Ben Bernstein: [00:00:00] This episode of Ramblin on the River is presented by BB Riverboats. 

Sponsor Message: What does summertime in the Ohio River Valley mean to you? From the deck of a BB Riverboat, it means a breeze on the water, lush views, and a historic cruise by the Queen City skyline. BB Riverboats offers an experience as unforgettable as childhood summers.

This season, let our crew take care of yours as you cruise the mighty Ohio River. BB Riverboats. The river is waiting.

Moderator: You're listening to the Ramblin on the River podcast, presented by BB Riverboats. The Bernstein family has been a predominant name in Cincinnati's hospitality landscape since the 1960s, and this podcast will be a collection of the stories, tales, and experiences from their [00:01:00] entrepreneurial endeavors in the restaurant and excursion boat business.

Join as they take you on a a journey through the family's history in their own unique style. Now, here are your hosts, Ben Terri and Alan Bernstein.

Ben Bernstein: Well, hello everybody. Welcome back. Welcome aboard. Everybody you have found the ramblin on the river podcast. Welcome to our sixth episode. I think the order of introduction is wrong. I, every single time, every single 

Alan Bernstein: time. I think Alan should be first. Al, 

Ben Bernstein: this is for Al, Terri, and Ben Bernstein.

Oh, okay. We'll see if you can make that change. Okay. Anyways, my name is Ben Bernstein. Yes. I'm joined by my very irritating and annoying father, Alan. Oh, I'm here. I'm here. And my sister who is freezing cold. [00:02:00] I can't imagine. And we have our, our first fan sitting here observing today. Yeah, it really doesn't want to talk.

Why not just say hi. You say 

Elim Bernstein: hi. You say hello. 

Ben Bernstein: That is my son. Elim. He just came with his father to work and Oh, it's work day with your father. We're coming. Yeah. whatever that is. Yeah. Whatever it is. Anyways, before we get started, please follow and connect with the show by giving us a like and subscribe.

On any one of your favorite podcast platforms. You can find us on Facebook and Instagram. You can visit our website at ramblinontheriver. com. And if you have any direct questions or comments, we would love to hear from you. We love getting any sorts of mail or comments or anything like that. You can email us at podcast@bbriverboats. com and I can assure you we will respond. We would love any show topic ideas or any stories that you've interacted with us that you may like [00:03:00] to hear told back which you're probably My pool ladies ought to Talked about your pool ladies way more than you've talked about your wife. Oh, oh, that's true She listens to every podcast.

We even had a whole episode about you and your wife And I still think you've talked about the pool. I think you're right, this is our sixth episode of a previous five episodes. We've been through things like the 1982 world's fair, the. Love stories of your parents now. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Ben and Shirley. Ben and Shirley as well as yourself and my mother.

Yeah. Mary. Yes. 

Alan Bernstein: And that was a courting of 50 a courting court team. Yeah. Dating. Spit it out. 51, 52 years ago. Maybe maybe it's actually going 53. We've only been married 51 years, well we're coming up to 52 next week. No, you're coming up to [00:04:00] 51. Oh, 1973. 

Ben Bernstein: Oh. Remember you spat out 1973 last episode because it was just 50 years ago and you're just adding one Yeah, 

Alan Bernstein: 51 years.

I've I must have missed math missed math that week that day that they you've missed a whole lot on a whole lot of 

Speaker 6: days 

Alan Bernstein: I can assure 

Ben Bernstein: you Don't worry me too. Yeah, okay and we also had an episode about Your summer on the Delta Queen on the steamer Delta queen. This episode, we are going to talk with a guest.

We have a very special guest, so we will announce here in just a minute. It is now 25 years this month. In fact, almost to the day that it arrived here in Cincinnati our flagship, the Belle of Cincinnati. We are going to go through the acquisition and. development process, renovation projects, everything like that.

Terri Bernstein: I'm bringing it here to Cincinnati 

Ben Bernstein: and bringing it here to Cincinnati. It was quite a [00:05:00] ride. 

We will get it all started with story time and our new intro. Thanks to Captain Al 

Alan Bernstein: So 

Ben Bernstein: We have a very special guest today Troy Manthey coming all the way from Tampa, Florida, although I don't know if he's in Tampa right now.

He's over in Mobile. Mobile, Alabama. Very nice. Troy is the owner and operator of Yacht Starship in Tampa in Clearwater, Florida. They also operate a vessel named Craft, which is his newest ship. Oh, it's nice. I've been on it. Very upscale culinary and cocktail cruises also runs the pirate water taxi down in the Tampa waterfront area,

I also has a pirate ship, the Lost Pearl. He stole that from us because of the USS Nightmare and the bay rocket, which is 108 passenger power boat that he does thrill rides around The [00:06:00] Tampa area on thank god that thing was broken down when we were there. Oh, I really want to go Oh, I do not want to go not with troy.

Troy's at the helm. I am not getting in that boat Troy holds an unlimited master and first class pilot's license and is a fifth generation captain Also a past president of the Passenger Vessel Association. And he was hired by BB Riverboats. 

Alan Bernstein: Yes. 

Ben Bernstein: He was, but you forgot one 

Alan Bernstein: very important fact about his history.

Okay. He's a descendant of the Streckfus family. Yes. 

Ben Bernstein: You didn't say that. Well, I did say he's a fifth generation captain. Oh yeah. Maybe we'll have a whole other episode. Maybe we will. Troy, you can see what we're dealing with here. Anyways. Welcome to the show, Troy.

Can you hear us fine? 

Troy Manthey: Oh, I can hear you. I was wondering if I was ever going to get a word in. 

Ben Bernstein: No, you get that a lot. So let's go back to the beginning. Smart. We used to operate multiple boats here at BB Riverboats. I believe at the time we were [00:07:00] running four vessels, the, the Funliner, the Cincinnati Covington Funliner, the fun, the River Queen.

Yep. The old River Queen. We have a new River Queen now. The Mark Twain. The Mark Twain, and the Conker, the river Raft at the time, I believe 

Alan Bernstein: that was the river raft at that time, but it was the Kon Tiki 

Ben Bernstein: prior to that. And you embarked on an upgrade of sorts, I guess. Something to replace the, yeah. The Funliner, which was a great boat, one of my favorite boats.

But man, was it ugly ? It was, it 

Alan Bernstein: was 1998 and we were wondering about the future of the company and we didn't think that the fleet that we had at that time was the sort of the correct fleet. And moving forward the Y 2K was coming, the end of the world was coming. And we figured if the world was going to end, we ought to have a real nice boat. So we embarked and Troy, did you know that the Emerald Lady and Diamond Lady were over in Morgan city? Did you know that? 

Troy Manthey: Yes. I went and looked [00:08:00] at, okay. So you found out about 

Alan Bernstein: that's right. And then you called me and said, Hey, Alan, There are two lady boats over in Morgan City, and I came down and went, drove out there, I think you drove me out there, and they were in that sand pit, the sand blasting pit of a dry dock covered with accumulation of inches of sand.

Yeah, on the top deck, you walked around, not on the deck. It was sand everywhere. We went and then I started negotiating with Bernie Goldstein and it wasn't going well at the beginning, but we got it down And decided to buy the boat we were looking at both boats. We were looking at the Emerald lady and a Diamond lady were available.

They were tied together. They were available one or both. And I called John Gilbert an architect who actually built those boats. And he said, Alan, if you're going to buy one of those [00:09:00] boats, you buy the emerald lady. Do not buy the Diamond Lady. So with that said, it was easy. We called up and negotiated for the Emerald Lady.

Troy, was your marriage on the rocks before you were on the rocks with the company? I 

Troy Manthey: don't know about the same time, but yeah, everything was on the rocks. 

