Transcript

Trailer · WashCo Insider

speaker-0: Hi, I'm Chase McClain speaker-1: and I'm Ryan Dougherty speaker-0: We're the marketing team at the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency. speaker-1: And this is the Wash Co. Insider. Chase, does the world really need another podcast? speaker-0: Well, I can tell you we didn't start off with the intention of creating a podcast. ⁓ Talk a lot. Here's the decision making process, So, you know, probably more than a year ago, ⁓ as we're, you know, taking on new ways to talk about Washington County, different video tactics, all these different kind of things, because like, we have a lot of cool things to talk about in Washington County, places, restaurants, it goes on, right? ⁓ speaker-1: Let's get through it. speaker-0: And as we started to roll out more video content, we're like, it would be kind of handy to have a place where we could shoot right at our office and basically get to ⁓ talk about the county in a different way than we've never had to before. And so, you know, we decided we're going to build a little studio, take over a small office space here in our complex and create the ability to make different reels and whatever. It was always with the intention of we'll be able to put out more short form. content, right? And then we started to do it and we built it and we thought, if we're going to bring in, you know, all of the different people that we get to work with ⁓ to shoot short form content, we might as well roll out a podcast because I think, you know, there's a lot of people that love podcasts. I'm one of them. I like to listen to them. I don't want to be on one. I definitely don't want to host one. Yeah. So here we are. speaker-1: No, neither do I. speaker-0: I think that's the why. ⁓ But again, ⁓ this is not about us. It's not about you and I. It's not about anything other than who we're going to have on this show. And I think I feel honored, truly, to get to work with some of the folks that we do every single day. mean, whether it's, and it's always something different, Whether it's restaurateurs, whether it's a new attraction that's opening up. ⁓ different event operators that we work with and partner with to help promote their events. There are so many uniquely talented and passionate people in Washington ⁓ County. having the ability to work with them on a daily basis, we get to learn a lot about them. And I just think their stories and their passion should be shared. I think we want to give them a microphone. Because I think whenever you get to understand the people behind the places, I think you experience them differently. I think if you're going out for dinner, you're not just grabbing a meal. You're taking part of somebody's vision to build that restaurant. You're not just going to an event. You're becoming part of a tradition. So I think I just want to share those people. I think they're great. And that's what this is really. all about. So, you we talked about the folks that we'll bring on here, but like who did we create this for? We've talked about it for a year, but like why and who's it for? speaker-1: think it's for people just like me and you. You know, you are a dad and I am someone who's in my 20s who's like experiencing these things for the very first time, even though I have lived here my whole life and we will get into that later. But it's for people like us who are looking for things to do on the weekend, who might not want to go to the city. people who are looking for date night restaurants and you know, have family coming in for the weekend. You really want to show them a good time. You want to hang out with them. You want to take a walk. You want to take a drive somewhere. You want to go to the farm. You want to do all of these things. So I think those are for, you know, regular people, locals and visitors to our county who want to experience these things because we might have the city 30 minutes from us, but I might not be, I'm pretty biased, but I think we have some pretty great things to offer. speaker-0: I agree. think it's even simpler for me. And I'll bet other parents can relate. I have two kids and all I want to do is keep them off of their phones, get them outdoors. You know, there's so much to experience here. And if I've heard it once, I've heard it a thousand times. I'm bored. There's nothing to do here. Now, granted, we're coming out of winter and can finally get back outdoors again. But for me, I sure... would appreciate the help. And I'm sure other parents would appreciate different ideas for things to do with their kids, you know, right in their own backyards. Yeah. So, and again, you know, I think we all know that person who's like, I can't wait to get out of here. It was me. Yeah, it was you. You know, there's nothing to do here. And I think that's a state of mind. And I think that I think you just have to open your eyes and look around. We have so many special places and people and things to do here in Washington County. And so I don't think this podcast is going to be for those cynics that have already decided there's nothing to do here. I don't think it's for those people that think only the greatest experiences happen 20 minutes north of us up by Interstate 79. Maybe don't tune in. speaker-1: Or that's even more reason to tune in. Watch the pod. speaker-0: Maybe. So we're both very different. Obviously, you're kind of a year or two fresh out of college. ⁓ I've been here for about 16 years, but you were born and raised in Washington County. Talk about that experience. I don't know, has your perspective changed since college, coming back to Washington County, and now looking through the