Jack09072016

get to know
OH, SNAP! CARSON
TINKER LOVES HIS
RIVERSIDE LIFESTYLE
BY COURTNEY CLARK
jack
Since signing with the Jaguars
in 2013, Alabama native Carson
Tinker has fallen in love with
Riverside. He says it’s loaded with
culture.
“It’s just been really cool to get
to know different kinds of people
from different backgrounds,”
Tinker says of the neighborhood’s
diversity. “I don’t ever leave Riverside
unless I have to.”
The Jaguars’
long-snapper
even convinced
teammates
Jason Myers
and Chad
Henne to
at least
consider
moving to
Riverside.
Tinker, 26, enjoys getting to
know people and delving deep into
the community.
The fourth-year veteran says
Jacksonville has the feeling of a
big city with small-town roots.
Tinker’s go-to lunch spot is
the Goal Post (a fitting name)
Sandwich Shop in Avondale. He
particularly enjoys the Riverside-
Avondale Luminaria celebration,
and he frequents the Riverside Arts
Market with wife Annie at least
once a month.
This summer, Tinker added
kayaking to his abundance of interests.
He says he usually launches at
nearby Stinson Park at the foot of
the Ortega Bridge.
“I think Stinson Park is the
prettiest view in Jacksonville. I
love going out there,” he said. Tinker
admits it took a while before
he finally learned to hit the water at
just the right tide to prevent bottoming
out.
“If it’s low tide, you’re not
going to be able to get back. I
learned that the hard way,” he
said.
Exercising his mind also
appeals to Tinker, who nonchalantly
mentions that he can solve
a Rubik’s Cube fairly quickly.
“They’re not that hard,” he says.
“I used to be able to do it in
under a minute.”
And before preparations for the
2016 season finally ramped up, the
down-to-earth long snapper probably
caused several double-takes
among fans seeing him helping
out a few days each week at Bold
City Brewery.
“Believe it or not, NFL guys
get bored in the off season,”
Tinker says. He asked the
Miller family, owners of the
popular Riverside gathering
spot, if he could come
by to learn about the art
of brewing.
This, from a man
whose resume includes
a national championship
with his
home state’s
Crimson Tide in
2009. Signed
by the Jaguars
as an
undrafted
free agent
in 2013, before last season Tinker
parlayed his steady performance
into a substantial contract.
But the specialty center didn’t
have any qualms about paying his
dues and starting at the bottom at
Bold City.
“They didn’t give me any
kind of special treatment,” he said
recalling his first day moonlighting.
“I was doing grunt work.”
Tinker’s outgoing personality
doesn’t allow him to believe he is
any different from anyone else. He
has been known to spend his free
time enthusiastically interacting
with his fans.
“I’m just a normal guy, I feel
like,” he says of his willingness to
spend time among his admirers. “I
just happen to play football.”
Tinker is fond of Jacksonville
fans, labeling them genuine in
their football interests. Rather than
just asking for a photo or a selfie
and walking away, he says Jags’
fans tend to spend time their time
with him asking about the team.
“I kind of see myself as more
of a fan than a player sometimes,”
he says.
j
Jacksonville Jaguars
EverBank Field, 1 EverBank Field Dr
jaguars.com
(904) 633-2000
Bold City Brewery
2670 Roselle St #7
boldcitybrewery.com
(904) 379-6551
14
jack |
SEPTEMBER 7-20, 2016