Coming up on Kentucky Life.

Hitting the dainty has been.

A tradition in this Louisville neighborhood.

Since German immigrants first settled there.

I'll take you along as I give it a shot.

As the popularity of the Red River Gorge has exploded.

One volunteer group is working to make sure the.

Rock climbing area there stays safe and clean.

We'll enjoy the natural beauty of Pine Mountain.

State Resort Park, Kentucky's first state park.

And we'll meet a Lawrence County couple, who are.

Teachers by day and moonlight as rock.

Stars at night.

That's all next on Kentucky Life.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Hey, everybody, and welcome to Kentucky Life.

I'm your host, Chip Polston.

Check this out.

Welcome to Pine Mountain State Park.

We are here right at the peak of fall color and the.

Views are beyond incredible.

Now, we're pretty deep into Eastern Kentucky, almost.

Where the state meets Virginia and Tennessee.

In Pineville.

And when you look around, it's pretty clear.

To see why this was set up as the very first state park.

In Kentucky nearly 100 years ago.

The natural beauty here is just breathtaking.

And between the trails and other activities here, we're.

Gonna have a full day of exploring where we get to.

Bring you along.

But first, Louisville's Schnitzelburg neighborhood.

Likes to think of itself as a small town in the big.

City.

Even as the area has grown into one of.

Louisville's trendiest neighborhoods, it still.

Holds on to decades old traditions from the German.

Immigrants who originally lived there.

And after literally years of wanting to do so, I finally.

Got to experience one of Schnitzelburg's most popular.

Traditions for myself, and got to see how it brings.

Neighbors together year after year.

Every year, on the last Monday in July, people flock.

To Louisville's Schnitzelburg neighborhood.

There you can find a street shut down, and a line of 100.

People long.

all to play.

A game.

That game: The Dainty Competition, an annual.

Street game that benefits Schnitzelburg's Little.

Sisters of the Poor.

And what seems at first glance to be just another.

Louisville Street Festival is actually a lot quirkier.

Than you think.

The Dainty Competition is a very strange old.

German-Hungarian-Cuban, everybody has their own.

Story for where they think it came from.

And it's played with a whittled down broomstick.

That's 3-foot long and you're trying to hit a.

5-inch wooden piece of the broom that is tethered at.

Both bends and you're trying to hit that little dainty.

Get it airborne, and then get it to fly the furthest.

Distance down the street.

You have to be 45 years or older to play.

You get three strikes, and a strike really just.

Constitute any time that a wood touches wood.

If you get it up in the air, you follow through, and you.

Make another contact, that's your hit, however far it.

Goes, however backwards it sometimes goes.

The farthest hit every year is the champion.

They get their name immortalized on the plaque.

Whoever hits it the shortest positive distance is.

Officially the loser.

They get a basket of lemons, and are also made to hop on.

One leg the full length of the dainty course.

The dainty is held on George Hauck Way right outside of.

Hauck's Corner bar and restaurant, located in the.

Building that was once Hauck's handy store.

Now, if the name Hauck is starting to sound familiar.

Well, it should, because George Hauck was a. Schnitzelburg resident so well-known, he's almost the.

Stuff of legends, the son of German immigrants, he was.

Also a co-founder of the Dainty, which began as a.

Small gathering of friends back in 1971.

And while the dainty has grown from a one-day event.

With a couple dozen participants, to a three-day.

Festival, drawing thousands of people to Schnitzelburg.

Hauck's mark on the game remains the same.

George's parents started a general store.

George took it over in '46, I believe, and turned it.

More into like a corner store.

You can get bread, milk, and morphed into beer, lottery.

Tickets, candy, all that stuff.

It was such a community staple, and it brought the.

Neighborhood together in so many ways.

Like, if you were short on bills or food, George would.

Always help you out.

People had running tabs here.

He even had a group of his friends in a pick-up truck.

would go around and help fix people's houses.

