Tall Ships Return to Portland!

Tens of thousands expected on Portland Waterfront this July

Portland, Maine - Sailing Ships Portland has announced a new maritime festival that is expected to bring tens of thousands of people and a fleet of tall ships to Portland's waterfront this summer.  The festival, called Iberdrola USA Tall Ships Portland 2015, will take place from July 18-20 on the Maine State Pier, Maine Wharf and at the Ocean Gateway Terminal.

The festivities will kick off with a dramatic parade of sail through Portland Harbor on Saturday, including historic vessels from as far away as Spain and the Cook Islands.  At least 8 large vessels are scheduled to visit Portland for the event, including the US Coast Guard barque Eagle, America’s own tall ship. At nearly 300', Eagle will be the biggest of the tall ships to tie up for the festival.

The ships will tie up along Portland's waterfront and visitors can tour these magnificent vessels on Sunday and Monday.

"The City of Portland is pleased to welcome a spectacular international fleet from the Atlantic coast and beyond.  Tall ships showcase our history, our hospitality and our working waterfront," said Mayor Michael Brennan.

"This is an opportunity most people never have to see these beautiful vessels up close, to go aboard and meet the crew, and to step right into our living maritime history.  It takes a village to make this happen," said Alex Agnew, President of Sailing Ships Portland.  "We are honored to have Iberdrola USA as our partner."

Iberdrola USA, which owns Central Maine Power Company in Maine, has signed on as the event's title sponsor.

“We’re pleased to welcome sailing ships and visitors from Maine and around the world to this celebration of our maritime heritage,” said Bob Kump, chief corporate officer for Iberdrola USA. “The employees of Central Maine Power and Iberdrola USA are honored to serve the people of Maine, and our support for Tall Ships Portland is a way for us to say thanks.”

The fleet is coming to Portland as the final port in the TALL SHIPS CHALLENGE® 2015 Atlantic Coast series of tall ships races and maritime festivals, organized by Tall Ships America.

Port cities that host the tall ships typically experience significant economic impact.  Organizers anticipate over 25,000 spectators to attend the three-day festival, which will include food, vendors and music in addition to tours of the tall ships.

“Since ships tend to visit in the summertime, visitors tend to travel from as far away as four hours, and stay a few extra days,” said Bert Rogers, Executive Director of Tall Ships America of Newport, RI. "Portland has the perfect waterfront for visitors to tour the ships, and enjoy rich Maine maritime heritage," Rogers said.

The marine community is offering warm support with non-profits Sail Maine, Maine Maritime Museum, and Maine Maritime Academy. Other key corporate sponsors include WCSH-TV, the Portland Press Herald and the Portland branch of Morgan Stanley.

Megan Jones, Captain of the sailing vessel Frances, welcomed news of the festival. Frances spends the summer on Portland's waterfront and takes visitors on day-sailing trips in Portland Harbor.

"We are so excited to be sharing the waterfront with these beautiful and historic vessels," Jones said.  "They are going to get a warm welcome in Portland and I hope as many people as possible come out to see them."

Sailing Ships Portland, the local event organizer in cooperation with Tall Ships America, is a Maine-based nonprofit and proceeds from the event will go toward youth sail training and education at sea.  Tall Ships and "Tall Ships Are Coming!" are registered trademarks of Tall Ships America.

Tickets go on sale April 3 at 9 a.m. For more information and to purchase tickets, go to www.tallshipsportland.com where you can also sign up to receive news about the event, volunteer to work with the ships and learn how you can be out on the water during the Parade of Sail. Tickets are $15 and allow boarding of the ships and access to the festival grounds. Access to the USCG Eagle and viewing of the Saturday Parade of Sail are free.

For more information contact Tall Ships Portland 2015 at tickets@tallshipsportland.com or 207-619-1842.

Southwest Airlines Launches Inaugural Flights To Five Cities In One Day

Southwest Airlines Launches Inaugural Flights To Five Cities In One Day, Including San Juan, Puerto Rico
-- Southwest converts AirTran operations in four cities: Charlotte, N.C.; Rochester, N.Y.; Flint, Mich.; and Portland, Maine
-- Southwest expands footprint beyond the 48 contiguous states for the first time in the carrier's history with service to San Juan, Puerto Rico
Southwest Airlines (NYSE: LUV) launched inaugural service to five cities on Sunday, April 14, 2013—the most cities the airline has ever opened in one day. Southwest, America's largest airline in terms of originating domestic passengers boarded, is expanding its footprint as part of the ongoing integration of its wholly-owned subsidiary, AirTran Airways. "This milestone is historic as it marks Southwest's first venture outside the 48 contiguous states, and it's proof positive that our ongoing integration of AirTran remains on-track as we're making tremendous progress," said Southwest's Executive Vice President, Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer Ron Ricks.  "AirTran has done a wonderful job establishing a presence in these markets, and Southwest is proud to continue that legacy and extend our vast network of destinations, exceptional Customer Service, and low fares."

As of April 14, 2013, Southwest Airlines Offers New Nonstop Service between:

Charlotte and Baltimore/Washington, Chicago (Midway), Houston (Hobby), and Orlando
Flint and Baltimore/Washington, Orlando, and Tampa Bay
Portland, Maine and Baltimore/Washington
Rochester and Baltimore/Washington, Chicago (Midway), Orlando, and Tampa Bay
San Juan and Orlando and Tampa Bay.
AirTran ceased service in Charlotte, Flint, Portland (Maine), and Rochester on April 13, 2013.  AirTran will continue to offer service between San Juan and Baltimore/Washington, Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood, and Atlanta.  Southwest previously announced that the carrier will assume AirTran's San Juan service to Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood on Sept. 29, 2013.

