Some Vanier Photos

Stylin' in the box at Tim Hortons Field

Look up....wayyyyyy up. It's the Santas

The tasty eats in the box

Tailgate, Santa style, avec ironing board

Santas with the Mayor of Hamilton

2016 Vanier Cup - a successful road tour

This year's tour was successful, as always. A recap.

The Good

• The short bus we rented got turned into a full size coach and provided an excellent ride with an understanding driver, Tom a.k.a Bob.
• The snacks and shooters at the tailgate were excellent.
• The Santa contingent had some great outfits and made it on Sportsnet again.
• The box seats and eats were outstanding.
• The game itself was excellent with plently of lead changes and great plays.
• Dinner at Shakespeare's was top shelf food, classy wine, and entertaining wait staff.
• Celebrity sighting: the Mayor of Hamilton, his worship Fred Eisenberger.

The Bad

• Unfortunately, no rookie was brave enough to attend so this year's award was not handed out.
• While fun, the tailgate party was essentially just us.

The Ugly

• WORST ATTENDANCE EVER at the game. Boo Hamilton!

Fir Sure List

Fir Sure list - this is who showed up:

1.        Kenny G 

2.        V

3.        Jrock

4.        Spence

5.        Skinny

6.        Darrin

7.        Rob Riv

8.        Dark Marcy

9.        Safety Kev

10.     BFR

11.     Sharpy

12.     Van Zeisel

13.     Dickie

14.     Kinger

15.     Loggia

16.     Chad Rad (1/2 bus)

17.     Poor little Rich Kidd (no bus)

18.     Landers (no bus)

19.     Mulley (no bus)

20.     Con-ed Ed (no bus)

21.     Dahle  (no bus)

22.     Dr. Dahle (no bus)

1 sleep newsletter

Woo Hoo, Happy Vanier-trip-eve!

 

I can’t say that I have had success getting rested for the trip… but what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger (or at least makes us look really old), so bring it on. I have included your suggested itinerary below. The Vanier gameday fan experience looks pretty lame so it’s a good thing we are tailgating https://vaniercup.com/2016/07/21/pre-game-fanfest/ The only thing that could be worse would be if they had Sharon, ,and Bram perform live.

 

Last minute details… I just realized that the new Santa suit I bought is Adult Plus XXL so I have to run into Party Mart and exchange it. I have procured enough Lester’s XL hot dogs (6 pounds) for us for the tailgate so if you want anything other than that to cook, pls bring it. I’ll have all the fixin’s and plates etc.

 

The BIG news is that we have a full-size coach. The 26-seater is in the shop so we get the Cadillac for same price. I think we will have enough room.

 

Safety Kev, are you getting candy canes per tradition?

 

FRIDAY:

9:15-9:30        Stittsville group gets picked up

9:45-ish         CP group gets picked up

10AM- 3PM        Re-kindling of friendships, airing of grievances, feats of strength,                         general debauchery, people checking Rick’s ID to see if it’s really him

3PM-3:30        Check-in, get settled in room, dropping of deuce you held on the bus

3:30-5:30       Free time…suggested activities; hot tub, charades, personal grooming

5:30 PM Get ready for dinner

6:00 PM Depart for “Gown and Gavel” restaurant (2016 Winner of best Burger in Hamiltoe). It’s a 6 minute walk from Hotel. Spence I have had them import a special bottle of red wine for you as their most expensive wine was only $59.00/bottle

menu- http://gownandgavel.ca/dev2014/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Gown-and-Gavel-Menu-September-2016.pdf

 

8 PM - ??       Hess Village and other adventures

 

SATURDAY:

 

8:30 AM scrape drool off face and cobwebs out of eyes

8:35 AM Prepare Breakfast Caesars and special coffees

8:45 AM shower, eat if required (see below), prepare for Tailgate. Don Santa gear!

9:30 AM Board Santa bus and depart for tailgate location (there is a McDonald’s and crack house right around the corner from our tailgate location

9:45 AM hopefully find a place on Chapple St. for bus, unload gear, setup ironing board, commence tailgating

12:30 PM        Pack up and depart for 2016 Vanier Cup kickoff and Corporate Box #21 !