Alan Bernstein: Okay. Everything was on the rocks of it. So at that time he was working for the Creole Queen.

He was working for the Creole queen, his father in law. And I already said that he had married his daughter. And so when everything started on the rocks, Troy said, you know, I'll be happy to. volunteer to 

Terri Bernstein (3): get out of here. 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah. And we negotiated a deal. So we wanted to move the boats away from Morgan city anyway, because they were, they were definitely getting ruined in that sandblasting area.

So we moved over to the industrial [00:10:00] canal, which is over by the ninth ward. Is that right, Troy? 

Troy Manthey: Yeah. so we brought it over the industrial canal first. And Then we brought it over to the Harvey Canal. Well, you found that place, 

Alan Bernstein: you found the place in the Harvey Canal where we could go. I remember you saying, hey, I've got a private place we can go in the Harvey Canal.

So, for the people that don't understand, in New Orleans, they have several canals, but there are two main canals, and that is the industrial canal, which leads out to the lake, and there is the Harvey canal, which goes into the bayou, sort of out, you know, in the back lands. The Harvey canal was much more convenient than the industrial canal.

So it's still within minutes of downtown New Orleans. And that's where we started to work. And actually, I guess Troy had separated from the company. And that made him available to do this. And we [00:11:00] paid him way too much 

Ben Bernstein: money.

Clearly, he started a whole empire of his own business just for the money that we paid him. The profits that he made off from 

Alan Bernstein: us. I mean, 

Ben Bernstein: we actually should own 

Alan Bernstein: a stake in all of his stuff in Tampa. You know, I think I'm going to suggest that to Troy. We'll see how far that goes.

Yeah, we'll see how far that goes. 

Troy Manthey: Yeah, the only way I could afford to eat back then when I was working for you guys was to live with my mother,

Ben Bernstein: We appreciate the dedication. Yeah, we do. So we chose the ALD lady. And I remember you coming home and Dad was enamored with this boat.

Every project we've done, you carry blueprints everywhere and every blueprint. He's, I still have them all there in the library, but I remember you bought the boat and you came home and they were on the living room table and we would go over them every day and he said, Oh, we go through here and go through there.

Alan Bernstein: It was a great boat. It was a four deck boat, which we've never [00:12:00] had. Three were enclosed, air conditioned, heated, and in the top deck was a huge top deck that at the time we could have done anything we wanted to do. Today it's not so huge compared to some of the monstrosities that are, that are out there. Troy said, Alan, I'll take this over. You and I can deal with the Coast Guard. We can do this work in the yard, and he hired some Cajun workers a company. 

Ben Bernstein: Yeah, we 

Troy Manthey: had painters, we had structural structural folks, we had a sprinkler company. That's right. What you remember is I just finished building three casino boats for New Orleans Paddlewheels and Hilton. So I had all the subcontractor relationships from that, building those boats.

So that just rolled right into this project very easily, we had those relationships. But they weren't used to being negotiated that hard by the Northern office. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, and not only that, the Northern office was although not a practicing Jewish religion [00:13:00] guy he was Jewish and the Cajuns didn't know who Jewish people were.

But 

Ben Bernstein: they, they learned very quickly. 

Alan Bernstein: Oh, yes they did. Yes, they did. We started the project. The nice thing about the Harvey Canal is there was a Hyatt Regency West Bank just down But it had a different name.

It was a Days Inn or a Motel 6. It was like a roadway. It was so gross. The water in the pool was greenish 

Ben Bernstein: brown. Well, if everybody could picture any horror movie that takes place at a roadside motel, that is where we stayed. 

Alan Bernstein: Actually, it was worse than that. 

Ben Bernstein: I think it was 24 

Alan Bernstein: a night. I don't know. Yeah, I told Troy to find something inexpensive.

But, how did you find this Hyatt Regency on the West Bank? 

Troy Manthey: I used to eat lunch there. There was [00:14:00] a friend of mine that had the restaurant there and I was in the back Max place there. I had a finite budget I had to work with and that kind of hotel fell right into where I needed to be. 

Alan Bernstein: Well for the people that don't know, New Orleans gets quite hot and humid.

It was the hottest freakin summer. I will never go to New Orleans again in the 

Troy Manthey: summer. Ever. We didn't have to buy any rags for the job because Alan's bedsheets would be stuck to his back every morning when he came home. And we just, and we just caught him up. 

Alan Bernstein: We helped him both. I remember getting home at night and going to bed and the bed was soaking wet.

I mean soaking wet And I got out of the shower and I was still sweating. It was just a horrible [00:15:00] place it was horribly hot and humid. In the morning. I'd see Troy. He wasn't even breaking a sweat And he goes, oh, this is nice weather down here.

So anyway, they're conditioned. Yeah. 

Troy Manthey: Yeah. Speaking conditions. I'm in the bayou now and it's a hundred degrees . 

Alan Bernstein: And, 

Troy Manthey: and that's a whole different, having flashbacks. 

Ben Bernstein: Yeah. Alright. And that's a whole different kind of heat. I mean, it's, it is. I, I can't, it's so thick. It's, I mean, you need a knife to cut through it.

It is so uncomfortable. I mean, you can go to Las Vegas. It could be 118 degrees and that is hot, but that's not miserable. Like it is, I don't 

Elim Bernstein: know. Troy and I were there last year and it was, it was 

Ben Bernstein: Las Vegas is pretty hot. Probably not the best comparison, but if you're thinking about going to New Orleans in the summertime, I would probably think again, maybe go to Michigan or somewhere, Canada 

Alan Bernstein: maybe the North Pole.

Ben Bernstein: We purchased the boat. We get it into 

Alan Bernstein: the Harvey canal. Yep. It's there and we're working [00:16:00] on renovating inside painting the 

Ben Bernstein: outside. I what were some of the major renovation points?

Troy, why don't you? 

Alan Bernstein: Answer that question 

Troy Manthey: Well, the big thing on the third deck was the sprinkler system that the coast guard wanted us to put in the boat that it didn't have So we had to put a sprinkler system in which made us pull all the ceiling down and get get all that taking care

but other than that, the sprinkler system was the heavy lift. Yeah, I mean, that was a huge challenge because we were appealing and appealing that forever and then we had a gun or I had to get it done.

And remove the two boats off the top deck, we put them down on the main deck bow. 

Alan Bernstein: That's right. 

Troy Manthey: And then a lot of cleanup work and painting and some beautiful new wooden handrails. 

Alan Bernstein: Yep. Yeah, they are. Louisiana Cyprus in the swamp, Cyprus, Cyprus. The project was ongoing.

We did have some Coast Guard issues that we were working with. Troy was [00:17:00] a big help in trying to get the Coast Guard to reduce our manning. The manning requirement on the Emerald Lady, on the Emerald Lady was beyond excessive. It was, I don't even know how the casinos dealt with that, but they did because they wanted the gambling money.

So My recollection, Troy, is we were required a master. We were required a a licensed 1600 ton mate chief an assistant, an oiler, a wiper and several deckhands, maybe 10 or 20 deckhands. Who could have also doubled as a guard, I think I told Troy and Troy agreed that, you know, the Natchez it's a boat there in New Orleans has one master and a chief on their COI.

It's a 2000 passenger bed. It's a, well, it was, it's no longer, but yes. And I kept saying to the captain of the port, [00:18:00] I said And I said, sir, tell me we're much smaller than the, the Natchez and you have, and it's a steamboat and it's located right here in your backyard and you're making this. He said, once you're a gambling boat, you're always a gambling boat.

That was his. And I said, sir, we're not going to have gambling on board. No, nowhere, nothing. It's illegal where I come from. So we finally did get it reduced slowly, but surely. Troy, I don't know you, you fought oh, I think you fought the watchman on your own to get rid of them. They finally said, I think you're right.

