker 3:That's where I was going. Bourbon was a nice, cheaper alternative, like I could get a bottle of bookers for like 60 bucks yeah I was in man in uh chicago. I got a bottle of bookers for like 60 bucks. That's my introduction to bookers, I'm like you know, for for such high alcohol it doesn't drink bad. No, you know, normally you think high alcohol it just burns. And yeah, I was like man, this is pretty decent stuff, especially for as high as the alcohol content was. Now it's like $110 bottle. Yeah, bookers.
Speaker 3:But I'm like bourbon used to be the thing that it's. You know, $60 was like a max bottle and you could get some really nice stuff Besides like happy or some of the other really crazy stuff, but now it's like it's doing the same thing Scotch did, where it's just going stupid.
Speaker 2:Iron. It's like it's doing the same thing scotch did, where it's just going stupid. Ironically, I'm a beer guy and I didn't realize until recently how I'll suck down some bourbon. Oh yeah, I've noticed that my own house. I'm like where's that bottle I just bought?
Speaker 3:oh, the weird thing is I got into you know I could do beer. You know, with all the mountain biking and people I know there I I got into beer and I could drink all kinds of beer, but if I just have one beer I get sleepy. I can have a bourbon and not get sleepy.
Speaker 2:It's just the way it affects me. Why are you having one beer?
Speaker 3:I'm not a major drinker, I'm a social drinker. But if I'm at home I can't just have one beer, you've got to socialize one If I have one beer I get. I get sleepy, but I can have bourbon.
Speaker 1:Like it doesn't matter, I'm less likely to crack open. If I'm here by myself, I'm less likely to crack open a beer. I'm more likely to pour myself a glass of whiskey. Yeah, you can't like.
Speaker 2:even I'm a beer drinker and if I just try to like drink one or two like in the middle of the afternoon, I'll be ready for a nap like I'm.
Speaker 3:Yeah, once I crack them I'm like we're rolling, yeah, yeah, yeah, you know, but fine, if I'm social and I'm out in an event, I'll drink beer, no problem. So I'm just gonna have a drink for the night.
Speaker 1:It's definitely bourbon, yeah I could see that for people who are, for people who don't know bookers, one of the things that bookers prided themselves on is they did not cut their bourbon when it came out of the bottle. Out of the barrel, yeah, out of the barrel, yeah. When you see bourbon and the proof of bourbon like this Woodford that we have here is what? Probably about 80? It should say it on here it's 90.4 proof. What Woodford is right now is right now, um, so woodford comes, is distilled, and then it's aged in a barrel and then it is literally watered down till it's 90.4 proof. That's their proof. That's why, when you see old, 96 jack daniels, jack daniels is down to what? 80 proof now, I think. And jack daniels used to be stronger years ago it was like 96 proof and now it's like down to 80. Who drinks jack daniels? Yeah, listen man, my grandfather, I'll do jack and cokes.
Speaker 3:if I'm Used to be stronger years ago it was like 96 proof, and now it's like down to 80.
Speaker 2:Who drinks Jack Daniels?
Speaker 3:Yeah, listen man my grandfather, I'll do Jack and Cokes if I'm on my race, because that's like, yeah, it's cheap and easy to get.
Speaker 1:Yeah, in the eighties and seventies that was a whiskey, but just like Jack alone. No, I don't do straight Jack. No, I. I will drink some Red Stag, some Jim Beam. I'll drink some Jim Beam alone, but not Jack. So stuff is cut. So, as different people were coming out with whiskeys, Booker's never cut their whiskey. The Booker's was written in hand. Whatever it was, as it came out of the barrel it was barrel proof. So this Woodford 128 that's up here is barrel proof. Um, there's an elijah craig downstairs I have.
Speaker 3:That is a super rare bottle and that's becoming the thing now barrel proof, but barrel proof is becoming the thing because we're making less bottles and charging twice the amount yeah, everybody's doing barrel proof now, and that's what some people don't realize about bourbon some bourbons are mixed. There's single barrels and there's bourbon. Well then they mix different barrels to get the flavor they want, and then they water it down. Yeah, then there's the single barrel, which is one barrel that they may water down, and then there's the whole barrel.