And stuff like that.

You know what I'm saying?

So, he was definitely one of those people.

There's no.one else like them.

The dainty for this neighborhood, it's like, you.

Feel a sense of pride just by showing up.

It's a celebration of many things, but most.

Importantly, it's a celebration of George.

And his family in this building, for sure.

Now, as a kid who grew up in Louisville, I had heard of.

George Hauck, and I had certainly seen my fair share.

Of dainty play on TV over the years.

But this time around, I decided it was time for me.

To get in on the action.

So, on the last Monday in July, I showed up to George.

Hauck Way, ready to see if I could be the next dainty.

Champion.

Welcome to not the Kentucky championship, not the United.

States championship, mind you, but the World.

Championship Dainty Competition here in the.

Schnitzelburg area of Louisville.

Now, the Dainty Competition sounds easy.

How hard could it be to hit a little wooden stick with a.

Big wooden stick?

Am I right?

It's a lot harder than it looks.

Let's go get some pointers on how to make it connect.

I got some tips from a dainty pro named Tony on the art.

Of the dainty hit.

His advice; and this was important, get low.

Don't hit it too hard, and get in front of the dainty.

Not behind it.

After a couple of tries, I felt like I'd really nailed it.

And would you look at that?

I got a hit.

When the Clock struck 5:00 pm, it was time for official.

Game play to begin.

The dainty kicked off with some notable Louisvilleans.

Including a solid hit from Mayor Craig Greenberg.

And an unfortunate strikeout by Jim James of My Morning.

Jacket.

With the competition heating up, it was time for.

Me to get serious, which meant some.

Serious pre-game fuel.

So, given the high-level of athletic prowess it takes to.

Hit said dainty down the field, you're gonna wanna.

Fuel up like any good athlete, and you do that.

Here with the official meal of the dainty fest.

Very straightforward, bologna on white bread, spicy pickle.

And a bag of chips.

Set you back four bucks, and my new friend Emily here.

Said she made 300 bologna sandwiches this morning.

They'll all be gone shortly.

After eating my fill of bologna, and watching a few.

More impressive dainty hits, it was time to put all that.

Preparation into practice.

So, I stepped up to bat, keeping in mind all that.

I had learned and, I struck out, really can't all be.

Winners, I guess.

As a kid who grew up here in Louisville, it's been so.

Much fun to come, be a part of the World Dainty.

Championships.

They've been going for three hours right now.

They've got another 120 people.

Signed up and ready to go.

So, it's gonna be a long night in Schnitzelburg.

At a time in the world where there's so much that.

Divides us, it's amazing to see a small community like.

This come together, not only to support a great cause.

But to have a great time as well.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ One of Kentucky's most popular tourist destinations.

Lies deep in the heart of Eastern Kentucky.

The Red River Gorge attracts visitors who come for a.

Wide variety of reasons.

But in recent years, the Gorge has become synonymous.

With rock climbing.

With so many tourists coming in, somebody has to ensure.

There are safe climbing trails for those looking to.

Test their strength.

That's where the Red River Gorge Climbers.

Coalition comes in.

With more than 1,100 acres designated for rock.

Climbing, the coalition works to keep these trails.

Clean and safe.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ The Red River Gorge is a 29,000 acre canyon system.

So, when people come here, they think that they might.

Be in the mountains.

We're actually not in the mountains technically.

Those don't start till closer over till Jackson.

When you get to the foothills of the Appalachians.

It's a big canyon system basically.

We're a national geological area.

Rock climbing out here is a huge draw.

We see over 100,000 rock climbers every year.

So, that's a good chunk of people.

Coming just to rock climb.

So, there's hundreds and hundreds of routes out here.

There's the Red River Gorge Climbers' Coalition That is a coalition for the area that helps.

Preserve, protect, and maintain a lot of the crags.

And the areas.

Out here that really.

Need some help and some protection.

