The Sports Fan Project

Event 32 – When is Football not Like Football? When it’s Canadian Football (aka the 112th CFL Grey Cup for the Win)!

^{My favorite moment of the 112th CFL Grey Cup? Might be seeing this fella after the game!}

Semi-naked Saskatchewan Roughriders' Fan — ^{My favorite moment of the 112th CFL Grey Cup? Might be seeing this fella after the game!}

The Written Word

Taking Off to the Great White North

Still Photos

The weather was spectacular for my first trip to Manitoba.

Then it became overcast by the time we arrived in Winnipeg.

The look across the Red River at Saint Boniface Cathedral.

The CN Stage, Winnipeg Sign, and the Canadian Human Rights Museum.

A standalone photo of the Canadian Human Rights Museum.

Fergie’s Fish and Chips in The Forks Market.

The cold lemon-pepper pickerel bites were amazing.

The view from above the food hall.

The food hall at ground level.

What did the fox say?

Table tennis anyone?

Waiting in the queue at Princess Auto Stadium.

The Roughriders’ pep band entertained while we stood in line.

Plenty of folks were inside the official CFL Tailgate.

The Montreal fan traveled over six hours by plane (including connections) to get to the game.

Still more people (and me!).

About the people …

… and more people.

Approaching the entry gate.

The obligatory event photo.

Our seat view pregame.

The Alouettes’ logo in one endzone.

It’s the Grey Cup no matter the language or the order you read it.

The Roughriders’ logo in the other endzone.

This Saskatchewan fan is ready!

I went with the Chicken Shawarma medium spice for pre-game dinner.

Fireworks for team introductions.

There’s ALWAYS a red-coated media timeout official. Argh!

The Alouettes scrimmage deep in Roughriders’ territory.

Our view of the MGK halftime performance.

This was not a Winnipeg jersey tribute to me, but the name of an actual Blue Bomber player (

The Roughriders’ dance team performs.

Wayne and I from upstairs.

The field before the final play of the game.

Wayne had one eye on the Lions-Eagles game and another on the Grey Cup.

I recognized the names of Dieter Brock and Bud Grant in the Blue Bombers’ ring of honor.

Three generations of Roughriders’ fans sat to my left.

This sign says it all.

The walk back to our car post-game.

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Video

^{It was festive prior to the game.}

^{Lots of people at the CFL tailgate.}

^{First look at Princess Auto Stadium.}

^{My seat was up top.}

^{Our Lady Peace peforming.}

^{Here comes the Grey Cup.}

^{The Roughriders are introduced.}

^{The Alouettes are introduced.}

^{“O Canada” is performed.}

^{The coin flip.}

^{Als’ Shea Patterson runs it in.}

^{Riders’ Tommy Stevens TD.}

^{Riders’ A. J. Ouellette’s TD.}

^{MGK opens the halftime show.}

^{More MGK from halftime.}

^{Riders’ Brett Lauther nails the FG.}

^{The final play of the 112th CFL Grey Cup.}

^{A Riders’ player celebrates with fans.}

^{Riders’ fans celebrate after the game.}

^{Here comes the Grey Cup.}

^{Riders’ QB Trevor Harris is honored.}

^{The Grey Cup is presented to the Saskatchewan Roughriders.}

Fun Facts

Traveling Party – Doug and his friend, Wayne
Last Time Visited – This was our first time in Winnipeg, Princess Auto Stadium, and the CFL Grey Cup
The Grey Cup vs. Earl Grey Tea – I was this moment old when I realized the CFL’s trophy (the Grey Cup) and the famous tea brand (Earl Grey Tea) are named for the same family. The tea is named for Charles Grey, the 2nd Earl Grey, a British Prime Minister. The CFL trophy is named for Albert Grey, thh 4th Earl Grey, the Governor General of Canada who donated the trophy in 1909.
An All Ages Crowd – When you sit in close proximity to people for a few hours, there’s naturally going to be some shraed moments. For me, I noticed what appeared to be a teenager to my left, utilizing the end of halftime to place some feet warmers on the underside of his shoe’s tongues. I grinned and acknowledged it was about that time and tore open my hand warmers and added them to my gloves. The young man, decked out in Saskatchewan Roughrider gear, and I chatted a bit and I discovered he was attending the game with his father and his grandfather; three generations! He went on to tell me that they’d attended every Roughrider home game that season and the six hours to Winnipeg for the finale was always going to happen. That was a big takeaway for me from the Grey Cup … So. Many. Families. With tickets available at a fairly reasonable price (under $250 Canadian) it was refreshing to see so many generations of fans represented in the venue. There is no way what I witnessed in Winnipeg could happen at a Super Bowl. Unless, of course, the families had last names like Rockefeller or Bezos or Musk. Well, you get the idea.
The Triple Pickle McCrispy – As we began our trip south from Princess Auto Stadium we spotted a McDonald’s on ahead on our right. Both Wayne and I had noticed an advertisement on the way into town for a new (to us, at least) McDonald’s sandwich – the Triple Pickle McCrispy. It is a special promotional item in Canada. In short, it’s a McCrispy Chicken Sandwich with pickles three ways atop. The first pickle is the traditional dill pickle common to most McDonald’s sandwiches. The second is a dill pickle-infused mayo. Finally, is dill-pickle seasoned cucumbers (um, pickles, right?) that were deep fried and added to the sandwich.
- The Review – Neither Wayne nor I were blown away by the Triple Pickle McCrispy. It was worth the try but not a repeat.
Running List of States Traveled To/Through (27 total) – Alabama, Alaska, California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, & Wyoming
Running List of Countries Traveled To/Through (8 total) – Argentina, Canada (Manitoba, Ontario, & Quebec), England, Japan, Korea, Scotland, United States, & Wales
Distance Traveled – 430 miles round trip from Fargo to Winnipeg, MB, Princess Auto Stadium
Cumulative Distance Traveled After 32 Events – 70,545 miles
Up Next – The Detroit Lions against the Green Bay Packers on Thanksgiving Day at Ford Field in Detroit.

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