For more than five decades, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay has set the industry’s standard for delivering unforgettable entertainment experiences, with Broadway-style stage spectaculars like KaTonga: Musical Tales From the Jungle and innovative ice shows like World Rhythms on Ice.Yesterday, we got the chance to preview the new Iceploration show that Busch hopes will build on that tradition and introduce audiences to the next generation of ice shows.
Starting today, February 2, a cast of 20 brings to life an all-new adventure filled with world-class skaters, more than 75 original costumes, amazing aerial performances, master puppetry and live animal stars.
“The grand scale of this show sets a new standard of entertainment that further solidifies Busch Gardens as one of Florida’s premier theme parks,” said Busch Gardens Park President Jim Dean. “Iceploration reintroduces the ice show to our most loyal fans while bringing together the things Busch Gardens stage productions do best: world-class entertainment with top-notch skaters, amazing costumes, original music, larger-than-life puppets and even animal stars.”
Iceploration, with shows daily in the Moroccan Palace, inspires audiences to “explore the world” on a 30-minute journey to the four corners of the earth. This multi-sensory story, told through theatrical skating and an all-new original score, is the collaboration of an award-winning creative team with Broadway credentials, including Tony Award-winning costume designer Gregg Barnes (The Drowsy Chaperone, Best Costume Design Tony winner 2007; Legally Blonde the Musical, Best Costume Design Tony nominee 2007).
The 30-minute show opens with Austin, a digitally savvy preteen, who believes that technology has made his generation more connected to the world than ever before. But his grandfather, an old-world explorer, argues that the boy is more disconnected than he realizes, and takes him on an adventure around the globe. Through their travels they visit the African Serengeti, Great Barrier Reef, the Arctic and the Amazon rainforest.
The adventure unfolds as they arrive in the African Serengeti. Here, larger-than-life puppets and spectacular set design bring elephants and other awe-inspiring animals to life at a watering hole. Solo and chorus skating performances accompanied by acrobatics tell an anecdote of an agile cheetah stalking graceful gazelles and meerkats.
Austin and Grandpa then dive into the Great Barrier Reef to explore the harmony of life on the ocean floor. An amazing black light transition and never-before-seen helium-filled puppets immerse the audience in the wonders of the sea, filled with parrotfish and lionfish, sea urchins, turtles and a moray eel.
In the Arctic, majestic skaters become striking snow flurries as a winter storm threatens the travelers. Austin and Grandpa witness even more beauty as they encounter the Aurora Borealis phenomenon, represented with theatrical lighting and projections. Then, they share the stage with amazing live animal stars, including a Siberian lynx and a sled of Siberian huskies as they continue to traverse the tundra.
Austin and Grandpa wrap up their adventure around the globe immersed in the lush, tropical Amazon Rainforest. Squirrel monkeys, sun conures and colorful macaws fill the air as playful frogs and a graceful dragonfly skate into the grand finale: a new signature song called “Meet the World.”
Iceploration performances are included with any daily park admission. More photos at www.Facebook.com/FloridaLeisure and here’s some video:
In the wake of the 2012 Mecum Kissimmee auction, the list of shattered records continues to grow. The Florida auction kicked off Mecum’s 25th year and a staggering 2,158 vehicles crossed the block, the most in company history. The six-day event, held at Osceola Heritage Park on January 24-29, 2012, achieved a 30% increase in attendance over last year. Hammer price sales for the week-long auction totaled $55,397,462, and factoring in Buyer’s premium, total gross sales are reaching close to $60,000,000 as Bid Goes On sales continue to rise. Mecum sold an amazing 1,548 vehicles with a 73% sell-through rate.
Mecum Auctions president Dana Mecum (pictured above) said, “Kissimmee kicked off the 2012 auction season and Mecum’s 25th year in business, and I can’t think of a better way to begin celebrating our Silver Anniversary than with a record-breaking auction. Company records were smashed in nearly every category including number of vehicles offered, vehicles sold, total sales, attendance, and number of registered bidders.”
Top Ten sellers at the auction covered a wide swath in enthusiasts dream sheets. With nearly 300 Corvettes offered during the Kissimmee auction, quite a few were in the Top Ten, but sitting on top of the list was a 1963 Shelby Cobra Dragon Snake (Lot S220 -pictured at top of this post), which sold for $850,000.
