Thursday, July 05, 2018

In a tradition lasting since the late 50's, before each practice in the offseason, children line up outside of Lambeau field in order to let a Green Bay Packer ride their bike across the street to the practice field.


This is the only team known to do this, and it's the only team owned by the locals -  the only community-owned franchise in American professional sports, not by a team owner billionaire.

The Packers are the 3rd oldest team, have played in their original city longer than any other team in the NFL, won the 1st two Superbowls, and in 1923 began it's public sale of stock.

Stock sales have been to fund Packer operations, beginning with $5,000 being raised through 1,000 shares offered at $5 apiece in 1923.

 Most recently, $64 million was raised in 2011–2012 towards a $143-million Lambeau Field expansion. Demand exceeded expectations, and buyers from all 50 U.S. states and Canada purchased 269,000 shares at $250 apiece, approximately 99% online.

The original "Articles of Incorporation for the Green Bay Football Corporation", enacted in 1923, specified that should the franchise be sold, any post-expenses money would have gone to the Sullivan-Wallen Post of the American Legion to build "a proper soldier's memorial."

 This stipulation was included to ensure there could never be any financial inducement for shareholders to move the club from Green Bay. At the November 1997 annual meeting, shareholders voted to change the beneficiary from the Sullivan-Wallen Post to the Green Bay Packers Foundation, which makes donations to many charities and institutions throughout Wisconsin








Hanka Gremminger, riding a bicycle with an unknown kid sitting on the rear wheel while DE Jim Temp and LB Dan Currie went to the training ground.

Peter Pisani said he was the boy and he remembered that the players were late to training, and so they wanted to avoid a fine.

 "Bicycling started in about 1959, a few children were taken to a bicycle and watched for training," says Larry Luedke, who was born in Green Bay. "I remember when Lombardi took over in 1959 ... some of us were borrowing our bikes and we were running alongside them," says Gary Van Ess, also from Green Bay.



http://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=52487933&itype=CMSID#gallery-carousel-446996
http://viralthings.tumblr.com/post/101087691908/in-a-tradition-lasting-since-the-60s-before-each
https://www.tmj4.com/sports/green-bay-packers/packers-training-camp-kicks-off-at-lambeau-field
https://ftw.usatoday.com/2014/07/why-do-green-bay-packers-players-ride-kids-bikes-to-practice
http://greenbaypackers.eu/tradicie/

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