We don't need a watchman don't need a four or five watchmen. But we, we sort of worked together on that. And As I remember, when we left New Orleans, we still had a licensed a master, a mate, a chief, an oiler, oiler, and maybe Troy, [00:19:00] will, were we required and wiper when we left?

Troy Manthey: It's just a cheap and an oiler. I thought, okay, okay. And then just a couple of deckhands, but we went out and did drills and, you know, we had been operating a Creole Queen there with a similar manning, so we were able to master the drills and get our COI in line with some reasonability, although it was still wasn't where we wanted it to be it was good enough to get us up the river.

Alan Bernstein: And what I remember is you were very impressed with the people that we brought down on how knowledgeable they were about marine operations and deckhanding. 

Troy Manthey: Yeah, the folks you sent from the the retirement community? Yes, 

Alan Bernstein: yes, our 

Terri Bernstein: What happened? Who did you send? 

Alan Bernstein: Probably the best of the best that we had to spare.

Troy Manthey: Well All I'm gonna say is I'll get a crew. I'll get a crew that's gonna help you rebuild that paddle wheel. They're good. They're the best I got. They show up. I bring him back there. I tell him what needs to be done. I walked to the front of the boat, meet with [00:20:00] another vendor. About an hour later, I go back to check on them.

They sleeping on all the paddle wheel.

Speaker 6: Well, that was hot 

Ben Bernstein: and humid. They needed a little nappy break. Well, I can say Troy didn't love the crew that he was left from the Northern office. He was, but it went both directions. They didn't really like him either. 

Troy Manthey: And not only were they sleeping on the paddle wheel boards, I mean, the guy was so white, he didn't have any suntan lotion on and up, and he was as red as the paddle wheel board that he was taking off.

Alan Bernstein: Yes, he was. 

Troy Manthey: I woke him up, and then he couldn't work because he was so sunburned. 

Alan Bernstein: He got sun poisoning, he had the, well, but that, we gave him a day off. 

Troy Manthey: I got a worker's complaint already from the crew coming down and sleeping on the paddle wheel. 

Ben Bernstein: So Troy very quickly got a very affectionate nickname, which he is still known as, today, I think it's your nick, I think it's your nickname.

He was affectionately known as Captain [00:21:00] Dick. That's right. He seemed to be a little harder on everybody than everybody was used to up here in I guess you say the northern office. 

Alan Bernstein: The northern office, yep. We were not as direct and condescending as he 

Ben Bernstein: was. Now I do know my mother did not love that people called him captain Dick.

That's correct. We changed that to Captain Richard, because you know, that's right. Dick is short for 

Alan Bernstein: Richard. Oh, I did not know that. I always 

Troy Manthey: thought I got that nickname after you walked in on me taking a leak one day, man.

Ben Bernstein: That's what you would like to believe. We all have dreams, Troy. We all have dreams. 

Troy Manthey: That's my recollection. Yeah, that's your recollection. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, he's certainly entitled to his recollection. But I thought it was after This lifeboat [00:22:00] incident, but evidently it, it was worse than that. So let's see, what else?

Troy Manthey: No, we went on an awesome sea trial, where y'all accused me of kidnapping all of y'all.

Oh, I was on that is right. Yes, you were. I was on 

Elim Bernstein: that one. No water, no food. 

Ben Bernstein: So we finally get the boat in a position where we can start testing it out. Seeing there was a lot of repairs there. I remember that there was a lot of stuff not working. The boat had laid dormant for six, nine, a lot more than six years, 92 to 98.

And this, Oh, okay. All right. Okay. And we finally get it to a point where we can take her out and play around with it. And now Troy 

Alan Bernstein: hired a chief engineer, Clinton, Clinton, yep. And he came down now Clinton was a good old boy from, I don't know, was he a Louisiana or Oklahoma? Where, where was he from?

Troy Manthey: I think the Quad Cities area. I think he's oh, yeah Yes, 

Alan Bernstein: he was that you are right He was [00:23:00] sort of a country farming kind of guy from the Quad City area was he an employee of yours or did he work under you Troy? How did you find him? 

Troy Manthey: He had worked for President Casino and had been laid off.

Alan Bernstein: Oh, okay. Okay 

Troy Manthey: And I knew him from there. 

Alan Bernstein: Okay. So he came down and was our chief engineer and got the boat running so that we could take it out on the sea trials. And the sea trial we were talking about was the back bayous of Louisiana, 

Ben Bernstein: so we get the boat out.

Yes. We had only planned on going out for. Forty five 

Alan Bernstein: minutes or an hour. Forty five minutes or an hour. Six hours later we got to the lock to get back to the canal. Troy, what happened? 

Troy Manthey: Well, what happened is the locks broke that we went out of that we were supposed to come back in so we had to go around through another set of locks.

So Which took two and a half hours. We had a water valve that was stuck open that was priming our chillers and it [00:24:00] was draining our water tank and we didn't know that. So we ran out of water. So we had no bathrooms, no water and a bunch of grumpy people. 

Terri Bernstein: No food. 

Troy Manthey: No food. No food. 

Ben Bernstein: These didn't start until like five, five or six.

Oh, the end of the day. End of the day. 

Alan Bernstein: And everybody was sweaty and tired and they wanted to go to the room and they wanted to get some air conditioning. And we were out in the bayous till, I don't know, 10, 11 o'clock at night. The funny thing is we got to this lock and it was closed and I'm going, Troy, how do they close locks around here?

And he's on the radio and they're talking Cajun or whatever. And I didn't understand a word they said. So they finally told Troy, you have to go around. Well, it's not like you just go down the block turn and you're at another lock. We did get back very late. 

Troy Manthey: Yeah, we had to run about 12 miles down the river and about another about another 10 miles, 12 miles back to intercoastal back to the Harvey canal.[00:25:00] 

It was a, it was a long night. 

Ben Bernstein: Luckily, there was another way to get back. We could have been out there. Oh yeah. We could have been out there all night. 

Troy Manthey: We got a nice sunset at New Jersey point. Look at, look at the bright side, the St. Louis cathedral and the Natchez. It was a beautiful, 

Ben Bernstein: it was a beautiful four hour sightseeing cruise.

Terri Bernstein: You never know what you're going to get when you spend the time with Troy 

Ben Bernstein: So one of the new requirements on this boat. Different than any boat that we've, we had owned in the past was that it had to have a rescue boat. 

Troy Manthey: Yes. 

Ben Bernstein: We had a nice brand new, newly painted, rescue boat I don't know if it was brand new or not, but it was my responsibility to test it out. And so we went down and. I got in the rescue boat and fired the engine up and started putt putting around the boat would not move more than maybe five miles an hour.

You would start revving it up and it would just spit water, well, the, the engine was mounted way too high, so we had to Cut into the boat. Cut, cut a notch in. Yep. Into the boat. So I went back [00:26:00] for the second round and went and worked way better, you know, cruised around the bayou and, and make my way back, to the boat.

And you know, everything was, was working, everything was fine. We crossed that off the list. So pull up to the boat and said, all right, where am I gonna get off? They said, oh no, just say. Stay right there. Troy said, just now just stay right there. So they, they throw a hook town. There was there were wires already preset, preset on the rescue boat.

They said, just ride it up. We'll just bring you right up to the deck and we'll just take you out that way. I said, I really don't know if that's probably the best or intended use whatsoever of the Of the david on the front of the boat for the rescue boat But you look like you want to say something go ahead 

Alan Bernstein: Well, I think there has to be a break in the in the narrative just for a second.

