Don’t let this picture fool you – this is actually something you don’t see every day.
Scott, our VP of Ticket Sales and Retention, passed along this picture he got from his brother.
Sure, it looks like it’s just a picture of a guy in a Thunder jersey. But Scott’s brother, who lives in China, took this picture in the Phuket, Thailand airport of an Australian man who said that his favorite team is the Thunder.
And no, we won’t be having a geography test about this later.
- Karina Henderson
Sometimes sports analysts talk about “heroes of the game,” meaning those who performed the best on court.
On Monday, the Thunder had a couple of heroes in the audience.
Tyler Ryan of Edmond was honored during the game as our Devon Community Hero for his selfless actions last November. Tyler had pulled to the side of the road to help a stranded motorist when a vehicle began to veer their way. Without regard for his own safety, Tyler pushed the motorist out of the way and took most of the impact himself. After nine surgeries and losing one of his legs, he remains upbeat and optimistic.
It’s easy to see why he got probably the biggest cheer of the night. CLICK HERE to check out the video of Tyler’s story and the crowd’s amazing reaction.
Also at Monday’s game was Matt Shoush, a Thunder fan who had been decked out in Thunder blue shortly after receiving a double lung transplant in August. (CLICK HERE to read about him and see a pic.) Matt’s sister, Katie, tweeted a photo from Monday’s game and shared his family’s excitement over his progress:
I’m guessing Matt may not say he’s a hero, but judging from the smiles and excitement of his family and friends after seeing him do things he couldn’t have imagined doing prior to his transplant, I’d venture to say they would disagree .
- Karina Henderson
A few weeks ago, the Lady Saints of Santa Fe South High School got an unexpected treat – while they were assembling for an after-school practice at Santa Fe South Elementary, the Rolling Thunder Book Bus was finishing up a visit, and the ladies had a chance to meet Thunder forward Lazar Hayward.
At the time, the girls probably didn’t think much could top that thrill. But on Tuesday night, the Thunder may have turned their thrill-meter to 11.
Santa Fe South, located in south OKC, has created a strong tradition of community involvement. When the Thunder last year issued a challenge to Oklahoma high school basketball teams to get more involved in their communities, the Lady Saints – led by coach Danny Boyd – stepped up immediately.
The girls team won the High School Basketball Community Challenge; their team and the varsity boys from Wilson High School in Wilson, Okla., won a Thunder-ized home game experience for their outstanding community service efforts.
While they were packing boxes at the Regional Food Bank and signing in runners for the Redbud Classic, these young ladies probably didn’t imagine what those efforts would bring.
Anyone who walked in to the Santa Fe Middle School gym last night to see the Lady Saints take on ASTEC High could have closed their eyes and thought they were at a Thunder game. Game-night tunes were blasting, thunder sticks were clapping, cheers were rising. Even the P.A. announcements, voiced by the Thunder’s own Jim Miller, rounded out the sounds with near-familiar phrases (“Whose ball is it? Saints ball!”).
And if you opened your eyes, you would have seen the excitement and intensity of all the game elements in the Chesapeake Energy Arena, compacted into a 300-seat gymnasium.
The SFS players took the court with a smoke machine pumping as, one by one, the starters were introduced. Rumble banged on his signature drum to start the game, leading the fans into a frenzy of claps. Storm Chasers bounced around – and flew above – the court, keeping the energy at a peak and performing high-flying dunks at halftime. Thunder Girls cheered from the sidelines and kicked out a dance routine during a break. DJ Boom led the soundtrack, and Thunder Drummers laid down some beats.
Of the many rewards and benefits of community service, this is definitely a new one.
And perhaps that’s just the point. The Thunder organization leads many efforts to use the excitement that surrounds our team as a means of promoting a sense of community. Since 2008, the team has directly partnered with more than 500 nonprofit organizations to promote things like literacy, fitness and community service. We even walk the walk by sending players, staff and coaches into the community to directly impact the lives of others.
To foster the next generation of service-minded Oklahomans and to fortify the connection between basketball and community, the Thunder is continuing its High School Basketball Community Challenge this year. Teams from anywhere in the state are invited to help us in those efforts and make a difference locally.
Who knows, they might even get to experience our team “bringing the Thunder” to their hometown.
For more details on the High School Basketball Community Challenge, including entry forms and deadlines, please CLICK HERE.
- Karina Henderson
Debbie, former "Book Bus Lady" and current Community Relations assistant, gets a smile from this giant thank-you card.
The area of our business office known as “CR” – where our Community Relations department lives – exists as feel-good central for Thunder staffers. It has a reputation for having the best candy, the most toys (school giveaways are usually strewn about) and a ready arsenal of uplifting stories.
