Meet Autio: A collection of location-based stories perfect for your road trip
Your next road trip could be a lot more fun. | Photo via Josh Hild + Pexels
Boy, do we have a story for you — 11,000+ of them, actually — all conveniently located within one app that can serve as your new travel buddy. And just like your favorite local newsletter, each story comes in at ~5 minutes and will leave you more informed about the cities you travel through.
Meet Autio, a location-based storytelling app. Let’s say you were taking a road trip along Lake Michigan. With Autio, you could listen as Academy Award-winning actor (and Autio co-founder) Kevin Costner regales you with the history of Chicago while driving through the Windy City, and later hear about the baseball team behind “A League of Their Own” while passing Racine, WI.
Here’s how it works: Launch the app, connect to Bluetooth, and hit the road. If you allow the app to know your location, it will automatically play stories based on where you are.
Take a look at five episodes you might hear while road tripping from Indianapolis. (PS: Five is the number of free stories you get when you make an account, so you can decide if an Autio subscription is for you.)
Queue up history
“City West Ghost Town” | Chesterton, IN | Discover the story of a 19th century town that almost rivaled Chicago before being devoured by the Indiana Sand Dunes.
“Home of the 4th of July Roach Races” | Roachdale, IN | Your skin may tingle while listening to this story of an Indiana town’s Fourth of July festivities.
“A Short Snorter” | Riverside, OH | Learn about a tradition that started as a way to get out of trouble + is now a “worldwide fellowship of aviation servicemen.”
“The Great Dayton Flood” | Dayton, OH | Catch the story of “the greatest natural disaster in the history of Ohio.”
“National Mustard Museum - Spicy!” | Middleton, WI | Take a whirlwind audio tour of the museum that boasts 5,600+ mustard flavors.
Interested in going beyond five episodes? Check out Autio’s membership options.
Summer Solstice Yoga Series | Thursday, Aug. 1 | 5 p.m. | The Alexander, 333 S. Delaware St., Indianapolis | Free | Let go of the day’s tensions with this free, weekly outdoor yoga class.
Game Night | Thursday, Aug. 1 | 5-7 p.m. | Indy Reads, 1066 Virginia Ave., Indianapolis | Free | Bring the family and friends for some chess and games, or bring along your favorite game to play.
Friday, Aug. 2
blink-182 | Friday, Aug. 2 | 7 p.m. | Gainbridge Fieldhouse, 125 S. Pennsylvania St., Indianapolis | $75+ | Get in on this rock show — the multi-platinum band will perform jams from their album “One More Time” for the first time in the US.
Saturday, Aug. 3
Brews on the Boulevard | Saturday, Aug. 3 | 4-9 p.m. | Midtown Plaza, 365 Monon Blvd., Carmel | $30-$50 | Enjoy samples from breweries throughout the state, plus food vendors + live entertainment.
Sunday, Aug. 4
Ice Cream Social - Irvington Historical Society | Sunday, Aug. 4 | 12-4 p.m. | Bona Thompson Center, 5350 University Ave., Indianapolis | Cost of purchase | Meet other Irvington organizations, check out a vintage rummage sale, and enjoy Sundae’s Homemade Ice cream and food from Bus Stop Bistro.
Friday, Aug. 16
The Struts at Rock the Ruins | Friday, Aug. 16 | 7-10 p.m. | Rock the Ruins, 6363 Spring Mill Rd., Indianapolis | $30-$35 | Grab tickets to enjoy a live performance from The Struts with special guest Barns Courtney at Holliday Park.*
The City of Indianapolis plans to begin tearing down the former Marion County Jail this October amid the ongoing redevelopment of downtown’s southeast side. Demo is expected to wrap up by next summer, making the 2-acre site available for redevelopment in 2025 — perhaps for that proposed MLS stadium. (IBJ)
Announced
The Big Ten Conference announced that Indy’s Gainbridge Fieldhouse will host the 2025 TIAA Big Ten Women’s + Men’s Basketball Tournaments, plus the 2026 Big Ten Women’s and 2027 Big Ten Men’s events. Tickets for the 2025 showdowns will go on sale at a later date.
