In the Melrose district of Downtown Phoenix sits Title 9 Sports Grill, Arizona’s first female focused sports bar and grill.
Title 9 Sports Grill opened their doors only three weeks ago, but have already hosted multiple community focused events, including an arm-wrestling tournament, NCAA basketball tournament bracket building, and a Women’s Final Four watch party.
April 5th marked the restaurant’s first time hosting the Pinewood Classic, which allowed both kids and adults to enjoy a day filled with fun, community, and derby car racing.
Brad Moore, one of the owners of Title 9, said that he and his wife, Kat, began hosting the Pinewood Classic event 10 years ago at their former restaurant, Short Leash Hot Dogs, which resided in the same space that Title 9 stands today.
Inspired by Pinewood Derby events hosted by Boy Scouts across the country, The Pinewood Classic allows kids to put their creativity to work to build small wooden cars that will compete in a series of races, until the last car standing is crowned the victor.
The Pinewood Classic hosted tournaments for both kids and adults, each with around 40 entries.
“It’s kind of a perfect tie in with Title 9,” Moore said. “Title IX legislation was all about inclusivity and opportunity. A lot of girls never really got the opportunity to do Pinewood because it was predominantly for Boy Scouts.”
Moore told Northeast Valley News how important the location and surrounding community is to their business.
“This was the perfect space for a sports bar, and Melrose is a perfect neighborhood for a women focused sports bar.” Moore added that the business is dedicated to providing fun and inclusive events for the community.
A testament to that love of community, a large trophy wall greets patrons as they walk into the establishment, filled with donated trophies from various individuals.
“We have a bucket where you can just come and drop them off,” Moore said. The bucket sits right inside of the main entrance, where anyone can drop off old medals and trophies.
Moore described how the idea was inspired by a previous tradition and from his previous restaurant.
At Short Leash Hot Dogs, there was a wall where community members could post pictures of their dogs, which created an emotional connection between them and the restaurant.
In a similar manner, anyone is welcome to “loan out” their trophy to be on display at the bar.
“People are more than welcome to ask for them back,” Moore said. “We know everyone’s got trophies at their house collecting dust…now people can come here knowing that a piece of them is here with us.”
