Slower Lower

Chris and Crystal sit down together for a short Slower Lower episode after a Saturday outing in eastern Sussex. Topics discussed: • There ain't no such place as West Fenwick! Salisbury University's food delivery robots; are college kids turning into college hermits? State rep candidate John Atkins promises to tackle local issues including the infuriating barrier between the Tractor Supply and BJ's...

Bird is the word! Outdoorsmen and wild game connoisseurs Billy Hardesty and Fulton Giebel return to the Slower Lower podcast for a hilarious booze-fueled three-hour episode about waterfowl and turkeys, and a heck of a lot more. Topics discussed: European and snowshoe hares are being removed from the list of Delaware game animals. What does that even mean? Things that make you go "Hmmm": Maryland g...

It's St. Patrick's Day on Delmarva! Or close enough. Award-winning photographer Russell A. Taylor III returns to hang out with Chris and Crystal in his fourth appearance on the Slower Lower podcast. Topics discussed: Select global headlines including an Irish employee who won 23,000 pounds after her boss repeatedly screamed "potato!" at her; also, Winston Churchill is getting boo...

March 2nd (3/02) is 302 Day, an unofficial Delaware holiday. On this episode of the Slower Lower podcast, Chris and Crystal crack Delaware beers from Dogfish Head and Dewey Beer and chat about the so-called First State. Topics discussed: 302: Delaware's statewide area code. Why Separation Day (June 15th), which commemorates the Three Lower Counties' separation from both Great Britain and Pennsylva...

Joe Wilson is an outdoorsman, a self-described “preacher of the meat gospel,” and has been called the “redneck Oprah Winfrey.” He is the founder and organizer of the annual World Champion Squirrel Cook Off , which draws dozens of competitors and thousands of spectators to northwest Arkansas every September, as well as the CEO of Steaks 4 Sheepdogs , a nonprofit organization which has served thousa...

It's a tale of two brunches. Whilst sampling two local craft beers, Chris and Crystal recap going out for brunch on two Saturdays in a row, first to the underrated Pines Public House in Ocean Pines, and then to the magnificent Spain Wine Bar in Ocean City. Topics discussed: Picking up purchases from an estate auction in Oak Hall, Virginia. When a server asks for your name, and remembers it. The Pi...

No, this one isn't about sports. Not much, anyway. On a super cold Sunday that happens to be Super Bowl Sunday, Chris and Crystal catch up after two weeks of brutal winter weather. Topics discussed: The overblown snowstorm of January 2026. Panic-buying; what do people do with all of that bread, milk, and toilet paper? Caring for backyard chickens in freezing temperatures. When winter events (e...

Tyler Scott and Amber Kairos live in Georgetown, Delaware. They started the popular public Facebook group "Make Georgetown Great Again" in October 2025 to encourage conversations about issues related to the town. In episode 27 of the Slower Lower podcast, Tyler and Amber joined Chris and Crystal for an unfiltered conversation about the group and all things Georgetown -- the good, the bad, and the...

Chris and Crystal ironically recap a post-Christmas pub crawl in downtown Salisbury, Maryland, before discussing Dry January and other matters concerning the new year. Topics discussed: Is the Georgetown circle a roundabout? Crystal says yes; Chris is horrified. An off-menu traditional breakfast at the Irish Penny. How you can drink multiple pints of Guinness in an afternoon without getting drunk....

What's better than a snow day? As snow falls outside, Chris and Crystal hang out by the wood stove and chat about snow days of yesteryear, as well as their 2025 Spotify Wrapped. Topics discussed: Kids losing the joy of snow days due to "virtual learning." Slower Lower's "ice storm" of the early 1990s. Sledding behind a truck on a public road. Sledding in a laundry baske...

Returning guest Fulton Giebel joins Chris and Crystal for a very special, festive episode of the Slower Lower podcast. They sample a series of craft beers including Goose Island Bourbon County Stout 2025, Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA Aged in Utopias Barrels, and Troegs Mad Elf Grand Cru, and chat about favorite Christmas movies and songs as well as Fulton's recent hunting adventures.

On the last day of November and their four-day Thanksgiving weekend, Chris and Crystal talk about: The results of the 2025 Delaware Whitetail Open. Comparing Havre de Grace to Eastern Shore towns. Footsteps in an empty room at Bahoukas Antique Emporium. Maryland crab soup and "half & half" (Maryland crab plus cream of crab) at Coakley's Pub. More Maryland crab soup at Market Stre...

