Video provided by Go Find It! Nebraska
Get ready, get set, and … Go Find It!
Discover the off-road and roadside Nebraska hot spots that foodies, history buffs, outdoor enthusiasts, sports fans and nightlife lovers can’t get enough of. Flyover country this is not!
Throughout the next few months, Mike Smith, an award-winning Nebraska entrepreneur, travel and adventure keynote speaker, filmmaker and founder of the youth skatepark The Bay, will be taking Nebraskans from Scottsbluff to Omaha as part of the road-trip-style show, “Go Find It! Nebraska.”
The 60-minute statewide special will feature six five- to 10-minute “chapters” showcasing the places, people, companies — and hidden gems — that make Nebraska anything but ordinary, wonderfully unconventional and a cut above the rest.
This remarkably distinct Nebraska road show will feature stops in:
- Chadron: Oct. 20 to 23
- Kearney: Oct. 24
- Ogallala and North Platte: Oct. 27 to 29
- Lincoln: Oct. 30 and 31
- Omaha: Nov. 10 to 12
- Grand Island: Early to mid-November
Dates subject to change based on weather.
Event partners helping to make the trip a reality include:
- Presenting Partner: Kawasaki
- Official Fuel Partner: Pump & Pantry
- CompanyCam
- Chief Industries
- Elite Casinos
- Bayside Golf Club
- The Archway
- Visit North Platte
- Chadron Hospital
Individuals and organizations interested in joining the adventurous road trip as a partner can find more information at: gofindit.s.gy/wahoo.
The show will premiere across Nebraska news sites and MikeSmithLive.com in December. Check back here for streaming updates.
Smith, a born storyteller and adventurer who has literally skateboarded across the state three times, is earning accolades on the global film festival circuit with his award-winning film “Prairie Pirates.” The short film showcases Smith chasing adventure and meeting interesting characters in western Nebraska during his hunt for vintage dirt bikes. In 2010, Smith established The Bay, a youth nonprofit and indoor skatepark network in Lincoln and Omaha. He currently hosts the drive-time radio show, Culture and Coffee, that bridges skateboarding, local student athletes, entrepreneurship and community pop culture throughout Lincoln.
With “Go Find It,” the Nebraska native hopes to explore and capture the rural Midwest landscapes by unearthing things off the beaten path, highlighting not only the open prairie but the high-energy subcultures that exist within it. Some of the featured stops along the way will include packed stadiums cheering on the local college football team, homegrown Nebraska businesses that form the backbone of their communities, distinct regional landmarks, college-town energy and the gritty charm of the open prairie.
“A wise person once told me, there’s no such thing as boring places, only boring people,” Smith said. “And that’s why I’m here, to show you around a little bit. Take you to the places off the beaten path. Places you can’t find on Google Maps. Those places that only a local can show you.”
Smith said he is looking for untold Nebraska stories, especially the “weird, the hyper-local and the stubbornly authentic parts of the state that don’t make it into mainstream travel brochures.”
Mike Smith, award-winning Nebraska entrepreneur and filmmaker, and Ava Thomas, regional vice president for Lee Enterprises
“At Lee Enterprises, our tagline is ‘Where Your Story Lives.’ We tell those stories every day through our newspapers and digital platforms, and Go Find It! Nebraska gives us an exciting new way to bring them to life and reach audiences far beyond our borders,” said Ava Thomas, regional vice president for Lee Enterprises.
“Nebraskans have never been short on extraordinary stories. We’re humble by nature, better at doing remarkable things than talking about them,” she said. “As a lifelong Nebraskan, I’ve spent more than three decades witnessing the incredible people, innovative businesses and hidden gems that make this state special. With our news organizations spanning the state from Scottsbluff to Omaha, we’re uniquely positioned to amplify those stories. And with Go Find It! Nebraska, we’ll do just that. I can’t imagine a better partner than Mike Smith, whose curiosity, adventurous spirit and love for Nebraska are infectious. Our goal is simple: We want people watching, whether they live here or a thousand miles away, to say, ‘I had NO idea THAT was in Nebraska!’”
Have a local place you’d like fellow Nebraskans to know? Send details to gofindit.s.gy/wahoo.
Get ready to Go Find It with Mike Smith this December.
