SpeedFlex27

Ha, ha. I take your word for it since I totally forgot. I have been to MMA events in the city before but I never went to this UFC event. Coming back 6 years later & it's not even a major PPV event tells you the importance of Canadian cities to the UFC. Except for Toronto.

What Upper Deck hockey card is fetching a ton of money, I heard on the news. Connor Bedard?

I know. We're just saying he was drafted as a DL. That he was able to play other positions is a testament to his athletic abilities. But he wasn't a true fullback. Or drafted as one.

UFC did the same thing in Calgary years ago. They changed the card with so many matches from the original advertised that it was a fiasco. Calgary UFC fans were unhappy. They promised to be back but they never have.

Everybody kinda figured it was something like this. This anti doping **** is getting crazy, if you ask me.

Yeah, he never played fullback full time.

Is Tom Wright who was CFL Commissioner two decades ago still heading up UFC Canada?

UFC would still be big on the prairies, wouldn't it? I mean. their PPV's are always a huge success. Quick question, does Mike Tyson have a chance against Luke Paul on July 20th? Should any State or Provincial Boxing Association sanction a fight between a 29 year old & a 58 year old?

Whatever. The Western Conference was very, very strong in 1981. The Esks finished 14-1-1 for first place, The Bombers went 11-5 & finished second. The Lions 10-6 finishing third & the Riders at 9-7 finished fourth in the West. Combined, the West won 50 regular season games that year & the East just 21. In 1981, the Montreal Alouettes finished third in the East & made the playoffs with an abysmal 3-13 record. How freaking embarrassing for the CFL was that? The league's credibility was called into question. The Riders won 6 more games than the Als & were fourth in the West yet didn't qualify for the playoffs because there was no crossover. I remember fans & media crying how things needed to change. However, in typical CFL fashion, I remember the league getting right on it by taking another 16 years before it would allow crossovers in the playoffs beginning in 1997. What happened to the Riders was a travesty. I'm just glad the Bombers never experienced anything close to that back then. Chances are had there been a crossover, the Riders would have been the Eastern representative in the Grey Cup. Who knows, maybe they would have upset the Eskimos as they barely beat the 5-11 Ottawa Rough Riders that year. But sure, it was the Riders quarterbacking. It was just average. They didn't win.

Like I said, 4600 yards & 33 touchdown passes are better than just okay. If they did that with the Bombers you'd be crowing over their performance.

I used to do a lot more physical stuff when I was younger. Until arthritis caught up with me as did surgeries in my right shoulder, both knees & both feet took away just about everything I used to do. Like a lot of fishing in the White Shell, Lake Of The Woods, Quesnel Lake at Caribou Lodge east of Bissett, MB (we just called it Caribou Lake back in the day), along the Winnipeg River at Pointe Du Bois & the Lake Manitoba Narrows. Then I moved to Calgary in 1990 & that was it for fishing for me. I never got into fly fishing. Used to do a lot of curling in Manitoba at the Fort Rouge Curling Club. Curled here in Calgary at the Calgary Curling Club until I physically couldn't do it anymore because of arthrtitis. I haven't thrown a rock since 2009. Golf same. Not for at least 20 years. I loved to golf, fish & curl. I also used to run but that ******* arthritis took running from me too. I do have some CFL collectibles. I'm trying to collect more much to my wife's angst as she keeps telling me I'm too old to do that we must downsize because once she retires in 4 years she wants to sell the house & buy a condo...

Amazing two years ago we had no idea who dalton Schoen on. Just think about that. Such a dynamic receiver.

Do you watch Fire Country? It does nothing fo me...

Ni idea why you'd take offense to what I say but it seems you need a Snickers way more than me. Hufnagel & Barnes had a helluva season in 81. They truly were one of the gretest tandems to ever play. Why all the angst? Like I said, the CFL was so abuzz about their play that they were given a nickname J.J. Barnagel by someone in the media & the name stuck.. Think that would happen if they stunk? It's not always the qbs fault when they lose. The Rider defense wasn't up to par so they gave up a lot of points. With the Bomber tandem, Clements played 75% of the time with Huff coming in for the other 25%. In saskatchewan, Hufnagel played 60% of the time & Joe Barnes about 40%. So you can't even compare the two tandems. In Saskatchewan, both guys played a lot & played well.