Chris and Crystal catch up three weeks into a busy November. Topics discussed: Friendsgiving Deer hunting (Chris got a doe) A surprise neck roast Local autumn and Thanksgiving dishes including pretzel salad and baked pineapple Not feeling Halloween Savoring November instead of rushing into the Christmas season

Chris and Crystal recap a recent visit to one of their favorite local restaurants, and discuss local oyster (aka " arster ") history and traditions. Oyster vs. Arster. Dinner at Henlopen City Oyster House in Rehoboth; the raw oyster sampler, fried oysters, casked craft beer, and more. A shout-out to another local favorite, the Lewes Oyster House. Opinioned (and potentially controversial)...

The Delaware Whitetail Open is an annual deer-hunting competition held in Gumboro during the November firearms season. Organizer and spokesman Kyle Brown joins Chris and Crystal for a conversation about: Why he decided to keep the event going after the passing of his father, long-time organizer and avid hunter David Brown. The first time Chris and Crystal attended the event in 2023. How and where...

Chris and Crystal join Brian Shannon, the Executive Director of the Laurel Redevelopment Corporation (LRC), in his office for a conversation about the nonprofit organization's origins and history, past and current projects in the town of Laurel, Delaware, and Brian's upcoming retirement after 26 years. Topics discussed: The founding of the LRC in the early 1990s, and its mission to reimagi...

Chris and Crystal hang out with returning guest and noted local sportsman and taxidermist Billy Hardesty, and last-minute substitute Fulton Giebel. Topics discussed (to name a few) How Billy met Fulton, and how Fulton got into hunting. The camaraderie of hunting, especially waterfowl hunting. Similarities between wild turkeys and backyard chickens. Outdoors trivia. The upcoming Delaware Whitetail...

On episode 17 of the Slower Lower podcast, Chris and Crystal celebrate the official arrival of fall (or autumn) and recount an off-season Saturday spent in Rehoboth and Lewes. Topics discussed: Fall vs. Autumn Why did Generation X parents name their daughters Autumn and Summer, but not Spring, Fall, or Winter? Royal Farms coffee and Chris's refusal to wait in line for the pumpkin spice even th...

Episode 16 of the Slower Lower podcast features Cory Shaffer, a resident of Delmar, Maryland, who was elected to serve on the town commission in the aftermath of the tragic murder of Corporal Keith Heacook in 2021. Previous guest Russell A. Taylor III also returns for his third appearance on the podcast. This episode is all about Delmar, the little town too big for one state. Topics discussed: Sam...

Chris and Crystal return from a week-long vacation with an episode all about Cape Charles, Virginia. Topics discussed: Since Lower Delaware is becoming less slow, should the podcast name refer to Slower Lower Delmarva instead? Breakfast spots including the Northampton (aka the Wren), the Cape Charles Coffee House, the Almeta, and Rayfield's Fountain. The importance of checking days and hours,...

This week Chris and Crystal hang out with local small business owner, historical society board member, and veteran Jared Allen for a largely Laurel-focused conversation loaded with memories and laughs. Topics discussed: A brief shout-out to the late, great John Brady. Vanished businesses of Laurel, Delaware, from the 90s (French's, Food City, the old Britt's, Pizza Palace, etc.). 20-cent generic s...

Chris and Crystal chat about the unusual cool spell that Delmarva is enjoying, and whether it should be called a "false fall" or a "fraudulent autumn." Plus: Drinking pumpkin ale in August. Is summer the season that we look forward to the most, but get over the quickest? A visit to the Threshermen show in Caroline County. Is Denton's Market Street Pub the best pub on the peninsula? Bull & Goat Bre...

Chris and Crystal cryptically recall a recent beach day at a nearby location they'd prefer not to mention, and talk through a list of ten commandments for going to the beach. Agree? Disagree? Have something to add? Connect with the Slower Lower podcast on Facebook, Instagram, or by leaving a comment on the episode.

This week's featured guest is Billy Hardesty, a sportsman's sportsman who harvests the wild bounty of Delmarva and the Chesapeake year-round. He has previously appeared on the local TV program Outdoors Delmarva , and has a large social media following. Billy is also an award-winning taxidermist specializing in waterfowl. Since 2019, he has worked full-time in his Fowl Creations studio on the outsk...

Chris and Crystal hang with Shane Beard, an up-and-coming country artist from Slower Delaware, and Shane's bandmate, influence, and dad Glenn Beard. They are the heart and soul of Shane Beard & the Barn Burners. Topics discussed: ● Feedback from Bruce in Long Neck ● The State of Delaware has a new official dragonfly ● Shane Beard and Glenn Beard are perfect country artist names; they sound like so...