The remaining nine vehicles were (all sales reflect hammer prices):
2. 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Convertible (Lot F199) at $610,000
3. 1969 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Coupe (Lot S103) at $270,000
4. 1963 Chevrolet Corvette RestoMod (Lot S226) at $255,000
5. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible (Lot T188) at $227,500
6. 1930 Packard 745 Waterhouse (Lot S83) at $225,000
7. 1941 Packard Darrin 180 Convertible Victoria (Lot S122) at $220,000
8. 1970 Plymouth Superbird (Lot K56) at $200,000
9. 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Convertible (Lot S163) at $200,000
10. 1957 Ford Thunderbird F-Bird (Lot S129) at $200,000
Dana Mecum observed, “We have a heavyweight title bout going on within our own organization for the title of World’s Largest Collector Car Auction. With the great success from this auction, Kissimmee 2012 has captured the crown from Indy 2011 as the World’s Largest. Stay tuned for ‘Indy in May’ as it works to regain the crown as the World’s Largest.”
Overall, the event was very successful and I think NASCAR Champion, Ken Schrader, (pictured above with me) who visited the auction on Saturday to sign autographs, summed it up best when he remarked that he had no idea how you actually selected a vehicle to buy because there were so many of them on the auction block!
Complete auction results are available to Mecum InfoNet members, which is free to join at www.Mecum.com.
The Goo Goo Dolls and Sugar Ray will perform atUniversal Orlando Resort’s Mardi Gras celebration, completing one the most powerful musical line-ups of the event’s history. Goo Goo Dolls will rock the Music Plaza Stage at Universal Studios Florida on March 3 and Sugar Ray will do the same on March 17.
With four Grammy nominations, more than 10 million albums sold and 13 Top Ten hits including “Name,” “Slide” and “Black Balloon,” Goo Goo Dolls has become one of the most globally recognized and influential forces in pop music history. Their hit “Iris,” from the “City Of Angels” movie soundtrack, spent nearly 12 straight months on the Billboard charts and held the No. 1 position for 17 consecutive weeks.
Sugar Ray first gained fame in the music scene with the hit “Fly.” Since then, lead singer Mark McGrath and his band mates have taken their combination of sunny pop and lightly funky hip-hop grooves and created several of the most infectious summer singles of the late ‘90s, including “Every Morning,” “Someday” and “When it’s Over.”
With the addition of Goo Goo Dolls and Sugar Ray, Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras musical line-up boasts a combined total of more than 350 million albums sold. Headliners include pop superstar Kelly Clarkson, teen sensation Big Time Rush, pop rock band Hot Chelle Rae, Grammy nominee for “Best New Artist” J. Cole and female Rock & Roll legend Cyndi Lauper. For a complete list of this year’s performers and dates see below.
Universal Orlando’s Mardi Gras celebration kicks off Feb. 11 and runs every Saturday and select nights through April 14. The authentic and family-friendly version of the famed New Orleans street party combines unparalleled theme park entertainment with an elaborate Mardi Gras parade, dozens of colorfully costumed performers, authentic New Orleans bands, delicious Cajun cuisine and live concerts by some of today’s most popular artists. Guests can enjoy the Mardi Gras event and great theme park entertainment for the price of regular admission.
At Discovery Cove in Orlando, Halid Shokunbi took the plunge and proposed to his longtime girlfriend, Kyla Brown, while 14-feet underwater during the new SeaVenture experience.
Both from the Chicago area, Shokunbi popped the question in a most unique way — surrounded by schools of exotic fish and velvety rays gliding overhead.
With Valentine’s Day approaching, there’s nothing more unique than celebrating with dolphins in a tropical paradise as part of Discovery Cove’s Special Occasions Packages.
The Mecum Auction in Kissimmee comes to a close this weekend and judging from the results of the last four days, we can expect a big finish to the event as some of the most valuable automobiles on the planet come under the auction block over the weekend.
At 2pm to 3pm today, NASCAR driver Ken Schrader will sign autographs in front of the Silver Spurs Building at Osceola Heritage Park and this is sure to attract a large crowd.
Days three and four of the event continued to bring high impact bidding action to the block, garnering an incredible sell through rate of 75%. The impressive mix of sold vehicles was led by a 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible Bloomington Gold Benchmark 427/435 HP, 4-speed (Lot T188 – pictured above). This unrestored Survivor brought $227,500.
Other top sellers include a 2007 Bentley GTC Convertible (Lot T206) that hammered for $101,000, a 1969 Shelby GT350 Fastback (Lot T177) for $85,000, and a 1958 Chevrolet Impala Convertible (Lot I57) that went for $73,000.