Okay now my little schnookums is not a small individual. No, like you found out last episode, I was 75 pounds at birth. Yeah, [00:27:00] that's right. And the concern was not for the davit because the davit was very well welded in heavy pipe. The concern was that we only had a 500 pound, half pound whatever weight on the winch.

The, the winch was the weak link with the wire on it. . It was not the day of it that it was hooked. It turned out the, it 

Troy Manthey: was the, it was the the Pelican Hook. We had a quick release Pelican, yes. And the Coast Guard was on a kick about testing safe working loads on the Davits . So I think we had a a 750 pound quick release Pelican Hook.

So, we knew we had to test it for the Coast Guard the next day or so. So, we just said, Ben, ride it up. You know, we had the boat, and Ben, and we would think we were close to where we needed to be. And It turns out we needed a new pelican.

Ben Bernstein: So what happened, Ben? [00:28:00] Well, we got, I don't know. He got up four or five feet off 

Elim Bernstein: deck level. I think 

Ben Bernstein: it was not deck level. I mean, that's a, I bet you that's 10, 10, 15 feet almost at the bow. Where it comes up off the water. It's pretty close. 

Alan Bernstein: You were 4, 5, 6 feet up in the air. 

Ben Bernstein: And the thing snaps. And luckily, luckily it fell square.

So it didn't, I didn't go one side you know it didn't go head first or anything. So I was able to stay in the boat. And I was so shocked and then by the time I Realized and came to and looked around. I saw everybody up there and I am 17 years old at the time, I think. And I am effing every single person.

Around saying, you guys' asses are fired. When my mother finds out, you guys are all 

Alan Bernstein: not gonna have a job. I'm gonna tell all the listeners Yeah. This is like Wiley Coyote. When he runs into a wall or [00:29:00] something and there's the print of the guy in the wall. When it broke loose, the rescue boat, boat went right down to the water and Ben is suspended.

For minutes up in the air minutes, he was defying gravity with his hands out. And, and when he hit the boat, the, the splash in the water was impressive. It was very, very impressive. When you got back, 

Troy Manthey: well, it was more impressive than the splash Alan was. He had cat like reflexes. Two arms, two legs out, and he landed perfect.

Just like a cat, man. Came down on all fours. And we knew he was okay. And we're about done with the laughter. 

Alan Bernstein: Oh, I looked over at Troy, and Troy is laughing the hardest I had ever seen him laugh. Ever. Ben, you have to know, I wish I had a picture. It was funny. It really was funny. I think we all [00:30:00] wish we had, yeah.

Ben Bernstein: So from that point forward, we used the, the safety platform and the safety ladder in order to get in and out of the rescue 

Alan Bernstein: and we still do, we still do, we still do, but I was the one 

Ben Bernstein: and only person that has ever ridden the rescue boat 

Alan Bernstein: off of the water. You are correct. You are correct. And that was all you know, Captain Dick's fault, 

Troy Manthey: now the other rescue boat story I remember was Greenville. Yes. Yeah. We wanted to put the film crew off with Ben in the rescue boat in the river. They wanted to get some shots of us. So when the world peace fell on the way and we were turning into the river there and Greenville and once they got the shots They said we got everything we need.

I put the pedal to the metal and ran up to our landing, which was about six miles up the river. Well, the Belle was faster than the rescue boat. So we started leaving the rescue boat behind. So then we go around to Ben and Ben [00:31:00] can't see us anymore. So his panic screams on the radio of slow, slow down.

I can't see ya! And I'm like, just follow the banks. I mean, just follow the banks. You're not gonna get lost. Don't leave us! Don't leave us! So anyway, we get all out, we're tied up. And we're running lines and staging. Here comes Ben and the film crew. He doesn't even like going to Toronto. Full speed ahead, right up onto the concrete wall.

Boom! The boat. He was so mad. I'm like, I see you found us. 

Ben Bernstein: Troy, you're missing a whole piece of this. You realize I was in a rescue boat. With fingers and Jim Osborne, Tim Eversolee and Jim Osborne, wouldn't you want to get out of that rescue boat too? Well, I sort of forgot about that.

Troy Manthey: Yeah, we viewed it, if the three of y'all went down, it wasn't a big loss to the team.[00:32:00] 

Ben Bernstein: I don't know if Jim was there or not, but I know Tim was. Yeah, he was a 

Alan Bernstein: photographer. He and, yeah. But the other funny thing has been when you go into Greenville, there's an inlet or a river. You could not have gotten lost because had you just continued on you to run into us.

I'm aware. Okay. I get it. The Mississippi, you were not in the Mississippi River 

Ben Bernstein: lost on your own. I wasn't worried about that. I was just worried about having to sit in this damn boat. Another three or four or five hours. 

Alan Bernstein: It would have been funnier if you had run out of gas. That would have been really funny.

Because we wouldn't have been able to come get you. 

Troy Manthey: And what the what the next stop we get up to Memphis and we're tying up and it's about midnight and we had the young crew, a deck hands that are all wanting to go out and party this, that, and the other, and he's fishing the line out on the stern and the weeds. And then out pops a naked lady behind him.

And he about jumped out of his [00:33:00] pants. He was he was, I started singing on the radio. You, she come walking down the street.

And the deck is like, what the hell is he going crazy? I said, turn around. And there's a naked woman. So. They were all happy. We were in Memphis, needless to say. And it just every landing, we had a chain gang tying us up. And what city was that? Oh, that's right. 

Alan Bernstein: Arkansas, Arkansas. Yeah, you're right. It was yeah, home no, hell wait, just tell the story. Okay. There's a chain gang working on the riverbank 

Ben Bernstein: prisoners, 

Alan Bernstein: prisoners, yeah, a chain gang. And as we came up to them. Fingers decided to play, isn't it great to be an American or it's, I'm proud to be an American where we're all nice and free and, and the prisoners were hating it and we were loving it.

And then we had to pull in [00:34:00] and there were the prisoners. 

Troy Manthey: Yeah. Crew couldn't pull the lines up. So I hollered at the policeman attendant to the prisoners to give us a hand. And man, he got them all together and started our lines. We had to run about a 600 foot long enough to get a line there.

And that worked out well. 

Ben Bernstein: Let me go back for a second. All right. After the renovation ended and the boat was ready, it wasn't, I don't know, what would you say? 70 percent done? 80 percent done?

Oh yeah. We had a lot of stuff to do on the way up. There was still work to do, sure. But what we did not talk about is we were asked to bring the world peace Belle up the river to Newport, Kentucky, which is our home. It's the largest cast swinging Belle in the world. That's correct. Came from Nice, France. That's right. It was brought over to New Orleans 

Alan Bernstein: not nice. 

Ben Bernstein: Nice. I'm pretty sure. 

Alan Bernstein: No. 

Ben Bernstein: Okay, it doesn't matter like you're worried about accuracy. We don't have to be accurate, but we were asked to bring that up was brought over across the pond to 

Alan Bernstein: Nantes [00:35:00] fan france Nantes france 

Ben Bernstein: so we get the week the barge comes We were asked to bring it up the river as part of that. We You Planned a 17 city tour, something like that. Now, wait a minute, wait, 

Elim Bernstein: wait, you 

Alan Bernstein: got us back up when I got noticed that the Belle was coming.

It was on a ship and was being unloaded. Wayne Carlisle wanted me to supervise. Well, I didn't know anything about the port of New Orleans. So I called Troy. I said, Troy, we got to go. Down and do this. Well, Troy looks at the Belle and looks at the barge and he goes, there is no way that barge is going to hold up that Belle.

And he said, it's not going to be stable. And we've got to tow it all the way up the river. I said, Troy, and he said, how much is a way? And I say, I don't know, 98, 000 pounds or whatever it is. And so we decided that we better have somebody that knows check out. [00:36:00] The stability of the barge with the Belle on it and there was some technical things where they needed to put the Belle and And all that 

Terri Bernstein: wasn't it all a secret.