So, the Red River Gorge Climbers' Coalition is.

Dedicated to securing and conserving the open public.

Access to rock climbing here in Kentucky's Red River Gorge.

And also we own property here for climbing, For recreational access, and a lot of the work that we do.

Foes into conserving and stewarding those lands.

That we recreate on.

We were founded in 1996.

It was founded originally by Shannon Stuart-Smith.

And a small group of other individuals, mostly out of.

Lexington, but also in the surrounding region.

And the main reason for that was because the forest.

Service who owns the Red River Gorge Proper.

They were going to possibly shut down rock climbing in the.

North Gorge, where most of the climbing.

Was at that time.

And the access fund who is based out in.

Colorado, they're the national climbing.

Organization, they reached out to a gym in Lexington.

And there was no organization here.

And Shannon happened to be walking by the front desk.

And the person passed her the phone, and she ended up.

Talking, and getting people together to help work with.

The forest service, teach them about why rock climbing.

Is an important form of recreation, and why it.

shouldn't all be closed down, and went from working.

On a lot of this stuff in the Northern Gorge to buying.

This property in the southern region in 2004.

And continuing to expand our reach.

And our access and all of that.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ I've been climbing the Gorge since I started climbing.

Like, maybe a month in, so about four years.

I'd say the coalition work is important because if not.

There may or may not be a local community that would.

Pick up the slack that it would take to maintain.

The trails and the bolts here.

But with the coalition, all that type of stuff is taken.

Care of, and assessed, and looked after.

They do awesome stuff.

They do a lot of trail work maintenance.

They do a lot of education, which is the main factor.

In their work that they do there.

They own more land than any other coalition for rock.

Climbers in anywhere in the country.

Including Chattanooga.

So, I think that's pretty incredible.

Statement to the fact that they're doing awesome work.

Here in preserving and protecting the land that.

We do have, and that, that climbers are using.

They also are really good at educating.

And leave-no-trace principles.

And they have different rules for their crags.

And stuff that really help protect a lot of the.

Features there.

Every year at the beginning of the year, we'll come up.

With priorities, this is a certain crag or wall that.

Needs work, whether it's belay, base erosion.

Or the trail needs to be rerouted, Or a bridge needs.

To be replaced, or you need a new bridge.

Or there's a new wall that needs new work on it.

And so, it's just kind of keeping your finger on the.

Pulse of the whole, everything that's happening.

On our property.

It's deep holes and valleys.

All throughout.

And so the slope up to the cliff.

Sometimes it can be pretty steep.

And if people are up there climbing all the time.

The soil can erode away.

And then, the base gets lower and lower.

And we try to prevent as much of that as possible.

It's more than just coming here to climb.

It's coming here to try to take care of this place.

And keep it the way that it is.

The beautiful place that it is.

We've seen massive influxes of new climbers after the.

Olympics and the Free Solo movie that everybody talks.

About, and everybody's like, have you seen Free Solo?

I was like, yeah, I've seen Free Solo.

Laughs So, there's a few events in the last.

Five years or so that have really kind of brought.

Climbing onto the mainstream.

And so, we're trying to curb the wave of people.

Who are coming in.

We're welcome to everybody.

We just wanna make sure that everybody is also educated.

So that our climbing areas don't get destroyed because.

They're getting loved to death a little bit.

And that's where we've come in to help try to help them.

Out and make sure that people can climb and enjoy.

It without destroying it.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ We're having a great day here at Pine Mountain State Park.

I mean, look at this view.

And this is Keith Bowling.

He's the naturalist here.

Keith, this is your office?

It is indeed.

This is amazing.

Does this view ever get old?

No.

And it's beautiful in different ways for each.

different season.

I'm sure.

The snow capped mountains, the early spring with all.

The wild flowers popping, everything coming back to.

Green, the fall colors, it's just hard to beat.

It's hard to beat this view though right here.

At this time of year?