To celebrate the new San Juan service, Southwest announced a one-day offer of $39* one-way between San Juan and both Orlando and Tampa Bay. These fares must be booked by 11:59 p.m. PT on April 15, 2013, for travel on select days.  See full fare rules below.  To take advantage of these special fares, visit www.southwest.com, and click here to watch a video to see what awaits you: http://youtu.be/LZOsXO5TllE.

Also in celebration of the five city launch on one day, Southwest is hosting an online Twitter contest, encouraging residents of the airline's newest cities to show off their community with their own unique flare.  Check out the High5YourCity contest blog post to view more details, and the #High5YourCity hashtag on Twitter to see the entries.

Southwest Airlines aims to do all it can to give from the heart and make a difference in people's lives.  To celebrate Southwest's inaugural service to Rochester, N.Y.; Charlotte, N.C.; Flint, Mich.; and Portland, Maine.; the carrier will host send-offs for four special Make-A-Wish® kids and their families as they travel on the LUV airline to experience their one, true wish.

A Steal For O’Neill

O’Neill scores overtime winner

Portland, Maine - Forward Brian O’Neill batted the puck out of the air and scored in overtime as the Manchester Monarchs came from behind to defeat the Portland Pirates, 4-3, in a VIP Cup preview at the Portland Ice Arena on Sunday afternoon.

The Monarchs (2-0-0-0) won their second game in the exhibition play in as many games.  The Pirates (1-1-0-0) took their first loss in the exhibition season.

“I thought Portland jumped on us in the first period,” said Monarchs Head Coach Mark Morris.  “I don’t know if it was a little bit of a sluggish start on our part coming off the bus but we got better as the game went along.  I thought periods two and three, we started t play with a little more jump in our step and played with more purpose and got some timely goals with Deslauriers but then they got one on us with under a minute to go.  You don’t like to see that happen but hopefully we will learn from it.  O’Neill was Johnny on the spot and had a fortuitous bounce and was able to bang her home.  That was the difference in the game.”

O’Neill scored the game-winning goal at 3:59 of overtime.  O’Neill took possession of the puck after a Pirates turnover behind the Pirates goal and found center Robbie Czarnik entering the offensive zone.  Czarnik took the pass from O’Neill and wristed a shot that sailed over the goal and off the glass.  The puck bounced off the glass and out in front of the net.  O’Neill batted it out of the air and into the net for his first goal of the exhibition season.

The Pirates opened the scoring at 17:02 of the first period when defenseman Mark Louis tallied his first goal of the exhibition season.  Pirates right wing Chris Conner gained possession of the puck behind the Monarchs net and fed Louis at the center point for a quick wrist shot.  The shot rang off the post and found the back of the net.  Louis’ tally was also assisted by left wing Rob Klinkhammer.

The Monarchs tied the game at 1-1 with a goal by defenseman David Kolomatis.  Monarchs center Jordan Weal wristed a shot on Pirates netminder Chad Johnson producing a rebound for left wing Tanner Pearson who also got a shot on goal.  Pearson’s shot deflected off Johnson and traveled out to Kolomatis at the right point.  Kolomatis rifled a slap shot that fought traffic and found the back of the net at 9:32 of the second period.

The Pirates regained a one-goal lead when center Alexandre Bolduc capitalized on the power play.  Pirates defenseman David Rundblad settled the puck at the right point and sent a pass to right wing Jordan Szwarz at the bottom of the right wing face-off circle.  Szwarz fired a pass across the net to Bolduc who sat on the far doorstep and one-timed the puck for the goal at 15:09 of the second period.

The Monarchs tied the game at 2-2 at the six minute mark of the third period when forward Nikolay Prokhorkin tallied a power play goal.  As the Monarchs applied a forecheck behind the Pirates net, right wing Stefan Legein grabbed the puck and found Prokhorkin in the left face-off circle.  Prokhorkin quickly wristed a shot high on the stick side of Johnson.  Prokhorkin’s tally was the first of the exhibition season and was also assisted by Czarnik.

The Monarchs took their first lead of the game, 3-2, when defenseman Nick Deslauriers picked off a cross-ice pass from Pirates defenseman Brandon Gormley.  At the left point, Deslauriers played the puck off the left wing boards, around Rundblad, picked it up and wristed a shot low on the glove side for the goal at 19:07 of the third period.

The Pirates tied the game at 3-3 with just 24 second s remaining in the third period when right wing Chris Brown beat Monarchs goaltender Jean-Francois Berube.  Conner passed the puck from behind the net to Brown in the slot.  Brown snuck the puck just inside the right post.  Brown’s goal was also assisted by Szwarz.

Notables:  Monarchs goaltender Jean-Francois Berube is 2-0-0 in exhibition play this season…Monarchs netminder Peter Mannino stopped 14-of-16 shots through the first two periods in his first exhibition game…The Monarchs scratches were defenseman Andrew Campbell, left wing Richard Clune, center Marc-Andre Cliche, right wing Justin Johnson, goaltender Martin Jones, right wing David Meckler and defenseman Jake Muzzin.

The same two teams play again at the ICENTER in Salem, New Hampshire at 3:00 p.m. on Monday, October 8.  Secure your seats for Monarchs Home Opening Weekend, presented by AutoFair, through the Opening Weekend Pack!  Get two great seats for either the Opening Night game on Friday, October 19 or Opening Saturday game on October 20 as the Monarchs drop the puck on their 12th season in Manchester.  In addition, you will receive four flex vouchers and a limited edition Opening Weekend puck (exclusive to this package).  For more information, visit www.manchestermonarchs.com or call the Monarchs Front Office at (603) 626-7825.