Rails From The Rails #12 - Green Riders

Rails From The Rails #12 - Green Riders ( as seen here)

All Aboard: A proximis quisque minime anteire vult. - Titus Livius (No man likes to be surpassed by those of his own level.)

Tickets Please: As I mentioned before, there is nothing tougher in my chosen profession than watching another team hoist the Grey Cup above their heads in celebratory victory. As mature as one would like to be, it is difficult not to be overcome by envy and remorse. Nevertheless, as time passes you deal with it. There has been a sufficient amount of ‘water under the bridge’ for me to make a few comments about the Saskatchewan Roughriders and their Grey Cup victory.

Despite my strong desire for my team’s supremacy on the gridiron, there are a few members of the 2007 champions that I was glad to see raise the cup:

1) New head coach Ken Miller – Coach Ken is without question one of the finest men that I have had the pleasure of crossing paths with in my career. It was an honour to play for him for several years in Toronto. He is a man with much skill and competency, but those qualities are overshadowed only by his strength of character. He is an excellent motivator and he truly cares about those around him. I was genuinely excited to see him get promoted to a head coaching position. With the exception of a few games this coming year and the final game in Montreal, I wish him all the success in the world.

2) Center Jeremy “Moe” O’Day – Jeremy was my roommate for a year when we played together in Toronto. He is a hard-nosed competitor and has made his living in the trenches. He is a good friend and if the team raising the CFL’s grail could not be wearing double blue then I was glad for this Green Rider to be raising it. I am sure it is of some consolation for him to best me in this manner since he lives everyday of his life knowing I am a better fisherman than he is.

3) Veteran lineman Gene Makowsky – Until this past year, Gene had been faithfully and doggedly patrolling the Riders offensive line with nary an opportunity to play for a championship. For 13 years he had been toiling and had been doing it with enough skill to win individual awards and personal accolades. But individual awards mean nothing to a true footballer when compared to winning a championship. Anyone who is a member of the O-Line fraternity must be happy for Gene. I know I am.

4) Western alumni Andy Fantuz and Mike Abou-Mechrek – As an alumnus of the vaunted University of Western Ontario I am always keeping my eye on ex-Mustangs who now play football professionally. And though I would definitely prefer it if it was this Mustang raising the Cup this past November, I salute these two for their success. In particular, I was impressed by Fantuz and his play in the final. I knew Andy was extremely athletic, had great hands, and was a ball-magnet, but I would never have guessed that toughness would be added to his arsenal. Toughness in receivers is the quality I most admire and nothing displays this more than the capacity to not be tackled. Andy’s touchdown in the final was reminiscent of the hardest-to-take-down receiver I have witnessed; Terry Vaughn. Congrats to these ‘Stangs.

5) Coaches Kent Austin and Paul Lapolice – Both of these coaches are talented and have proven themselves at a young age in their profession. They are also men of character and playing for them was memorable. I would expect that both will continue to be successful.

6) Fans of the ‘Riders – Regina was the first place that I was noticed on the street as a professional football player. Fans of the Riders are passionate about their team specifically but also about the CFL generally. The fact that they would recognize me in my rookie year was shocking. They love the game and they love their team. Again, if I had my druthers, I would have had Argonauts fans celebrating a Grey Cup victory this year. Things turning out the way they did, I hope The Green Nation enjoyed their championship.

Last Stop: G. K. Chesterton penned these words: There is a great man who makes every man feel small. But the real great man is the man who makes every man feel great. Ken Miller is a great man of the latter type; a real, great man.

Roger Clemens' best case scenario!

Yesterday I had a training session with my personal trainer Lee Griffith. In between exercises, when I could see through the sweat and hear over my own gasping, I watched the House Oversight Committee on steroid use in baseball grill Clemens and his ex-trainer Brian McNamee. To be honest, it was difficult watching one of baseball's greatest pitchers come under fire like he did. Guilty or not, it was tough to watch. Unfortunately for Rocket Roger, the worse case scenario is he is a perjurer, a liar, a cheater, and a criminal. Even worse, the best case scenario is his name will be tarnished by his involvement in this affair. Sounds like a lose-lose situation to me. I can understand a guy in his position taking HGH or steroids. I would lose a little respect for him if that were the case. But someone was lying yesterday...big time. And I would lose a lot more respect for Roger if it comes to light that he was staring into the camera, and thus into the eyes of the world, and lying. We will wait and see.