It was all 

Alan Bernstein: a secret and They told me do not let anybody see that Bell and so we had to do it all under this shroud of a canvas and We had to measure, we had to take, you know, all the measurements of the frame, and Troy's underneath all this stuff, because we couldn't tell anybody, and we finally get it on, we lift the Bell up with the shroud on it, no one knew it was a Belle, but the shroud, and it went on to the barge, and they lashed it down, and we went home that night.

That that very night 

Ben Bernstein: Obviously the math worked in the barge. 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah. Oh, yeah, it did not turn over. It was no problem Troy was happy because he was the master that was gonna tow it

So that night when we went back to the hotel [00:37:00] I'm taking a cold shower don't need hot water in New Orleans. The groundwater's 93 degrees. Yeah I come out of the shower, obviously naked and dripping wet, and there is the World Peace Belle on TV.

On the news. On the news! On the news! And I went nuts. I didn't know what to do. I'm running around the room naked and I trip over the bed and I flip over the mattress flips on top of me. I flip it back on the other bed. And so now there's no bed to sleep on. So I have to call Wayne's assistant at let's see, it was midnight where we were, it's one in the morning in Cincinnati.

And I said Darlene or whatever her name was they have found the Belle and it was on TV. And there was dead silence on the phone. And I went, either she [00:38:00] fell back to sleep or something's wrong. Or she's probably angry. Or she's probably angry. I really didn't know what had happened. She said, Oh, Alan, I'm very sorry.

I didn't tell you, but that was pre arranged. And I wanted to say, you come down here and see this room and tell me about pre 

Ben Bernstein: arranging it. I will say we've dedicated a lot of our time in these six episodes to stories where you're naked. Oh, 

Alan Bernstein: well, I did a lot. 

Ben Bernstein: Wait a minute. Way too many. 

Alan Bernstein: No, not naked. Well, I was naked in Paducah.

We don't 

Ben Bernstein: have to go 

Alan Bernstein: through them. Oh, I can name the cities I think. 

Ben Bernstein: I know you can. Yeah. So we now have the Belle. Yes. We are tasked with bringing the Belle up, up the Mississippi and Ohio rivers to sit to the Cincinnati area, but doing ceremonies on July 

Alan Bernstein: 3rd. July 3rd. 1999. 1999.

We were [00:39:00] on the New Orleans waterfront right at the park there. That was our deadline. That's when we had to be there. We had to be there with the Belle on that date. Right. And we just made it. And we were there it was three days. There was a three day celebration and the mayor came and, you know said some nice things so on the 5th of July we had Northbound.

Correct. And so we were given the 17 cities in 30 days. To stop and do ceremonies, there was a, 

Ben Bernstein: you know, who did we do the ceremonies for? Well, who the local people, the local, 

Alan Bernstein: and they 

Ben Bernstein: got the idea was it, what was it for? Why? It was to show off the world. Who set it up? Like why? Probably 

Alan Bernstein: Wayne Carlisle.

Well, Wayne's for what reason? Yeah. Go on. To promote the, the Belle. It was a freedom Belle, you know things weren't going, going, yeah, it wasn't going great, but certainly nothing [00:40:00] like today, but they need the world peace Belle today. Was a beautiful Belle and people actually sort of thought it was like magical peace.

And I, well, people, we used to put their hands on Troy, were you impressed on what, what, what people thought of the Belle? 

Troy Manthey: Oh yeah. People were very impressed with the Belle. 

It was a beautiful Belle and there were great ceremonies at all the river cities. I think a lot of people really enjoyed it.

Alan Bernstein: The first stop that I want to just emphasize was Natchez where we were invited to a plantation, a beautiful, beautiful plantation where there was a ceremony out there and we had some great food.

Real Southern plantation kind of, it was absolutely gorgeous. And we were sort of treated pretty nicely. Like we were the celebrities of the day. And we got treated pretty nicely in Memphis. [00:41:00] By the locals, the politicians and, and all of that.

We can come up to Carrollton why don't you talk about the overheated cameraman? 

Troy Manthey: So at every one of the cities we stopped at, we had an onboard cameraman that was documenting the whole trip. Tim Eversole, affectionately known as fingers bit of a comedian. Very knowledgeable guy.

And he loved practical jokes. So we had some hot sauce on the boat that we would practical joke one another on. And, and I had my own bathroom on the boat and we had a river hall of famer on the boat with us by the name of Doc Hawley. Captain Hawley was on it the last couple of legs. And it was an honor to have him.

So he and I were sharing the captain's bathroom. Well fingers thought it would be funny to take jalapeno juice and put it on my toilet seat in the bathroom. So little did he know that Captain Hawley was [00:42:00] also used in that bathroom as well as me. So both Captain Hawley and myself got the red ass big time from jalapeno juice. juice put on the toilet seat. So Captain Hawley squirming around. He don't know what's going on. What's going on. finally, it comes out what happened to us. So I'm like, okay, that's all fine and dandy. So the next stop is Carrollton, which is the last stop on the parade of cities.

Yep. Before we get to Cincinnati. And so I take the hot sauce and I wipe the camera lens the, the sunshield around the eye lens with the hot sauce. So when fingers puts his eye up to the lens, it gets all around his eye and he's sweating. So Alan and I are sitting on the barge. We're in our captain's uniforms with the mayor and Mr. Carlisle and everybody, and they're doing the ceremonies and I'm watching fingers and I say, yeah, watch fingers over there. So. He's starting to sweat and then he's starting to rub his face and then [00:43:00] he's starting to scream and cut up and he don't Know what's going on and I can't stop laughing and he's punching me saying You're gonna ruin the ceremony and we're both laughing now.

We can't go and he's like, what did you do to him? What did you do? I said I got his ass back. Don't worry about it so So anyway, he finally figures it out. He just runs right through the ceremony Into the washroom and leaves his camera And Al and I I am laughing hysterically All the vips are going what the hell happened?

And he was in there So we got even on him. I think that was the same night that ben's toenails got painted. And we had a lot of practical jokes at the end there. 

Alan Bernstein: That was, it was a classic when he started running through the crowd in the ceremony, the whole ceremony is going on. He's running through the crowd. And it was 

Ben Bernstein: already hot. That was in Carrollton. Oh yeah. Carrollton [00:44:00] we were desperately trying to finish up painting the decks. So we were all trying to paint and it was I mean, it was like record. It might still be record heat in Carrollton.

It was like 106 degrees. Troy's like, Nope, Nope. You got to keep painting. Well, the paint would not even stick to the decks. It was just, yeah, it would, it would now dry. Yeah, it was, it was 

Alan Bernstein: miserable. It was, it was. 

Ben Bernstein: So we finally get up Cincinnati, which was, I think the early days of August maybe the third or fourth, something like that.

Yep. About a week later, we do a christening ceremony over on the Cincinnati public landing. 

Alan Bernstein: And let me explain it in a christening ceremony. You usually take a family member or an honoree or a mayor. And I thought in this case, since Troy had done something very special for us, that we would invite his daughter who was was she four four or five, six, she wasn't old.

Troy Manthey: Yeah. [00:45:00] She was four years old, 

Alan Bernstein: four years old. And she had the honor of breaking the champagne bottle over the Belle of Cincinnati. Which we have pictures of. She's still a very cute girl. A very pretty girl. I should say you, you don't call girls cute anymore. She's now 

Terri Bernstein: a mom.

