Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Some of the most celebrated athletes in the Olympics were women.
And one of the great ways that now you can
help celebrate is this groundbreaking new sports bar called Set
the Bar, which is opening here in Omaha and joining
us is Molly Hike and Molly, first of all, thanks
so much for stopping in to being a part of
our show today.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Thanks i'mriy for having me. It's great to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Okay, so the premise of Set the Bar, I already
kind of laid it out a little bit, But what's
the inspiration of, you know, trying to create this movement
essentially with not just hey, let's celebrate women's sports and
tell people, hey, we should be watching women's sports, but
actually having a place to kind of have that environment
where that's the number one thing we're thinking about.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah. Absolutely, with the momentum in women's sports, it's definitely happening,
whether we create a space for it or not. And
so having a space to celebrate women's sports, to eat
good food and have a good cocktail or mocktail over
a game and celebrate everything that's happening. I wanted to
create a space to do that.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Well, this is a space where like you talked about,
it's not just hey, let's watch some games together. This
is a full on, Hey, this is a sports bar.
You're gonna be able to have a lot of fun,
not just watching athletic events and celebrating women, but you're
also offering food and beverages as well. It's not always
an easy task, especially in twenty twenty four, to get
something like this off the ground. So kind of you know,
(01:19):
what's the inspiration look like for this type of venue,
not just necessarily you know, like you said, it's a
total movement that you guys are trying to kind of
latch onto here.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Yeah. Absolutely so. First of all, I had the opportunity
to go to Rough and Tumble, the second sports bar
focused on women's sports in Seattle, and it was an
amazing place, an amazing experience. The owner gave me a
huge hug, welcomed us, and turned on this Husker Stanford
volleyball game last year. So that was the time when
I said I wanted to do this, and then my
(01:51):
business partner, Amy and I talked about it and a
little fearful to be frank where, you know, we aren't
in the industry, We don't have any restaurant experience. But
we've got a huge support base that are helping us
make it happen, and so the place we're designing is
a little different in everything that we're doing besides playing
women's sports. We're going to have the bar height that
(02:12):
is going to be counter heights instead of bar heights,
because it's quite awkward if you're short to kind of
get on that big chair and straddle up to the bar.
We're gonna have comfortable chairs where everybody can be focused,
and in the space will actually be everybody watching the
same couple of screens. So it's intentionally community focused and
not just the physical layout but in who we're bringing in.
Speaker 1 (02:35):
I love that we're speaking with Molly Hike. She is
one of the people who are putting together Set the Bar.
Which is the name here, Tell me about the name
a little bit.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah, So one of the inspirations that I had my
sister Kelsey passed away two years ago, and I initially
wanted to call it Kelsey's Sporting Club in memory of her.
She was the biggest sports fan and my brother and
sister's biggest sports fan as well growing up. We changed
that though, because we want it to be a thing
that people can latch onto. And there's double interpal entendres
(03:05):
when it comes to setting the bar, setting the bar
for women, setting the bar for bringing people together, and
setting the bar set when it comes to tennis volleyball.
You know, all the different ways you can play off us,
so when to have fun that way.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
It's a really cool name and that was the first
thing I thought of, was like, oh, that's a volleyball
reference there, you know, and it totally is. Of course,
I think if you're thinking about women's sports, you have
to think about women's basketball right now and the WNBA,
which has seen a wave of momentum led by Caitlin Clark,
who of course from across the river in Iowa, Angel Reese,
(03:38):
who's very polarizing in her own right. Other stars that
people are aware of now that probably wouldn't have ever
been getting the same type of attention just because of
these other players around, like Cameron Brink or Page Becker's
or you know some of the you know, like a
Camilla Cardoso. And then that's putting some spotlight on some
of the players that have already been in the WNBA.
It's kind of this whole thing on a national level
(04:00):
that people are gravitating towards that has existed for twenty
five years now, and people now are just kind of
catching up to what the buzz is about. How important
is this moment to try to maintain this momentum? Yeah,
Kayln Clark's awesome to have is kind of a flag
bearer for the movement. But what about, you know, trying
to harness the energy that this sport specifically is kind
(04:23):
of gathered throughout the summer?
