We went climbing with Cat Runner 🧗

We went climbing with ‘The Climb’ winner Cat Runner

Katie had the opportunity to climb with Cat and catch up after he won the competition. | Photo by LOUtoday

Hi, Senior City Editor Katie here. 👋

Cat Runner is almost as permanent in Climb NuLu as the colorful handholds on the climbing gym’s walls. After all, he’s been scaling them since he was in high school at Francis Parker School of Louisville — then called St. Francis.

So I thought it would be the best place to catch up with him since winning HBO Max’s new elimination-style climbing show “The Climb” — complete with a $100,000 prize and a PrAna clothing brand sponsorship (worth another $100,000) to boot.

🥇 Meet Cat

When the 24-year-old isn’t at Climb Nulu, he’s at his Lyndon home or at work. Cat is also a professional photographer at Andrew Kung Group, but he also loves to bring his dog Ramona to Cherokee Park, take photos of his friends playing ultimate frisbee, or grab a bite to eat from his favorite Louisville restaurant Ramsi’s Cafe on the World. Pro tip: His go-to is the tortellini graciella.

🎬 On the show

During the show, Cat — along with nine other amateur rock climbers — traveled around five countries competing in rock climbing challenges covering multiple disciplines, from bouldering to “trad” climbing.

Our favorite moment? When Cat realizes he won the competition during the deep-water soloing challenge while sitting in a boat with actor Jason Momoa.

🪢 Back to reality

Cat’s passion for community work, specifically making the climbing community accessible and inclusive, is one of the things driving him right now. He’s already set up the Queer Climber’s Network — which was an idea he had on the show — but officially started working on post-filming.

The network helps LGBTQ+ climbers connect. So far resources include:

Help finding a coach, guide, or meet-ups
Creating a Louisville queer and trans climbing club — which meets the first and third Tuesday of every month at Climb NuLu
Scholarship and grants for climbing courses
A gear collective that redistributes outdoor equipment

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW

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Tuesday, March 7

Tuesday Terrarium Workshop | Tuesday, Mar. 7 | 6:30-8 p.m. | Mahonia, 822 E. Market St., Louisville | $40 | Choose a vessel to create a home for your succulents — all supplies and light refreshments included.

Wednesday, March 8

Bourbon & Beyond Lineup Announce Party | Wednesday, Mar. 8 | 3-7 p.m. | Kroger Wine & Spirits, 5949 Timber Ridge Rd., Louisville | Be the first to hear the lineup for this year’s music fest while sampling food by Chef Anthony Lamas and Chef Ed Lee — plus, live bourbon barrel selects from seven distilleries.

Thursday, March 9

Blessing of the Beer | Thursday, Mar. 9 | 2-8 p.m. | Goodwood Taproom, 636 E. Main St., Louisville | Free | Celebrate St. Patrick with live Irish music and the blessing of the beer at 6 p.m.

Friday, March 10

4th Annual Fish Fry-Days | Friday, Mar. 10 | 6-9 p.m. | The Merryweather, 1101 Lydia St., Louisville | Free | Enjoy beer pitcher specials and fried food from POCO.
Dropkick Murphys | Friday, Mar. 10 | 7:30 p.m. | Old Forester’s Paristown Hall, 724 Brent St., Louisville | $100-$177.50 | See this 1990s American-Celtic punk band perform live with The Rumjacks and Jesse Ahern.

Saturday, March 11

Louisville Makers Market | Saturday, Mar. 11 | 11 a.m.-5 p.m. | The Artisan Loft at Glassworks, 815 W. Market St., Louisville | Free | Shop this pop-up market featuring Kentucky artists and crafters.
The Dark Side of the Wall: Echoes Through the Wall | Saturday, Mar. 11 | 8 p.m. | The Brown Theatre, 315 W. Broadway, Louisville | $40.95 | Go on an audiovisual journey through a decade of Pink Floyd music.

Sunday, March 12

Trail Discovery Hike: Guerilla Hollow Loop | Sunday, Mar. 12 | 1-4 p.m. | Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest, 2075 Clermont Rd., Clermont | Join a volunteer naturalist on a guided, 1.3-mile hike to help you get acquainted with the forest.

We have a calendar filled with events and activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends.

100+ MORE EVENTS

Slice, slice baby 🍕

LOUtoday best local pizza bracket

Help us decide who is slinging the best pizza in Derby City. | Graphic by LOUtoday

With the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments just around the corner, we’re joining the fun of bracket competitions with a face-off of our own.

Last year, y’all helped us name the best cheeseburger: 80/20 @Kaelin’s. This year, we asked you to share your favorite pizza in Louisville. Now — thanks to you + the help of a random generator — we have the official lineup for our bracket.

LOU Pizza Bracket Round 3 — Find out who has the best za in Louisville. | Graphic by LOUtoday

Winner

The votes are in. After a close battle, Danny Mac’s Pizza has been named the best pizza in Derby City by our readers.

Congrats, Danny Mac’s. 👏

Round 3

Things are heating up in Louisville. Impellizzeri’s + Danny Mac’s are going head to head to be crowned the champion of pizza.

See your pick to the finish by voting in our final poll now through Thursday, March 30.

Round 2

We’ve got some passionate readers and pizza eaters. After 1,119 votes, here’s which local pizza moved on to the next round:

Pizza Lupo vs. Impellizzeri’s
Danny Mac’s vs. Bearno’s

Who will face off in the championship? Cast your votes now through Sunday, March 26.

