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The Distill - Events Galore

6 events in 90 days

May 18, 2026

Greeting Pioneers,

We’re cookin again. 6 events in 90 days. 3 staples. 3 new. Each designed with intention for the dawgs in this city.

said events

Block Hard Wednesdays

Every Wednesday. Every Week. For Infinity. At the block. 10 hour day. Lock tf in from
8-6 (or longer) only one can be the hardest. 1205 E Washington Suite 111.

We moved into the Block to give founders space to build around other serious founders chasing 1 million in ARR. Going from Seed to Series A.

Getting your first $100 is hard – getting to $100K and $1M is harder. It’s easier when you have people in the trenches to bounce ideas off of – when there’s someone 2 steps ahead of you who can share the strats they’ve already tested and proved out – when you can roll up your sleeves on another founders problem just to gain some new perspective from your own. Startups are a lonely endeavor – but not at the Block. We work in-person together and learn from each other’s failures.

If you’re looking for community of people who are daring to do more – to put their blood, sweat, tears, and all of their time into forcing their dream to fruition – come check us out on Wednesday. See if this is the space for you.

A Pitch Competition For Terrible Ideas

June 10th • 5:00pm • Cinderblock • 2nd Wednesday of every month

KYX is hosting a Sh*tty P*tch Competition: dumb ideas, 4-minute limit, live heckling encouraged. It's an unserious event with serious upside – you’ll learn to get past your nerves and get better at pitching and public speaking with the lowest of stakes. You can take that skill and channel it into your next big idea.

Most of the founders and operators you'd want to know are going to be in the room, some also pitching their worst ideas. Come pitch, come watch, come find your next collaborator.

Pawlish: makeup for dogs
Caulkmaxxing: a platform to post your most seamless beads
DumStud: dumbed down scientific studies so me can understand.
ProperPlumbers: vertically intergrated human waste management

Vibe Code Poker Night Is Back!

June 11th • 5pm • Cinderblock

Build night in the block, poker night in the conference room. We’re bringing back the LEDs, and setting the perfect vibe to get into flow on your laptop or on the felt.

Come one come all. Get some stuff done in the 5-9 after your 9-5 or take the edge off with poker and new friends.

tiny demo day

June 24th • 5:00pm • Cinderblock • 4th Wednesday of every month

Working on a product or new feature and wanna get some eyes on it? See what you’re missing, where you can improve the UX, where you have to explain something you thought would be obvious? Come get it done at tiny demo day - we’ll have people with product, design and UX experience in the room to help flag what your mom won’t.

5 minutes to demo. 5 minutes of feedback.

4th Wednesday of every month.

Fire & Ice

Saturday • June 27th • 11-1p

IYKYK

For those who don’t. Saturday morning. You could sleep in. You could scroll. Or you could trauma bond with fellow builders suffering through 40° cold plunges and 190° sauna sessions.

It’s uncomfortable. it’s hard. its a filter - that’s the point. Those who show up share a mindset. Are worth meeting. The bonds are real.

Leave at noon feeling like you’ve accomplished something.

SWAMP NIGHT!

July 16th • 5-8pm

Navigating the Louisville Ecosystem shouldn't feel like trekking through a swamp. We’re starting SWAMP NIGHT to bring Louisville founders and resources together.

Partnering w/ Amplify, One Louisville, and many more….

For all Founders, Aspiring Founders, Ecosystem Partners and Louisvillians

Bring your business cards (or just your phone). Prepare to network, talk about your idea, goals and challenges. See you at SWAMP NIGHT!

Note’s on The Distill’s co-EICs: Jack Crowdis & Rachel Edenfield

Jack runs the newsletter, helps run KYX. He’s a career startup kid, past founder, and current operator. Weekly contributor. Always editor.

Rachel’s the Founder/CEO of venture-backed Swell, and a driver of KYX. Routinely delivers the city’s sharpest long-form startup advice. Always re-edits Jack’s edits (including this bio).

Know someone who should read this? Forward it, or send them this link.

That’s a wrap 🎬
Keep showing up 👊 
Keep shipping 🚢 
Peace, Pioneers ✌️