Spring Fun In The Sun

Phoenix, AZ - 3/9/07

When it comes to baseball, one time a year many of the sport’s most avid fans head out to Arizona for warm weather, good times and a chance to scope out the up and coming players for their favorite teams.

What they didn’t bargain on was a 71-foot trailer to be sitting in the parking lot of their team’s stadium – but that’s what they encountered.

Oakley’s Rolling O Lab (on the move across the nation in a major way) hit up three different minor league ballparks, spreading the HDO message and educating the masses about the difference Oakley’s optics offer to those in sport and who wear sunglasses for lifestyle.

The tour stops included the Angels minor league stadium in Tempe, the Mariners and Padres minor league stadium in Peoria and the Arizona Diamondbacks minor league stadium in Tucson.

People passing through the Lab during these stops included Garrett Anderson, Howie Kendrick and Joe Saunders of the Angels, up and comer Ryan Roland-Smith of the Mariners, and Tony Clark of the Diamondbacks. Additionally, Steve Finley of the Colorado Rockies came by for a visit. Outside of these baseball greats, many fans took the HDO tour as well as checked out some of the latest product on display.

Oakley had a camera crew on hand to capture interviews with a number of these key athletes, getting their feedback on the new sport performance eyewear, the Radar. Personally, speaking face to face with a number of those players was a surreal experience for me. I loved Garret Anderson saying, “All I wear is Oakley. Ask Garry (Oakley’s sports marketing manager for baseball). I’ve been wearing the same eyewear for a long time and it’s all I will wear.” 

At the Angels stadium, the Lab backed up to the practice field.  This placement made the Lab quite the center of attention – the practice balls coming out of the practice field were all landing right in front of us after flying over the top of the Lab. Thankfully we were safe under the Rolling Lab’s awning!

Fox Sports News came by and did a live newscast from the Lab, featuring the latest eyewear and the tour of the Lab. Other media visiting included MLB.com

Towards the end of the week the Lab spent out at Spring Training, the vehicle and its crew hosted a BBQ for Arizona Diamondbacks. This BBQ was thrown in honor of Jeff Moorad who recently joined our Board of Directors at Oakley. Between major league and minor league athletes, we had more than 30 players attend. Not only is the Rolling Lab’s crew good at educating the masses about Oakley’s optics – they sure can cook up a mean BBQ chicken and burger!

Special thanks go out to these individuals for helping make the Rolling Lab’s visit to Spring Training a huge success:

- Roger Riley and Dave Edwards of the Diamondbacks
- The Diamondbacks Organization
- Ryan Stiles and Jin Wong of the Seattle Mariners
- The Mariners Organization
- The Angels Organization

Words: Brianne DeWeese
Oakley: Public Relations Manager