Speaker 1:Proof Like do you know what makes bourbon bourbon? This is a question probably most people don't know. Like, do you know what you have to have the to be bourbon? It's very so. Here's the thing. I've heard it before, but no, I don't remember. It's like champagne. You need to be 51 corn. Okay, all right, that's your. Your minimum is 51 corn and you need to be aged in a new charred american white oak barrel anything when they and when they age. So every barrel, every batch of bourbon you have gets gets aged in a barrel once. After that, those barrels then get made for single malts. They'll make a single malt out of a barrel. They'll go to scotches, or they'll go to scotches or beer. Or they'll send the barrels to beer, or they'll send the barrels to maple syrup companies and then maple syrup companies will then send the barrels back. Or they'll send the barrels to beer, or they'll send the barrels to maple syrup companies and then maple syrup companies will then send the barrels back and they'll make single malt with maple.
Speaker 2:I know somebody that doesn't like beer made in those barrels.
Speaker 1:I'm not a fan of bourbon. I'm not a fan dude, I can't.
Speaker 3:I can't get too fancy with my beers. That.
Speaker 1:Kentucky breakfast stuff, man, that stuff will.
Speaker 2:I can't dude, I can't man, I just I can't get too fancy with my beers.
Speaker 3:I can get. No, I don't need to get fancy.
Speaker 1:Enjoy your Bud Light bud. I can get fancy with beers, but I just and he'll tell you the minute we crack open a beer.
Speaker 2:that's been about our age and I Well I know what your rating is on it.
Speaker 1:You know, I did my IPA phase.
Speaker 3:You know I went through my IPA phase. I've always been more of a multi-beer guy.
Speaker 1:You live next to people. Don't know this Detroit man. One of the greatest craft breweries in our country is in Michigan.
Speaker 3:Well, michigan in general has a huge craft beer. Yeah well, they have Bell's Like 250 plus like 300 different craft beer joints, but there are, there are big ones, yes, I mean they're big ones like founders there are, there are staples of the american craft beer industry and founders and bells and founders shorts.
Speaker 1:You know we, we don't even appreciate founders, like we know all day ipa, all day hazy ipa.
Speaker 2:Founders, obviously, yeah, but I don't even think ipas are their best beers, old dirty bastard, don't they have breakfast like a breakfast stout or something like that founders is really good.
Speaker 1:I think probably you would not be crazy over what founders considers their best beer. I bet you I would be. What is it oberon?
Speaker 3:yeah, what kind is it most popular?
Speaker 2:it's a wheat, ale it's a wheat listen just because it's not my style of my go-to doesn't mean I wouldn't enjoy it but it's their big.
Speaker 3:Thing.
Speaker 1:But, Oberon is so big. You this way, you would appreciate what happens every year.
Speaker 3:Oh, there's Oberon day, oberon release day release day, they call it Oberon day but you know what. You know what Oberon used to be called, what was that. Soul son.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 3:And then it eventually changed names to to uh over on for some reason. I'm not a hundred percent sure on why the name change had to happen, but it did and it became over on, and now you can get it all over the place.
Speaker 1:I was so mad. It's their biggest, probably their biggest selling. I was so mad when I went to grand Rapids and do that case that, like you should have stopped, I couldn't stop. I got in after the brewery was closed and I did the case and I got on a plane and left and, like there was no, I had to get to another city.
Speaker 3:like there was, literally there was literally no way for me to.
Speaker 1:I left here on a Sunday to Grand Rapids is a cool beer city. It's a terrible city to fly in and out of by the way, I'm not gonna deny that.
Speaker 3:But it's a cool city to hang out in because you can go to founders or you can go, you know, bells isn't very again.
Speaker 2:I'm going to have to be the adult and get back on track. There's nothing wrong with talking beer?
Speaker 3:There's not. I love it, but.
Speaker 2:I know there was some other stuff. George has printouts for that. Aren't beer related?
Speaker 3:We're an hour in.
Speaker 1:We haven't even gotten to the topic of tonight's podcast. Did you not think this was going to happen? Because I Do. You not think this is going to happen Before we get to the topic tonight?
