Super Bowl 2011 Dallas, Texas

I spent a week in Dallas, helping with an event for Merril Hoge of ESPN, working with a ticket company and Super Bowl Packages and making great new connections and networking… and maybe even hopefully planning one of the Super Bowl parties next year…. I  think they need a little more creative help…. and of course… from me…events “2 a tee”! I also did a live radio show for 97 Rock in Buffalo NY and reported on the Super Bowl.

It was a Super Bowl to remember. I have been to about ten super bowls and this one stands out from all the rest as being what we call in the event world a ‘cluster-f–k’! Some things were due to Mother Nature, like the weather, but others were due to other factors. For me, besides a few things, nothing bothered me too much or maybe I am good at making lemons from lemonade!

I traveled on Tuesday to Dallas and was delayed in Charlotte for six hours, so I spent the time wisely and I got a manicure! See, I love being delayed in airports, cause it forces me to relax which I sometimes have trouble doing!  Upon getting to Dallas, the airport was a ghost town, and the roads were a mess, but lucky for us no one was driving so there was no traffic! As we landed there was not another plane on sight!

The rest of the week was bitter cold and the roads were covered in ice and no snow plows to be seen or salt trucks around.  Thank fully we were not one of the hundreds of cars to get in an accident.  We did though make the most of the snow and made some beautiful snow angels. (see video on you tube  ) That was all you could do outside, because you could not walk or go for a run, as the sidewalks were like ice rinks…a few of us took some nasty wipe outs! The parties and nightclubs were reporting a lack of attendees due to the snow and ice and that did put a damper on some people’s festivities.   Again, not for us!

We attended a party at Hotel ZaZa, and a  casino party called the Cowboy Gathering  which was hosted by many of the X-Dallas Cowboys  and was quite fun…until we came out to 5 inches of snow on our car! We also went to dinner at a wonderful restaurant and hot spot called Nick and Sams that same night.

Friday was the ESPN party in Fort Worth and Kid Rock was playing which was the highlight of the night. Again, my goal is to someday plan that party and make it much more fun and interactive! It needs work! Saturday was the Maxim Party which was a huge hit and then Sunday was Game Day!

The only problem on game day, no one knew where any seats were located and to get around the stadium you had to go to the 4th floor in order to walk to the other side as that is the only floor that you can walk the perimeter…there were a lot of mad people! We on the other hand found ourselves in a staircase and in the VIP section of the stadium… just by chance and no one paying attention to us…so we had a drink, ate some food… watched the national anthem and then proceeded to our seats in the 100 level… 8 rows up…and in the end where most the touchdowns were scored.   So happy to see Packers win!!!!!!!  Till next year in Indianapolis!

The Special Event 2011…the dawn of the new beginning!

Checking in at the annual Special Events Conference and Trade Show: Phoenix Convention Center, January 25-28

An educational and informative (and fun) conference for special event industry professionals. I will come back refreshed, energized and full of  new and wonderful trends and ideas for the coming season along with amazing and plentiful  networking opportunities!

www.thespecialeventshow.com

NYC! 12-3 -12-6

NYC!  12-3 -12-6 (Author Wendy)… a little late…better than never!

We  headed to New York again for some meetings Tee set up for me and for her niece Sara. After spending the night in Scranton at my Moms house, we headed  into the city for a meeting with Creative Artists Agency (CAA).   We met with Greg Stangel, and he gave us ideas and insight on ways for me to further my career in sports broadcasting and sideline reporting!  Very exciting stuff..

Following that meeting, Tee, Sara (Therese’s niece) and I went out for dinner and drinks at Rosa Mexicana with Dave, Dave, and… Dave.  I’m not joking.. good part about it.. it was easy to remember names! The Dave’s are all from Consolidated Carpet in NYC. (if you ever need your flooring done.. they are the best of the best..and if you ever need a good laugh.. call them for that too!) Dave Meberg…. who we call ‘Tree’ went to Ithaca College with Therese! Let me just tell you.. they were a riot!

Kate (tee’s other niece) met us there.. and then lead us to Rolf’s.  We prefer to call this bar.. THE CHRISTMAS BAR!.. (see photos below) the ENTIRE place was decorated in Christmas balls and mistletoe and.. well.. anything else Christmas-y there is to decorate with! We met the owner who said year-round the place is decorated for holidays (summer- 4th of July.. October-halloween) etc!.. definitely a place to visit!

Friday we had yet another great meeting.. this time it was for Sara.  She is looking for an internship in NYC for the summer.. so of course.. Tee opened opportunities for her!  We met with Tenille Kopiasz, AVP Skin Care Marketing | US DMI at L’oreal Paris. She was a wealth of information for Sara, and shared with us the fascinating world of  cosmetics and the marketing o0f the product.

