Calif. Hockey Team Has World's Wackiest Promotions
The Bakersfield Condors will try nearly anything to promote their team.
Mar. 28, 2014— -- A California minor league hockey team is hoping to get fans excited about the team by holding a “hairiest back” contest tonight -- the latest in a string of wacky events and promotions the team has hosted.
The Bakersfield Condors, a minor league team affiliated with the Edmonton Oilers, is encouraging its hairier fans to email or tweet their photos to the team.
"Last chance! Email Condors@BakersfieldCondors.com with your hairiest back. Must be able to come to the game tomorrow,” read a tweet on the Condors’ twitter page. The man with the hairiest back will receive a $75 gift certificate to a local burger chain and tickets to a future game. Finalists in the contest will also receive 4 tickets to an upcoming game."
The Condors have gained a reputation as a team willing to try nearly anything to promote their team.
Offering Justin Bieber a contract? Check.
Hosting a Charlie Sheen Night? Check.
Having fans to hurl unmentionables onto the ice? Check, and check.
In April, the team will host the first ever "Undie Sunday," in which audience members are encouraged to throw (new) undergarments onto the ice to celebrate the Condors’ first goal. The underwear will be donated to charity.
"Our number one objective here with this team and this organization is selling family fun and entertainment,” Condors Director of Media Relations Ryan Holt told ABC News. "We go to any length to promote this team throughout the community."
For the historically inclined, the Condors commemorated the 150th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address by taking the ice in jerseys emblazoned with a rendering of the famous battle and words from the address itself. Abraham Lincoln himself featured prominently on the front.
The Condors have promotions for those with more morbid tastes as well. In January, the team awarded 2 lucky fans with two burial plots.
"Everyone in attendance will have the opportunity of a lifetime, or should we say "post-lifetime," the team said in a news release at the time. "Cremation services available upon request."
And last -- but not least -- let’s not forget nearly a year ago, when the team’s mascot, a condor, escaped its handler and ran amok in the stadium.
Holt said his team’s promotional ideas are crucial part of the Condors' appeal.
“We like to keep things loose a little bit, we don’t take ourselves too seriously," he said.