The Colorado Eagles present Ladies Night

LOVELAND, Colo – One of the many things that the Colorado Eagles do right is to not only encourage but actively persue a hockey-knowledgeable fanbase.
 Armed with  statistics, that say hockey has among the highest percentage of female fans of any of the big four sports, the founders and management of the

Colorado  Eagles have dedicated special nights to the ladies.
Lades Night – Hockey 101 get togethers are an enjoyable blend of education and socialization wherein the female fans are taught hockey rules and regulations and served a wonderful catered dinner. One member of the Colorado Eagle’s team sits at each table and also acts as the bar server for the women at that table. It is a great chance for the female fans to get to know the faces, personalities, and a bit of the background on the players.
This year’s Ladies Night – Hockey 101 evening was held December 1, 2008 at  American Eagle Distributing in Loveland, Co. The Colorado Eagles Radio broadcaster, Tori Holt, greeted the women assembled and his natural wit and showmanship set the mood for the evening. After enjoying a dinner of salmon,chicken breast, rice pilaf and salad, the ladies were shown an informative video on the terminology and rules of hockey.
Next on the agenda, Coach McClelland was introduced by front office staff member, Ben Peal, who did a great job of organizing this event.  Coach “Mac” had a few words for the ladies and ribbed a some of the players before agreeing to answer the audiences questions. (From the quality of the questions it appeared that this audience was already quite knowledgeable.)
All of the Eagle’s personel from coaching staff to players as well as many of the front office staff who participated in this event allowed themselves to a part of the evening’s fun and entertainment.  You can tell this is a tight knit group by all the joking and ribbing going back and forth.
Three players were asked to provide a demonstration of the various items of hockey gear. Jason Beatty, Jay Birnie and Adam Knight showed the ladieswhat, where, and how these items were worn. Watching a grown man attaching a pair of leggings to a garter belt probably brought back memories of the days before pantyhose for some of the more seasoned women in the room.
After the equipment demonstration by the three players a contest was held to see how quickly three women chosen at random could don all the equipment. Each of the three players was  assigned to help one of the  women with the winner getting a Colorado Eagles jersey as the grand prize.
Birnie and fan, Andrea McCombe, were the grand prize winning team.
The ladies spent the remainder of the evening talking with players and staff as well collecting autographs and taking pictures. From the chatter and smiles exhibitted by the attendees, it appeared this was a very successful learning experience.
With the positive experience of Ladies Night – Hockey 101, it seems quite likely that the second course, Ladies Night – Hockey 201, which will be held later in the season and  goes a little more in depth, will be equally well attended. Contact the author at terry.sanford@prohockeynews.com