Nearly 400 cars per day are currently crossing the auction block but perhaps the head of the pack so far has been a 1969 Corvette L88 427/430 HP, 4-speed Convertible (Lot F199 – pictured above) that brought the hammer down at a lofty $610,000! All three prior owners were on site as the yellow beast was auctioned.
Mopar’s were well represented on day 4, with a 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T Hemi, 426/425 HP, 4-speed (Lot F170.1 – above left)) commanding $125,000, and a 1970 Plymouth Superbird 440/375 HP, Automatic (Lot F281.1) sold at $108,000. BowTie enthusiasts cheered when a 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air 2-door Restomod, 454 CI, Automatic (Lot F74.1 – above right) fetched $127,500.
Today is Day 5 and it promises to be one of more frenzied activity as the 1961 Corvette Gulf Race Car (pictured above) takes center stage. The gavel action starts with Road Art at 8:30 AM, and vehicles roll across at 9:00 AM. Live coverage runs on Velocity from 2:00 – 10:00 PM. All times Eastern.
The 2012 PGA Merchandise Show opened this week at Orange County Convention Center and with it came a clear message that the golf industry needs to buck up its ideas and start thinking of some creative ways to attract people to the game.
A total of 26.1 million people played the game in the United States in 2010 and that’s one million fewer golfers than in 2009. Speaking about the new Golf 2.0 initiative, Fore Golf’s vice president of marketing, Fred Augenstein said “the goal is increase the number of golfers to 40 million by the year 2020.”
Golf legend Jack Nicklaus (pictured above) was also on hand to reinforce the message that golf needs to be made more relevant, more welcoming and more flexible to be able to attract a new generation of player in the future. Revealingly he talked about his own three children, one of whom is a scratch golfer, who no longer player the game because they have other things to do.
“I wanted to be part of growing the game around the world. This isn’t just a Jack Nicklaus initiative, this is a golf industry initiative” said Nicklaus of Golf.2.0, “We’ve got to bring them into the game having fun… we don’t want to bring them into the game and lose them right away.”
So, naturally, there is great concern among PGA members about the future of the game and that is why they have designed three strategies to tackle the issue; the first is to retain and strengthen the core, the second is to engage “lapsed” golfers and finally, to drive new players.
The first initiative involves two steps; getting to better know the customer and nurturing them. This involves delivering different experiences and nurturing current players to become the most loyal customers. The second initiative involves recognizing the influence that 73% of women have control on household spending and that the women’s game is becoming more influential, largely through the efforts of younger players like Lexi Thompson (pictured above) and Paula Creamer, both of whom were at the show. Also, part of the “engaging “lapsed” golfers strategy is targeting the 90 million Americans who aspire to play again while also appealing to the entire family. The aging Boomer population also presents another challenge as some of their skills fade away yet they still love the game and want to be involved. Technology will also play a part as not all golfers of the future begin in junior clinics, rather on their X-Box gaming machines.
Finally, the “driving new players” initiative will see efforts to reach families in the 84% of American households who don’t play golf. Alliances will be built with major youth organizations such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and concentrated efforts will be made to make the game appeal to minority groups. “I’m ready to play” will be part of the theme over the next five to ten years of the long term strategic plan.
It promises to be an interesting time for the golf industry and here in Central Florida we’ll be monitoring the progress of how the area’s golf facilities perform. For many years, we have encouraged various golf clubs to find new innovative programs that can appeal to visitors and now the weight of the industry appears to be falling on their shoulders. Hopefully, we’ll now see a renewed willingness to work together with tourism partners to create a really great golfing experience and one that keeps the Orlando area as “Golf Central” for a long time to come.
We’ve now received more details about the plans at Universal Orlando this year and it certainly looks like there will be more adventure, excitement, laughter and awe-inspiring moments than ever before – making 2012 an extraordinary year to be here in Central Florida.
There will be something for everyone and every family. From a new Blue Man Group show and newly re-created experience inside one of Universal Orlando’s most popular attractions to a stunning parade, spectacular nighttime show and brand-new blockbuster attraction based on an incredibly popular film – Universal Orlando Resort is bringing guests more new entertainment across our entire destination in 2012 than during any other year in our history.
The new experiences will begin debuting in February. Guests will discover the exhilarating entertainment of a new Blue Man Group show; marvel at breathtaking new animation and effects in TheAmazing Adventures of Spider-Man; dance and celebrate with their favorite animated characters during Universal’s Superstar Parade and relive memorable moments from Universal Pictures most powerful and beloved films during the nighttime show Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular – 100 Years of Movie Memories.And coming this summer – families will laugh together as they are transformed into minions for an incredible adventure inside the new Despicable Me Minion Mayhem attraction.