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Sure, I mean going back, I had the opportunity in
ninety seven to go to a New York Liberty game
and I saw Rebeccal Lobo, I saw Teresa Weatherspoon. They
were really were now standing on the shoulders of the
work that they've done and the foundation that they provided.
So the fact that the pagebackers, the Kaylin Clark's, the
Asia Wilson's, my new favorite team, Minnesota Links, you know,
(04:47):
they're the momentum is there and I don't think it's
going to slow down. Now's the time to get on.
If you're not there and welcome to the party, Let's
do this.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
Yeah, in the Minnesota Links especially, you know, if you're
looking for local flavor, My I al would say people
bridget Carlton's been major part of their team this year.
You know, there's other Iowa stars that have gotten drafted,
making Gustufson, who was a National Player of the Year
still playing for the Las Vegas Aces right now in
the WNBA. So and then Kate Martin also who was
like the best friend and teammate of Caitlyn Clark's made
(05:16):
the Aces coming off back to back championship. So it's
just a really fun time to watch that sport. And
then volleyball, of course is came here or Queen, depending
on like the way you want to look at it.
The Supernovas and the Pro Volleyball Federation, they win the
title in their first year, which was really awesome to see.
Certainly the most successful of the franchise is drawing over
eleven thousand people per game to Chi House Center, Omaha
(05:38):
for all of those matches. Ninety three thousand people at
a volleyball match in Lincoln. What can you say about
that sport? And how important is it to have a
sport locally like that that people care about so much.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
I mean, was on the Olympics that seventy five percent
of volleyball players come through Nebraska, whether they're playing in
high school, college or the prol like, Nebraska is the
world's home to volleyball. So now's the place and the
time to do it. Huskers preseason rank number two. You've
got Creighton preseason the highest rank ever at number twelve.
(06:12):
UNO's killing it that, you know, just watching these athletes
and making a place for people to not only watch
away games, but let's go pregame at Set the Bar
and let's hustle down to to Chi, to Soacle Arena
or to Lincoln and let's let's watch live.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
Hey, and you mentioned you and O as well making
it to the NCAA tournament after being a part of
that ninety three thousand you know match taking on Nebraska there.
So Set the Bar is the name of the bar.
What can we find more information about on the internet
and what are kind of some dates that we need
to be looking for as you guys roll this thing out.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Yeah, so we're looking to open into summer for the
NCAAA Volleyball Tournament. That's our goal. We You can follow
us on Set the Bar Omaha on Instagram. You can
find our website Set Thebar dot and or set Dash
Thebar dot com, excuse me, and on Facebook Set the Bar.
We are also looking to do a couple of pop ups,
(07:08):
so join us. The tenth of September Creighton playing Huskers
volleyball at seven pm, we're going to have that at
Barchin and September twenty second at Benson Theater we're going
to have the Creighton excuse me, the Husker game versus
Louisville at eleven thirty am.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
Awesome. So there are going to be some chances that
you can kind of get a preview of what this
environment's going to be. And you guys, are you're building
in that Benson area? Is that kind of the plan.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
That's right, So the corner of sixty second and Maple
will be on the top top story. Yeah, bring in it,
bringing it, making it happen well.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Set the Bar scheduled to be a huge part of
this community moving forward. Molly Hiking to be helping bring
it to us here in Olmaha. Thank you so much
for stopping in. Thanks for this idea. This is going
to be awesome. Always love different ideas, especially with women's sports,
which I think has been overlooked for far too long,
and it's that I think was kind of starving for
a little bit more of that action, especially now with
(08:04):
the supernovas and some of this additional volleyball push. So
thanks so much for sharing this, Thanks so much for
the idea, and can't wait to get to set the
bar later this year. Thanks, we'll see there absolutely. Eight
is three twenty eight News Radio eleven ten KFAB.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Em Marie Songer on News Radio eleven ten Kfab
Some of the most celebrated athletes in the Olympics were women.
