Condors fans showed up in droves to the annual Open House and Family Day Sunday at the Bakersfield Ice Sports Center. Some ticketing questions were asked throughout the afternoon and we wanted to do our part to make sure you knew the answers:

• Many season ticket holders picked up their tickets at the Open House this past Sunday. If you weren’t able to make it, you may pick up your season ticket packages at the Condors office, Mon-Fri, 8:30am-5:00pm, and Saturday starting at 10:00am.
• In your packets are lanyards. You don’t HAVE to wear them, but they are intended to be used for putting your ticket inside and wearing it at the games so that the ushers do not have to ask you to take your ticket out of your pocket.
• If you’re a full-season ticket holder, each book contains one ST Holder ID, which gets you in to exclusive events. If you have a mini-plan, you only will receive one ST Holder ID, but it is good for the total number of seats you have.

• Scott Hay signed a tryout agreement to play in the scrimmage game against Stockton Tuesday. Hay played with the Condors in 2001-02 and notched four shutouts, tied with Kevin St. Pierre for Bakersfield’s single-season record.
• Martin Thimm and David Turcotte were both released Monday.
• ECHL teams can carry a maximum of 20 players on their active roster, not counting I-R spots. As of Tuesday, the Condors have 25 players left in training camp.
• Out of the Top 10 attended games in Condors history, seven have been in the last two seasons.

This Week In Condors History:
Oct. 9, 1998 – Condors shatter former preseason sales record
Oct. 12, 2001 – Condors pay tribute to 9/11 during Opening Night
Oct. 12, 2002 – Condors open 5th anniversary vs. Fresno
Oct. 13, 2002 – Kevin St. Pierre Named Goaltender of the Week (WCHL)

The Condors fan base is definitely soaring to new heights this season. The buzz about the 2006-07 season began early this year as fans jumped on board and became Condors season ticket holders. As of one month before the season opener, the Condors organization held the honor of being one of two teams in the ECHL that had surpassed their 2005-06 season ticket base and is also one of the only four teams that has renewed at least 85% of the 2005-2006 season ticket holders. To date, over 444 new season ticket holders have joined the Condorstown family, which makes the Condors one of only eight teams to surpass 400 new season tickets for the 2006-07 season. This means only one thing - CONDORS FANS ROCK!

By now, fans in Condorstown know how Joel Irving plays on the ice, but does anybody know what’s on his mind off the ice? Irving has a 2-year- old daughter Hannah, who is the motivation behind his hard work and the only person he struggles to say “no” to. Hannah currently lives in South Carolina where Irving used to play before getting traded to Bakersfield in November 2005. Even though the two are apart they share fond memories of eating chee- tos and watching Spongebob Squarepants. Irving also recalls his times hanging out with Hannah in South Carolina and Saskatchewan.

Q: What is the fondest memory you have with your daughter?
A: The fondest memory I have with my daughter would be going to the beach. Hannah likes to watch the boats come in and out of the harbor. She points and says “boats!”

Q: Does Hannah understand that her dad is a professional hockey player?
A: I never thought she knew where I was on the ice and then all of a sudden when she was watching practice from the glass she pointed right to me. She knew exactly which player was me.

Q: What’s her favorite part when coming to your games? What is her least favorite part?
A: Hannah loves to stare at people during the games. From a distance, she loves Colonel Claw’d. It’s obvious she doesn’t like the third period or overtime, she makes it clear she wants to go home.

Q: If there was one thing that you would want Hannah to learn from you, what would it be?
A: I just want her to grow up and be polite and respectful to others. And she’s not allowed to date until she’s 40 (laughs)!

For most of us Bakersfield is a hop, skip and a jump away from everything - two hours to just about anywhere you’d want to go. But for the players – Bakersfield seems like it’s the Sahara (or Mojave) Desert. Besides the six players who stayed here this summer, everyone has endured some sort of traveling nightmare. Whether it’s your niece hitting a line- drive straight into your shin or your brand new truck breaking down in the California desert – Bakersfield is as remote as it can get.

For Micah Sanford the drive to Bakersfield was fairly easy, four hours through the desert from Las Vegas and he arrived unscathed unlike fellow teammate Jamie Hodson who’s truck broke down in Barstow, a mere two-and-a-half hours away from Bakersfield. For some the trip to Bakersfield was quite eventful. Danny Stewart’s 10-hour flight from Toronto and lost luggage was a better option compared to the 53-hour-and-49-minute drive from his hometown in Prince Edward Isle. However, the 22-hour flight was the only option for David Kudelka who came all the way from the Czech Republic.

From high altitude to bad gas mileage the players will do anything- well almost anything to get to Bakersfield to play.

