One of the first orders of business when the Kelowna Rockets first moved from Tacoma was to adorn a new mascot.
“Once the team got settled in Kelowna, we began researching and realized animals are generally the most popular mascots,” said Kelowna Rockets Director of Marketing, Anne Marie Hamilton.
“While a fierce, fire breathing Ogopogo dragon made sense on the jerseys, we wanted the mascot to be more approachable and less intimidating.”
After drawing up the original sketch herself, Hamilton sent off the concept of a raccoon mascot to professional designers and eventually the first costume was created.
The big, fat and loveable raccoon suit was named Rocky, after the Kelowna Rockets. Rocky the Raccoon made his official debut on September 27th, 1998 in Kelowna’s Memorial Arena.
“Rallying the fans, high-fiving the kids, making fun of the other team, banging my drum and having a good time are all big responsibilities of mine at Rockets’ games,” Rocky told KelownaNow in an exclusive interview.
“Outside of the rink I love going out to play floor hockey with the team at schools around the Okanagan or road hockey at various events around the city.”
Just like the players on the ice, Rocky works up quite a sweat in the stands cheering on the Rockets during home games. The team actually rotates through three raccoon suits to make sure Rocky’s fur maintains its fluffy look and doesn’t smell like a used hockey glove.
“Like other raccoons, Rocky doesn’t talk, so he uses plenty of hand gestures and movement like banging his famous drum to entertain people,” said Hamilton. “For a chubby raccoon, Rocky is actually very athletic and he needs to be to keep up with the all the kids at the games.”
While Rocky may be athletic, he doesn’t necessarily spend his time away from the arena training like the Rockets players.
“Away from the rink, if I’m not scurrying around in the bushes or wading in a creek, I'm cheering on the team through social media, explained Rocky. “It’s fun to interact with the fans around the league and poke fun at other team’s mascots.”
Rocky’s biggest rivals are the Victoria Royals’ mascot Marty the Marmot and the Kamloops Blazers’ Digger the Dog, who he will surely be cheering against as the Rockets get ready for their playoff push this spring.
You can catch Rocky the Raccoon at the Rockets next home game on Wednesday, Jan. 17.