It is.

This is my favorite.

I'm sure this is incredibly popular.

You all have to see a lot of traffic this time of year?

Oh, yes.

We have a little bit of a lull when everybody goes.

Back to school.

But as soon as fall color hits, this is probably our.

Busiest time, and rightfully so.

Exactly.

Now, this was the first state park in Kentucky.

It's indeed.

Quickly, why this was designated so and how that.

happened?

Yes.

So, right on the heels of the birth of the National.

Park Service in 1916, you had the then-governor who.

Had this wonderful idea, in about '23 he thought we.

Should develop four of Kentucky's best places.

And make them state parks.

So, he tasked then-state geologist.

Willard Rouse Jillson.

With coming up with what he thought would be.

The four best places.

And one of those places that really stood out in his.

Mind was the Cumberland Gap area.

And for the early settlers, they talked about the gap.

Being about 13 miles long.

So, we're sort of the northern terminus.

Where the National Park today is the southern terminus.

But he came down, and the folklore goes that he came.

Down and he met the good people that lived.

Right in the gap, some of the Beason family.

And they said that they invited him in.

And he gotto know them, and he just couldn't.

Displace them off the family farm.

And so, he was kind of going back, he was staying here.

In Pineville, and he decided he may be.

Needed to reformulate his new idea.

And overnight, the towns people said, well.

What would you think about protecting this part of it?

And that's when this really became to where it is right.

Now?

Yeah.

August 9th of 1924, we became Kentucky's.

Very first state park.

Now, I'm sure this is a difficult question for you.

But your favorite place in the park, if you were.

Bringing somebody here that had never been there.

Where would you take them and why?

The prettiest place in the park, in my opinion.

Is the Laurel Cove Trail.

That trail is part.

of Kentucky State.

Nature Preserve.

So, it's afforded this whole extra layer of protection.

It has beautiful rich wild flowers.

I know people that have went all over the state.

And have never seen lady slippers, and we sometimes.

May see 40 or 50 on that trail.

To me, that is the highlight of this park.

Now, of course, if you've never been to our park.

You have to go to the obligatory tourist trap, chain rock.

Now, I've always said though that this is the only.

Tourist trap you're not disappointed with.

Is great there?

It is.

If you go to the world's largest bally yarn and you.

get there, it's a bally yarn.

You come here and you're greeted with this beautiful.

270 degree view.

It's unadulterated by fencing or anything.

And you're looking down, you can see the spot where.

Thomas Walker named the Cumberland River.

You can look back and see the gap proper.

You can see the river.

I mean, it's just a beautiful breathtaking.

Place, and you forget that you actually came up here.

For a tourist trip.

You came up here, because this is the focal point.

The viewpoint of our park.

Well, the whole park is absolutely beautiful.

Keith Bowling, he's a naturalist here.

At Pine Mountain.

Thanks so much for being here with us today.

Absolutely.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ From touring across the country and playing to.

Sold-out crowds at the iconic Red Rocks.

Amphitheatre in Colorado to teaching preschool.

And social studies in classrooms in Lawrence County.

David and Teresa Prince have firmly established.

Themselves as pillars of both their local community.

And the Kentucky music scene.

Now, this husband and wife duo moonlight as rock stars.

With their acts, Laid Back Country Picker and Luna.

And the Mountain Jets.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ I get up every day, I go to Lawrence County High School.

And I meet with some of the greatest people on the planet.

We try to make sense out of the world.

And then, on the weekends, I go out with my wife.

And we create music to try to entertain people.

I'm a preschool teacher.

And I've done that for many years, maybe 24-25 years.

And I'm also a musician, play guitar and drums.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ David and Teresa's role in the Kentucky music scene.

They are the godfather.

And godmother of the Eastern Kentucky.

I know some people don't like the term Americana.

But it encompasses so much that.

They're everybody's mentor, they're so uncompromising in.

Terms of, they just do what they want.