Later that day, Therese and I drove to Red Bank, NJ.  A beautiful quaint little town, with some FUN people!  We checked in at our hotel- The Molly Pitcher inn,and headed out to Danny’s Steakhouse for Merril Hoge’s book signing, for his incredibly inspiring book “Find a way.”  Please read it if you get a chance, it has a very touching message, while it describes the biggest challenges he faced throughout his life, including fighting cancer, battling his way into the NFL, and challenges throughout his childhood.  After the signing, we sat down to dinner with Merril, Danny and Danny (the owner and his son), and some other guests of Merril.  A bit later, in walks Bonnie Bernstein to join us!! In case you don’t know, Bonnie is an ESPN Sideline reporter and broadcaster! Like a dream come true at this point in my career to get to speak with an intelligent, beautiful woman who is working in the field I am trying to get into!  All in all, a quite perfect night! (Tee is working on doing a similar event for Merril in Dallas for the Super Bowl)

Saturday we drove back into the city and met up with one of my all time favorite Miami people Bob Hewko, AKA Bob-o! Bob happened to be visiting from Miami, which was such a nice surprise! We then left there to throw a party at Kelly’s Irish Pub, ‘THE’ Sabres bar in NYC!  To raise awareness for The Steadfast Foundation, we made a trivia game and gave away fun autographed prizes!  The real highlight of the night came at midnight, when we celebrated Sara’s 21st birthday! Happy Birthday Sara!  Needless to say, as expected for a 21st birthday party.! The only person missing was her identical twin sister,  Maria, who was in South Africa for school.

To continue our Buffalo tour around the city, on Sunday we went to the Official Bills Backers bar in NYC, McFaddens! Every Sunday Bills fans from all over NYC wait in line and flood into Mcfaddens to cheer on their Buffalo Bills! Check out this video to see the insanity of a Bills win there! Unfortunately for us, and the Bills, they got slaughtered by the Vikings this weekend, but we still LOVE them!! GO BILLS! After sulking for a few minutes, we continued to a bar/restaurant called Brother Jimmy’s for another celebration of Sara’s 21st!

Before we departed on Monday for the long drive back to Buffalo, we met with Jen Falek from CBS Sports.  (We had to drop off an autographed  picture of my little brother Neil… he was an Allstar in So you think you can dance and now is in West Side Story)We then started driving home and had to stay in Cortland due to a snow storm!..uggh…. then home sweet home!

Catwalk for Charity V

I survived….and I feel like I am just awakening from a very long sleep(I can’t say coma, because my Mom always told me never to say that) from the fifth annual Catwalk for Charity !!!It occurred on Sunday November 21. After 8 months of planning, 32 committee members, 200 volunteers, 5 days to set up, 23 Buffalo Sabres,  18 models, 45 costumes, over 100 auction items, 12 restaurants, and 800 people in attendance, it was again a big success! Thank you to all that attended, sponsored and supported the event. Below are all the articles and photos…ENJOY!

http://www.usatoday.com/yourlife/mind-soul/doing-good/2010-11-29-sharing-miller-hockey_N.htm

http://www.buffalorising.com/2010/11/the-rockin-5th-edition-of-ryan-millers-catwalk-for-charity.html#SlideFrame_0

http://www.pbase.com/panomaniac/ryan_miller 

http://www.mybuffalo.com/_Catwalk-for-Charity-V-A-Reason-to-Rock/set/79214/85283.html

http://sabres.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=538305

http://www.wgrz.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=95200

http://www.examiner.com/sports-in-buffalo/ryan-miller-to-host-catwalk-for-charity-v

http://www.wkbw.com/news/local/Ryan-Miller-Puts-on-Catwalk-for-Charity-109774109.html

http://www.buffaloplace.com/app.aspx?st=10300&e=eventdetail&eid=2250

http://insidehockey.com/?p=10165

http://podcasts.nhl.com/20102011/live/2010_10_21_ryan_miller.mp3

http://www.usahockey.com/Template_Usahockey.aspx?NAV=TU_01_05&id=295210

http://www.usmagazine.com/celebritynews/news/snooki-celebrates-her-birthday-in-style-20102411

http://kenbaker.eonline.com

http://twitter.com/kenbakernow

http://audio.kiss985.com/m/audio/35393033/e-news-chief-correspondent-ken-baker.htm

http://www.buffalonews.com/city/communities/buffalo/article261529.ece

http://www.wkbw.com/home/Ryan-Miller-Puts-on-Catwalk-for-Charity-109774109.html

http://www.wgrz.com/video/default.aspx?bctid=683580171001#/5th%20Annual%20%27Catwalk%20for%20Charity%27/683580171001