And one of the great ways that now you can
help celebrate is this groundbreaking new sports bar called Set
the Bar, which is opening here in Omaha and joining
us is Molly Hike and Molly, first of all, thanks
so much for stopping in to being a part of
our show today.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Thanks i'mriy for having me. It's great to be here.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
Okay, so the premise of Set the Bar, I already
kind of laid it out a little bit, But what's
the inspiration of, you know, trying to create this movement
essentially with not just hey, let's celebrate women's sports and
tell people, hey, we should be watching women's sports, but
actually having a place to kind of have that environment
where that's the number one thing we're thinking about.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah. Absolutely, with the momentum in women's sports, it's definitely happening,
whether we create a space for it or not. And
so having a space to celebrate women's sports, to eat
good food and have a good cocktail or mocktail over
a game and celebrate everything that's happening. I wanted to
create a space to do that.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Well, this is a space where like you talked about,
it's not just hey, let's watch some games together. This
is a full on, Hey, this is a sports bar.
You're gonna be able to have a lot of fun,
not just watching athletic events and celebrating women, but you're
also offering food and beverages as well. It's not always
an easy task, especially in twenty twenty four, to get
something like this off the ground. So kind of you know,
(01:19):
what's the inspiration look like for this type of venue,
not just necessarily you know, like you said, it's a
total movement that you guys are trying to kind of
latch onto here.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Yeah. Absolutely so. First of all, I had the opportunity
to go to Rough and Tumble, the second sports bar
focused on women's sports in Seattle, and it was an
amazing place, an amazing experience. The owner gave me a
huge hug, welcomed us, and turned on this Husker Stanford
volleyball game last year. So that was the time when
I said I wanted to do this, and then my
(01:51):
business partner, Amy and I talked about it and a
little fearful to be frank where, you know, we aren't
in the industry, We don't have any restaurant experience. But
we've got a huge support base that are helping us
make it happen, and so the place we're designing is
a little different in everything that we're doing besides playing
women's sports. We're going to have the bar height that
(02:12):
is going to be counter heights instead of bar heights,
because it's quite awkward if you're short to kind of
get on that big chair and straddle up to the bar.
We're gonna have comfortable chairs where everybody can be focused,
and in the space will actually be everybody watching the
same couple of screens. So it's intentionally community focused and
not just the physical layout but in who we're bringing in.
Speaker 1 (02:35):
I love that we're speaking with Molly Hike. She is
one of the people who are putting together Set the Bar.
Which is the name here, Tell me about the name
a little bit.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah, So one of the inspirations that I had my
sister Kelsey passed away two years ago, and I initially
wanted to call it Kelsey's Sporting Club in memory of her.
She was the biggest sports fan and my brother and
sister's biggest sports fan as well growing up. We changed
that though, because we want it to be a thing
that people can latch onto. And there's double interpal entendres
(03:05):
when it comes to setting the bar, setting the bar
for women, setting the bar for bringing people together, and
setting the bar set when it comes to tennis volleyball.
You know, all the different ways you can play off us,
so when to have fun that way.
Speaker 1 (03:17):
It's a really cool name and that was the first
thing I thought of, was like, oh, that's a volleyball
reference there, you know, and it totally is. Of course,
I think if you're thinking about women's sports, you have
to think about women's basketball right now and the WNBA,
which has seen a wave of momentum led by Caitlin Clark,
who of course from across the river in Iowa, Angel Reese,
(03:38):
who's very polarizing in her own right. Other stars that
people are aware of now that probably wouldn't have ever
been getting the same type of attention just because of
these other players around, like Cameron Brink or Page Becker's
or you know some of the you know, like a
Camilla Cardoso. And then that's putting some spotlight on some
of the players that have already been in the WNBA.
It's kind of this whole thing on a national level
(04:00):
that people are gravitating towards that has existed for twenty
five years now, and people now are just kind of
catching up to what the buzz is about. How important
is this moment to try to maintain this momentum? Yeah,
Kayln Clark's awesome to have is kind of a flag
bearer for the movement. But what about, you know, trying
to harness the energy that this sport specifically is kind
(04:23):
of gathered throughout the summer?