Alan Bernstein: Oh, that's right. She is now a mother. God, time flies. Grandpappy Troy. Yeah. Grandpappy troy, you know but she she did a great job. Her name is Lindsey and Lindsey. If you are listening to this podcast you're still a cute little girl. So creepy. I am. You're creepy. Well, can't you call a girl cute?

Or is You can do whatever you want. Is that politically uncorrect? Is she 

Terri Bernstein: now? Troy? How old is she? She's 

Alan Bernstein: 29. 

Terri Bernstein: Oh yeah. 

Ben Bernstein: Or 30, 29. Yeah. There you go. 

Terri Bernstein: Is I mean, she's not a cute little girl anymore. She's a woman. Woman. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, when you're 73, what are you? What is a cute little girl? What are you talking about? She's [00:46:00] not 73.

I am. Why can't I call a little girl either? No, I called her a cute little girl and she's a 

Terri Bernstein: woman anyway. 

Alan Bernstein: Oh, I'm sorry. Lindsay, you're 

Troy Manthey: having another Bernstein family session here. We need to get back on 

Alan Bernstein: track. Okay. Is there anything else you want to say about our trip?

Troy Manthey: No, I think you got one of the best boats on the entire river system. I mean, God bless y'all that y'all have been able to keep the boat going when the big boats are having such challenges with industry regulation and, and all the hurdles you have to jump to keep them running. And the fact that you guys are thriving up in Cincinnati with a thousand passenger boat it's just a true credit to your family and the hard work y'all put in.

It's, It's a beautiful boat, and I think it's part of a Cincinnati legacy now, it's part of the DNA of the city, so, so It is, and thanks, thanks. It's very exciting to see it still, I think. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, thank you very much for that [00:47:00] comment, cause and I, I will say back to you, I do believe today, out of all of the pilots that I know in the country, There is not one pilot I would have in front of Troy Mantheyy to pilot the Belle of Cincinnati.

There's not one in the country. Other than me, of course. No, you're way down the line. You are so far down below me, it's not even funny. But I, one thing before Troy goes. Troy and I use each other for therapy quite a bit. And I'll be having a bad day and out of the blue, I get a call from Troy.

He goes, Alan, I gotta tell you what happened to me today. And so, and I call him every once in a while and say, Troy, I got one on top of your story. The last, the last one I remember is he had a boat up in dry dock and the dry dock dropped it. Dropped it. Dropped it. [00:48:00] Yep. And Troy calls me and he wasn't laughing, but he sort of was, you know, you could tell he was amused a little bit.

He gets 

Ben Bernstein: that little higher pitch voice. Yeah, 

Alan Bernstein: yeah, yeah, yeah. And he said, Al, you'll never guess what happened to me today. And I'm going, well, what could happen? I mean, you know, what he said, the dry dock dropped my boat. Which there's not many people in this world can say that. That's right, and it always seems these kinds of crazy things happen to Troy and I.

I have heard from nobody in the country. I've got friends all over the United States and nobody calls me with stories like Troy. Nobody. 

Troy Manthey: and I, I think that now we're, we're just smarter than everyone else. , we use it as therapy. Let keep it inside and it's all bundled up, okay? And they're not gonna live a long life like you and I. Okay? We get it up and I take your bad day and make it into the best of love. When I tell you my story, , oh my 

Alan Bernstein: God. Ugh. [00:49:00] 

Terri Bernstein: You do have the best story. 

Alan Bernstein: He does have the best story. There's ours. Don't compare to his. 

Ben Bernstein: Well, I will say, I will ask one more question of Troy. Is there anything you'd like to say about something on the horizon 

Troy Manthey: It's getting closer. We're embarking on an exciting chapter in our company's history of rehab and to beautiful river boats. We took one out for sea trials yesterday and performed very well. We can't wait to take all the antlers from everyone on the river with it.

And we can't wait to announce what city we're going to be going to. We're getting closer and closer and and we couldn't be more excited about Tallstacks next year. That's one of the highlights of Of all us riverboat folks. It really takes you back in time and it's very magical.

So I know you guys put a lot of hard work into that and it's commendable. And it's very exciting. I have something to look forward to. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, you do, and we are looking very forward to. And you know what, [00:50:00] 

Troy Manthey: we have to do an episode on Tall Stack's. Practical joke, because there's been quite a few. Yes. Been quite, yes. 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah, you are right.

We could probably get a whole round table of that. Oh yeah. We, we could, we get 

Troy Manthey: closer to Tall Stacks. We have quite a, we have a lot of content 

Alan Bernstein: Yes. 

Troy Manthey: For another podcast. Oh 

Alan Bernstein: yes, we do. I sorta remember a golf cart incident, but I won't spoil the thrill here. 

Ben Bernstein: We will certainly add that to the, yep, to the list of episodes coming.

But Troy, we're looking forward to, to hearing about any of your new ventures as they come and they're announced and wish you the best of luck down in Tampa. And I'm sure we will see you very soon. 

Alan Bernstein: All right. Thanks, Troy. We really appreciate it. Say hello to Jill. All right. All right.

Well, thanks.

Ben Bernstein: He's a 

Alan Bernstein: great guy. 

Ben Bernstein: He is. He is. He is. All right. Moving right along. It is your favorite time of the day. [00:51:00] 

Moderator: Now it is time for ramblin on the rivers.

Word of the day.

Ben Bernstein: Now, finally, this week, Al thought last week. This was his word. That's correct. But it was not 

Alan Bernstein: the case. But today, it is the case. It is. And we are on Bam Boozled. Is that one word or two words? It's a one word deal, but let me try to spell it for you, because it's not easy. Why are you looking 

Ben Bernstein: at the paper?

Well, I wanted to make 

Alan Bernstein: sure that I had this correct. It is B A M M B O O O 

Ben Bernstein: Z L E D. So you now have two words that have three O's in a row. So the [00:52:00] English language doesn't have any words. I could be wrong, but I don't think the English language even has one word that has three consecutive O's in it.

Or three consecutive vowels, even. But that is like your dictionary has 

Alan Bernstein: two out of what? 

Ben Bernstein: Six words. Now that is six words. 

Alan Bernstein: My dictionary is different than everybody else's very much. 

Ben Bernstein: You have been, what does bamboozled mean, Al? 

Alan Bernstein: Boozled. Boozled. It means taken. You don't even know. Taken advantage of or you've been tricked. Like 

Ben Bernstein: pranked prank like jalapeno juice on a toilet seat. Yes Or like hot sauce on your on a lens.

Yeah. 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah. Yeah, man that had to hurt in that heat And you know, wait, you know how terrible that is when you get something in your eye and it's burning And you can't get rid of it. 

Ben Bernstein: Yeah That's why I cut hot peppers. I put latex gloves on whatnot. They're not [00:53:00] latex anymore Rubber gloves on right oh.

Because of the same thing. Oh. If you ever reach your eye Oh, yeah, yeah, 

Alan Bernstein: yeah. And it won't ever go away. So I, I have no idea how that originated, but the, or origin of the word. What's it look? Last week you just looked at the word and said, ah, it's German . Oh, you, oh, okay. You ba no, I'm just saying bamboozled is, australian. It's a bamboozled world in Australia. All right. Okay. Can you use it in a sentence? I can use it in a sentence. Troy bamboozled several people on the trip up the river. No? 

Ben Bernstein: That wasn't good. I mean, it was probably wasn't your best attempt. No, 

Alan Bernstein: probably wasn't, but that's okay. That's pretty good.

I'll take that. 

Ben Bernstein: All right. All right, moving on. Last segment of the day. 

Moderator: Welcome to as the [00:54:00] paddle wheel turns our look at pertinent current events happening right now in the world.