Universal Orlando will also be marking the Universal Pictures Centennial Anniversary Celebration during 2012 with a series of events to be announced throughout the year.
“We are about to offer our guests a historic range of incredible new entertainment experiences,” said Alice Norsworthy, Executive Vice President of Marketing and Sales for Universal Orlando Resort. “This year will be filled with excitement and entertainment for the entire family.”
The new 2012 experiences at Universal Orlando include:
Blue Man Group ~ Opening February 2012 at Universal CityWalk
Universal Orlando’s Blue Man Group show is taking their unique and captivating mash-up of high energy music, comedy, audience participation and collective exhilaration to another level. Featuring a new show environment, new music, new technology and new experiences, the show will allow audiences to join the Blue Men as they discover, engage and explore the world’s obsession with cutting-edge technology. Signature Blue Man Group moments combine with breathtakingly fun new pieces for an explosive evening of entertainment. New show elements include the curious Blue Men interacting with enormous “GiPads,” a funny and insightful look at contemporary communication vehicles, and a pulsating new finale with an original Blue Man Group music score that will have guests jumping to their feet. Look closely – you may even see the Blue Men take a spin on one of Universal Orlando’s most popular attractions.
The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man ~ Experience March 2012 at Islands of Adventure
Universal Orlando is transforming what is already one of the most amazing attraction experiences ever created into what will feel like an all-new adventure. The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man will soon feature all-new, 4K digital high-definition animation, new high tech 3-D glasses and upgrades to the set, audio and lighting systems. The re-animation of the ride film will include an entirely new level of detail for guests to discover, including a cameo by legendary comic book icon and Spider-Man co-creator, Stan Lee.
Universal’s Superstar Parade ~ Opening Spring 2012 at Universal Studios Florida
Some of today’s most beloved characters and stories will bring new adventure to the streets of Universal Studios during Universal’s Superstar Parade – an all-new daily parade that features larger-than-life floats, state-of-the-art technology and hundreds of energetic street performers. Guests will sing and dance along with characters like the minions from Despicable Me, E.B. from the hit comedy, Hop, Nickelodeon’s Dora & Diego and SpongeBob SquarePants during the interactive experience. Guests will have the opportunity to enjoy performances and character meet and greets prior to the parade at select locations throughout the day.
Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular: 100 Years of Movie Memories ~ Opening Spring 2012 at Universal Studios Florida
Narrated by award-winning actor and recent Golden Globe – Cecil B. DeMille honoree, Morgan Freeman, Universal Orlando’s brand-new nighttime show, Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular, will celebrate the most powerful and emotional moments from Universal Pictures’ most iconic films – all on cutting-edge waterfall screens within the Universal Studios lagoon and surrounded by colorful fountains and pyrotechnics. The experience will take guests on a journey through epic cinematic moments filled with heroes, horror, laughter, good vs. evil and triumph. The new show opens this spring, runs all summer and then on select nights through the end of the year.
Despicable Me Minion Mayhem ~ Opening Summer 2012 at Universal Studios Florida
Universal Orlando’s newest attraction, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, will take guests on an unforgettable 3-D adventure with their favorite characters from the hit film – Gru, Margo, Edith, Agnes and the mischievous minions. The experience begins when guests enter Gru’s home, where they learn that they’re being recruited to become minions and undergo “minion training.” Things don’t go as planned, and guests find themselves on a wildly hysterical journey with Gru and his daughters. Once guests make it through training, they join an interactive, minion-inspired dance party where they can show off their best moves.
Universal’s Creative team is working closely with Chris Meledandri’s Illumination Entertainment to bring this all-new adventure to life in the most authentic way possible. In fact, the beloved characters in the attraction will be voiced by the film’s original cast: Steve Carell (Gru), Miranda Cosgrove (Margo), Dana Gaier (Edith) and Elsie Fisher (Agnes). The ride’s experience is being developed by the same creative team that brought you the award-winning film, Despicable Me. The motion-picture event Despicable Me 2 arrives in theaters on July 3, 2013.
Other New Experiences Opening this Year
Hollywood Drive-In Golf, a unique 36-hole miniature golf experience inspired by the classic drive-in movie era, will open in February at Universal CityWalk.