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Sure, I mean going back, I had the opportunity in
ninety seven to go to a New York Liberty game
and I saw Rebeccal Lobo, I saw Teresa Weatherspoon. They
were really were now standing on the shoulders of the
work that they've done and the foundation that they provided.
So the fact that the pagebackers, the Kaylin Clark's, the
Asia Wilson's, my new favorite team, Minnesota Links, you know,
(04:47):
they're the momentum is there and I don't think it's
going to slow down. Now's the time to get on.
If you're not there and welcome to the party, Let's
do this.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
Yeah, in the Minnesota Links especially, you know, if you're
looking for local flavor, My I al would say people
bridget Carlton's been major part of their team this year.
You know, there's other Iowa stars that have gotten drafted,
making Gustufson, who was a National Player of the Year
still playing for the Las Vegas Aces right now in
the WNBA. So and then Kate Martin also who was
like the best friend and teammate of Caitlyn Clark's made
(05:16):
the Aces coming off back to back championship. So it's
just a really fun time to watch that sport. And
then volleyball, of course is came here or Queen, depending
on like the way you want to look at it.
The Supernovas and the Pro Volleyball Federation, they win the
title in their first year, which was really awesome to see.
Certainly the most successful of the franchise is drawing over
eleven thousand people per game to Chi House Center, Omaha
(05:38):
for all of those matches. Ninety three thousand people at
a volleyball match in Lincoln. What can you say about
that sport? And how important is it to have a
sport locally like that that people care about so much.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
I mean, was on the Olympics that seventy five percent
of volleyball players come through Nebraska, whether they're playing in
high school, college or the prol like, Nebraska is the
world's home to volleyball. So now's the place and the
time to do it. Huskers preseason rank number two. You've
got Creighton preseason the highest rank ever at number twelve.
(06:12):
UNO's killing it that, you know, just watching these athletes
and making a place for people to not only watch
away games, but let's go pregame at Set the Bar
and let's hustle down to to Chi, to Soacle Arena
or to Lincoln and let's let's watch live.
Speaker 1 (06:26):
Hey, and you mentioned you and O as well making
it to the NCAA tournament after being a part of
that ninety three thousand you know match taking on Nebraska there.
So Set the Bar is the name of the bar.
What can we find more information about on the internet
and what are kind of some dates that we need
to be looking for as you guys roll this thing out.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Yeah, so we're looking to open into summer for the
NCAAA Volleyball Tournament. That's our goal. We You can follow
us on Set the Bar Omaha on Instagram. You can
find our website Set Thebar dot and or set Dash
Thebar dot com, excuse me, and on Facebook Set the Bar.
We are also looking to do a couple of pop ups,
(07:08):
so join us. The tenth of September Creighton playing Huskers
volleyball at seven pm, we're going to have that at
Barchin and September twenty second at Benson Theater we're going
to have the Creighton excuse me, the Husker game versus
Louisville at eleven thirty am.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
Awesome. So there are going to be some chances that
you can kind of get a preview of what this
environment's going to be. And you guys, are you're building
in that Benson area? Is that kind of the plan.
Speaker 2 (07:34):
That's right, So the corner of sixty second and Maple
will be on the top top story. Yeah, bring in it,
bringing it, making it happen well.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Set the Bar scheduled to be a huge part of
this community moving forward. Molly Hiking to be helping bring
it to us here in Olmaha. Thank you so much
for stopping in. Thanks for this idea. This is going
to be awesome. Always love different ideas, especially with women's sports,
which I think has been overlooked for far too long,
and it's that I think was kind of starving for
a little bit more of that action, especially now with
(08:04):
the supernovas and some of this additional volleyball push. So
thanks so much for sharing this, Thanks so much for
the idea, and can't wait to get to set the
bar later this year. Thanks, we'll see there absolutely. Eight
is three twenty eight News Radio eleven ten KFAB.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Em Marie Songer on News Radio eleven ten Kfab
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