Winter in Saskatchewan is in full swing, with members of Rider Nation looking to head south, seeking refuge from the prairie cold.
Many of which, will instinctively flock to the state of Arizona, one of the main factors behind the forming of Riderville: Arizona, three years ago.
The third edition of the Riderville Tour’s southern stop will take place February 9th in Glendale, Arizona. Each off-season, the Saskatchewan Roughriders host pre-game festivities with prizes, food & drink, and an opportunity to share in Rider Pride with fellow fans in a much-enjoyed warmer climate.
The event this year will be held at “Salt: Tacos y Tequila” right in the heart of Glendale’s entertainment district. Fans can meet up pre-game at the restaurant’s site before heading inside the Gila River Arena to watch the Arizona Coyotes face off in NHL action, taking in the game from a designated “Rider Fans Only” section.
Special appearances at the event will be made by the Riders’ Most-Outstanding-Player in 2016, wide-receiver, Naaman Roosevelt.
The Riders’ play-by-play broadcaster, Rod Pedersen, will be on-site to meet and greet with fans also on February 9th.
One of the event site’s proprietors, restaurant-owner John Tsailakis, explains that Rider Pride down south extends beyond just one Arizona Coyotes home-game-a-year in February.
“I’d say almost every home game, I’ll spot anywhere from 8 to 20 Roughriders fans that’d come through either [Whiskey Rose Saloon] and “Salt”. And not even on Coyotes games. They’re there for NFL games, the Cardinals games, they’re there for pretty much anything.”
The event has been growing in notoriety as much as it has been enjoyed by Roughriders fans from all over North America since it began 3 seasons ago, Tsailiakis goes on to explain.
“The first year we did it at Whiskey Rose, there was just like this huge sea of green…Whiskey Rose was just overflowing with green, like, out into the sidewalk.”
Tsailakis maintains that Riderville: Arizona” is an event which is always top of mind for Roughriders fans embedded in Arizona, all year long–and the trend is steadily growing.
“It’s nice–I always high-five them and say: ‘Hey, you going to be here for the Riderville event?’ Yup we’ll be here.”
Comparing the following of other out-of-state, or out-of-country fan bases that “Salt: Tacos y Tequila” has entertained in the past, Tsailakis found few comparisons to the numbers and dedication of Rider Nation’s representation.
“If a Seattle fan was there at a Coyotes game, they’d probably be wearing either Coyotes gear, or Winnipeg, what have you, you know? Roughriders fans, they wear it no matter what.”
One thing that Coyotes fans and Glendale residents can agree on will be a sudden spike of Rider Green into the region’s desert landscape.
“The Rider fans: they travel well, they have a good time–And they’re pretty respectful of the establishment, or the arenas, or stadiums they’re going into.”
For all details on Riderville: Arizona 2017, check out the Facebook event page.
For tickets to the Riders fan-section at Gila River Arena (Coyotes vs. Canadiens on February 9th, 2016) click here and enter “RIDERS” at the promo code.
For details on how to win tickets to Riderville: Arizona, check out our social media contest here:
