My first Riders game

While I love to watch sports on TV, there is nothing like seeing it live. When I lived in Vancouver and we had an NBA team (which was moved by an owner who said he would never move the team) I used to love going to games and feeling the excitement, and ultimate disappointment (if you know anything of how terrible the Grizzlies were), of the fans. I hadn't been to a live sporting event since, but this weekend my girlfriend and I went down to Regina to watch the CFL's Roughriders take on Ricky Williams and the Toronto Argonauts. Saskatchewan has a small population, less than a million, and the Riders are our only professional sports team (we have several junior hockey teams, but do those count?). As a result, the team is this province's obsession (and probably our only major cultural event), with many acting as if their lives depend on the success or failure of the team (this problem is certainly not limited to Riders fans, as many sports fans feel this way about their sports team). I chose this game because Williams was playing, an NFL running back who is playing in the CFL due to a one-year ban because of his 5th positive test for marijuana. How often do you get to see an NFL talent, possibly in his prime, playing in little 'ol Regina? So how was the game? Well, my recollections are foggy due to several beers and 35 degree heat, but overall it was a great experience (other than the fact that Ricky broke his forearm in the first half and did jack all when he was in there) and the Riders nearly made a miraculous comeback to win the game (they scored 13 points in the last 3 minutes, as well as recovered an onside kick) but their quarterback got sacked on a two-point conversion attempt that would have sent the game into OT. The best part of the game was easily the fans. Despite the home teams poor showing for the better part of three quarters, the fans were upbeat (mostly due to the aforementioned beer and heat combo) and kept me entertained for the whole game. It reminded me why experiencing things live is so much better than on TV - you can't feel the crowd through a TV as you can live. Sure, you can hear it, and sometimes you can even see the camera shake, but you don't feel the excitement, at least not to the same extent. I haven't cheered that loud in a long time as I did when the Riders scored that last touchdown to draw them within 2 points of the Argo's. I jumped up and down like a 12-year-old girl at a New Kids on the Block concert. It was just another affirmation that TV is a poor substitute for experiencing things first hand. Who knows, I may even become a Riders fan, but if I ever put a watermelon on my head, I give all those who know me permission to kill.

Ricky Williams pre-injury.

Mich and I dressed up in Rider green (hey, if you're going to do it, do it right).

The fans of Taylor Field.

Just before halftime, the Argo's quarterback got levelled by a hit that left him quite concussed. The halftime show was the Riders cheerleaders along with some young girls who had been at the cheerleaders yearly camp the weekend before. Instead of waiting for him to be taken off the field, they just danced around him and the ambulance that took him off the field.

Here is a video of this incident:

And yes, that is me laughing like a school girl - as I said, it was 35 degrees out and the beer was a flowing...

Update (Monday, July 24th): This footage was picked up by another blog and found it's way onto Global News down in Regina. Who knew that my big break (sarcasm) would come from a post on a freaking football game.Recommend this Post