lens of the Washington County Tourism Promotion Agency? What do you see differently that you maybe didn't see before? speaker-1: Yeah, so that is true. I was born and raised here. I've lived here my entire life. I went to Peters Township High School. I left Washington County for about four years to attend Slippery Rock University, which is about an hour north of here. And then I came back and I got a job here. I've been here since 2024. And I have realized that I think my parents failed me. Sorry, Mom and Dad. but I have never been to a lot of these places. I'm experiencing them for the very first time, but I'm honestly so glad that I am at this point in my life. You know, I'm looking for things now that I wouldn't have been looking for when I was that person in high school that was like, ⁓ my gosh, there's literally nothing to do here. ⁓ So I'm really excited to be experiencing these things, know, baseball games and going to the farms and... you know, looking for a night out and going to all these fun restaurants that we have with my friends and my family, know, girlfriends, all these people, and I'm telling them about these things. I'm like, guys, we gotta go. speaker-0: You know, you look at our event schedule and one of the biggest events that we have in August every year, one of the most unique events is the Pony League World Series. And if I'm correct, I believe your dad might have played in the World Series. speaker-1: He did. My dad played in 1982, I believe it was. And that was also another thing I had never been to before this year. And I have to say, it might be my new favorite event in the county. It is just so fun. It is unique. Even if you don't love sports, but I love baseball and getting to see all these kids coming literally from all over the world to our county is pretty awesome. speaker-0: Yeah, if you love baseball, or if your kids love baseball, I don't think there's a better event for you to go to. Because what you're going to see is the best 13 and 14-year-old baseball players in the world. But what I think is an even more interesting thing to experience is how they come together. And they might not speak the same language, but on the field, they do. I just think it's so cool. you know, whether it's teams and this, you know, our intention was not to talk about the World Series today, but ⁓ it is just such a unique experience. mean, at historic Lou Hayes Pony Field down in Washington Park, ⁓ you might see teams from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Chinese Taipei. ⁓ It's just such a cool experience anyways. speaker-1: is let's talk about you because you have a unique background you have not always lived here so tell us about your wash coat experience give us a little background speaker-0: Yeah, so I was born and raised in Fulton County, which is kind of south central PA, a little town called Waterfall. We're about 20 minutes over the mountain from Breezewood. But ⁓ after college, I started working in the professional golf space and ⁓ ran PGA Tour sanction events. Did that for about the first 10 years. And thankfully, one of those events brought me here to Washington County to South Point Golf Club ⁓ from 2010 to 2014 we hosted at the time it was a nationwide tour event became a web.com tour event which for those of you golf fans now know it's the corn fairy tour, but It brought me here. We had kids during that time and when that event was over I Decided to stay because I just loved it here. I really didn't we put down roots Usually the career trajectory for tournament directors is you know if an event ends You move on to the next one. ⁓ for me, it was time to kind of set down roots and, you know, I just loved it here, so I stayed. speaker-1: That's great. It's good to have a little bit of background on us. You will not see much of us after this. Some of them will be Chase. Some of us will be me. Sometimes you might see both of us, but I think it's good to establish the kind of relationship we have. You you as like the family, you know, still kind of experiencing some things of the county for the first time. Me experiencing a lot of the county for the first time and just kind of. how we've established some relationships with some of the people we're very excited to have on the podcast from here on out because we really do have a packed schedule. We're going to be talking about restaurants, history, some of our favorite places, hidden gems, all sorts of things, some truly insider information about Washington. speaker-0: Yeah, for sure. you know, our goal is to fade into the background. Again, neither one of us ever wanted to be podcast hosts. Here we are, and you will hear less from us and more from, again, event operators, museum operators, ⁓ different attraction folks. ⁓ This is for them and this is for the community because I think you deserve to know and to meet some of the speaker-1: So here we are. speaker-0: I don't know, most interesting people I've ever met, most passionate. I mean, you think about it. Think about event operators, right? So name it from the Covered Bridge Festival to the Little A-Town Rodeo. I mean, these folks are putting in 18-hour days. Yeah, most of them are volunteers. 