Blog #5
This week is a much busier week for me since the team is in town. Monday, I met with Brian Lobban, the manager of corporate partnerships and special events, and Sam Dankoff, the vice president of premium experience. I learned about their roles with the events side, and they also explained that during the games, they take on different jobs. Canal Park hosts dinners, 5Ks, and high school games. This allows them to bring in revenue all year. The ballpark isn't winterized, so they only use the Duck Club in the off-season. It is an upstairs space in the corner of right field. They have to work with the operations staff and finance office to make sure every aspect is ready for the event. I also asked them about all of the time spent working. In season they work all day and even late into the night with games. They also often have weekend games. They explained the importance of loving your job when working in sports because your work is much more than 40 hours a week. Tuesday, I spent the entire day at the ballpark since there was an 11 am game. It was education day, so the game was sold out to schools. They even set an attendance record of 8,072 people. It was crazy packed with a lot of energy. I spend the day with the promotions interns. We started off rolling t-shirts for the t-shirt toss and then went over the run of show. Next, we selected the contestants for the activities during the game. After, we went onto the field for the first pitch, which was exciting. Throughout the game, we ran around to the places we needed to be for the different games. The concourse was packed, so it was difficult to move. I helped with the t-shirt and ball toss, which was fun because the kids went crazy. I had to take part in the transportation race where I was with another person under a bus costume, and we ran around the bases with people in inflatable suits knocking us. We won, of course. It was awesome to see the players' part of the stadium and be in the dugout. At the end of the game I tried a popular food dish with a pineapple cut into a bowl with teriyaki rice, chicken, and pineapple inside. It was delicious. It was a great day at the ballpark.
How awesome that you can get connections with so many people. Make sure you thank them for giving up their time (and so that they can get you a good job in the future as well). I think it's also great that you get to do so many things. I imagine that because it's a minor league team, you get to be more involved because they need all hands on deck. These are great blog entries, Ryan.
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