Saturday, October 14th
Seasonal Fruit with a dipping sauce, Spinach- Free Salad, Roasted Pork Carving Station, Teriyaki Chicken, Garlic Smashed Potatoes, Fresh Green Beans, Rolls and Cornbread Pudding for dessert

Friday, October 20th
Holiday Salad, Vegetable Crudite, Jerk spiced Chicken, Vegetarian Lasagna, Pineapple Dirty Rice, Seasonal Vegetables, Rolls and Pistachio Crusted Fried Banana for dessert

Saturday, October 21st
House Salad, Seasonal Fruit with Dipping Sauce, Flank Steak, Grilled Chicken, Rosemary New Potatoes, Seasonal Vegetable, Rolls and assorted cakes for dessert.

The ECHL recently had their Preseason Board of Governors Meetings in Pittsburgh and voted on a few changes for the 2006-07 season. Condors President Matthew Riley serves at the Vice Chairman of the League and is an integral part in the decision-making process.

The ECHL has developed a video that details the new rule changes. Click here to see the video and read about the rule changes.

The Condors would like to welcome corporate partner Houchin Blood Bank back for another season. Houchin Blood Bank has been a proud sponsor of the Condors for many years.

“Last year was even better than the previous years,” said Debbie Goad, Accounting Clerk. “We had a month-long blood drive paired with a voucher program. During that month everyone who donated blood received a voucher to a Condors game. The Thursday the Condors players were here, we had 30 percent more donors that day alone.”

Houchin Blood Bank is a non-profit organization dedicated to saving lives through safe and adequate blood supplies. HCBB is the only blood bank in Kern County and supplies the blood for all the hospitals throughout the county. Houchin also provides blood to private cancer and blood disease treatment facilites, dialysis centers and home health agencies specializing in home transfusion medicine.

For more information on how you can help Houchin save lives, contact Houchin Blood Bank at 323-4222, visit their website at www.hcbb.com or stop by their main branch at 5901 Truxtun Avenue.

Former Condors Connor James, Ryan Munce, Eric Neilson and Yutaka Fukufuji all attended training camps in the American Hockey League.

Connor James attended the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins training camp. Last season James appeared in 77 games with the Manchester Monarchs of the American Hockey League recording 42 points and made his NHL debut with the Monarch’s NHL affiliate- the Los Angeles Kings appearing in two games. The Pittsburgh Penguins assigned Connor to their AHL team, the Wilkes-Barrie Scranton Penguins for the 2006-07 season.

Goalie Ryan Munce was assigned to the Reading Royals the ECHL affiliate of the Manchester Monarchs. Munce spend the entire 2005-06 season in Bakersfield where he set numerous team records. Goaltender Yutaka Fukufuji will join the other former Condor goalie Munce in Reading for the 2006-07 season. Last season, Yutaka spend the majority of the season in Reading where he compiled more than 1600 minutes in 29 games. He also suited up in two games for Manchester posting a 1-1 record.

Scott Balan was in camp with Manchester for 8 eight days before coming to Bakersfield’s Camp.

Eric Neilson attended training camp for the Hamilton Bulldogs the AHL team of the Montreal Canadians. Following camp, Eric Neilson was sent to the Long Beach Ice Dogs for training camp.

Wednesday, October 11th: Condors Player Alex Rogosheske visited Sierra Middle School.
Friday, October 13th: Condors Mascot Colonel Claw’d will go back to school for Freedom Middle School’s pep rally.
Thursday, October 19th: Condors Mascot Baby Cal will attend the Beardsley Schools’ Community Carnival.
Thursday, October 19th: Condors Mascot Colonel Claw’d to will help brighten the “Lights On” carnival with his presence.
Friday, October 20th: Condors Player Scott Borders to promote “Red Ribbon Week” at Hort Elementary.
Saturday, October 21st: Condors to attend the American Heart Association’s 14th annual “Heart Walk.”
Thursday, October 26th:Chevron Health Fair
Friday, October 27th: A Condors mascot will visit students at Freemont Elementary.
Tuesday, October 31st: Both a Condors player and mascot will be in attend Halloween Family Fun Night at Olive Drive Church.

During training camp the players are separated into small groups depending on how many players are in camp. Small groups of five or six players make it easier for the coaches to work with rather than the whole team at once. For the most part the four training camp groups are combinations of veterans and rookies, returnees and newbies and forwards and defensemen.

Condorstown, here is your first look at the World Trade Center logo that will be worn on the players’ helmets all season long in tribute to the fifth anniversary of 9/11. The logo is composed of an American flag and incorporates the initials WTC.

Happy Birthday Condor Players & Staff
Marty Raymond – 10/2
Michael Reeves – 10/3
Johnie Parham – 10/10
Megan Scarrone – 10/10
Jake Stevens – 10/16

email: condors@bakersfieldcondors.com

phone: 661.324.PUCK (7825)

web: http://www.bakersfieldcondors.com