Every month Tough Guy Book Club invites all members to complete a monthly challenge. They are meant to challenge you, shake up your month, and add a page to your story. September's challenge was to go on a journey, a bar crawl with fellow goons to create some stories. Bar crawls are one of the pillars of Tough Guy Book Club ever since the club was developed on one over 12 years ago. This one didn’t have to be fancy or huge, just a minimum of 2 goons on a trip to at least 5 venues that served refreshments and post a photo in on our socials with the tag #TGBCcrawl. The emphasis was on creativity, goons were tasked with doing something unusual that would create a good story to share.
As usual, our men didn’t disappoint in turning up en masse, getting amongst it for a beverage with mates, old and new. In typical fashion, some goons got bloody creative with their theme, going to new venues in their local areas. Brewery tour? Check. Footy game? Check. The Rockhampton crew even got a different buzz on with a coffee crawl. Culture was celebrated in every corner, from a poetry recital in Port Adelaide to a literary bar tour in Boston, our love for books was celebrated.
Some chapters did it alone, while others saw the opportunity to join forces with nearby mates. Melbourne saw goons from six chapters combine to brave the (typically) wet weather and catch up. The men of Marrickville combined with Newtown for an afternoon of breweries that culminated in an AFLW game.
Some goons went all-out and dressed for the occasion. The fashion stakes were set unprecedently high by the dapper gentlemen of Mayfield, who dressed up in tuxedos to add some extra class to proceedings. Mick Newton from the Mayfield Chapter was the brains behind this cunning plan and led the men to dress fancy on the night, “because it’s an awesome thing to do. When you look good, you feel good.” He said. After seeing the photos on Pool Hall, we certainly agree. Of course, location matters, and Mick sums it up well: “Honestly, you can never be overdressed, especially in a suburb as salubrious as Mayfield. It’s my mission to help our goons look as smart as they are.” Further north, Townsville turned on the tropical theme with Hawaiian shirts on a rooftop tour of the garrison city, struggling to fill the coveted 5th spot on the night, but pulling through and invoking the ‘No Work Talk’ rule over a late-night kebab.
We do like to bring good conversations back to the pub, and there were plenty to be had across Australia and the world. The New York crawl took that to new levels with a food-and-drink themed scramble across Queens. Many goons were salivating over the tasty delights and cheeky cocktail or two these aficionados enjoyed. Be warned, our Pool Hall Facebook group can sometimes contribute to food envy.
While a lot of new ground was covered, some chapters returned to old stomping grounds, including the Penrith crew who finished their crawl where it all began for them – the Red Cow Hotel. Logistics were naturally important, and while some travelled on foot (or crawled), others availed of more convenient means of transport between stops. Darebin goons decided to combine efforts along a tram route to bring four chapters together, genius work gents!
We salute all who made it to these events, especially those goons who helped to organise them. It was great to see new chapters like Auckland get involved and put their own spin on things. FYI, if you’re ever passing through, these guys know their shit about snowboarding and mountains. This challenge saw a lot of connection, laughs and exploration of local areas among our chapters. New culinary experiences, music, and sport were enjoyed across different neighbourhoods. New friendships were forged, and old ones strengthened, The Sydney joint chapters summed things up (from a music festival, no-less): “Great food, great company, great times!” Our chapters got very creative this month. The Sydney and Auckland crawls really highlight the different nights out some had, with each one giving goons a cool and unique opportunity to add to their story this year. Until the next one, cheers to all you goons, see you at the next one.