Speaker 3:I prefer to see the pants thing where we just go where it goes organically I know how that works. You know topics and menus and all this shit. That's somebody else's thing, that's great and all and we've done that before with guests.
Speaker 2:And then guess what, none of it got a freaking upload because there was problems, because it was just too big a file. So, but before we move on to what George really wants to talk about tonight, have you been to Alpena?
Speaker 3:I have not been to Alpena, I have been to the upper peninsula of Michigan, which is that part we like screwed Wisconsin out of.
Speaker 2:Because that's like the one place in the state I've been. It sounds like a skin rash.
Speaker 1:It's right here.
Speaker 2:I don't know, what that means. It's on your middle finger.
Speaker 3:In Michigan, you're the hand If middle finger in Michigan you, you're the hand If you ever look at Michigan.
Speaker 2:It's a hand Okay and then there's Alpena.
Speaker 3:Okay, go to Alpena. So when you're in Michigan, you point where you're from on your hand.
Speaker 2:Then you got the upper peninsula up here.
Speaker 1:Why were you in Alpena Work? I feel like it's like alopecia, like it's a hair.
Speaker 2:So the air force had, the air force had exercise up there and I had to go as part of because, as with working at the kc-10 combs over there on base, we had to like support them, so we had to go as kind of like peanut camp grayling. Part of the mission and support them in their little exercises real world and be there to give them parts and stuff and wear mop gear and gas mat. I'll have bull crap.
Speaker 2:Dude, you're doing work, I'm like laying on the ground in a fake bunker which is, which is the outline square in the grass in the middle of the night and like December and Alpena, just laying there, because you know we're pretending that we got hit with like chemical warfare, bull crap. It was cold and I was I did it.
Speaker 2:I was there for a long, like a long weekend. I did it the one night and I was like no, I'm done. I went back to where I was, my room was, back to where I was, my room was, and I just sat in there for the next two days and I was like I'm not. If you guys need parts, call myself. I'm not doing this anymore. First of all, that's about the 45th parallel. You got me wearing a mask right. That doesn't work with a beard, Of course.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so basically if we got hit with something I would be dead anyway.
Speaker 2:So I'm not wearing this stupid ass mask and acting like I'm protected.
Speaker 3:They really need to be more open and have a beard-friendly mask, a gender-neutral mask. No, not gender. Beard-friendly, beard-neutral mask. You want to be inclusive here.
Speaker 2:They need to. You need to be super inclusive. I still have it. You know what? Just for spite, I kept all of that, Just so the government knows. I kept your freaking mop gear. It's in my basement and if we ever have a fallout, at least one of my family members will be safe.
Speaker 3:Not Bert because of his beard, Not me. Carolyn will be safe, Protecting the wife. Good job Bert.
Speaker 1:You've got a good fallout basement. Man. That basement's deep, it's in the ground. It'll be good here.
Speaker 2:It's a good one.
Speaker 1:We'll see, not that I've looked at the nuclear blast radius from Philly. We're good. By the way, I don't know about nuclear.
Speaker 3:I don't know if I'm safe from that, how about McGuire?
Speaker 1:We're also good from McGuire, because here we're far enough away and the way the weather and power goes, if we're going to be on the East Coast right here, is not bad. I'd rather be south. It's not bad.
Speaker 2:You don't think we're better, better off being south of here? We're awfully. I mean, I want to be way south of DC. I was going to say south of DC.
Speaker 3:You probably be fairly safe, because all the other regions.
Speaker 1:Yeah well, dc is going to be done Like we're in between DC and New York.
Speaker 2:I think we're in a crappy spot.
Speaker 1:Yeah, but when you look at the fallout map, when they hit, both of them at the same time we're done and you look at the weather, we're not.
Speaker 3:You got that jet stream.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like you, look at how the airflow goes depending on where the jet stream is.
Speaker 2:Here you are relying on the weatherman to save your life.
Speaker 1:See, you know, george gives me hell for living. We're living in michigan and went down how cold it can be and stuff. But the way the jet stream works, it actually works in my favor quite a bit. Let me tell you something about michigan. You guys were like we're moving to michigan, it's only like 10 degrees colder. It is on average, yeah, except except 10 degrees cold. Average except 10 degrees colder means in the late march you get snow. But see, here's the thing there's no thing.
