Indianapolis is My Home

24
Jun

Public Tours of Lucas Oil Stadium

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Downtown, Indianapolis Colts, Lucas Oil Stadium, Real Estate

Here’s your chance to get a personal tour of Lucas Oil Stadium. Well, personal as in you and 19,999 other people you don’t know going with you.

The event is free, but people who want to go will have to get a ticket. Those will be made available starting July 14 on Ticketmaster’s Web site.

Officials said as many as 20,000 people can be accommodated on each of the tours and that more will be added if needed.

Regardless, I think I’ll be trying to get me a ticket for that little deal. Try to take my son too. You can get a video tour here or go straight to Ticketmaster and get your tickets for the live tour here.

Public Invited To Lucas Oil Stadium Tour - Indiana News Story - WRTV Indianapolis

24
Jun

Fiery Crash Closes I-465 Today

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Indianapolis Star, News, Traffic & Transportation, West Side

I got to take a little tour of the west side of Indianapolis this morning, but it wasn’t on purpose. A wreck that happened around 2:30am involving three semis and a pick-up truck ended up causing the interstate to be shut-down indefinitely at this point. As I drove through areas trying to avoid all the redirected traffic but still make it to the office, I got to see some neighborhoods I’ve never seen before.

According to a statement from Emery released this morning: Archie Curry, 64, Greensburg, Ky., was driving a north when his semi rear-ended a Chevrolet pickup.

Curry’s vehicle caught fire and jack-knifed into the fuel tanks of another semi driven by Douglas M. Robinson, 50, Pine, Az. Robinson’s vehicle also caught fire and crashed into another semi driven by Larry Calvert, 40, Palestine, Ohio.

The fires burned so hot that the pavement surface was damaged and it’s not certain when the I-465 between Airport Expressway and Rockville Road will be reopened to traffic. The hope is that it won’t need immediate repaired and crews can work on fixing the damage during the lighter traffic use in the evenings.

Crash, fire closes I-465 on Westside | IndyStar.com | The Indianapolis Star

20
Jun

Indianapolis Colts Fan Fest TONIGHT!

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Concerts, Downtown, Indianapolis Colts, Indy Pro Athletes, Local Musicians, Things To Do in Indy

If you want to meet some Colts players and cheerleaders and get their autographs you’ll want to be at the Indianapolis Colts FanFest event tonight. Jon McLaughlin will be performing as well. Great opportunity to hear him perform for free.

Here are the details:

The Colts Fan Fest will be in Indianapolis, Indiana on Friday, June 20th.

Location:
Downtown American Legion Mall
700 North Pennsylvania Street
Indianapolis, IN 46206
5:30pm - 7:30pm
Autograph session with Colts Players, Cheerleaders and Blue
7:30pm
Free Jon McLaughlin Concert

Fan Fest Elements include:
-Make It Personal with Colts players
-Meet Colts Cheerleaders
-FREE community concert by Jon McLaughlin
-Visit Blue the official team mascot
-"Colts City" inflatables
-Bring a new or gently used children’s book for "Books for Youth"
-Register for the Colts Kids Club
-Register to win tickets to a Colts pre-season game
-Pick-up free Colts giveaways
-Check out the re-designed Colts In Motion

Special notes:
The Colts would like to encourage all fans to arrive early.  The line for player and cheerleader autographs may be cut off at any time to ensure the players schedule remains on time.  Inclement weather or traffic may cause late arrival or early departure.  All Fan Fests will take place rain or shine.  Team practice schedule and meeting times may cause players to arrive late or depart early. Colts player names will not be announced prior to the arrival in each city.  Fans will be allowed one autograph per person, however, fans may get back in line for additional autographs.  All Colts Fan Fest times are local.

Stay tuned to www.Colts.com/FanFest for an up-to-date listing of locations.

20
Jun

Jon McLaughlin at the Hard Rock Cafe

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Chain Restaurants, Charities, Concerts, Downtown, Radio Now 100.9

A few days ago I wrote about Jon McLaughlin putting on a little concert at the Hard Rock Cafe in downtown Indianapolis. The concert was a re-opening of the Hard Rock Cafe Indianapolis with all new memorabilia as well as a fund raiser for Riley Children’s Hospital here in the city.

