Weber stars in McDonald’s pony show
Here’s some good news for Montreal Canadiens fans: at age 32, defenceman Shea Weber skates faster than a speeding horse.
At least that’s what McDonald’s wants us to believe in a new ad that has Weber, skating on a synthetic ice surface, racing a cowboy riding a horse to promote the Mighty Angus burger.
The ad was filmed Aug. 2 on a field in Kananaskis, Alta., in a one-day shoot that took more than 12 hours. Weber edges out the horse in a 200-foot race and raises his arms in celebration.
The ad would be more believable if it was Canadiens speedster Paul Byron beating out the horse and cowboy since speed is not exactly Weber’s game. However, the most surprising part isn’t that the six-foot-foot, 232-pound Weber wins the race. It comes in the outtakes video and photos provided by McDonald’s in which Weber smiles and laughs while talking with the cowboy — something reporters and Habs fans rarely get to see.
When it was mentioned to Chuck Coolen, McDonald’s Eastern Canada senior marketing manager, that Postmedia now has what might be its first photo of a smiling Weber to file away, he laughed and said: “You’re welcome.”
Coolen said McDonald’s has featured cowboys and a Western setting in previous ads for the Mighty Angus and that the “mighty” Weber was a perfect fit.
“I thought it was a pretty cool concept … obviously wanted to give it a try,” Weber says in the outtakes video. “Should be a lot of fun. Just racing the cowboy. Just hopefully don’t go off the end and off the cliff.”
Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty had yet to see the McDonald’s ad when he joined former Hab Chris Nilan on his radio show Tuesday.
“Fake ice … he’s skating on fake ice, racing a horse?” Pacioretty said. “I’ll ask him if it’s doctored up on the video.”
The ad stirred up interest on social media following its YouTube debut Tuesday. Coolen said the commercial will air only on TV in Quebec.
“We’ve been overwhelmed with how much buzz it’s getting and how interested people are,” Coolen said about the ad. “They seem to love the concept.”