A great, new immersive retail entertainment experience that will become home to SpongeBob SquarePants and other characters from the number one kids animated TV series, Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants. It will open inside Universal Studios this year.
Minutes away from Universal Orlando, the popular Wet ‘n Wild water park will open its first interactive family water play area this summer – allowing everyone in the family to splash and swim together. Amidst lush, tropical landscaping, the new area will feature 15 water slides and more than 100 soakers, jets, waterfalls and water cannons – making it the largest interactive water play experience in Florida.
Today, Universal Orlando Resort revealed details about a wide range of all-new exciting guest experiences that will open across the destination this year.
The new experiences will begin debuting in February and include:
A new Blue Man Group show – opening in February
HD enhancements and more to The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man – experience in March
Universal’s Superstar Parade – a new interactive parade experience featuring characters like the minions from Despicable Me, E.B. from the hit animated film, “Hop,” Nickelodeon’s Dora & Diego and SpongeBob SquarePants that is opening in Spring
Universal’s Cinematic Spectacular – a new nighttime show that will celebrate the most powerful and emotional moments from Universal Pictures’ most iconic films – all projected on cutting-edge waterfall screens – and opening this Spring
The highly-anticipated 3-D attraction, Despicable Me Minion Mayhem, which is opening this summer.
We’ll be bringing you more details in the coming days about each new attraction and event as more is known. Meanwhile, here’s some video:
Orlando City Lions coach Adrian Heath (pictured above) sat down with me this morning to talk about the upcoming 2012 season for the Lions. There’s no doubt that it’s an exciting time for soccer in the Orlando area as the team looks forward to defending their 2011 USL Pro Championship title.
The club has come along way in a short time and this time last year everyone at the club was just settling into the area after the move from Austin, Texas. Orlando City was originally named Orlando Pro Soccer when it was announced on March 4, 2010, and it was initially affiliated with the Orlando Titans National Lacrossse League team. Unfortunately the Titans ran into financial difficulties and in October 2010, the Orlando Pro Soccer USL rights were purchased by Phil Rawlins, a board member of English Premier League team Stoke City. It was his decision to move the club from Austin to Orlando and the team was then officially announced on October 25, 2010. At the press conference, Rawlins stated that he intended to bring a Major League Soccer franchise to Orlando “within 3–5 years” as well as bringing international matches to the city as well. So far he’s half way to his target and it’s been an impressive start.
None of this would have been possible though if it wasn’t for the involvement of Coach Heath who has brought a style of play to the team that has many admirers throughout US soccer. The team ran away with the regular season championship and swept to the Championship final where it found a tough opponent in Harrisburg City Islanders, eventually winning on penalties after a thrilling last period of the game that saw the teams matched at 2-2.
The bar has certainly been set high by Heath and his squad. It remains to be seen if they can conjure up a repeat performance with which to impress MLS Commissioner Don Garber and perhaps seal that elusive MLS place but you can be sure that maximum effort will be exerted to achieve the goals.
The season kicks off with a friendly match against Philadelphia Union on February 18th at 6pm at the Florida Citrus Bowl and then a week later the team is involved in the 2012 Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic. The Disney event runs from 24th February through to 3rd March and will feature six MLS teams (Toronto, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Sporting Kansas City, Montreal Impact, Vancouver Whitecaps) and Swedish Allsvenskan side BK Hacken. This action-packed event will be located at the ESPN Wide World of Sports at Walt Disney World and the eight teams will compete in 14 games across the 7 days. It promises to be a soccer feast and the full schedule is featured below:
After that, the Lions will be looking forward to the start of the 24 game USL PRO regular season that kicks off in Charlotte on April 7th. A week later sees the home opener on April 15 at 6 p.m. against the Wilmington Hammerheads at the Florida Citrus Bowl.
The 2012 schedule sees Orlando City enjoy two visits from close rivals Charleston Battery on June 9 and July 28. In 2011, the Lions and Battery faced off five times in 2011 with Orlando winning the series 4-1 including a 3-1 overtime victory in the first round of the playoffs. In total, Orlando and Charleston will face off three times in the regular season, twice in Orlando and once in Charleston.
The USL PRO Championship Game rematch between Orlando City and Harrisburg City Islanders will be eagerly anticipated and it will take place in Orlando on June 22 ahead of the late season clash on August 1 in Harrisburg.
One interesting game sees City pitched against new opponents as they will face the Los Angeles Blues on May 24 in Orlando. The Lions will then face the Blues twice in LA in a Friday/Sunday series on July 6 and 8. The Blues were the only USL PRO side Orlando did not face in 2011 although LA qualified for the playoffs last season, but were eliminated by Harrisburg.