And they have fun.

Live.

Number five.

You are the greatest of them all.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ I'm the Laid Back Country Picker.

I play country music.

I travel around the country.

I tell stories.

Some true, some not true.

Laid Back Country Picker is the epitome of the country.

Music singer that I would see performing around the.

Tri-state in the 1970s and 1980s.

He's wearing snap button shirts.

He probably got some glasses on.

You got a cowboy hat.

He's got a guitar.

And he's got a band with him that may or may not know.

His songs very well.

He's probably a little bit past his expiration date.

But he doesn't know that.

And he's going out there and he's giving the people what.

They want.

Honey represents everything strong in a person.

I mean, it can be a woman, but it could.

Be just anybody.

And she's got this familiar part of her that makes you.

Go, oh, well, that's my grandma, that's my mom.

Or that's my aunt, so-and-so.

Honey is just your steadfast person that's gonna be.

There when you need her.

I think I always wanted to be a performer.

Yeah.

Blame Fall Carnival, that was the carnival at our school.

I remember seeing a band in front of the stage.

One year, and I was like, I wanna do that.

And I would draw myself in front of that stage in this.

Dress, and drums, and a base, and a guitar player.

And there's me in front of that stage.

And so, that formed Luna and the Mountain Jets.

I call it the Appalachian Rock, because it's rock.

But it also has that old folky mountain kind of vibe to it.

Because there's this hit girl singing rock songs.

As a teacher, I'm more interested in.

You as a person.

I have to teach you my content, and I love my content.

But I'm also interested in who you are.

Some mornings, when I'm driving to school and I'm.

Thinking my goal today is to make sure the kids.

Understand what impeachment is, and who draws up.

Impeachment and who has to approve it.

Then, other days I think my job is just to make sure the.

Kids know to be good human beings.

Luna and the Mountain Jets is to hear Teresa sing is.

It's magic.

The Laid Back Country Picker persona that Dave has.

Just gone viral with is, it's just something, it really.

Strikes a chord with people, and so the music community.

Benefits.

But also, Monday morning they're in a. Classroom being a positive impact for the students.

I would like for people to think about me and say she.

Was a helper, because we need more helpers.

And everything that I do is to try to help.

When I teach, I'm trying to help kids learn.

When I write a song, I might be trying to help myself.

When I write a song, I'm trying to help you think.

That you can do something.

I'm not as strong in things as I used to be.

But when tornadoes hit and all that, I wanna help.

Because that's what you're supposed to do.

I would like to leave behind one.

I hope I leave behind thousands of students who.

Said he helped me out in some way, or made me feel.

Good about myself.

I hope I've done that.

As a teacher, that's really the bottom line.

Musically, I hope some people find my records.

And listen to them, and go, man, how do we miss this dude?

This is better than anything buds up I'll ever do.

Laughs.

Don't Laugh.

I want everyone to get up in the morning and just find.

Something that makes them happy.

If they go out there and they've got four acres to.

Mow, but they pull the string on the lawnmower.

And it starts on the first pool, that's an accomplishment.

And you just bask in the glory that your mower.

Started on the first crank, because let me tell you.

There's people out there that will pull their mower.

Four or five times, they don't get anything.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ So, our day here at Pine Mountain isn't done.

We're now going to go explore even more of the park.

And as you can see, it's right about at the peak for.

The fall color season, and it's going to look amazing.

We're going to bring you another show we're about to.

Shoot here in Pine Mountain.

And we can't wait to share with you what are literally.

Some of the most amazing views in the commonwealth.

For more information about Pine Mountain, be sure to.

Like the Kentucky Life Facebook page, or subscribe.

To the KET YouTube channel for more Kentucky Life.

Extras, where you'll learn more about this amazing.

Place and have access to lots of other great videos.

Until next time, I'll leave you with this moment.

I'm Chip Polston, cherishing this Kentucky life.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