It was a great live concert. Thanks to a friend I’d only met online I found out it was a “closed” event, but we were both able to work some magic (THANKS SARAH!) and get some passes to the event to see Jon live. It really turned out well for both of us. I got to see Jon McLaughlin in concert live for the first time and my friend ended up winning a Gibson Epiphone guitar that was signed by Jon and the rest of the band.

This is Kyle and Sarah (in the purple dress) and another lady that worked for Hard Rock up in Chicago, but I didn’t catch her name.

If it hadn’t been for our great waitress, Megan, Kyle would have never won the guitar, but she was persistent and convinced Kyle to purchase some raffle tickets.

Read Kyle’s recollection of the events and see more photos at Jon McLaughlin, A Sweet Waitress and a Gibson Guitar.

A few thoughts about the night. The new memorabilia was really cool. Lots of great stuff if you love rock music and haven’t been to Hard Rock Cafe in awhile, it’s time to check it out again.

One thing I was thinking about during the performance is that it would have been nice if there was a live camera feed to the various LCD panel TV’s (which are actually in need of being updated) that are mounted on the walls in the restaurant. It’s true that Jon was right in front of us, but having a camera that could zoom in on the close-up of his hands as he masterfully played the keys would have been sweet!

I also ran into a good friend of mine, Nate, that works for the Riley Children’s Foundation. His team put on a great event and raised some great money for charity as well. If you’d be interested in finding out how you can help the foundation yourself, visit their website or let me know and I’ll put you in touch with Nate.

I also got to meet Scotty Davis of Radio NOW 100.9 Morning Drive fame. He’s recently new to Indianapolis after moving down here for the gig at 100.9. He’s from Minnesota, but now calls Indianapolis “home” as well. Seemed like a great, down to earth guy who’s really getting to enjoy the city. It’s too bad he had to head out a little early that night, but part of his job on the morning show calls him to be up at 3am. Just about the time I’m heading to bed!

Jon’s going to be performing again tonight in Indianapolis as part of the Indianapolis Colts FanFest events. I’ll be posting about it later.

18
Jun

Should Victory Field Always Be Victory Field

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Business, Downtown, Indianapolis Indians, Victory Field

I think one of the often overlooked features of our city is the Indianapolis Indians and Victory Field. I’ve not done a tour of all the minor league ballparks, but I can tell you that the ones I have seen don’t even come close to Victory Field.

The question up today though is whether or not naming rights to the field and stadium should be sold?

Earlier this year, at the team’s annual shareholder meeting, Schumacher was asked why the team doesn’t sell naming rights to Victory Field, which has been cited by several baseball publications as one of the finest minor league ballparks in the country.

What do you think? My opinion is that it should absolutely remain Victory Field. How about you?

IBJ.com - Indianapolis Business Journal - "The Score" Sports Blog

Image Source: Small Parks

13
Jun

The Bean Cup - It’s a Must!

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Business Entrepreneurs, Coffee Shops, Greenwood, Local Artists, Local Businesses, Local Musicians, South Side, Things To Do in Indy

After hearing about The Bean Cup a couple of different times from fellow Indianapolis blogger, Douglas Karr, I decided the next time I worked remotely I’d stop by for a visit.

I stopped in this afternoon to get some work done and try out their version of my favorite drink, a chai tea latte. I little darker than my favorite at my other remote office location (I feel dirty, like I’m cheating on my friends there).

I got to meet the two owners, Chris and Jason Carr. A great couple and seem to totally love what they’re doing with running The Bean Cup. The initiating factor to our conversation was that I thought it was cool they they run a place called “The Bean Cup” and their names are Chris and Jason. If you haven’t noticed yet, my name is Jason and my brother’s name is Chris and our last name is “Bean”.

The other very interesting thing I learned today was about Douglas Karr, who’s affectionately referred to as “Norm” at The Bean Cup. Himself, Jason Carr and two other individuals and The Bean Cup, was recently featured in BusinessWeek. The group is competing in the Cisco I-Prize competition. Really cool!

