QUACK! - Ride The Ducks San Francisco Duck Tours Official Blog: March 2010

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Ride the Ducks Owner is On TV!

In case you missed it, we were on Undercover Boss this past weekend. Here is a link to Hulu's recording of it:

http://www.cbs.com/primetime/undercover_boss/video/

We're all really proud to work here.

Quack!

Sunday, March 28, 2010

Good News! Our Friends are Returning!

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/wild/community/blogs/inside-wild?plckController=Blog&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&UID=a012510e-33b9-4c7e-b708-b747ec4dd594&plckPostId=Blog%3aa012510e-33b9-4c7e-b708-b747ec4dd594Post%3aa9787ff9-95ec-48c1-bb7e-52d7e9ce47bc&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest

Thursday, March 25, 2010

Ride the Ducks is going to be on TV!

Sunday evening, our company is going to be on Undercover Boss, channel 5 at 9:00pm! Check us out! Herschend Family Entertainment’s President and Chief Executive Officer Featured on the CBS Hit Show UNDERCOVER BOSS Episode includes segments Ride The Ducks AIR DATE: Sunday, March 28, 9 p.m. EST / 8 p.m. CST on CBS.

Here's a trailer: https://www.sendthisfile.com/6D5jmQefOs7BoTY3lq3TgY0x.

File Download
www.sendthisfile.com

Friday, March 19, 2010

European Top Models Ride on the Ducks!

Special thanks to SF Ops Supervisor Richard Biolos for his help in filming an episode of Germany’s Next Top Model. Similar to the US version, the reality television show features aspiring models that must compete for the chance of winning the top spot in front of a live audience. The episode was shot entirely in San Francisco with the girls competing in a still photo shoot on our cable car #90 (aka the movie car as seen in films like The Rock) and the winning models were rewarded with a private sunset duck tour also captained by Richard. Another tough day at the office for Richard!

The Ducks at San Francisco's Sunday Streets!

On an incredible spring day with temperatures in the 60s, thousands of people descended on the Embarcadero in San Francisco for the first “Sunday Streets” event of 2010. “Sunday Streets” as it is known closes down the streets of San Francisco so residents can ride, run, skate, dance and hula hoop without the annoyance of vehicles on the street. (They guarantee no Sunday Drivers). While this is typically a nuisance to tour companies, RTD San Francisco took advantage of the opportunity to get in front of local San Franciscans that flocked to the typically tourist confines of Fisherman’s Wharf. Splash, played by the talented Nicole Famularcano, was a great hit with the kids and the handful of Wacky Quackers Margaret Biolos distributed could be heard amongst the workout savvy locals up and down The Embarcadero.

Meet Splash

As the official mascot for Ride The Ducks, Splash is an animated, ducky caricature that is the face of a company that sells nothing but fun! Standing at 6’0” and weighing in at a whopping 200 pounds, Splash’s sunny disposition exemplifies the personality of Ride The Ducks. Considered “fowl” by some, most children and adults gravitate to this fun-loving mascot upon first sight.
Everywhere he goes, Splash gives a little piece of himself away…even when he’s not available to hop aboard personally to join guests for their “quack-tacular” tour of the City-by-the-Bay. As a special souvenir for Ride The Ducks patrons, Splash has trademarked his fabulously famous “bill” and replicated his own “Wacky Quackers™” which is gifted to each rider so that they too can make a big splash during their journey through San Francisco. View my complete profile here.

About the Duck Vehicle

Ducks were first built by General Motors in 1942 and were basically a truck enclosed in a water-tight shell. You may think they are called ducks because they can splash into the water and out again, but actually DUKW is a military acronym. The letters are codes indicating that it was designed in 1942 (D), for utility/amphibious purposes (U), with front wheel drive (K), and two rear driving axles (W).

The first operational use of the DUKW was in March, 1943, when the U.S. landed Army troops on Noumea, New Caledonia. Later organized into companies, the DUKW displayed its versatility by carrying ammunition directly from anchored ships to shore.

Today Ride The Ducks is the amphibious tour industry leader - with over 75 vehicles in operation on rivers, lakes, bays and other waterways around the USA. The Ride The Ducks vehicle is considered a "state of the art" amphibious vehicle vehicle built from the ground up to maximize a safe and comfortable tour for our guests. US Coast Guard certified Ride The Ducks vehicles are not refurbished WWII vehicles. You can read more about our vehicles here.