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Help Wanted: Hockey Mascot
The boring, lazy need not apply.
This is a fun job with one-of-a-kind uniform.
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FarkThe Oklahoma City Blazers have Clyde S. Dale, a giant horse.
Then there’s Stanley the New Mexico Scorpion; Sir Sting-A-Lot, the Killer Bee from Rio Grande Valley; Fang, of the Austin Ice Bats, and the Wichita Thunder’s Sonic the Thunder Dog,
Who, and what, will the mascot be when the expansion Rapid City Rush takes to the ice for the 2008-09 season? That will be revealed on Aug. 23 at the Rush’s booth at the Central States Fair.
The Rush is accepting applications for the person inside the suit, and in spite of the fun nature of the position, this is still pretty serious stuff for a professional sports franchise.
“Next to the players, the mascot is the biggest ambassador for the team to the community, so we’re looking for someone who’s willing to go to different events and get our face out there and be a positive role model,” said Rush general manager Jason Rent.
It takes a special person to become a mascot, Rent said.
“No pun intended, we’re looking for someone who’s very animated, hopefully with experience, but not necessary, and hopefully with skating experience, but not necessary,” he said
The ideal mascot has the right combination of showmanship, personality and athleticism
“You’ve got to have a sense of humor,” Rent said, “And you need to be someone who can deal with heat because it gets pretty hot in there.”
Rent said interviewing for the mascot position is a new experience for him as a general manager, but he knows that what the persona the mascot becomes depends on the person inside the suit.
“The best guideline I can give is someone who can skate and with an outgoing personality. That would be the ideal,” Rent said. “They’re going to bring their own flair and unusual quirks to it. Some of them are good dancers, others are really funny and know how to play to people in social settings.”
Before joining the expansion Rush last year, Rent was general manager of the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs, which actually had two mascots, Clawed, and Lil’ Bugger, big and little crawfish.
Clawed is the team’s hired mascot, while area youth hockey players take turns in the smaller, kid-sized Lil’ Bugger suit.
“It was the owners idea. I thought it was crazy, but actually people loved it,” Rent said.
Applications are available on the Rush Web site or at the team’s office at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center. Interviews and auditions will be scheduled as needed.
Rent isn’t worried that the announcement of the Rush’s mascot is less than three weeks away.
“The right person will come along,” he said.
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