Ben Bernstein: So today's as the paddle wheel turns or our little segment here on current events, we're going to do something a little bit different. Okay. Terri and I have talked a little bit. We've mentioned a little bit of our children. Yes. My sister is the mother of one and a stepmother to two others.

Yes. And I am the father of one and a soon to be stepfather for three others. Yes. And we thought we would the family's growing. Yeah, and we thought we would brag about them for a little bit. Okay. Little current events, a little I'll shut up and listen. So Ter, why don't you give us a little update on your family?

Terri Bernstein: Well Emma is the last one I have in the house. Yep. Our oldest, Billy, is now 

Alan Bernstein: Working. 

Terri Bernstein: Working. [00:55:00] He redoes Mercedes that were, you know, either wrecked or, or whatever. So he works for a company that does all the repairs for Mercedes. Joey graduated last year he graduated two weeks later.

He got a job at Mercedes. And then, but 

Ben Bernstein: he's a race car driver. 

Terri Bernstein: He is a race car driver. It's 

Ben Bernstein: a hobby. Oh, it's not a profession yet. Oh, no. Well, okay. That's true. 

Terri Bernstein: Two weeks later, he moved out. He has his own apartment. 

Alan Bernstein: There you 

Terri Bernstein: go. And now we have left Emma. Say hi, Emma. Hi. 

Alan Bernstein: So you didn't have the two boys on, but we have M.

Terri Bernstein: We have M. M is getting ready to go into volleyball. Oh 

Alan Bernstein: yeah. 

Terri Bernstein: M is our volleyball star. And she is in school volleyball right now. She made the varsity and the JV team. And 

Ben Bernstein: She goes to Beachwood High School. She's gonna be a sophomore. Is that right, M? 

Terri Bernstein: Yes. 

Ben Bernstein: Wow. 

Terri Bernstein: Wow. 

Ben Bernstein: What 

Terri Bernstein: did you do today, [00:56:00] Em? Well, 

Emma Stewart: today I volunteered for five hours. 

Terri Bernstein: What, where did you 

Emma Stewart: volunteer? I volunteered with Shane Armstrong.

I don't know what the company's called, so I couldn't tell you. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, what did you do when you say you volunteered? 

Emma Stewart: What we did today was we sorted through clothes. So some to go to the domestic and then some to go to Honduras. 

Alan Bernstein: Okay, 

Emma Stewart: very 

Alan Bernstein: good. 

Emma Stewart: Which it was a lot of fun. And then also did some like food and.

Yeah, 

Alan Bernstein: very good Very very very good. 

Terri Bernstein: So Grandpa's 

Alan Bernstein: impressed. 

Elim Bernstein: Yeah, what else em? What other exciting things? Do you have any love interests? 

Alan Bernstein: Not that she can talk about on air. 

Terri Bernstein: Oh, 

Ben Bernstein: I know. 

Alan Bernstein: Oh, I can talk about it. I've been to his house. Oh, I haven't been to his house. 

Terri Bernstein: Okay, okay, okay. I have not 

Ben Bernstein: been. Elim's [00:57:00] getting a kick out of all that.

Oh, yeah. 

Alan Bernstein: He's here listening. But he's a very nice boy. I haven't met him actually. Well, how do you know he's a very nice cause I have done a lot of investigation. I got his social security number and date of birth and I had it checked out on the official channels that this is a good kid. Well, I, 

Ben Bernstein: I pulled up to his home and he was waiting there for Emma and I rolled the window down

he looked at me like I was a brick wall. He didn't know what to do. So Emma got out of the car and she ran inside and that's about it. Huh? Okay. 

Alan Bernstein: All right. 

But M what, what kind of grades do you get?

Emma Stewart: I would say some good grades like all A's, maybe like one or two B's. 

Alan Bernstein: Ooh, we gotta get those B's up. 

Emma Stewart: Listen to you, 

Terri Bernstein: Terri, how many A's 

Alan Bernstein: did you get? I 

Elim Bernstein: don't think any. 

Alan Bernstein: No, never. Emma had 

Elim Bernstein: all A's until one [00:58:00] class at the end of the semester last year and it was one teacher that she had a hard time with.

Oh, 

Alan Bernstein: well. Yeah. Yeah. Had to have been the teacher's fault, then. Well, I'll go over and talk to the teacher. That'll be the last B she ever gives. Oh, 

Emma Stewart: boy. 

Alan Bernstein: All right, Em, you can go to volleyball practice. You can go to volleyball now. 

Ben Bernstein: All right, love you guys. Bye, sweetie. 

Alright on to my lovely family and luckily in studio Oh boy, we have Elim Alan Bernstein.

Say hi to everybody. 

Elim Bernstein: Hi 

Ben Bernstein: The E man is here. Elim is 11 years old. He's gonna be 12 here in about a month Well, wait a minute, but 

Alan Bernstein: I have to tell you a funny story yesterday he was upstairs while we were having lunch Did he have shoes on? I don't know. I wasn't looking for shoes, but my assistant Tamara asked because he had grown, I [00:59:00] haven't seen he for a couple of months.

I mean, really? And I, when he walked in, I went, Oh my God, is he grown? But she said Elim, how old are you? He said, I'm going to be 15 in a couple of weeks. And I listened to that and I went, Oh, okay. And Finally, Rick in our office goes, he's not going to be 15, he's the same age as my son at 11.

But he looks like he could be 15, there's no doubt in my mind, he could be, 

Terri Bernstein: Emma looks like 

Alan Bernstein: she could be 18. And he didn't even flinch, never said another word about, he About 11 or it was really it was a little jokey. Would you agree? It was funny. Would you agree?

Yes Okay. All right. Is that all you're gonna say? Yeah, I don't know what he's gonna say. Yes or 

Ben Bernstein: no 

Alan Bernstein: answer Why can't well 

Elim Bernstein: and talk a little 

Alan Bernstein: bit 

Elim Bernstein: what sports do you play? So, right now i'm playing football and then we just finished baseball and then 

Ben Bernstein: how do we [01:00:00] do in baseball? 

Elim Bernstein: So this was our best season yet in travel ball we went 43 and 15 Wow, 

Ben Bernstein: that's great It's actually 43 15 and 1 they had one tie. Oh and Elim was tasked with We made a lot of tournament finals and you mean in baseball we did. Yeah, and he was tasked a lot of times The philosophy of our coach I think is if if he can help it You know, you, you really emphasize the semifinals cause you can't play for a championship unless you make it to that.

That's right. So Elim was tasked a lot of times with being the starting pitcher for the semi semifinal games. And especially our last tournament, which was up in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He threw , a complete game. I think you only gave up one run. He really was a stud all year.

Alan Bernstein: Yeah, he is a great, pretty darn good. He really pretty, you're a lefty, right? you're a lefty. I, I should say. Correct. Yeah. But you're, you're a leftie, 

Ben Bernstein: yes, I will say I [01:01:00] brag on him a bit. He did a lot of work in the off season and he struggled at the end, last half of the year, last, last season, 10 year baseball, he struggled at the plate and he, he lost his confidence and he was bailing out.

He was afraid of the ball and he did a lot of great work in the off season. And really first half of the year, this year, first three quarters of the year, he was playing great, both hitting and pitching. He had a little hiccup. He got the yips again for a little bit about last, I don't know, maybe two or three weeks at the end of the year.

But the last tournament he came in and held your hardest hit ball for sure. Probably would've been. Out of the ballpark and some of the other parks that we played. Although this park was 300 plus foot fences. So not going to make it over those walls. But he is now embarking on a new challenge.

He's played football one other, two other years. But he has not played, you played three football three years, but it's been two years since you played. [01:02:00] Yeah. Yeah. He's a sixth grader, Beechwood. And if anybody isn't aware, Beachwood's a big football program in our area.