18-hour days so that your family can make memories for three hours. I mean, again, they're volunteers. And it's incredible what they do. speaker-1: As volunteers, speaker-0: Most of the big events in the county are volunteer operated. So if nothing else, at the next event you go to, walk up and say thanks. Just say thanks to those folks because they're creating something special for you and your family. speaker-1: Sure. Well, should we move into a real quick lightning round? Alright, Chase, number one question. If you had an evening to yourself here in Washington County, how would you spend it? speaker-0: Hit me. Go for If it's October or November, I'm going to be 25 feet up in a maple tree enjoying a fall evening and watching deer. I love to hunt, love the outdoors, and we have so many opportunities to do that here in Washington County. We've got, I don't know, something like 20,000 acres of public land. If you've got a friend with a farm, call them up. It's a good time to be outdoors. That's what I'd be doing. Ryan? ⁓ I don't know. We work one. promoting 30, 50 different events throughout the course of the year. That's a lot. Now that you've graduated college and you get a chance to get out to some of these events, you've been to probably most of them, ⁓ most of the big ones now. What is your favorite? speaker-1: say it's a hard tie between Pony, but I've only been to that once, and the little A-Town rodeo actually. That is kind of a new adventure for us. But I went with a friend who had also never been to a rodeo before and we had an absolute blast. ⁓ That arena out in Novella is really cool and it was just awesome to see a rodeo right here in Washington County. So I would say that might be my favorite. Alrighty, what is your favorite dish at a Washington County restaurant? I think I know the answer to this. speaker-0: I've strong feelings on this. I don't know if I consider myself a foodie, but I do love food and I love Mexican food. ⁓ So we work in South Point, our office is in South Point, and we are so fortunate to have Los Chaludos just down the road from us and their al pastor burrito I could eat for every meal. Love it. Yeah, for sure. Along with events, we know all of you speaker-1: I predict. speaker-0: museum operators. We've been to all of them. We spend tons of time with them. For you, what is your favorite museum to visit? speaker-1: That's a really tough one because I do love all of them, but I would have to say Meadowcraft Rock Shelter, also out in Avella. ⁓ My best friend in the whole world is an archaeologist, so I feel like I always have to go for her and tell her how awesome it is. But it's just so cool. They have so many different areas. They have a Indian village, 19th century frontier trading post that's a mouthful, and obviously the rock shelter, which... It is amazing that the oldest site of human inhabitation in North America is right here in Washington County. That's insane. It's 19,000 years old. ⁓ Every time I'm there, I am just completely in awe. speaker-0: Yeah, I love it. I mean, it's one of those places, you know, there's not many museums that are outdoor based and you can spend most of your time outdoors walking around. You can throw an atlattle. You can visit the actual rock shelter itself. And yes, it's hard to argue that point. speaker-1: It's awesome. All righty, let's move into, what's your favorite cocktail? I think I also know the answer to this one. speaker-0: I'm not a cocktail guy. However, that being said, I do love a good old fashioned from Liberty Pole. All right, so we talked about, you you kind of re-experiencing Washington County for the first time and being at events you didn't know existed, attractions you didn't know were here. Now that you know what's here and what's not, what's one place on your list that you haven't been yet, but you're looking forward to visiting this year? speaker-1: Without a doubt, it is Hickory Hearth Highlands in Hickory, PA. This is kind of a new spot and it's been going absolutely viral on Instagram, but they have Highland cows and I believe donkeys that you can just spend all day loving and brushing and playing with and I cannot wait to go. I've been so excited and I hope we get to go this summer. speaker-0: Yeah, I think it'll be fun. ⁓ They've done a great job. speaker-1: It's not a request, it's a demand. We will be going this summer. For sure. sure. Okay, last one I think. What is your favorite thing to do in Washington County with your family? speaker-0: So I live in McDonald, which puts me just a couple of minutes away from the Panhandle Trail and also the Montour Trail. And so for me, I love to go out on an evening, whether it's a bike ride or just a walk with the family. ⁓ We have the McDonald Viaduct, which is kind of a cool place to view both trails. But you're about 100 feet up in the air and the viaduct's about, I don't know, 1,000 feet long. ⁓ Just a good place. Yeah, I like to, again, trying to get the kids off the phones as much as possible and outdoors. That's a real good place to get a fresh breath of speaker-1: It's an awesome trail. is. Okay. Without further ado, do you want to tell people where they can find the Wash Coat Insider from now on? speaker-0: Yeah, so ⁓ we're going to drop new episodes every Thursday. You'll get to meet a new person from Washington County. And they're going to be on Spotify, Apple podcasts, and YouTube. ⁓ And then guess, you know, between episodes, if you're looking for something to do, whether it's, you know, I don't know, a new dining spot, a date night spot, ⁓ see what events are coming up, our website is gowashco.com. And you'll find all of those things there and while you're at it at the bottom of every page you can sign up for the Wash Co insider newsletter. It's a good idea. speaker-1: We also publish a blog about every week with upcoming news stories, things we're excited about, monthly wrap-ups. So while you're on our website, you should definitely check that out. speaker-0: I think that's probably enough for today. It sure is. You know, thanks for joining us. We're gonna see you next week. It's the Wash Co. Insider. See you then.