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SUPER BOWL DAYS

SUPER BOWL DAYS

St. Petersburg Times * January 20, 2009

TAMPA, FL -- Limo and taxi drivers have gathered to learn about Tampa parking lots, routes and manners to use during the Super Bowl.

Hillsborough County's taxi and limousine drivers met at the invitation of the Tampa Bay Super Bowl Host Committee, the NFL and other transportation officials. One hundred thousand Super Bowl visitors are expected to attend 100 different events related to Super Bowl XLIII.

More than 500 drivers attended the first of four such meetings. Each driver left with a book of maps and a run-through of what to expect on Feb. 1 and the preceding days. The area's visitor's bureaus heaped responsibility on them to make sure their guests feel welcome.

"You are the expert," a PowerPoint presentation demonstrated, urging them to treat customers, particularly those with disabilities with compassion.

For many drivers, who know good service leads to better tips, it wasn't new, but they welcomed reminders.

Drivers hope for a huge weekend that will help cushion tough economic times.

Super Bowl XLIII will be the forty-third edition of the Super Bowl, featuring the American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference champion Arizona Cardinals to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the 2008 season.

The Cardinals will be the designated "home team," as is the case for all National Football Conference (NFC) champions in odd numbered Super Bowls. The game is scheduled to be played on Sunday, February 1, 2009, with a kickoff at 6:00 P.M. Eastern Time, at the 72,500 seat Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. Super Bowl XLIII will be the second Super Bowl at this venue and the fourth overall in that city. Tampa was selected for the game site on May 25, 2005, beating out three other finalists: Atlanta, Houston, and Miami. It is the third Super Bowl in history to feature two pre 1960 NFL Expansion Draft teams.

Super Bowl XLIII will be broadcast both on the NBC TV network and CBS Radio/Westwood One.

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