Thank-you notes and cards pop up in CR with some frequency, but when something special appears, it doesn’t take long for word to spread around the office about the “something” – and the story that accompanies it.
Today, for example, the existence of a giant, homemade card started to get a few cross-cubicle mentions.
Almost every weekday, the Rolling Thunder Book Bus pops up outside a day care, school or community center in the metro area. With such a packed schedule, the bus can’t fulfill every request – as was the case when Community After School Program (CASP), a Norman-based group, asked for the Book Bus to visit its Family Literacy Night.
Since CASP is a partner agency of the United Way, an organization the Thunder strongly supports, our CR office looked for another way to help CASP and came up with a donation of several hundred books, ensuring – like with the Book Bus – that every child would go home with a book of his or her own.
Evidently, the books were a big hit, judging if nothing else by the size of the homemade card CASP sent in appreciation.
It usually doesn’t take much to make us smile around here, and after an intensive few weeks of kicking off the season, we were all ready for a grin. This big yellow card did the trick.
- Karina Henderson
With the recent opening of the new I-40 Crosstown for eastbound traffic through downtown OKC, many of our fans will need to chart a new route to Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Circles indicate open exits from eastbound lanes on the new I-40 Crosstown. Marker indicates location of Chesapeake Energy Arena. (Map courtesy of Google Maps; graphic by the Thunder.)
The current exits available from eastbound I-40 into downtown and areas west are:
For a bird’s-eye view of the new exits and onramps, go to http://www.okladot.state.ok.us/newsmedia/i40-okc/eastbound.php.
Fans coming from the north (via I-235), from the south (via I-35) and from the east (via I-40) will be unaffected by the opening of the new stretch of I-40. However, with ongoing downtown construction related to Project 180 and construction of the Devon Tower, all fans are advised to review the latest information at http://www.okc.gov/project180/P180WeeklyMap.pdf.
Fans coming from the west (via the new I-40) are advised of the following routes:
Currently, eastbound I-40 onramps downtown are located at Pennsylvania Ave., Western Ave. and Shields Blvd.
BEST ROUTES IN
From the north (via I-235):
From the south (via I-35):
From the east (via I-40):
From the west (via new I-40):
BEST ROUTES OUT
To the north (via I-235):
To the south (via I-35):
To the east (via new I-40):
To the west (via I-40):
Thank you for your patience as these improvements to our vibrant downtown area continue!
- Karina Henderson
When the new I-40 Crosstown opened this morning to motorists, one of the first people to drive on it – well, wasn’t even a person. It was a bison.
Our own Rumble, safely following a police escort, led the caravan that broke in the new stretch of highway following an opening ceremony for the “40-Forward” project that included local, state and federal officials.
Before the ceremony began, though, Rumble did his share of working the crowd. Folks who had gathered for the event – from media to kids, from state troopers to crash-test dummies – clamored for hugs from and photos with the furriest onlooker in attendance.
Rumble kissed the ground a bit, gave some high-fives and tried to share the spotlight with one on-camera reporter before taking a look at the big map of the area in an attempt to chart out his course along the highway.
Back in the Rumble van and ready to lead a caravan that included semi trucks, antique vehicles and patrol cars, Rumble took the driver’s seat and couldn’t wait to start moving. He inched the car forward, staring down the semi driver next to him and revving the engine a little – getting some friendly waves in return. They weren’t about to take on Rumble in a race.
When the caravan finally began, some of the other cars and trucks honked; Rumble, of course, blew the air horn out the driver’s window.
It’s not every day that you expect to find yourself being driven down a brand-new highway with a bison at the wheel. But rest assured that Rumble, though he is all about having fun most days, takes every safety precaution when he drives. He buckled his seatbelt, he used his turn signal and he even pulsed the van’s sirens a few times as we drove to make sure nobody missed the fact that the Rumble van was on the road.
Well, maybe that last one was a little bit about having fun.
Whether you’re curious about what it’s like to ride along with a bison or wanting to see what the new I-40 Crosstown looks like, check out this in-van video from this morning’s ceremonial caravan ride:
- Karina Henderson
Next time someone calls you out for spending too much time on social media, here’s an example you can use of how it can pay off.
Of course, every Thunder fan who follows us on Twitter – all 86,580 of ‘em – knows that it’s a great way to keep up to date on everything you need to know about your favorite team. But every once in a while, there’s a more tangible benefit.
Take it from me, or from Eric and Ashley, a pair of Loud City Season Ticket Members who followed a Twitter scavenger hunt on Saturday night and got “Thunder UPgraded” to courtside seats.
So if you haven’t already, check us out on Twitter (@okcthunder) and Facebook (facebook.com/thunderfans)!
- Karina Henderson
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