An Amazing evening on the shores of Ramsey Lake

Standing on the podium earlier this week, I looked out at the crowd of roughly 1,500 people gathered together to watch The Amazing Race Canada, and I knew it was a very special evening.  

With millions more Canadians joining us around their own screens all across the country, what a feeling to watch an entire episode devoted to Greater Sudbury, and with such a wonderful audience! It was an absolutely beautiful night on the lake, and we couldn’t have asked for more.
 
When Greater Sudbury appeared on screen, what a thrill it was to hear the roar of the crowd roll out across Ramsey Lake!  Online, smartphones buzzed almost constantly – the feeling was contagious. 

Local residents embraced the opportunity to share their pride.  The #Sudbury hashtag resulted in over 8.8 million impressions, and #AmazingRaceSudbury reached almost 600,000 – and that’s only for Aug. 12.  
 
In fact CTV confirmed via Twitter that The Amazing Race Canada was trending on social media on Wednesday, thanks in part to the noise our residents were making on the web, generating lots of conversation right across the country in reaction to the Sudbury episode.  And no wonder – anything that brings Alex Trebek back to his hometown is something to tweet about indeed! 
 
I’m especially pleased that this national broadcast is following closely on the heels of the wonderful designation Greater Sudbury received earlier this summer as “Canada’s Happiest City”, and as I highlighted that to the audience, the cheering in response made it clear we’ve really taken this to heart. 
 
While we are waiting for final viewership numbers, the overnight numbers indicate that 2.3 million Canadians saw the broadcast, and many more are expected to see it through PVR, rebroadcast and online viewing. 

This is just the beginning.  We’re celebrating this as a complete success, and we’re eager to continue the conversation with fellow Canadians who have now seen an impressive and unexpected side of our city.
 
It’s also been wonderful to work with local media partners who have enthusiastically embraced the celebration – some of whom even joined me in a canoe last week! – as demonstrated by the great coverage of the story and all the positive feedback that has resulted so far. Sudburians are being seen by the world to be exceptionally resourceful, happy and proud.
 
For us, this positive conversation indicates the value of the initiative, as the purpose of the effort is all about changing outside perceptions of Greater Sudbury.  This episode of The Amazing Race Canada highlighted many beautiful aspects of the city, from the lush natural environment at our doorstep, to our state-of-the-art educational facilities. 

The exposure will make people across Canada take new notice of us. We are worthy of a second look for a great first impression and we’re sure they will now consider Greater Sudbury as part of their future plans.
 
I want to thank all of our partners who made this initiative a success, including Vale, Laurentian University, Science North and Health Sciences North. I would also like to thank the staff at the Greater Sudbury Development Corporation who worked tirelessly on this initiative for months.

Greater Sudbury’s feature on the Amazing Race Canada has reinforced how awesome we are, ensuring that we’re on the radar for Canadians across the country.  Given the audiences that the show generates across the country as CTV’s number-one program of the summer, Greater Sudbury's inclusion will significantly raise the profile of our AMAZING community. 

Our participation has been an excellent investment.