Here's a message to the great couchsurfing community of Bowling Green

ATTENTION: COUNTDOWN TO THE 2014 CRASH THE LOU: ST. LOUIS COUCH CRASH When: Thursday September 18 through Sunday September 21 Where: St. Louis, Missouri Who: YOU and your soon-to-be new CS friends Why: Discover and explore the beautiful, historic city of St. Louis through the eyes of the locals who love it

====================== Thursday, September 18

6:00pm-11:00pm – Crash the Lou Opening Welcome Party & Game Night Location TBD Come to the opening meet and greet and get your schedule for the weekend, your CS wristband, meet the Crash the Lou leadership team, meet the other CSers from near and far and maybe even have a swim (location pending).

====================== Friday, September 19

10:00am-1:00pm: Option A) Riverfront Bike Ride, concluding at the Mississippi Flood Wall, where awesome murals await your eyes. If it is open and ready for the public, we can stop and see the famous St. Louis Arch.

10:00am-1:00pm Option B) Benton Park Café Hangout followed by Mississippi Flood Wall.

Both groups will converge at the Flood Wall for a group photo.*

1:00pm-2:30pm: Forest Park Picnic - Meet at Art Hill, in front of the St. Louis Art Museum, down by the Grand Basin for a picnic. We will have some games to play (washers, cornhole, Frisbee, Cards Against Humanity.

2:30pm-6:00pm: Forest Park Exploration - Disperse from Art Hill and disperse to see the various FREE wonders that Forest Park offers, including the History Museum, Art Museum, Zoo, Science Center, and the Boathouse (not free, but FUN!)

7:00pm-9:30pm: St. Louis Balloon Glow - Truly a must see! All of the hot air balloons involved in the Great Forest Park Balloon Race are parked in Forest Park and lit up! Lots of local St. Louis food vendors accompany the visual splendors, ending in a brilliant fireworks display.

10:30pm-1:00am: A Night at City Museum - We will conclude our Friday night by descending upon the City Museum (and ascending to the rooftop for a night of child-like fun exploring slides, ferris wheels, caves, ball pits and all the stuff our inner children yearn for. *Hosted by Chad Baker

10:00pm-3:00am: The Grove - For anyone interested in the St. Louis nightlife We will take a journey down to the Grove on Manchester and explore the many clubs it has to offer.

========================== Saturday, September 20

9:00am: Yoga in Tower Grove Park - In conjunction with the Tower Grover Farmer’s Market, enjoy some blissful morning relaxation in downward facing dog, more details to follow.

9:00am-12:00pm - Soulard Farmer's Market Tour - Enjoy locally grown fruits, vegetables and livestock at a market that’s been running since 1779 in its various forms and venues.

12:00pm-6:30pm - Option A) Neighborhood Explorations: Join a local St. Louisan and explore three neighborhoods of St. Louis (Tower Grove, the Delmar Loop, and Central West End. Included in the exploration will be a lunch at a local favorite and a photo at a staple monument within the neighborhood. We will do two rotations of the exploration so that folks can get to witness two of St. Louis’ many great neighborhoods. First Rotation from 12:00pm-3:00pm 30 minutes to travel to next location (they are all very close) Second Rotation from 3:30pm-6:30 pm

12:00pm-7:00pm - Option B) Dogtown Street Musicians Festival: The 4th Annual Dogtown Street Musicians Festival celebrates the rich musical history of Dogtown with artists lined up along the Dogtown business district. Musicians start performing at 1:00. *Hosted by Jean Corbett

6:00pm-9:00pm Flex time – explore the city on your own (eat, shower, shop for party, get to party)

9:00pm-3:00am: BLOWOUT PARTY Location TBD Theme: TBA

======================= Sunday, September 21 =======================11:00am-2:00pm - Open House at STL STyLeHouse: Need a great T-Shirt to commemorate your trip to St. Louis, to show off the great time you had to your family and friends back home? Look no further. Randy and Jeff Vines, the owners of STyLeHouse, have opened up their doors to us Sunday morning/early afternoon for CSers to come and learn a little bit more about the city and to purchase some cool swag. *Hosted by Jeff and Randy Vines and Will Gilbert

2:00pm-5:00pm: Lou Crew Potluck Location: TBD Join the St. Louis Couchsurfing community, affectionately known as The Lou Crew, at our monthly potluck. The locals will bring the bulk of the food and goods, you just bring yourselves! We will conclude the CouchCrash weekend with chill times, good company and a group photo.

Here's a link to the event https://www.couchsurfing.org/meetings.html?mid=178998

If you are on Facebook, we have a group on there as well! https://www.facebook.com/groups/668996133161103/

Questions or comments about events, hosting, St. Louis, etc.? Don't hesitate to respond here or contact me privately.

Looking forward to seeing you all in St. Louis this September

Cheers Rolf