Coming Soon
Consider this a travel delay. Wally’s — the super travel center originally set to open in Whitestown later this year — is now slated to debut in fall 2025. The 45,000-sqft center will feature prepared foods, gift items, and 80+ fuel and charging stations; construction begins on Friday, Aug. 16. (IndyStar)
Edu
Happy first day of school, Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS). More than 30,000 local students will return to the classroom today across IPS campuses. Parents, find 2024-2025 district + school events and resources to help your students make the grade on the IPS website.
Trending
Bottleworks Hotel — the downtown Indy hotel famously on the site of a former Coca-Cola bottling plant — has been nominated among 20 favorite boutique hotels in the country by USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice. Vote for the local spot through 12 p.m. Monday, Aug. 5.
Concert
The Cabaret has released its 2024 fall-winter lineup and we’re jazzed. Headliners include Reeve Carney, Aymée Nuviola, Malcolm-Jamal Warner, Eric McCormack, Ana Gasteyer, and Tituss Burgess. Ticket presales for fans who qualify begin Monday, Aug. 5, and general ticket sales begin Thursday, Aug. 8 at 10 a.m.
Plan Ahead
Prost. The Athenaeum Foundation will start selling tickets to its annual GermanFest today. The family-friendly celebration of German heritage will take place Saturday, Oct. 5, 12-6 p.m., at Athenaeum with two stages of live entertainment, wiener dog races, games, activities for the kids, and German food and drinks.
Arts
“Hold Lightly” — a new exhibition by Indy-based artist Priya Wittman documenting thoughts on time, memory + history — debuts tomorrow at Gallery 94 on North Pennsylvania Street. The opening reception is from 6 to 9 p.m.; the exhibit will remain on display through Thursday, Sept. 19.
Olympics
Fresh off two Olympic medal victories so far, University of Notre Dame swimmer Chris Guiliano will compete in the men’s 50m freestyle preliminary heats this morning. Keep up with Team USA and local athletes via WTHR. Today’s events include women’s boxing, women’s basketball + BMX racing.
Sports
The Hoosiers added 7-ft center Dallas James through the transfer portal to fill the final roster spot for the 2024-2025 season — and it’s a huge deal. Go beyond the scoreboard for the biggest stories on the Indiana Hoosiers with Locked On’s daily, team-focused podcasts.
Correction
In our story about local dead malls in Tuesday’s newsletter, we mistakenly stated that The Fashion Mall at Keystone has the only Apple Store in Indiana. That is incorrect, there is also a location in Mishawaka. We apologize.
Get more from your Costco membership — this week only, get a $40 digital Costco shop card and $60 off an order of $200+ on Costco.com when you buy an Executive Membership on our deals site.*
Olympics
🥈 Scoring that Olympics bling
Dreaming of gold: Olympians with ties to Indy competing in the Paris 2024 Olympics
Indy is well-represented at the Paris 2024 Olympics | Photo via Shea Stapley + INDYtoday
Loving the Paris 2024 Olympics? We’ve been keeping up with events via WTHR and tracking Olympians with ties to Indy. Team USA’s medal count is strong, and it includes some local athletes:
The Cardinal Ritter High School graduate won silver in the women’s springboard 3-meter alongside teammate Kassidy Cook — Team USA’s first medal at the 2024 Summer Olympics. In the stands, their families sported cute cook and bacon-themed shirts as a tribute to the duo.
Despite crashing on the course, the Brownsburg native won bronze in the individual time trial at 4:10:70 — less than a second from the silver medal. This was the three-time Olympian’s third Olympic medal. She’ll compete again in the women’s road race this Sunday, Aug. 4.
This Turkish cotton beach towel — it’s extremely absorbent, made with 100% natural cotton, and is the perfect soft aqua blue companion for your next trip to the ocean.
Bonjour, Indy. The Paris 2024 Olympics have me daydreaming of my trip to France with my family last year — strolls along the Seine, the parks, the cafes + bistros.
Speaking of French bistros — have you ever tried Petite Chou Bistro and Champagne Bar on Westfield Boulevard? We hear the salads and crêpes are très délicieux.
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