1PM- 3:30-ish   enjoy sporting event… general festivities, make new friends

After game      Back on bus to hotel

4PM-6PM Free time… (I think this is the time when Dickie normally has a power nap in his tighty whities). Other may choose to see the sights https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Attractions-g154990-Activities-Hamilton_Ontario.html

6PM- ???        I assume we will do Part Deux of the Hess Village experience and other venues “to be discovered”. There are several bars and restaurants in the area we will have re-conned from Friday night. If you can’t remember anything from Friday night, please see the concierge

 

SUNDAY:

 

7AM      curfew

10-ish  board bus, count heads, depart for home. Good bye Hamiltoe

3 sleeps newsletter

Can you believe it… 3 sleeps till Vanier! Looks like a rematch of the 2013 Vanier Cup with Laval vs Calgary ( Laval was victorious 25-14) . Just a quick note as I have some solid news/updates;

Tailgate is ON !!! -  I confirmed that they have an area close to the stadium off nearby Chapple street. There is an Esso, a hardware store and a McDonalds’s right next door to boot! https://www.google.ca/maps/dir/Tim+Hortons+Field,+Melrose+Avenue+North,+Hamilton,+ON/43.2548376,-79.8285526/@43.2544235,-79.8298937,17z/data=!4m8!4m7!1m5!1m1!1s0x882c9bfd5ec2c495:0xd057f19def0bffe9!2m2!1d-79.8300845!2d43.2522022!1m0

Hoping we can park the bus there as well but it is definitely ON. I will bring my small BBQ so if we can cook street meat etc.. I will snag a few buck$ from the bus funds to buy some hot dogs and snacks etc. I know the Artisan cheese tray from Costco was a great festive hit last year ; )  I’ll brush off the old ironing board and get some supplies. Candy cane shooters are a go. I think we had 6 bottles in total last year (3 of each of Crème de menthe, and 3 Peppermint Schnapps) and that seemed to work out well. I know Jerred is bringing a crème de menthe and I will bring a bottle of grenadine. If you let me know what you are bringing I can keep track. We’ll need a few packages of plastic shooter cups

CLOTHING for game - For those wondering about clothing…obviously Santa Suit is mandatory but as far as how many layers, the corporate box has both an outside area and a climate controlled inside area. Hoping if it is cold outside, we can leave any extra layers in the bus and walk to the stadium in Santa suits. Current Hamilton forecast is mainly sunny and 4-7 degrees for Saturday. Not looking like frostbite weather which is great.

CASH owed to moi – Our box came with 20 tiks (was supposed to be 16) and I am negotiating further for 2 more as we need 22… The box with 20 tiks was $1800. I won’t have a final individual price till tomorrow when I find out whether I get the last 2 tiks for free or not. Then I can send out what I am owed for box/tickets. I may ask for that payment before Vanier so I can chuck in on my VISA asap.

As for bus, (unlike Laval where we have costs down to a science) I am not sure what exact parking and incidentals for driver will cost yet, so may not have that till end of trip. We ended up only getting 15 for the bus…all costs will be broken down and shared with you, and will be have been audited by Deloitte and Douche.

ITINERARY – As always, I will be sending a suggested itinerary but am awaiting an email from Vanier Cup organizers as apparently, there are some organized events being announced to all ticket holders…. Hopefully something awesome like a free Helix concert!!! One thing for sure, is that Slack night is Friday night… I may have reservations for us at the Gown and Gavel in Hess Village for dinner. I emailed them a few weeks back and just have to make sure they kept it. If not, I will look into something else. Full itinerary coming soon…

BRACKET –        Jrock – predicted Laval win vs St. FX

                 Commander Landers – predicted Regina win vs Laval

                Adam – predicted Laurier beats Calgary in Vanier

                Kent – predicted St. FX win vs Laval

7 sleeps newsletter

Well Lads… we are getting close and I am finally starting to get in the Vanier spirit. Some good games happening tomorrow to decide who will be in the big game.