Round 1

Who’s in the running

Going head-to-head in the first round are:

Pizza Lupo and Old School NY Pizza
Sicilian Pizza and Pasta and Impellizzeri’s Pizza
The Post and Danny Mac’s Pizza
Bearno’s and Coal’s Artisan Pizza

How it works

We will host several voting rounds within our newsletters and social channels to determine LOU’s best pizza. Who moves on is up to you. Vote for your favorites, and the pizza with more votes moves on. Simple as that. We’ll go until we have a champion, which will be announced in our Friday, March 31 newsletter. You will be able to vote once per round.

How to participate

Vote for the pizza you’d like to see advance to round two using this poll. You can vote for all four spots or as little as one. Once we count all the votes, we’ll share an updated bracket and new poll in an upcoming newsletter.

Want to fill out a bracket to see if you can guess who will win? Download and print the image above to take the competition up a notch. If your bracket is correct, send us a photo for a shoutout + bragging rights.

Vote here.

TELL US YOUR FAVORITE

Weather

55º | Partly cloudy | 6% chance of rain

Civic

Jefferson County residents can drop off tree debris and other bulky waste from last week’s weather at one of Louisville Metro’s Storm Debris Drop-Off Sites. There are seven locations across the city open Monday-Saturday, 8 a.m.-7 p.m. Get prepared for future severe weather. 🌩️

Number

$700,000. That’s how much money The Spot, a career resource center for young adults, received in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Labor. The funds will support the center’s work providing job training and more for Louisville youth at risk of being impacted by gun violence. (Louisville Public Media)

Festival

And they’re (almost) off. The Kentucky Derby Festival’s Pegasus Pins are now on sale across Greater Louisville retailers. This year, the pins are available in three different color combinations and are inspired by 1980s and 1990s versions. Pegasus Pins are $7 and get you into 70+ Derby-related events for free. 🏇 (The Courier-Journal)

Sports

An Easter egg hunt, foam finger giveaway, and bring your dog to the pitch are just a few of the game day promotions announced for Louisville City FC’s 2023 home matches. The boys in purple will play their first home game at Lynn Family Stadium on Saturday, March 25. ⚽

Cause

Feed Louisville is celebrating three years and for its birthday it’s asking for donations. The organization helps provide meals to our unhoused community and works to remove barriers to permanent housing. Donate online — $10 provides three meals, $30 feeds someone for a week, and $100 is a month’s worth of food.

History

See the Looking for Lilith Theatre Company perform a free staged reading from its video series, “Bardstown to Broadway: The Road To Votes for Women,” on Tuesday, March 14 at the Main Library. The series explores racial justice, reproductive rights, and women’s suffrage from over a century ago to now.

Try This

Name a place to play “Family Feud”-style trivia. The Village Market Food Hall in Paristown hosts Feud Night every Tuesday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Teams can compete for free to win gift cards — plus, enjoy extended happy hour at the bar. 🧠

Kids

Registration is open for Louisville Parks and Recreation’s spring break 2023 Adventure Camps on Monday, April 3-Friday April 7. There are 13 locations to choose from where campers ages six-12 will play sports, do crafts, go swimming, and attend a field trip throughout the week. The cost is $70.

Wellness

Our go-to product to relieve tension and decrease under eye puffiness: an ice roller. Not to mention, it’s the perfect way to cool off your face after an intense workout or morning run. These ice globes are also a great skincare addition to help soothe and depuff. *

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This park needs a name

See the design for a new park in the Russell Neighborhood

The park is part of the Choice Neighborhoods revitalization efforts in the Russell neighborhood and is a partnership between Louisville Parks and Recreation and Louisville Metro Housing Authority. | Rendering provided by Vision Russell

The design plans for the 5.74-acre replacement park in the Russell neighborhood have been unveiled and West Louisville residents living in these area codes have been called upon to help give it a name.

Expected to open in 2024, the park will be located on the corner of South 13th Street and West Muhammad Ali Boulevard across from the new, 620-unit Beecher Terrace apartment complex — which used part of the former Old Walnut Street Park the new park is replacing.

Funding for the initial phase of the park comes from the American Rescue Plan Act and a $250,000 grant from the Cincinnati Bengals and National Football League Foundation Grassroots Program — which will be used to install artificial turf for the future football field.

Take a walk through the planned park:

Pavilion
Plaza
Splash park
Playground
Pickleball courts
Basketball court
Football field
Walking path with exercise stations
Shade-covered viewing areas

THE WRAP

Today’s issue was written by Katie.

Editor’s pick: I maybe was a little over zealous when I set up a climbing interview with Cat Runner. I was undoubtedly nervous when I got there. I mean the guy just won $100,000 in a climbing competition.

But as soon as he saw I was a little nervous he just said, “Don’t worry, I’m fun to climb with.”

Missed yesterday’s newsletter? Meet the LOUtoday City Editors.

Connect with us.

Editorial: Katie Molck, Lennie Omalza, Britt Thorson, Emily Shea, Jessalin Heins-Nagamoto, Dayten Rose, Sarah Leonhardt, Katie Smith | Send us a scoop, question, or feedback.

Sales: Mandey Lee | Advertise with us.

Content marked with an * was created in partnership with 6AM City’s advertising partners. Paid content helps keep this newsletter free. 6AM City may also receive a commission on purchases made through affiliate links in this newsletter.

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