Halloween kicks off with a road trip through America’s creepiest local legends, and the first stop is all killer, no filler. If you love cryptids, urban legends, or the kind of spooky stories that make back roads feel a little less safe, this episode is your gateway into a month-long tour of the weirdest creatures hiding in plain sight.

Robert Herr, Rowan Michael, and Professor TieDye launch the series by breaking down what a cryptid actually is and then getting straight into the monsters. Pennsylvania’s Goatman sets the tone with brutal origin stories and a reputation for tormenting victims before the kill. Ohio’s Grassman turns the Bigfoot myth into an ambush predator that hides in brush, stares into windows, and lures people out with fake cries for help. Kentucky brings the Hopkinsville Goblins and the Cumberland Dragon, a bizarre mix of old newspaper lore, glowing eyes, webbed tracks, and a dragon that sounds more like a nightmare with a breath weapon than a fairy tale beast.

You'll discover why West Virginia has some of the most enduring legends in the country, from the Cherokee-rooted Wampus Cat to the Mothman, the red-eyed harbinger linked to the infamous Silver Bridge collapse. The conversation also digs into the moon-eyed settlers of Appalachia, Florida’s skunk ape, and the unsettling way real sightings, local folklore, and pure panic can blur together until a story feels more real than reality.

We break down where these legends come from, why some of them stick for generations, and how internet-era storytelling can take a strange local tale and turn it into a national obsession. Along the way, the hosts compare cryptids to everything from ghillie suits and bush babies to swamp monsters, black dog omens, and “tossed salad man” chaos, making this one part folklore deep dive and one part hilarious campfire horror story.

This is the perfect episode if you want creepy lore with personality, smart skepticism without killing the fun, and a preview of the road trip still to come. Start here if you’re ready for spooky season to get properly weird.

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Ryan: https://x.com/ryanthomastalks, https://instagram.com/ryanthomastalks

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Twenty-five years later, 9/11 still rewires how we see fear, community, and what America owes itself.

This anniversary conversation brings together Robert Herr, Ken Arnold, Ryan Thomas, Eric Donaldson, and Rowan Michael for a raw, wide-ranging reflection on where each of them was when the attacks happened - and why the memory still lands so hard.

What starts as remembrance quickly becomes something bigger: a real conversation about how trauma shapes a generation, how first responders and families lived through the chaos, and why the days after 9/11 revealed the best of people when the country could have easily fractured. The group also looks at how the meaning of the day has changed for younger Americans, what gets lost when history turns into memes, and why unity feels harder to find now than it did then.

Follow the show everywhere: https://linkbio.co/spinstatepod

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Robert: https://link.me/realrobertherr

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Rowan: https://pickax.com/rowanmichaelmadness

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One forgotten New Hampshire murder. One local filmmaker, a trailer, and a story that might be bigger than he ever imagined. Matthew Eames is building Roots of New Hampshire from the ground up, and this episode follows the project from eerie archive discoveries to the real-world clues that could turn a buried family secret into a full documentary.

Matthew joins Robert Herr and Ryan Thomas for a wide-ranging conversation that starts with pop culture chaos and lands somewhere much more compelling: the obsession, discipline, and stubborn curiosity it takes to chase down a true story before it disappears. Along the way, Matthew opens up about his years in film, the unlikely path that took him from haunted houses and special effects into productions like Southpaw, Concussion, Fences, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Army of the Dead, and Mindhunter.

You’ll discover:

• how Matthew found the deathbed confession that kicked off the Whitcherville mystery
• why the old letters, photos, and local records matter more than a polished theory
• what he learned filming his first interviews and why documentary storytelling is harder than it looks
• how his background in props, makeup, and set work shapes the way he builds atmosphere now
• what it takes to launch a one-man historical project with little gear, a drone, a Sony A6000, and a growing audience

If you’re drawn to local legends, real-life mysteries, or the hard grind of turning art into something people can actually watch, this one delivers.

Follow the show everywhere: https://linkbio.co/spinstatepod

Follow us on Social Media:
Robert: https://link.me/realrobertherr

Ryan: https://x.com/ryanthomastalks, https://instagram.com/ryanthomastalks

Matt: https://www.youtube.com/@mattneames

Watch the trailer for his documentary here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRQsLOnBbRk

Help Create the Documentary: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-launch-roots-of-new-hampshire-documentary

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