Speaker 3:I don't have near the humidity you have here. You don't so when it's 10 degrees outside, I mean, I remember the first time I walked outside of my apartment when I was in Michigan and it was like single digits. I'm like it's going to be. Humidity makes you a man Right, because here in Jersey if it's single, if it's 30, you're bone chilled 30, I'm walked outside, I'm like this ain't too shabby. And then you stood out there for like a couple minutes and you're like oh, my ears are tingling because it's so damn cold.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And you don't realize how cold it is, because that here it's a bone chilling cold because of all the humidity. You know 30 degrees and you're like bundled up and it's like sucks there. It's like you walk outside like it's cold but it's.
Speaker 1:I was in St Cloud, minnesota, this winter and I walked out of the hotel at negative 17 degrees. Do you know what happens when you walk outside at negative 17 degrees?
Speaker 3:Everything kind of freezes, you go back inside you feel each individual nose hair.
Speaker 1:you have freeze one at a time and it's the weirdest feeling. That's a lot for you, you hairy bastard it is. It is Each nose hair froze and I was like, holy God, this is cold.
Speaker 3:But you didn't feel, like through your bones, like you were here.
Speaker 1:No, no, it was cold, it was negative 17. Like you didn't even see breath at negative 17 because it was frozen, it was because your eyelids were frozen. And I was up there with two coworkers One was from San Diego, one was from Phoenix.
Speaker 3:Yeah, san Diego, where it's cold at 50.
Speaker 1:Oh, they were crying man. At least I left here. It was like 20 degrees when I left here, so it wasn't like terrible shock. But oh my god man, oh my god it was cold.
Speaker 3:I've been to San Diego a few times. I kind of like the San Diego area for a visit. But, it's California, so I couldn't live there. Weather's nice.
Speaker 2:Same temp every day.
Speaker 3:Same temp every day you get a little marine fog in in the morning and then it's sunny and blue skies in the afternoon Temperatures.
Speaker 2:I mean there's so much about California in general, that's amazing geographically temperature-wise, the politics weren't there the politics just crapped all over it.
Speaker 1:We had friends that lived in San Diego and they had to get out and just crapped all over it. We had friends that lived in San Diego and they had to get out and they moved to Idaho.
Speaker 1:They had to get out. Why, dude, that's a huge change. Well, I guess it depends on what you are. They had to get out one because they're Christians and they couldn't. You know, it was just out of control. They didn't feel comfortable sending their kids to those schools anymore because the school curriculums are out of control and they just so. They were homeschooling kids and they just stayed. They felt like they needed a better place, you know, for the, for the family, and I feel, like a lot of people like Idaho. Listen, I don't, I don't hate Idaho. I think that the weather in Idaho, I mean, well, if you were moving, you wouldn't do that, because they, they do get some winter, they don't get. They don't get the winter we get, they get more of a Pacific Northwest no-transcript it's. This has been going on. People don't realize this has been going on for like two years and there's real traction now like, like they are going to, they're going to bring it, these people in politics.
Speaker 3:Are that bad?
Speaker 1:because these people in Oregon I mean listen, we have the same thing in Jersey, right?
Speaker 2:So I assume they're like border counties to Idaho.
Speaker 1:Bro, when you look at the map right now, it's half of Oregon.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 1:But they're all like yes, they are on the.
Speaker 3:Idaho side. There's not like a separate.
Speaker 1:No, no, there's no gap.
Speaker 3:Like a west coaster.
Speaker 1:Because these people in Oregon are so outmanned by the city of Portland that they're like Portland does not represent our values, our values. And that's what it's come to Like when we were here with Greg, so it was insured last week. What did it come down to? It came down to values, and that's what happens when you have states Michigan's very much that way too. The.
Speaker 3:Southern half of Michigan, you know, with Grand Rapids, Lansing and Detroit doesn't represent those are big city things. They don't represent the up and michigan peninsula of michigan not represented sparsely populated.
Speaker 1:By the way, sparsely populated people don't realize that. You know, when I landed in grand rapids for the first time, I thought I was going to a city number number one.
