Day at the Track

With the conclusion of the basketball and hockey seasons, the dog days of summer are upon us. Usually that means the athletic world slows down with only MLB and MLS in action. However, the State of Tennessee had other ideas as things heated up this past week across the sports landscape. The Vols finally captured their first baseball national championship, the Preds added depth in the NHL draft in Vegas while Goaltender Juuse Saros got his 8-year contract extension, and Nashville SC’s Jacob Schaffelburg propelled his Canadian squad to the quarterfinals of Copa America. If that wasn’t enough, NASHCAR, excuse me, NASCAR truly owned the weekend in Middle Tennessee with the wet and wild Ally 400 showcasing a finish that was spicier than my newborn’s diaper after a 3 a.m. feeding.

Denny Hamlin held the post after winning the time trials and boasted the lead in the NASCAR points standings. Throughout the afternoon, and ultimately the evening, he kept pace with the primary leader, Christopher Bell. Bell was coming off a win the week before in New Hampshire and dominated the majority of the race, taking Phase 1 and 2 of the Ally 400. Unfortunately, the racing gods had other plans from the 29-year-old Oklahoma native as he crashed out in the 227th lap.

But that was child’s play compared to the rest of the insanity of the afternoon.

Mother Nature took charge near the halfway mark, forcing a red flag during the 137th of 300 laps. The delay lasted about an hour and Bell would continue to lead the way until he slammed into the wall on the 227th. A truly brutal exit after leading 131 laps, finishing in 36th place.

Ross Chastain then took the lead for nearly 50 laps until Pole winner Denny Hamlin jumped back in front with under 10 laps to go and appeared on his way to victory. Then, all hell broke loose. 

Austin Cindric spun out with two laps remaining forcing overtime. It happens, but certainly frustrating for drivers and pit crews, alike. Oh but that wasn’t even the half of it. Former leader, Chastain, bowed out soon after overtime started. Next, Daniel Suarez spun out in the grass soon after the second OT restart. Then Kyle Larson backed up traffic as he had issues on the third restart which took out Kyle Busch going into turn 2 causing yet another yellow flag. 

Overtime had four restarts and a masterful dash to the finish line. Joey Logano grabbed the lead at the final caution and stole the 2024 Ally 400, holding off Zane Smith and Tyler Reddick. After lingering at the middle of the pack for much of the afternoon, Logano took the moment by the horns to snag his first win of 2024. Highlighted by a contentious race, Logano’s win may perhaps end up being overshadowed by his already infamous middle to rival Hamlin early on. There is much speculation but I’d surmise it was for driving patiently and always using his turn signal. Regardless, this Ally 400 will go down in Nashville lore. Fines will be a plenty, even for the victor. However, Logano’s magical victory has race faces juiced for the 2025 edition. MILES HARRINGTON

💸 Another Referendum? By now, you know that Mayor O'Connell's “Choose How You Move” proposal would raise sales taxes in Davidson County by half a cent. But after all the transit improvements are made, would the tax ever go away? As it turns out, it may take another referendum.

“…Under the mechanics of the IMPROVE act, once the funding mechanism is initiated, I think there is a term,” O’Connell told us on Friday. “And I don't know then if it requires that you go back to either another referendum or potentially by resolution.”

A look at the plan laid out in O’Connell’s program reveals some sales tax projections that span from 2025 to 2055.

O’Connell went on to explain that the process to adapt his program is separate from the ratification of the financial plan. “I think our program anticipates 15 years of capital projects,” he said. “But I think it's 25 years of sales tax because there’s an exception of an additional 10 where most of it is in an operation independence.”

As the council decides whether to allow O’Connell’s transit referendum on the ballot in November, the Pamphleteer will continue to seek clarity on how, exactly, Metro Government would go about repealing the sales tax if Nashvillians give “Choose How You Move” the green light. Though the bill will be on second reading during tomorrow night’s council meeting, it was not set aside for a public hearing. MEGAN PODSIEDLIK

✰   ✰   ✰

💥 Officer Involved Shooting Another week, another crime scene in Bellevue.  Early Thursday morning, while responding to an incident at the Bellevue West apartment complex, MNPD confronted a 25-year-old man who reportedly stabbed his 27-year-old brother. Police footage has since been released showing the suspect, identified as Max Van Sickle, rushing toward the officers while wielding a knife. An MNPD officer fired upon the suspect, resulting in his death. The incident is now under investigation by the TBI. 

The jarring incident is just one of many violent crimes that has been reported in the Bellevue area this year. Just last month, fifteen-year-old De'Anthony Osasosifo fatally shot Aayden Hayes, 13, at Red Caboose Park. When asked whether members of the community have reached out to his office regarding the area’s uptick in violence, Mayor O’Connell sympathized with unsettled residents: “As a former neighborhood leader—as a former district council member—I think every community in the city, when a crime occurs, has reason to be concerned. And we share those concerns.” When it comes to addressing violent crime and youth violence, the mayor went on to share that his administration is not only working with MNPD, but the Community Review Board and the Metro Public Health Department, as well. MEGAN PODSIEDLIK

DEVELOPMENT

• Eastside Bowl Opens The ’58 (Scene)
• TPAC's deal with Metro needs "additional time" (Axios)
• Sensa Padel to bring club, courts to Neuhoff District (NBJ)

✹ RUNNING FOR COVER

THINGS TO DO

View our calendar for the week here and our weekly film rundown here.

📅 Visit our On The Radar list to find upcoming events around Nashville.

🎧 On Spotify: Pamphleteer's Picks, a playlist of our favorite bands in town this week.

👨🏻‍🌾 Check out our Nashville farmer's market guide and yearly festival guide.

TONIGHT

🏝️ Volcano Brothers @ The Basement, 7p, $12.85, Info
+ Hawaiian steel guitar hits of the 1920's & 30's

🪕 Bronwyn Keith-Hynes @ Dee's Lounge, 6p, $10, Info

🪕 The Asheville Mountain Boys @ Dee's Lounge, 8:30p, $5, Info

🎸 Open Mic Mondays @ Tennessee Brew Works, 6p, Free, Info

🪕 Val Storey, Carl Jackson, Larry Cordle & New Monday @ Station Inn, 8p, $20, Info

💀 Grateful Monday @ Acme Feed & Seed, 8p, Free, Info

🕺 Motown Monday @ The 5 Spot, 9p, $5, Info