http://www.mybuffalo.com/_Catwalk-for-Charity-V/set/78946/85283.html

Some of the celebrities that attended…

Steve Christie and Thurman Thomas – X- Buffalo Bills, Shooter (Chris McDonald), Ken Baker – E! Entertainment , the Buffalo Sabres team, Tim Busfield(Elliott in thirtysomething) , Zach Ward (Bully in A Christmas Story) ,Harry Neale  and Rick Jeanneret, Noureen DeWulf, Mayor Byron Brown, Rob Ray, Janet Snyder, The offensive line from the Buffalo Bills,  Ray Bishop (He paints Ryan’s mask and Guitars )and Andrew Peters.

Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony and 1st sideline reporting job!!

Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony and 1st sideline reporting job!!

A couple really exciting things have happened that are helping me get on my way to my dream job as a NFL sideline reporter! Everyone has been telling me that experience is what I need right now.. so experience is what I’m getting!

Thursday night was the Greater Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony, and I was the red carpet reporter for the inductees and the Hall of Fame alumni!  The ceremony was the 20 year anniversary of the event, and it was great!  The emcee for the night was John Murphy, Buffalo’s channel 4 sports reporter.  He was also my first interview of the night! Other people I interviewed included Steve Christie, a former Buffalo Bill, who was a huge part of the greatest comeback in NFL history when the Bills played the Houston Oilers and he kicked and recovered an onside kick (the first place kicker to do that); Steve Tasker, also a former Buffalo Bill, and one of the best special teams players ever.  I also interviewed Dr. Gail Maloney, Buffalo State College’s greatest women’s basketball coach, and a contributor to the enactment of Title IX; Darris and Rich Kilgour, brothers from Buffalo, who became incredible Lacrosse players, and are now coaching for the Buffalo Bandits;  Dick “The Destroyer” Beyer, a professional wrestler, and so many others! (videos coming soon!)

One of the most exciting interviews of the night for me was with Lindy Ruff, the current Buffalo Sabres coach, 2010 Winter Games Gold Medalist as the Canadian hockey coach, and also an ex-NHL player.   For those of you from out of town, in Buffalo, it’s practically a law that you are a hockey fan, and Lindy has been a legendary coach here!  It was an honor to interview him!

This was such a great opportunity for me to interview all of these greats.  To be a part of such amazing people being added to a part of Buffalo history is something I will never forget! I do love Buffalo! I want to especailly thank the ADAM store in Williamsville, NY for the dress I wore on the red carpert.  Today the ADAM collection is available at the ADAM flagship store located in the meatpacking district of New York City,( I just did a photo shoot there last week) ADAM’s e-commerce site http://www.shopadam.com, and over 250 stores in 10 countries around the world, including Bergdorf Goodman, Jeffrey NY, Intermix, net-a-porter.com, Neiman Marcus and Lane Crawford. Thank you again!

The next day, after working 8 hours as a physical therapist, I went right to Orchard Park, NY and witnessed and reported on some hard working kids playing some great football at Ralph Wilson Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills! It was my first experience as a sideline reporter, and I loved every minute of it! I reported for two games, Southwestern vs. Fredonia, and Orchard Park vs Clarence.  Of course the highlight of the night for me was interviewing the coach and player of the game from Clarence when they won… my alma mater!!  Both games came down to the last few seconds making it very nerve-wracking! Stephen Hughes (a good family friend) and kicker for Clarence, won the game with a long field goal with 3 seconds left! Talk about pressure for a young kid.  Just before he kicked, I said to the camera man standing next to me.. “he’ll make it.. he’s a soccer player” and he did! (Just a little FYI, Steve Christie also grew up playing soccer!) Congrats to Stephen and the Clarence Red Devils!

 I had the opportunity to interview the coaches from all 4 teams, the players of the games from both teams, and report occasionally throughout the game.  Unfortunately there were a couple injuries to a few of the players, but this gave me the chance to use my doctorate of physical therapy to report on exactly what was wrong, what the athletic trainers were doing to help the kids, and give my professional opinion on whether the kids would be back to play!  It was fun to use my physical therapy background to report!  …sidenote… funny thing I learned last night, always always bring tissues with you when you are reporting on the sideline for hours in the freezing cold! Sniffle sniffle! haha

This coming weekend I will be covering (and bringing my tissues to) more high school football championship games, including the Monsignor Martin game, which Chad Kelly (Jim Kelly’s nephew) will be playing quarterback for St. Joes! (They just beat Canisius high school to make the championship game on Saturday)

I’ll continue to update you and blog as this fun adventure to my new career continues! Thanks for reading! J  ~Wendy~