BARDSTOWN, Ky. (June 27, 2012) — Bardstown, a “Most Beautiful” small town in America finalist in the Rand McNally/USA TODAY “Best of the Road” contest, rolled out the red carpet June 22-24 for Nikki and Dusty Green. The couple is better known as Road Rally team “Two for the Road.”
“The people here have brought us in, we feel like family,” said Nikki Green of her experience in Bardstown. “I feel like we made lifelong friends.”
The husband-and-wife team are one of five Road Rally teams visiting small towns across America over the next several weeks to decide which small town is the champ in its category. Categories include Most Beautiful, Most Patriotic, Best for Food, Friendliest and Most Fun.
On Friday evening, Two for the Road was greeted at My Old Kentucky Dinner Train by an enthusiastic group that included the mayor and city officials. The Greens then led the parade into historic downtown Bardstown, where the film crew from the Travel Channel filmed their arrival. A crowd of more than 300 people welcomed the Greens to Court Square with a reception given in their honor.
“We had a ball showing Nikki and Dusty around,” said resident Dawn Ballard Przystal, vice president, tourism expansion and marketing of the Bardstown-Nelson County Tourist & Convention Commission. “We feel so honored to be one of the six finalists – and we miss our new friends already.”
The Greens — who are blogging, tweeting and posting to Facebook about their experience — had a whirlwind weekend that included touring some of Bardstown’s most well-known attractions, including distilleries. They sampled bourbon and ate fine and Southern-style cuisine at some of Bardstown’s most charming and distinctive restaurants. They got the full flavor of everything that makes this central Kentucky town of 11,000 so special.
The team boarded My Old Kentucky Dinner Train on Saturday evening for a four-course dinner and a vintage train ride into forested Bourbon Country. They overnighted at Beautiful Dreamer Bed and Breakfast, an antique-laden inn located across the street from My Old Kentucky Home State Park.
On Sunday, Nikki and Dusty got to go behind-the-scenes in Bardstown to see more of its charms and, like any visiting family and friends, were treated to some very special moments.
“They rolled out the welcome mat,” Dusty said.
The five Road Rally teams met in Washington, D.C., on June 15 and are visiting their way across the country, heading for Seattle. Here the contest will conclude in mid-July and the Rand McNally/USA TODAY “Best Of the Road’s” 2012 Best Small Towns in America will be named. The Travel Channel’s “Best of the Road” show will premiere at 8 p.m., Wednesday, July 25.
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