F1 Arcade opens in Atlanta: A racing enthusiast's dream

Friday gold

Feb. 6 — The suspect wanted in Monday’s shooting incident at the Decatur Library is in custody. Medicus Brown, 44, faces charges of aggravated assault with the intent to murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

☀️ Sunny and 58° today. More sunshine this weekend with highs in the upper 40s to mid-50s.

💸 Property tax cap legislation is moving quickly through the Georgia legislature this year as lawmakers prioritize affordability and cost of living.

🚨 Fulton County Schools arrested a Sandy Springs middle schooler after he allegedly attacked several children and a staff member at Heards Ferry Elementary.

🚚 Sandy Springs City Council is looking at regional freight trends and potential updates to local regulations after receiving complaints about tractor-trailers on neighborhood streets.

🧪 The Associated Press and The AJC teamed up for an investigative report about the toxic legacy of carpet manufacturing in Dalton, GA.

🦞 Buckhead Life Restaurant Group will open a downtown location of its iconic West Paces Ferry Road steakhouse, Chops Lobster Bar, later this year.

🐕 After being targeted by scammers, a Dunwoody stylist continues to receive community support as he searches for his missing salon dog, a white schnauzer named Archer.

💳 Cartersville’s Bartow History Museum, Booth Western Art Museum, Savoy Automobile Museum, and Tellus Science Museum joined Bank of America’s Museums On Us, with free admission the first weekend of each month.

ELSEWHERE

📉 Stock futures are up after the markets closed sharply lower yesterday, led by losses at Amazon. Bitcoin dropped 15%, and the jobs report showed 6.5 million openings, the lowest since Sept. 2020.

💊The White House launched TrumpRx, a direct-to-consumer site comparing prescription drug prices, though experts warned shoppers could still overpay without insurance.

🕖 Here’s what’s in today’s newsletter:

• F1 Arcade opens

• Film Review: ‘The Moment’

• Winter Olympics Preview

AND

• Top Stories of the Week

💙 The Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation has supported every major IBD research breakthrough. Who do you know with Crohn’s Disease or Ulcerative Colitis? Give today and support them at our Torch Gala tomorrow. SPONSOR MESSAGE

1. F1 Arcade opens tonight at The Interlock on Howell Mill Road

🏎️ Rev your engines, Atlanta, because the newest location of F1 Arcade opens tonight, Feb. 6, with a full bar, food, and 68 Formula 1 racing simulators designed to put the pedal to the metal.

Located at The Interlock on Howell Mill Road – also home to “eatertainment” venues Puttshack, The Escape Game, and Sandbox VR – F1 Arcade is inspired by the sport and culture surrounding Formula 1 Grand Prix car racing.

Walls are covered in hand-painted tire marks basking in the glow of neon. Quotes from some of F1’s most famous drivers adorn the walls, including Kimi “The Iceman” Raikkonen. The Finnish driver told his racing engineer, “Just leave me alone, I know what I’m doing,” after taking the lead in the 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

🏁 See more of Logan C. Ritchie’s preview here.

A Haunting Love Story for Valentine’s Day

SPONSORED BY ATLANTA BALLET💖 Make Valentine’s Weekend a Ballet-tine’s to remember with Atlanta Ballet. Celebrate with your Valentine, enjoy time with your Galentine, or embark on a solo adventure while experiencing the enchanting yet haunting world of Giselle.

This masterpiece of the Romantic era, one of ballet’s iconic romantic ghost stories, weaves a captivating narrative filled with love, loss, and redemption. Embrace the magic and tragedy of Giselle and let its powerful emotions touch your heart. On stage at the Cobb Energy Centre from Feb. 13-15, accompanied by the Atlanta Ballet Orchestra.

🩰 Learn more and buy tickets.

2. ‘The Moment’ satirizes the corporatized artistic landscape from within the house

WEEKLY FILM REVIEW | BY SAMMIE PURCELL

🎤 Early on in “The Moment,” a tour bus driver asks Charli XCX (playing a fictionalized version of herself in Aidan Zamiri’s new mockumentary) who she is. He looks up her music, and the first video he comes across is “Boom Clap,” a song that was released a full 10 years before Charli’s album “brat” – an album that spawned a cultural moment in which everyone from Kyle MacLachlan to Kamala Harris was participating in “brat summer.”

Written by Zamiri and Bertie Brandes, but based on an original idea by Charli herself, “The Moment” is about exactly what its title suggests, both satirizing and taking seriously the anxieties that arise when you suddenly find yourself at the center of a universe that moves on to the next big thing within weeks.

The scene with the bus driver is a funny, succinct way to point out not only just how long Charli XCX has been around – riding the wave of niche stardom with a few pop hits for over a decade before “brat” suddenly thrust her into the stratosphere overnight – but also how in today’s pop cultural landscape, even something as huge as “brat” felt doesn’t make you a household name. And when art ceased being enough to do that, the artists turned to branding.

🍏 Click here to read Sammie’s review. You can also read her review of the new horror film “Whistle” here.

🍿 Stay in the picture with Scene by Rough Draft, our weekly newsletter about Georgia’s film industry. Subscribe for free.

3. Winter Olympics Preview

⛷️ Although competition started on Wednesday, the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 are live at 1:40 p.m. today, or catch the prime time telecast at 8 p.m.

The U.S. Olympic Committee named 232 athletes to the team — the largest winter roster in American history — including Douglasville native Elana Meyers Taylor.

Here are the key events to watch:

Figure skating: Madison Chock and Evan Bates seek their first Olympic gold in ice dance after three straight world titles. Amber Glenn enters as a medal contender in women’s singles. Ilia Malinin, the “Quad God,” is the favorite in men’s singles.
Alpine skiing: Mikaela Shiffrin aims for redemption after crashing out in Beijing. Lindsey Vonn, 41, returns from retirement for one final Olympic run.
Speedskating: Jordan Stolz, 21, is the gold-medal favorite in the 500, 1,000 and 1,500-meter events after dominating the World Cup circuit. Erin Jackson defends her 500-meter title.
Hockey: NHL players return for the first time since 2014, with Connor Hellebuyck and Auston Matthews leading the men’s squad. Hilary Knight becomes the first player to compete in five Olympic hockey tournaments.
Snowboarding: Chloe Kim seeks her third consecutive halfpipe gold. Red Gerard competes in slopestyle after back-to-back X Games titles.
Cross-country skiing: Jessie Diggins, 34, competes in her fourth and final Olympics.

⛷️ Ski mountaineering becomes the winter games’ first new sport in decades, along with seven new events, including women’s doubles luge and dual moguls competitions.

⛸️ All events are live on NBC and Peacock through Feb. 22.

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