Ep. 52 | The Bitty Buggy Breakdown, Mordor Cheating Scandal, and Happy Hour Heartbreak | September 23rd, 2026

Fall is here, football is back, and Alex is already creating workplace problems after accidentally telling a coworker he had a weekend date with Chris Hansen instead of RedZone host Scott Hanson.From there, Alex recaps a great weekend before attempting a peaceful James Taylor commute in the increasingly unreliable Bitty Buggy—complete with rain coming through the window, a broken windshield wiper scraping the glass, and an extra 40 minutes of traffic.Meanwhile, Jake impulsively buys an enormous jar of pickles before reigniting the year-long Walk to Mordor controversy. After his new phone mysteriously credits him with extra miles, Alex launches a full doping investigation and declares the competition’s integrity destroyed.Jake also unveils his Italy-inspired Caesar haircut, the guys return to NFL Pick’ems, and a simple 50-cent wing happy hour turns into full-blown barroom drama when a stranger asks Jake for relationship advice in the bathroom—then immediately ignores it.Timestamps / Chapters0:00 — Going Yard is back & NFL Pick’ems return 2:30 — Merch ideas and Jake starts “percolating” 3:15 — Alex accidentally tells work he has a date with Chris Hansen 4:45 — Alex’s actual date update 5:15 — AJ calls with spontaneous weekend plans ~10:00 — Weekend adventures & football season settling in ~18:00 — James Taylor enters Alex’s life 20:25 — The lovely weekend comes to an end 21:00 — The Bitty Buggy is falling apart 21:55 — James Taylor vs. the commute from hell 22:20 — The windshield wiper starts scraping the glass 23:45 — “Fire and Rain” becomes painfully appropriate 24:35 — Jake impulsively buys a pickle jar bigger than his head 26:00 — The Hannibal Buress pickle-juice method 27:40 — Alex declares the Walk to Mordor competition fraudulent 28:40 — Explaining the 1,700-mile challenge 29:40 — The accusations against Kyle begin 30:55 — Jake’s new phone wipes his Mordor progress 31:45 — Jake discovers the missing miles 32:20 — Mysterious bonus mileage appears 32:55 — “There could have been a double dip” 34:40 — Alex loses faith in the entire competition 35:00 — The doping analogy 35:25 — “Cheaters deserve prison” 36:25 — Broken windshield wipers become a metaphor for Alex’s life 36:50 — Jake vs. Kyle: two rams locked in the grasslands 39:05 — A fantasy matchup decided by less than a point ~40:00 — Jake unveils the new haircut 43:30 — The Italy-inspired Caesar cut 44:00 — Caesar cut vs. Friar Jake vs. Simple Jack 45:45 — Phillies playoff check-in 46:45 — The 50-cent wing happy hour begins 47:45 — Playing cards with wing-covered hands 48:00 — Learning “Fuck the Dealer” 50:15 — Jake admits he has absolutely no poker face 51:15 — A stranger approaches Jake in the bathroom 51:50 — “My ex is here with her new boyfriend…” 52:15 — Jake gives the stranger very clear advice 53:15 — Jake returns to the table looking like he saw a ghost 53:45 — The stranger ignores Jake’s advice ~54:30 — The exes finally start talking 56:15 — Someone starts crying 56:40 — “I was never the same after you” 57:15 — The entire bar is now watching 58:15 — Jake desperately shuffles cards through the drama 59:05 — The check finally arrives 59:45 — “LEAVE HER! YOU DON’T DESERVE THAT!” 1:00:15 — Planning the follow-up investigation 1:00:45 — Going Yard may be heading to Italy ~1:03:00 — NFL Pick’ems results 1:04:40 — Alex correctly guesses his score 1:05:25 — Week 2 NFL recap begins ~1:15+ — Around the NFL, picks & football reactionshttps://www.youtube.com/@goingyardley