Sacramento Kings

Flight Time Lang and Big Easy Lofton from the “The Amazing Race,” will be reuniting with their team, the Harlem Globetrotters at the ARCO Arena on January 18th for the “Magical Memories” World Tour

2009-12-14T07:47:08Z

At 6’9 and 250 lbs, it is amazing that Big Easy Lofton made it across the zip line. Big Easy Lofton and his friend and teammate Flight Time Lang of the Harlem Globetrotters were recently on the Emmy award-winning CBS television show, “The Amazing Race.” One of their challenges was to cross a zip line suspended over water. In an interview with both Flight Time and Big Easy, Big Easy said the challenge was “exhausting.” He told me that he was told the zip line was tested, but just never tested for someone of his size. Luckily, his strength and athletic ability allowed him to finish. Flight Time and Big Easy finished fourth in the race that premiered the season final on December 6, 2009.

Flight Time and Big Easy didn’t finish first, but they said the experience was nothing you could imagine. I asked the guys how they ended up on the show. Flight Time said that they did the same process as anyone else. He said they sent in a video and flew out to Calif., for a few interviews. The producers really liked them and they made it on the show. When asked what someone going on “The Amazing Race” should bring, Flight Time recommended bringing the little things. He said that the little things like calculators and compasses are helpful for the race.

Both guys being huge fans of reality TV were very excited to be on the show. Flight Time and Big Easy were overwhelmingly the fan favorite and both said they would be interested in doing future reality TV shows. Flight Time even hinted that he would enjoy being on ABC’s, “Dancing with the Stars.”

After watching the charisma and humor of both guys on “The Amazing Race,” it is easy to picture them with their own reality TV show. Not only are they funny guys, but they are great representatives of athletes. In a day and age where some athletes are struggling in the spotlight, Big Easy and Flight Time remind us that athletes can be positive role models.

The race has ended and Flight Time and Big Easy will be reuniting with the Harlem Globetrotters for the “Magical Memories” tour at the ARCO Arena on January 18, 2010. Tickets start at $25.50 and are available online at ticketmaster.com or you can call 1-800-745-3000.
Flight Time is entering his 11th season and Big Easy is entering his 5th as a Harlem Globe Trotter. Both guys are amazing ball handlers and love to please the fans. Flight Time said his favorite part of being a Globetrotter is meeting his fans from all the different cities. Big Easy’s favorite part is when a fan comes up and shares their favorite childhood memory of seeing the Harlem Globetrotters.

I had such a great time interviewing Flight Time and Big Easy and they are such nice guys. I am really excited to watch the “Magical Memories” show at the ARCO Arena on January 18th. If you have any questions about the “Magical Memories” world tour, you can find more information as well as group tickets at the Harlem Globetrotters’ official website: harlemglobetrotters.com

Calling All Artists

2009-10-06T05:15:43Z

The Sacramento Kings are offering a new opportunity this season for local artists to display their Kings basketball inspired artwork. The Kings are asking that local artists submit their artwork for a chance to see it displayed on billboards across Sacramento.

Interested???

The opportunity is open to any artists working in 2D media on a large scale. The final pieces will be expected to be as big as 12’ X 25’ and 14’ X 48’.

If you are interested in submitting your Kings basketball inspired artwork, you can do it by emailing a thumbnail of the piece to Heather Vaughan at vaughan@arcoarena.com by the deadline, October 15, 2009.

The billboards will be throughout the Sacramento area and the artwork will be displayed October 19th-December 20th.

If you have any questions or would like to request more information, contact:

Heather Vaughan
vaughan@arcoarena.com

Good Luck to All!!

Wells Fargo and Maloof Sports and Entertainment Donate Sixth Youth Center to the Sacramento Community

2009-08-19T07:26:14Z

They shuffled in to the room, found seats, and appeared slightly uninterested. Then the music began and the Sacramento Monarchs entered the room. The teens began to buzz and one young man stood up to applaud. The teens might have tried to appear uninterested, but they couldn’t suppress their excitement. The Sacramento Monarchs had arrived.

On Tuesday, August 18th the Sacramento Monarchs, along with volunteers from Wells Fargo/Maloof Sports and Entertainment and world renowned local artist, David Garibaldi presented the Do It Yourself (DIY) Teen Center to the River Oak Center for Children.

The River Oak Center for Children is an organization that provides programs and services to families facing difficult life challenges. Some of the services provided are counseling, education, and extracurricular activities that keep teens off the street.

I spoke with Erin Treadwell, Communication and Media Officer for the Sacramento County Probation Department, who explained to me the positive influence the DIY center could have on the teens. Treadwell said that many of the teens are a step or two away from being on a road to a potentially unproductive future. She said, “A path through the River Oak Center is a path out of the criminal justice system.”

Martha Pree, a Child Care Counselor involved with River Oak Center said that the DIY center is exposing the teens to a different way of thinking about the world and what life is. Pree said that the teens are benefiting from someone in the community taking an interest in them and showing them a different environment from the one they know.

The DIY center provides a positive atmosphere where the River Oak Center teens can participate in activities such as art, fashion, music, and sports. The center also has academic activities that focus on reading, literacy, and finance.

Wells Fargo and Maloof Sports and Entertainment provided the center with:

Computers
Educational Software
Digital art work stations
Screen printing station,
Art tools
Reading materials

The materials for the center were not the only things donated.

Volunteers from both organizations designed, painted, and decorated the center with an “Inspire and Create” theme. The walls were painted in Sacramento Monarch colors and featured inspirational quotes from influential people such as, President Obama, Micheal Jordan, and Kanye West.

David Garibaldi, a widely known performance artist who has toured with big names such as Snoop Dogg, painted a mural of the Sacramento Monarchs on one of the walls in the DIY center and offered signed copies of his art portraits. garibaldiarts.com/

The DIY Center is the sixth center donated by Wells Fargo and Maloof Sports and Entertainment. Both companies have a reputation for their generosity and commitment to the local community. Maloof Sports and Entertainment have contributed $13 million in donations and have worked in partnership with Wells Fargo to establish reading and literacy programs throughout the Sacramento area.

As I leave the center, I hear laughter from a table. I look over and the ladies from the Monarchs and the teens are playing Taboo, one of the newly donated games. There is laughing, smiling, and guesses being shouted out. I wasn’t sure who was winning, who was losing, or who was having more fun. I was sure though, that the teens would fall asleep that night with a little more hope.