New York, NY (October 14, 2010) - It was a typical autumn afternoon in New York.
The Yankees were off and the Knicks were at the Garden later in evening. Two of the city’s finest kept watch over the passersby as a group of tourists used a flip cam to document the choreographed chaos of Times Square.
But the lights and the thrum of thousands of visitors were a mild affair, compared to what will happen here on Friday afternoon at 1 p.m. That’s when the PBR will literally take over Times Square, with the last of the Final Five Showdowns on the “Road to Vegas.”
Over the next few days, PBR.com will attempt to capture the lives of the Top 10 professional bull riders in the world as they promote the PBR and ready themselves for a spectacular event that can be seen Sunday afternoon on CBS.
On Wednesday morning, the top riders in the world standings – Austin Meier, J.B. Mauney, Valdiron de Oliveira, Ryan McConnel, Robson Palermo, Mike Lee, McKennon Wimberly, Travis Briscoe, Shane Proctor and Silvano Alves – all prepared for their flights to New York.
About the same time they boarding, PBR Executive Chairman Jeffrey Pollack met up with sportswriter Rachel Cohen from the Associated Press for an interview.
At 4 p.m., seven of the riders landed in New York – the three Brazilian riders arrived later in the evening – and made way their way from LaGuardia Airport to midtown Manhattan during rush hour. They arrived at The Westin New York at Times Square, and by 6 p.m. headed to Madison Square Garden as the Knicks played host to the Boston Celtics.
Between the first and second quarters, the Times Square event and the January Built Ford Tough Series event, which goes on sale Friday, were promoted in the arena. The riders were featured on the video board hanging high above center court.
Meier, McConnel and Wimberly were sitting courtside with CMO Dockery Clark, who later wound up on the screen between the third and fourth quarters playing the air bongos.
(A short video of McConnel at the basketball game can be seen here.)
By the time game ended and the riders headed back to the hotel, the three Brazilians were landing at the airport.
Dan Hickman, a road manager for the PBR , then spent some time looking around Times Square.
Hickman, who has worked on the planning for Friday’s event, pointed out where everything will be staged when the load-in starts tonight at 9 p.m.
Later today, PBR.com will post several more video clips from various media interviews – Imus in the Morning, ESPN2 First Take, The Early Show and The Daily Line on Versus – along with clips of a soon-to-be-astonished Times Square on another typical day in October.
NEWS AND NOTES
TUNE IN and watch the Built Ford Tough Road to Vegas on CBS. The last of the Final Five Showdowns, it will take place in Times Square on Friday at 1 p.m. ET, and be broadcast Sunday afternoon. Check your local listings for times in your area.
Due to the special circumstances of hosting an event in Times Square, the Live Event Center will not be available during Friday afternoon’s competition. However, coverage of the event will be made available immediately following its conclusion.Be sure to follow the PBR at www.twitter.com/teampbr for all the latest information from New York and Las Vegas.
GENERAL PUBLIC TICKETS go on sale Friday, Oct. 15 for the Madison Square Garden Invitational and the Dickies Iron Cowboy Invitational. The New York event, which takes place Jan. 7, 8 and 9, is the first BFTS event of the 2011 season. The Iron Cowboy is the second year in a row the PBR will hold a one-day event at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Tickets can be ordered by calling 800-745-3000.
RIDING HIGH MINISTRIES will host Faith & Family Night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, immediately following Round 2 of the 2010 Built Ford Tough World Finals on Thursday, Oct. 21. The event will feature Christian artist Jeremy Riddle, PBR Champions sharing stories of faith, and a unique horse-breaking demonstration by PBR Chaplain Todd Pierce. Everyone with a ticket for Round 2 is invited to attend.
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