Speaker 3:Well and my midwest city standpoints.
Speaker 1:It's okay at some point I did get to a city, but like the airport, like I landed in, it was like landing in. Kansas. There were no mountains, it was all flat. It was kind of weird.
Speaker 3:You go north.
Speaker 1:Not everybody has mountains. I expected a city. I expected to see buildings, a skyline, something. When you land.
Speaker 2:Grand Rapids.
Speaker 1:This is what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:That's what you expected.
Speaker 1:Let's see we're skewed here on the.
Speaker 3:East Coast of Philly Went up.
Speaker 2:It's probably the equivalent of Manhattan. Went up the airport out by Sweetwater.
Speaker 1:I landed in Kansas. At least I saw buildings from Wichita when I landed at some point, but when you land in Grand Rapids you don't see anything. I don't think I would expect to see anything but see a lot of Michigan and Midwest.
Speaker 3:Those cities could sprawl, so they didn't build up. They sprawl. They couldn't, they didn't need to build up, they built out.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and the white flight that you hear about and all that that was real, but it just doesn't look like a city.
Speaker 3:Right, it doesn't Right.
Speaker 2:No it doesn't Right. No, it's not you know, because we're skewed by Philly and New York City, philly, new York, you think like Well, we grew up here.
Speaker 3:We're so skewed by those two cities that when you get to areas where they had to land and they could just white flight out, that's what they did. Why can't?
Speaker 1:it be all racial. That's what happened. That's what they call it, though. It's the first time he said it talking about Detroit, but in Detroit that's what they called it.
Speaker 3:They called it the white flight. They got out of the inner city and they kept building out and out and out. Stop it, it's scary.
Speaker 2:It's a family-friendly show.
Speaker 3:We were more used to multiculturalism and stuff like that. I mean, we grew up in a high school that was very much military-oriented, which has a lot of minority people. We had those interactions. But some of those cities in the midwest it's like white boy central.
Speaker 1:Oh, we have that jersey too.
Speaker 3:It's called pompton lakes but, but still, you know where we grew up, it wasn't that way, right we? We had a lot of people that we interacted with, that that weren't, you know, white, middle class america like I said, you got bobby orr's piece in your face so you know, moving out to the. Midwest. That was another thing that kind of hit me is how those cities.
Speaker 1:How vanilla your neighborhood was.
Speaker 3:How those cities are. You know people in the suburbs of Detroit. They're like Detroit's got nothing for me, I don't need to go there.
Speaker 1:Yeah, your brother moved to this place called Novi Michigan, right? So his brother moves to Novi Michigan.
Speaker 3:He moved to Northfield. Novi called novai michigan right, so his brother moves to novai, michigan, and novai for people, novai north.
Speaker 1:He moved to north northfield. He lived in northfield so he was bill, yeah, northville, whatever, whatever it was, I was like I go to his house. I'm like, yeah, where's winnie cooper? No, because it was like the wonder years neighborhood yes, it was I was like. I was like holy crap, like what did you move to?
Speaker 1:I was like the odds of you picking up chicks in this town are absolutely not we were single then yeah, yeah, we were like what were we like 22 maybe yeah, he was living with a friend and they bought it.
Speaker 3:Hasn't been out there that long. I've been out there since february 99 yeah holy shit. Actually, the last week, in jan 99, I moved out to Michigan and February 1, I started my job. Wow, speaking of your job Segway.
Speaker 1:Next week on the this American Ride podcast.
Speaker 3:Every time you go out in your driveway, your car starts. You don't have to generally worry is it going to start today or not?
Speaker 1:I got to the Subaru dealer I was like I'm not paying $4 a month for Subaru. You're out of your mind, right? I went up with I went home, I went online, we got the pulled up bmw 3 series 299 a month traded in my busted ass. Subaru that needed brakes, tires had cracked windshield, had a quarter million miles on it and we rolled out of there with a three series bmw for less than a subaru lease would have been right and that's where people have to remember it's a competitive market and he's like I'm so.
Speaker 1:I like I'm so pissed. I'm like I thought the car was the greatest thing. He's like I have to take 95 all the way. I'm like why it's the only place where there's charging stations.