BUT… I have had a set back and must share some bad news. My Santa suit from the last few years has suffered a catastrophic event. Every year, I like to get my Vanier gear out a week in advance and it’s a good thing I do. When I hopped on the ladder and prepared to retrieve my Tupperware bin from above the garage door, I started getting a very bad feeling. The closer I got to the bin, the more acrid the smell became in my nostrils. Soon, it felt like mustard gas was in my nose and pepper spray in my eyes….what WAS that smell?

As I moved aside the BBQ tongs, the paper plates, my Charlie Brown Xmas tree, the Aluminum foil, a half-filled IV bag full of rum (likely still good BTW), and Santa napkins, I discovered the source of the horrible smell. It turns out St. Albert cheese curds do NOT store well without refrigeration over the summer and they very negatively affect the scent of surrounding clothing or artificial hair. Anyhoo… I will be in the market for a new suit this week.

Still no confirmation of tailgate yet but either way, I would assume we will need to enjoy some candy cane shooters at the hotel or at tailgate so we should prepare accordingly. Ingredients; Crème de menthe, peppermint schnapps, grenadine, shooter glass.

Have a great weekend… GO HAWKS!

11 sleeps newsletter

Morning Lads,

Pretty exciting weekend of University football across the country this past Saturday!

I am pleased to say that Laurier pulled off a last minute, come-from-behind victory to beat Western in the Yates Cup.

In similar dramatic fashion, Laval executed an awesome trick play to beat Montreal at the end of their game; http://www.tvasports.ca/2016/11/12/quel-jeu-truque-incroyable  

So it’s Laval Vs Laurier @ Laval (per several predictions) next week. Will be a tough game for Laurier at PEPS in a 12:30 PM EST start.

As for the west, Calgary topped UBC 46-43 in a tight Hardy Bowl match. Sorry Sharpy and Spence, I am saddened to report that St. FX dispatched Mt. Allison 29-8 in the Loney Bowl.

St. FX has to head west to play in Calgary and that game is a 4:00 PM EST start.

Housekeeping Items:

·         Has everyone reserved their room? Some people were having issues putting their name and credit card # against the assigned room as the hotel wouldn’t release it out of my name. Also, they were getting short on rooms with 2 beds so please let me know ASAP if you are having issues.

·         Costs; Ballpark costs will be around $80 for ticket/corp box and $190-200 for the bus. Adam may have a late edition so those numbers may change a little bit but not much. I’ll ask for email payment once I get it settled. THX

There is a delicious Labatt 50 on the line for those who participated in the playoff bracket. Resend original email if I missed yours.

Vanier Cup Playoff Update

G’Day Lads,

Let’s hope for a Mt. Allison vs Laurier  Vanier Cup Final!!

It would be a rematch of 1991 (Laurier won 25-18 BTW) and our own Spencer played in that game for Mt. A… Even his stalwart play and blazing speed wasn’t enough to help the Mounties overcome the All-Star Hawks and the famed “Fumblerooski” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fumblerooski in a very exciting game. It had a record attendance of over 30,000 people. Pretty awesome for 2 of the smallest universities in Canada at the time. Several of us were in attendance and rushed the field at SkyDump to celebrate with the Hawks.

As a precursor to that same 1991 Vanier Cup game, Eddy played vs. Laurier in the Churchill Bowl just 2 weeks before on his quest to earn a berth to the Yates Cup (and Vanier). WLU was victorious 42-22 but was not for lack of effort, as Ed carried the Gaels on his back.

I would be remiss to forget mentioning Sharpy, who was a proud Mount A Mountie and their crowd-favourite (so the Ladies tell me) fullback during his career there. Anyways, there’s a little nostalgia/history on some Vanier Santa crew members in our midst … all who had great CIS Football achievements. I hope to be regaled with stories at Vanier Cup weekend.

