Pickups & Hookups – Ready for some redneck dating?
January 3, 2009 by Michelle Smith
Filed under Relationships
I read about a new reality show that is currently being pitched to CMT – Country Music Television.
Redneck romance is the focus of Pickups & Hookups, a new dating show being pitched for CMT. Filming of the pilot episode took place a few weeks ago at Don Balaban’s farm in Thonotosassa, northeast of Tampa.
Call it a honkytonk version of The Bachelorette, where a group of men vie for the affection of one woman during a series of eliminations. In Pickups, the girl chooses from three men, starting with an inspection of their pickup trucks. With flashlight and kitchen tongs, she scopes out each man’s truck and eliminates one that least matches her style.
The owners of the two remaining trucks arm-wrestle each other to determine who gets the first date with her. The dates involve some type of country activity, from Spam carving to skeet shooting to mattress riding (where you tie a mattress behind a pickup and hold on for dear life). The dates end with lunch.
A short 30 minutes later, the woman chooses which guy she’d like to see again, and they ride off.
This actually reminds me a bit of home. I used to live in a small town and I can remember dates spent in a pick-up, scouting good deer hunting spots, my head on my guy’s shoulder, my fingers orange with Cheeto dust. One time, we threw a mattress in the back of my boyfriend’s pickup and camped under the stars with only tequila and beer to drink. Seriously. No water. I could never do that now, I’d need to pack some good snacks and a big jug of water, I’m big on the hydration.
On thing that has not changed – I do still love sleeping under the stars with a cute boy.