Rails from the Rails #11 - Cheese Please

(as seen here)

All Aboard: I have been on quite a long hiatus but instead of going on about the break in detail, allow me continue where I left off.

I will start by briefly addressing the end of the 2007 season. Losing in football is difficult. Losing in the Eastern Final, thereby being prevented from playing for a chance to win the Grey Cup, is devastating. A loss like that is hard to describe. It feels as though a part of you has died; never to be resuscitated. But, you can take that feeling and allow it to paralyze you or you can take that feeling and use it as motivation to move forward; I have chosen the latter.

Tickets Please: On a recent trip to Montreal aboard a VIA passenger train, I came across two very interesting articles in two separate magazines. In this Rails from the Rails, and the one to follow, I am going to use those articles as springboards for some thoughts and experiences.

The first article of interest was a piece entitled Eat, Drink and be Daring: 100 Must-Try-Before-You-Die Tastes. The work by Chris Nuttall-Smith was printed in Toronto Life magazine. It was a very interesting article. Here is the introduction to the article as it appears on their website:

Toronto’s long been an international food city, but it’s fair to say that we’ve only recently melded the flavours of here and far away into a cuisine that’s definitively our own. This is our list, arranged in no par­ticular order, of the city’s must-try foods—from local classics like butter tarts (No. 63) to more recent arrivals like kimchee empanadas (82). They’re all either made in Toronto, unique to Toronto, or hard enough to find elsewhere that they make us feel lucky to live here.

As you can imagine, with my penchant for food, I was intrigued. In a photo accompanying the article, a large hunk of cheese caught my eye and I quickly read about this particular “taste” from Toronto. Number 3 on their list was Thunder Oak Gouda from the Cheese Boutique. A single-herd cow’s milk cheese from Thunder Bay that has been aged an additional 3 years in the Cheese Boutique’s vaults was something I had to try.

Of interest, Mike O’Shea and I had met some of the staff from the Cheese Boutique at a charity fishing tournament in the summer. We spent part of that afternoon “talking shop” with Agim Pristine. The Cheese Boutique was started by the Pristine family in the 70’s and Agim is one of the family members still involved. At the fishing tournament, Agim sent Mike and I home from the fishing tournament with some gourmet cheeses with the promise from us to visit his shop in the future. The article and its contents were a reminder that we had to make this visit.

Mike and I made the trip this past January. We were scheduled to attend the 30^th annual Toronto Ducks Unlimited dinner downtown and we realized that we would be driving past the Cheese Boutique on our way. We decided to leave early and fulfill our promise to visit Agim at work. Now, you need to understand, we did not need any coaxing to get us to visit a place where we would be surrounded by meat and cheese. Mmmmmm, meat and cheese! What else is there? We were not disappointed.

Indeed, we were surrounded by cheese when we entered the public-access cheese vault. Huge wheels of parmesan cheese and large blocks of cheddar were on either side. And by large I mean 500 pounds-large in some cases. Overhead, large slabs of prosciutto dangled enticingly. It was awesome. Cheeses I had never even heard of hung from various hooks, and the aromas were fantastic.

And so it went. Cheese and meat followed by meat and cheese. The Thunder Oak Gouda was as good as I had hoped. The prosciutto and bocconcini sandwiches we ordered kept our hunger at bay. We left the store with various cheeses, some truffle butter and some Kansas-cut steaks that looked like they belonged in an episode of the Flintstones. This was a field-trip catered to perfection for food-loving footballers. It won’t be long until we return to get our fill.

Last Stop: Of the 100 tastes presented in the article I can lay claim to having tried 10 of them thus far. There are several more tastes that should be fairly easy to come by. Putting a significant dent in that list is going to take some hard work but eating is something I’m good at so I’m going to give it my best shot. I figure, with teammates like Chad Folk, Brian Ramsay, Taylor Robertson, Adriano Belli, Jeff Keeping and Mike O’Shea, I shouldn’t have too much difficulty finding company on my quest.