The opening paragraph of the article lays everything out beautifully:

The Bean Cup, a coffee house on the southern edge of Indianapolis, is about as far as you get from Silicon Valley, culturally speaking. Shoehorned between an Arthur Murray Dance studio and a shuttered beauty salon in a nondescript strip mall, the Bean Cup bears faint resemblance to the storied Palo Alto work-play spaces where coders spend all night building what they hope will be the next big thing in tech. That’s not stopping Douglas Karr, a bearded, burly Gulf War vet, from using the Bean Cup to incubate his own big tech dreams.

Later on that afternoon I had an iced white-chocolate blackberry latte ( I think that’s what it was) that was delicious as well. The atmosphere is great, they seem to have a very diverse client base so I think everyone would be happy here if you love great coffees and tea and more.

Similarly to The Strange Brew they also feature artistic works from local artists which you can buy right off the wall if you find something you like. The only challenge I noticed was the same challenge I find with every location offering free wi-fi, FAR TOO FEW POWER PLUG ACCESS!!! The Carrs said they’ll be working on that soon so they will be no reason to not go visit and get some work done of your own.

All in all the final score is that the south side of Indianapolis has two great options for locally owned coffee shops where local artists (both artistic and music) can showcase their talents as well as connect with the community around us.

If you’re on the south side of Indy around the Greenwood Mall, stop by The Bean Cup and get your java fix there. If you’re further south, stop on by The Strange Brew. If you’re a regular customer of one already, give the other a try and spread the love. Don’t worry, St. Arbuck’s will get along without you and these local business owners will be more than happy to serve you some great coffee.

11
Jun

Indianapolis Hard Rock Revamping and Ready to Rock

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Chain Restaurants, Concerts, Downtown, Local Musicians

Okay, I’ve got to make sure I attend this concert. I’m thinking I should get there early enough to at least be in the room for this concert. I’ve become a huge fan of Jon McLaughlin since I’ve been introduced to him and purchased his CD.

Anyone else planning on going?

07
Jun

Flooding

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Areas, Weather

I’ve been looking for a female, albino aardvark all day and just can’t find one. The rain actually stopped so maybe I should stop collecting animal pairs. Now what in the world am I going to do with these two walruses?

How’s everyone? Did you make it through the rains? Is your property flooded? Where are you located? I’d love to see some photos and stories of what the past 24 hours has been like for each of you.

My photo above was taken from the parking lot of Texas Roadhouse off of 135 in Greenwood. This photo does nothing for what it really looked like. I wish I had my real camera with me. The sky right over our heads was dark and stormy, while the sky to the north was this weird, eerie shade of yellowish orange.

06
Jun

Divers and Dragons Event on Indy Cultural Trail

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Art, Competitions, Downtown, Indiananpolis Cultural Trail, Sports, Things To Do in Indy

A morning of fun for your entire family Cultural Trail Ribbon Cutting Ceremony,

Kids Fun Run, & Walking Tours

9:00 a.m. @ Alabama & Market Streets

Join Mayor Greg Ballard, Central Indiana Community Foundation President Brian Payne and other dignitaries for the official opening of the Alabama Street Corridor of the Indianapolis Cultural Trail:

A Legacy of Gene & Marilyn Glick. 

Following the Cultural Trail Opening Ceremony, there will be a one-block fun run for children and walking tours for all ages of the finished trail from Market St. to North St.

Divers & Dragons near the Indianapolis Cultural Trail

10:00 a.m. @ Alabama & North Street

On the English Foundation Building parking lot

Cap-off the morning enjoying a very unique, FREE, Olympic Diving Trials community event:

• Elite divers will “jump, twist & tuck” on trampolines demonstrating diving skills
• Indiana Association of Chinese American dancers will perform a Lion Dance
• Children will “climb, bounce and slide” through two inflatable obstacle courses
• Participate in painting a giant “paint-by-numbers” type Dragon Mural

03
Jun

ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Coming to Indiana

Author: Jason Bean, Category: Areas, Charities, Families, Local Media, People, Real Estate, Volunteers

Do you know a real local hero in our community? The producers at ABC’s Extreme Makeover Home Edition are looking for a family and a home to feature in their TV show.

I just saw this post from Roger at I Choose Indy and thought I’d spread the news.

I know a family that might be a great one to feature on the show, I’ll talk to some friends about nominating them.

If you’re familiar with the show then you probably also know they’ll be needing some volunteers. We’ll keep our eyes and ears open for more information.