Here were this weekend’s results/scores;

Sat. 5	* Acadia	18	Mount Allison	27	Final
	* McMaster	19	Laurier	21	Final
	* Carleton	24	Western	51	Final
	McGill	0	Montreal	42	Final
	Concordia	14	Laval	39	Final
	* Saskatchewan	17	Calgary	47	Final
	* UBC	40	Regina	34	Final

Vanier 2016 - 20 sleeps newsletter

Oskee Wee Wee, Oskee Waa Waa Vanier Santas!

In the immortal words of John “Hannibal” Smith from the A-team… “I love it when a plan comes together”.  We are down to the short strokes (no offence Loggia) with all the big logistical items out of the way;

·         The corporate box is booked…we are on the 35 yard line and it should be great.

·         Bus - Stittsville pick-up 9:20 @ Carp Rd., CP pick-up 9:45 @ Hwy 7 Timmy’s

·         Hotel is booked and you guys should be reserving your rooms if you haven’t already. There is a pool and hot-tub so don’t forget to pack your banana hammock and budgie smugglers

·         I should have costs after this weekend as we still have 1-2 guys to confirm.

·         Snacks for bus -  bring your best shortbread recipe to share ; )

I hope to make my pickled eggs this weekend so they have time to ferment.

·         Someone bring a speaker and tunes for the bus pls.

Other business:

·         Team meal – “what is your most delicious steak?” I can try to get us a reso for a decent meal on Friday night, maybe a steakhouse. Do your own thing for dinner if you want…but if you want in for a nice meal, let me know ASAP so I have numbers. Hess Village is within walking distance so we will likely end up there on Friday night. Saturday night is “free time”/ Shitshow.

·         Uni’s – Check your gear inventory, make sure Santa suit is intact. Sign of a bad Vanier is if you actually have all of your costume and/or didn’t lose or break something the year before

·         Pepper Spray – Hamilton is renowned for its’ large (in both numbers and physical size) Cougar and Skankasaurus populations. At Vanier Cup 2005, I was attacked and mauled by a Cougar posing at Mrs. Garrett from the “Facts of Life” sitcom. If not for Jrock’s quick thinking and a moveable coat rack, I might not be here today…and you guys would be watching this shit on TSN from your couches at home… seriously, it was scary shit.

Tailgate Charlie’s is documented Cougar habitat

·         Tailgating -  I heard for Ti-Cats games there is tailgating at a school parking lot across the road, but we need to confirm if this is on for Vanier or if the Po-Po have shut this down. We are investigating.

·         Last time in Hamilton (might be some familiar faces): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plhcRmCZwQE

·         Current events -  read this; http://www.thespec.com/sports-story/6815570-cfl-legends-help-kick-off-vanier-cup-marketing-push-in-hamilton/

·         Past events – read this - http://english.cis-sic.ca/sports/fball/history/vanier_cup_history

·         Rookie of the Year – currently no candidates!!! At this point we are all veterans so we will have to adopt one of add one to the list before departure ; )

Have a great weekend,

G

23 Sleeps Newsletter - Vanier Cup Tour 2016, Hamilton

Hey Guys,

Things are coming together... Looks like the box is a consensus but I am haggling with the Stadium contact as it was a little more $$ than originally ballpark quoted back in Sept.

Still not bad, looking like $90-$100 per person (for a good box near 45 yard line) but will see if I can get that down. Consensus is that it would be worth it to have access washrooms, concessions and be able to move around and mingle... and not jammed in a seat.  And let's face it...at our age, we are worth it ; )

HOTEL - Please send me who you will be rooming with and how many rooms you need etc. ASAP

I have some rooms reserved at the Hamilton Sheraton so doing the math on whether we have enough and if I need to get more. Once I have numbers sorted, I have you guys call under a group booking number to reserve your room with your credit card

Bus - Friday AM departure…same drill as usual but heading west, we will have Delaney Bus lines again. Pick up likely around 9:15 AM. I will firm up details and give you more info. Likely have a couple pickup stops, stay tuned.

Attire -  need I say more? Santa gear required. Don’t forget if you need a dollar store suit, better get in there, they sell out fast ; )