And he's starting his his year off here. And 

Alan Bernstein: he has the body for, he does. He really is. I mean, he, he has a good pitching body too, but is he's really made for football. 

Ben Bernstein: Yeah. He has a future on the offensive and defensive line. here in Beechwood football, practice started is probably the fourth week of practice, maybe they have their first scrimmage coming up here on Saturday and it's only a scrimmage and it's preseason.

But for the scrimmage, he's going to be the starting nose tackle for the really playing seventh grade football. So we'll see how it goes after the scrimmage. It doesn't mean he's going to start during the season and they get a lot more kids in during the scrimmages than they will in the regular season, but I have gotten individual notes from three different coaches of his, and they are just glowing [01:03:00] about Elim.

So 

Alan Bernstein: well, I don't think they ought to glow too hard because he's going to get a big head and all that stuff. Why don't you talk a little bit, just, do you like football? 

Elim Bernstein: Yes. 

Alan Bernstein: What do you, what, yes is not a good answer on a radio show. 

Ben Bernstein: Elaborate a little, what kind of stuff are you enjoying about football?

I mean, has it been hard? Like with go back to like at the start, you were a little anxious about this your first time really in the gym and, and lifting weights and doing the. You know, sprints and things like that. Has that been difficult? Has it been, have you been meeting a lot of new people and anything like that?

Elim Bernstein: So at the start when we were first lifting, it was like pretty nervous. Cause like all the other kids were lifting more weights than me. So it was a little nervous because I didn't want to look like the bad kid. 

Ben Bernstein: Not the bad kid. The weakling. Yeah. 

Elim Bernstein: So I got a little nervous, but then I went around and we like met, I met like everybody and now we're all best friends.

Who's your [01:04:00] coach? Coach B

Alan Bernstein: well, that's great. No, he really does have the right body composition to play for you like 

Elim Bernstein: football or baseball better.

Well right now baseball or don't you play basketball too? Yeah, I like baseball right now better, but I haven't played through the whole season of football yet 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah, I 

Ben Bernstein: think 

Elim Bernstein: what about basketball? Where does that rank? Second right now because of because I would say 

Ben Bernstein: typically Leading up to at least the first 11 years of his life it's whatever sport he's playing.

Is that right? Right, right, right. We'll see how it goes. i've always thought that If he really took to enjoying, you know, football's tough, it's a hard sport. , you're practicing all this time right now in 90, 95 degree heat and the running sprints and doing up downs and they're doing bear crawls and 

Terri Bernstein: all of, 

Ben Bernstein: yeah, all of that before, you know, you even get to play a game.

And then when you're a lineman you're playing a whole game where you're just sitting there pushing people You don't get to score touchdowns. You don't [01:05:00] you don't get 

Terri Bernstein: all the glory. You don't get all 

Ben Bernstein: the glory But you know nothing happens unless the lineman blocks. That's right So I figured if he could find the love of doing that Yep, I think he has a chance to be a really good player.

Yeah. Yes, he does 

Alan Bernstein: And 

Ben Bernstein: it 

Alan Bernstein: doesn't and 

Elim Bernstein: beachwood football is exciting. 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah. 

Elim Bernstein: Yeah, you know, we've always had a good team. Yeah, I mean You 17 

Alan Bernstein: state 

Ben Bernstein: championships 

Alan Bernstein: or something like that. It helps quite a bit that he's able to think and he's a smart young man and I think that's going to help him. He's always 

Ben Bernstein: gotten A's and maybe a B or two.

Alan Bernstein: Ooh. I never heard of any B's. Just a couple. 

Ben Bernstein: There are not many. 

Alan Bernstein: Okay. 

Terri Bernstein: And I think those are probably when he's bored. 

Alan Bernstein: Yeah, because he's a 

Terri Bernstein: smart kid. Yes, 

Alan Bernstein: he is. But, yeah, E good luck to you. Really. I will be coming to many of your games. 

Ben Bernstein: So, other than Elim, I'm getting married in about a year.

But when we do get married here in about a year, I will be the stepfather of three more children.

Yes and [01:06:00] one of which is getting ready to start his senior year at highlands high school Yes, he was in an enquire articles one of the top returning scorers in in northern kentucky soccer harrison, Also today as we're recording this today's august the 8th Cooper who is the the middle child?

Just passed, just got his private's license. He's down in Embry Riddle in Daytona Beach, Florida. And he's studying to be an airline pilot. And just passed, literally an hour or so ago, just just passed his they call it a check ride where he goes and he's now has his private's license, which is his next step in obtaining, working his way up to 

Elim Bernstein: to.

Can he fly us all around? He can fly us 

Ben Bernstein: around in a Cessna right now. I don't, I don't know if there's waiting 

Alan Bernstein: for the Learjet is what I'm waiting 

Ben Bernstein: for. There's weight limits on a Cessna. And then finally last weekend my fiance, Erica and I, we went up to Interlochen in Michigan and her daughter, Sophia [01:07:00] just finished a six week internship at the Interlochen Center for the Arts, which is a very, very prestigious center for the arts, but they have a very prestigious summer camp.

She did the internship there and was the head stage manager for their production of Matilda, where they basically go through and put on a performance in a six week time frame. We went up and saw their performance last weekend, so that's my family.

Alan Bernstein: Well, they're a great family. They really are, including Erica, who doesn't like to be mentioned. 

Ben Bernstein: I'm not going to tell her, as she listens, I'm sure her face will get red. Hopefully nobody else is listening with her. 'cause then she'll really get embarrassed. 

Alan Bernstein: Well, she is a great young woman. 

Ben Bernstein: She is. She a cute, what does he say? Cute 

Alan Bernstein: young girl. Cute young girl. Young woman. Woman,

Terri Bernstein: I think she's amazing. Can't have three. 

Alan Bernstein: You cannot have three kids and be a young girl. 

Terri Bernstein: She could not be more perfect for our family. She, 

Alan Bernstein: she [01:08:00] absolutely could not. And She fits 

Terri Bernstein: right in.

Alan Bernstein: She does. She does. Yeah, she does. She does. 

Ben Bernstein: Alright, so the next episode we are going to talk about the history of BB Riverboats and the Passenger Vessel Association. Ooh. We're going to have another guest. John Groundwater. Oh, boy. Has agreed to come on. That's what we have to look forward to.

 all three of us have done quite a bit of work. Nowhere near as much as my father has but you know, he's. He's the top of the list for everything. I 

Alan Bernstein: was the president back then it was called the National Association of Passenger Vessel Owners. And that 1988 was my presidency. 

Terri Bernstein: Today we realize it's been 10 years for me.

I was 2014. Can you believe it? 

Alan Bernstein: And I don't know if you have aspirations of being the president, but I think that you ought to be rolling up the the hill. He doesn't make 

Elim Bernstein: that decision. Yeah, I know he doesn't. 

Ben Bernstein: that happens. But he can campaign. I don't need to campaign. 

So that's it for [01:09:00] this week. We will see you all again next week. Bye bye.

Moderator: Thank you for listening to the ramblin on the river podcast presented by BB Riverboats. Stay tuned for the next episode of our podcast and remember to like, subscribe and follow us on all your favorite podcast platforms.

Ben Bernstein: The previous episode was brought to you by BB Riverboats. 

Sponsor Message: The moments that await just around the river's bend are what we look forward to each day. Watching high school sweethearts tie the knot, or watching them celebrate 50 wonderful years together. A group of old friends reuniting for one more adventure, or young minds embarking on their first.

At BB Riverboats, we believe a cruise on the mighty Ohio is where lifelong [01:10:00] memories are made. And that once you experience it, you'll want to share it with others time and time again. Plan your group event at BBRiverboats. com. Journey Aboard.