“Moonshiners” is a reality/crime series on the Discovery Channel that debuted on December 6, 2011. It revolves around an unusual group of folks who live in Appalachia. They are intent on carrying on the 200-year-old tradition of making moonshine that their forefathers passed down from generation to generation. And, these boys are deadly serious about their work, too. Many of us seem to think that the days of backwoods stills, bootleggers, and moonshine are long gone, but that’s pretty far from the truth in Appalachia.Tim is one of the central characters in the unusual series who are following in their forefathers’ footsteps and making moonshine just like they did for centuries. And, Tim is by far not the only guy making moonshine in the southwest Virginia mountains. Being a moonshiner is a battle of wills and a test of nerves that could make the moonshiners a pretty big fat profit by the end of the season. And, that includes not only the moonshining season but also the broadcast season as well. However, it comes with plenty of risks since local lawmen, especially the ABC, never take too kindly to the practice.In fact, they’ll basically stop at nothing in their quest to put moonshiners behind bars for a very long time. “Moonshiners” best assets are the numerous likable personalities involved in it. Everyone on the show is playing himself and the cast is mighty long and made up of complete unknowns, but here are just the guys who have been in 50 or more episodes of the 94 that have already aired on Discovery:Jeremy Schwartz- 78 episodes from 2011 to 2017
Josh Owens- 65 episodes from 2012 to 2017
Mark Rogers- 60 episodes from 2012 to 2017
Bill Canny- 59 episodes from 2012 to 2016
Tim Smith- 59 episodes from 2011 to 2017
Jeff Waldroup- 57 episodes from 2012 to 2016
Jim Tom Hedrick- 51 episodes- from 2012 to 2016So, here are five basic life lessons that “Moonshiners” has taught us:1. Be Available!Always be available when your boss calls you and wants you to work. Whether you’re a moonshiner or involved in some other illegal profession, or just your everyday regular employee with a legit job, being the one who’s always available, like Tickle, can earn you a lot of brownie points and lead to better job security. And, Tickle has some pretty interesting takes on the world in general and especially when it comes to moonshiners, so take a look at all of that up above.2. Everybody Wants What They Can’t HaveEverybody usually wants what they can’t have, whether it’s an illegal alcoholic beverage, like moonshine for example, or something else. That’s just human nature and one of the major reasons why moonshine is so popular. If you’re a moonshiner, moonshining can be a serious business because it offers the possibility of serious money. On the other hand, large-scale moonshine operations are downright illegal. Getting caught in the act could lead to jail time for moonshiners. But that, of course, doesn’t stop them by any means, nor even slow them down. It just makes them a bit more careful.3. There’s Always Something WorseThere are plenty of things in life that are much more serious than moonshine. Like drugs for instance. In one episode of Moonshiners, Jesse the ABC agent gets involved in the bust of a “nip joint”. That’s what they call a crack house in Appalachia. They find lots of drugs, cash, and guns but only one gallon of moonshine. Even law enforcement officers, in the Moonshiners part of the country, like Jesse, drop everything when there’s a drug bust to be made. And, you can see how it all went down on this YouTube video above.4. Don’t Get GreedyAlthough Gordon Gekko says that “Greed is Good”, that’s not the case in Moonshiners. In Season 1, Episode 5, when Tim decides to add another shed to house an additional pot, it all seems to go downhill from there. As Autumn leaves start falling, he makes the risky move in order to make double the profits, resulting in a bad accident for Tickle when he falls off the roof of the shed and then makes the bad mistake of self-medicating. And, he does that, of course, with some of his own product, which is another life lesson although we probably should’ve already learned that one from watching Pacino in “Scarface” a few years back. Some other moonshiner friends risked it all to make their Smokey Mountain gin.5. Always be RespectfulThis is an important life lesson and one that the boys on “Moonshiners” always follow. While they work on their special cranberry/orange Christmas moonshine, (Yum), Mark and Digger are actually taking time for showing their respect and remembering moonshiners from the past. In one episode, they actually cut leftover pieces of copper and make Chrismas ornaments with them and write messages on them honoring past moonshiners. Perhaps we should all take a moment here and there to pay respect to our forefathers like they do.And, oh yeah, there’s one final life lesson to take away from “Moonshiners” and it is just this. Don’t ever wear your overalls without a shirt! As Jimmy Fallon would say “Ew!”But more importantly, BTW, did you know that NASCAR’s roots are in moonshining? Yep, that respectable and wildly popular (not to mention lucrative) sport has a history that’s almost as colorful as the paint jobs on some of the race cars. It all started with Prohibition when moonshiners would build a reputation for being able to outdrive and outsmart John Law. Fast forward to the late 1940s and Big Bill France turned outrunning the cops into an organized sport that began in Daytona Beach, FL, on December 14, 1947. And, the rest is NASCAR history. So, we’d like to say a big thank you to those moonshiners of yesteryear for giving us NASCAR!Related Articles5 Things You Never New Until You Watched MoonshinersMoonshiners: Getting To Know Steven Ray Tickle A Little BetterNat is the Co-Founder and Editor in Chief of BC Media Group and all its properties. He loves television, movies, fitness, playing piano, and writing great articles.
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