Studies show that athletic teams really do have a home-field advantage.  Support from the crowd can make a difference in the outcome.  Just look at CenturyLink Field in Seattle, home of the Super Bowl Champion Seahawks, as one example.

Therefore, a great asset to the Floral Park Knights this year should be its brand-new mascot, which made its debut at the September 27th football game against Glen Gove. The initiative to purchase a new mascot costume was lead by Student Activities Director Mrs. Mason. It was a tremendous undertaking. Every club in the school was asked to donate to the new mascot fund, and numerous pizza sales were held to raise money as well. The PTSA and the Athletic Booster Club also made significant contributions. The total cost of the costume came to about $6,700. A company specializing in mascot construction custom-made this costume for our school. It is based on a design by Floral Park Memorial’s very own Emilie Guilliod.

This new Knight costume is state-of-the-art. The costume includes a cooling vest, a special mesh net that holds long-lasting ice packs to keep the wearer cool during the game. It also has a special shirt and pants, designed to imitate the chainmail armor of a Knight from the Middle Ages. The costume also includes heavy-duty boots. Each wearer of the costume has his or her own insoles for the boots to keep the costume clean and sanitary. The costume also has four-finger gloves, in keeping with the costume’s cartoonish look.

There is a foam chest-plate that goes on over one’s head along with straps on its sides. The last piece to put on is the comically-large headpiece.  This is the costume’s heaviest component. Vents on the top and in the front of the headpiece allow fresh air to constantly flow through, which is then aided by its battery-powered fan. In addition, the front part of the headpiece disconnects, being held on by magnets on its sides. It also has a really cool matching sword.

This year, the costume will be worn by Graciela Lopez and Thomas Kenna. Since only one person can be the mascot at a given time, the two juniors will alternate between each game or event. The mascot made a great debut at the Glen Cove game and will certainly bring great excitement and school spirit to many future events.

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