Dixie Chopper gives local spin to new stadium
INDIANAPOLIS -- When Indianapolis Colts fans and a national television audience get their first taste of pro football action at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday night, a Putnam County company will provide some local flavor.
Dixie Chopper, the official lawn mower of the Indianapolis Colts, has manufactured a pair of custom-made Colts-themed mowers that will be on display during the inaugural season at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Incorporating a blue-and-white color scheme and the Colts' famous horseshoe logo into the process, special parts were fabricated at Dixie's Fillmore facility and then assembled at the Greencastle plant.
Recent stadium open house visitors got to see one Colts-themed Dixie Chopper, which is stationed on the Lucas concourse inside the north entrance to the arena, alongside other vehicles (an airplane and power boat as well) whose engines have been entrusted to Lucas Oil products. Literally thousands of visitors have already had their pictures taken on the mower, Colts' officials told Dixie Chopper Thursday.
The second Dixie Chopper mower will make its debut at halftime Sunday night when the Colts host the Buffalo Bills in a game televised nationally by Fox. Dixie Chopper is the official halftime sponsor at Lucas Oil Stadium this season. The Colts-themed mower will be part of each on-field halftime show at the new facility.
Blue, the Colts' mascot, will ride the mower out onto the Lucas Oil turf as part of halftime festivities. When the mower was delivered to the stadium Thursday afternoon, Dixie Chopper Marketing Director Rick Judy and National Sales Director Matt Land gave Blue a crash course in operating a zero-turn machine (incidentally, the blades on the mower are not operational).
Featuring a blue seat cover embroidered with the words "Dixie Chopper, official mower of the Indianapolis Colts," the mower is a modified Silver Eagle with a 60-inch deck and 27-horsepower Generac engine.
Other unique aspects include:
* Colts logos laser-cut into the stainless steel fenders and the pulley guards atop the blue-and-white deck. White backing and a second horseshoe painted blue help create a 3D effect for both.
* A Colts logo laser-cut into the rear crash guard with white backing to accent it.
* Floor pan and springer forks painted blue, while the frame and top plate of the deck are white.
In addition to various Indianapolis Colts decals, the mower carries the logo of Lucas Oil in several spots and the Lucas Oil Stadium logo on the front panel.
Besides the mowers, Dixie Chopper will be featured on the stadium banner board and scoreboard. One animated presence features "The World's Fastest Lawn Mower" zipping across the digital screen. As grass clippings spew out behind the mower, they spell out "Dixie Chopper" as they land.
The 2008 season will mark Dixie's third as official lawn mower of the Indianapolis Colts.
Lucas Oil products are not only used on all mowers manufactured by Dixie Chopper but on the company's equipment as well.
Dixie Chopper headquarters are in Coatesville and Fillmore. The assembly plant is in the old Mallory Capacitor Co. building on Greencastle's East Side.
Every mower Dixie Chopper ever made has been manufactured and assembled at one of those two Putnam County locations.