This picture is from my 2010 International Blues Challenge trip. Three things came together to make it happen. One was my retirement the previous month which gave me the required free time. The other two may not have been quite as big in absolute terms but they sure were big in terms of pure luck and in actually getting me to the event. About the same time someone posted the availability of a spare ticket via the local blues society group, someone else posted the availability of a room in a block reserved at the host hotel. I snagged the room but was just a little too late on the ticket. It still worked out great. I was able to get my own ticket and I learned that the person offering the extra was a fellow I worked with some years back. We connected in Memphis and have kept in touch since then.

There were 224 competing acts performing on two nights with a third night for the finals. There were also many non-competing acts performing around town in various showcases. I’ve heard the IBC called the largest gathering of blues musicians in the world. Knowing two of the bands in the finals was cool, and having one of those bands place third was downright phenomenal. The picture at the top is of those third place finishers: Cheryl Renee & Them Bones.

Trip Peeks are short articles published when my world is too busy or too boring for a current events piece to be completed in time for the Sunday posting. In addition to a photo thumbnail from a completed road trip, each Peek includes a brief description of that photo plus links to the full sized photo and the associated trip journal.