The 2012 season sees one major change to the league format as just 11 teams return to USL PRO in 2012. FC New York is no longer a member of USL PRO so now the 11 teams will now be grouped into a single table, resulting in the elimination of the divisions.
The shift away from separate divisions also brings small changes to the playoff format as now the top 6 teams will qualify for the 2012 USL PRO Playoffs. The top two teams will then receive a bye in the first round, similar to the NFL format and all playoffs will be single-elimination matches with the higher seed hosting each game. The 2012 Championship Game is then set for the weekend of September 7-9.
During the close season, Heath has been busy tweaking his squad (roster) and he’s recruited English midfielders James O’Connor (above left) and Anthony Pullis (above right) as well as forward Matt Luzunaris (pictured below) from San Jose Earthquakes. O’Connor and Pullis were much needed recruits as Lawrence Olum and Yordany Alvarez have both departed for MLS teams Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake respectively.
Of the three new signings to date, perhaps the one who needs the least introduction is Matt Luzunaris. Luzunaris made quite an impression on supporters last season as he played for the Lions on several occasions on loan and he scored a couple of vital goals to help seal the regular season title. In doing so he provided more than enough evidence to warrant the Lions permanently signing the former UCF Knight.
O’Connor is a 14-year veteran of England’s Championship division, and the 32-year old Irishman joins the Lions on a free transfer after playing the last three and half seasons at Sheffield Wednesday. In addition to his vast experience he also brings a UEFA “A” coaching license and will be assisting Heath and Assistant Coach Ian Fuller with the teams coaching duties.
Pullis is the son of Stoke City manager Tony Pullis and has played with several Premier League and Championship sides including Portsmouth, Stoke City, and Southampton as well as appearances for the Wales Under 21 National Team.
Heath isn’t resting on his laurels yet though and he insisted that every position could use one more player before the pre-season kicks off. “One player in each position would be the best to fill out the club,” Heath said “and we’re working hard to fill our roster.”
So, it looks like it’s going to be another exciting season and not content with adding new players to the roster, the club has also unveiled a new kit at its first ever supporters evening tonight in Orlando. Hundreds of Orlando City fans packed Mojo Cajun Bar & Grill in Downtown Orlando and the centerpiece of the evening was the unveiling of the 2012 kits. Here’s a look at the details of this year’s kit.
Purple is the new red. The 2012 Orlando City kit features one of the three primary colors of the Orlando City crest- purple. For the upcoming season, Orlando City will be wearing their all purple kit at each home match.
New features of the jersey include a white trim below the neckline and around the shoulders, making the purple even more evident for the 2012 Lions. The socks and shorts match the purple top with the same royal purple color. The socks have a break in the middle with a white bar emphasized with an Umbro logo.
Orlando Health will be entering their second year as the primary jersey sponsor of Orlando City Soccer. Their logo is predominantly placed on the chest of the jersey. The Umbro patch is located at the top left of the jersey, with the Orlando City crest on the top right. Also new to the 2012 Orlando City jersey is the updated crest. A gold star now sits below the three-headed lion in remembrance of City’s 2011 USL PRO Championship victory.
The new scudetto will also be added to the jersey before the Lions start the regular season, with three crowns inside the outline of the Orlando City crest. The three crowns represent the three titles Orlando City won during the inaugural 2011 campaign- the USL PRO championship, USL PRO regular season championship, and the American Division championship.
The new purple jerseys will be available for purchase next week and season tickets are still available at www.OrlandoCitySoccer.com
Here’s some video from our conversation about the upcoming season:
The world’s largest auto auction begins at Osceola Heritage Park in Kissimmee today and runs through to Sunday 29th 2012. In that time, some 2100 vehicles will have passed through the auction block and sales will probably exceed $50 million!
The Mecum Auction is an event that has grown from a small regional event in conjunction with the NCRS Corvette Clubs to a stand alone Annual National Event which has captured the crown as the world’s largest.
Over 100 acres of grounds hosts tents, car parking, and truck and RV parking and nearly 6,000 registered bidders are expected to attend in addition to 50,000 fans who will be there to see some great vehicles.
The auction isn’t all about cars though as the auction also includes antique and classic motorcycles and collectible antique and wood boats. There’s really something for everyone, so if you’re in Orlando this week, make sure a trip to Mecum Kissimmee 2012 is on your hit list!