Agreed. It isn't a better system. There's no way as many people are watching the BRier like they were ten years ago. If they were, then they wouldn't be playing in venues that are 40% of the size they played in during the 90's-10's. It shows the system is broken. Who wants to see four teams from one province if you don't live in that province??? Wearing different colours than the traditional provincial sweaters as well. It's become a mish mash.

The two headed monster played much better than that lame description.. Both qbs threw for a combined 4,603 yards & 33 touchdowns. But it's the Riders so naturally let's dismiss their play as subpar. The CFL was all abuzz about the way Joe Barnes & John Hufnagel played in 1981. Those guys carried a so so team on their backs all season. They finished 9-7 out of the playoffs as there was no crossover at that time.

Stellar defensive back. Part of Marv Levy's great 70's Montreal defensive teams. First team All American at Georgia Tech. Drafted by the NO Saints in 1975. Signed instead with Charlotte of the WFL in 1975 & played one season for the Hornets. Signed with the Als in 1976 & played for them thru the 1980 season. He then signed with the Ottawa Rough Riders in 81 before retiring. He was a CFLEastern Conference All Star in 1977, 78 & 81 as well as named to the CFL All Canadian team as a DB the same years he was an Eastern All Star. Returned 31 kickoffs during his career & over 300 punt returns. He had 22 interceptions as well during his career. He was a real stud. One of the best players in the CFL during that era.

I was actually going to go online to see what I could order today...

I got a part time job with the Flames in 1996-97 as an Usher. Not because I wanted to watch hockey or see big bands come through town which they did like Kiss, Metallica, The Tragically Hip, The Smashing Pumpkins, Hootie & the Blowfish & Def Leppard. Yeah, all those things were great but I really became an Usher for one reason so I could watch the Brier that March. I was there for nearly every evening draw after my day job, plus playoffs & Final. Got to see Eddie "The Wrench" Werenich, Vic Peters from Manitoba, a young & very talented foursome from New Brunswick, the James Grattan team & Kevin Martin. The event drew nearly 235,000 fans for the week. For awhile, it was a Brier record until Edmonton hosted it & set new attendance records. It seemed the attendance records were being set every year. My highlight of the week was walking down to the playing surface after the final draw on the Weds night & hanging out there for 15 minutes alone taking it all in. What a perspective looking up & seeing nearly 20,000 seats from all sides. That was awesome. For a curling fan like me, it was like going on a religious pilgrimage. I was in awe. Today if the Brier was held again at the Saddledome, I wouldn't become an usher. If somehow I was, I wouldn't walk down to ice level & I'd only work a couple of shifts that week. The lustre of the Brier for me, is gone because Manitoba never wins anymore & the format sucks.

I agree. If curling was as popular as it was, especially the Men's we'd see the Brier at these huge venues but we don't. But what do we see? The same teams every year & the same plot plays out, People are tired of the same teams in there every year with the same teams winning. Curling has lost a lot of ground in this country the past 20 years. They need to give the people what they want. A round robin of ten end games where everyone plays everybody else once. Where the winning team has to play a marathon of games to win the event. No Team Canada. You got win it every year. No residency rules. All curlers play for the province they live in year round. The Brier needs to be the biggest event of the season again. No extra or Wild card teams allowed. Just the provincial champs from each province.

With all of the rule changes especially for residency qualifying & the addition of extra teams, two pools now, less games played per team. I believe a lot of fans have given up on the game. The format is very confusing & the Brier seems to have lost its lustre. It's all about qualifying for the OLympic Trials now. Not winning your country's curling championship for the curlers. The best curlers are in Alberta now. The best team is from Newfoundland playing under the banner of Canada. Remember when the Brier was played in big venues like Saskatchewan Place, The Saddledome, Canada Life Centre or Rogers Colliseum? Every year when it was played out West on the Prairies, they'd always talk about setting new attendance records. Now, the venues are 7 or 8,000 seats. Lots of unsold seats during the draws during the week. Next year the Brier is in Moose Jaw. No attendance records will be set.

Geting excited!

When was the last time Manitoba won the Brier? Is it 20 years now?

No kidding. My second date with my future wife was in July of 1985 at Polo Park which will be thirty freaking nine years ago this summer. We went out last night as our 37th wedding anniversary is coming up in two weeks or so & we'll be out of town when it is. We went to a restaurant called The Cattle Baron in SE Calgary. It's pricey but I highly recommend it if you're ever in Calgary for a visit.