Rails from the Rails #10 - Remember Well

Rails from the Rails – Ten (originally posted on November 7, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: I am faced with the difficult task of writing a “Rail from the Rail” with Remembrance Day looming a few days in the future. Though I believe it is a privilege and an honour to write about our soldiers, I also find it difficult. But, we must remember.
Allow me to start by sharing a paraphrase of a phone conversation between my stepfather and one of his brothers. My stepfather had several brothers who served in WW2 and he calls them every year on November 11th to thank them for their service and sacrifice. The crux of the conversation goes something like this:

Stepfather: “You know why I’m calling today, right?”
Step-uncle: “Yep.”
Stepfather: “I wanted to thank you for your service to our country and for the great sacrifice you made on behalf of our family and our country.”
Step-uncle: “You’re welcome.”
Stepfather: “I wanted to thank you for your bravery and for saving the world.”
Step-uncle: “Well, I didn’t do it alone you know.”
Stepfather: “Of course. But it could not have been done without courageous young men like you. Thank you.”

My step-uncle said, “I didn’t do it alone”. What a sense of humour! I wonder if that sense of humour served him well in the terrors of war. This man, my step-uncle, was hardly more than a child when he went to war. He was underage and lied about how old he was so he would not be left behind. I often wonder how many teenagers we could find today who would lie about their age so they would be allowed to fight for their country. I wonder what I would do if I were a teenager faced with the same situation. I can only hope that I would live up to the example set by him and so many other Canadians who have served our country. Thank you indeed!

Tickets Please: I want to use something from the current conflict our country finds itself in to cause us to stop and remember the many that served and died in past conflicts. I decided to look at some of the common complaints that are raised in the press and in our daily conversations about our country’s involvement in Afghanistan and use those as a springboard to recollect and revere our fallen soldiers. Now please understand, I am not writing so as to discuss the merits of the complaints. Whether the complaints are valid or not is not the issue that concerns me. Rather, I think the complaints will reveal some things about the past of our Armed Forces. We can remember the past with gratitude. There are two complaints about the Afghan mission that I hear most frequently: first, the Canadian soldiers are playing the hardest and most dangerous part; second, the Canadian forces are playing a role that is disproportionate in terms of our resources (human, military, financial, etc.) when compared to other NATO countries. Let’s consider what we can glean from both these objections.
I agree that, by and large, our Canadian troops are participating in the mission in Afghanistan in very difficult, dangerous, and deadly situations. It seems that there is some consensus on this. The frequency of fighting in which the Canadians are involved and the resulting casualties seem to bolster this assertion. At any rate, it is not the first time that Canadian soldiers have carried the burden of being in the gravest situations of a mission. Consider the valiant fighting of our forces in World War 2 at Normandy. This excerpt from the Veteran’s Affairs Canada website (www.vac-acc.gc.ca) says it all:

• Canadians had figured prominently in the defeat of Hitlerism. In Normandy they had been in the vanguard of the Allied victory. The Nazi losses there were horrific – 300,000 men. Moreover, most of the enemy's equipment had been destroyed, including more than 2,000 tanks. The backbone of the German Army in the west was broken in Normandy, and the Canadians had played a monumental role.
  
• Allied casualties during the battle had also been heavy, including 18,444 Canadians, of whom 5,021 would never see their homes again. Of all the divisions which formed part of Montgomery's 21 Army Group, none suffered more casualties than the 3rd and 2nd Canadian.
  
• Like their British and American allies, the Canadians made mistakes in command and in training and their inexperience often came back to haunt them. But their high casualty rate also reflected the specific tasks of the Canadian Army during the campaign and the fact that it continually faced the best troops the enemy had to offer. It was a bloody process, but once they learned the harsh lessons of battle, Canada's amateur soldiers proved to be a match for the professional forces they faced. Often in the forefront of the Allied advance against determined opposition, the Canadians took on tasks out of all proportion to their real power. And they accomplished them sometimes amidst hesitation and confusion, – and always courageously.

Normandy is one example of many. Canadian soldiers have not blinked while staring into the eyes of perilous situations. If indeed our soldiers in Afghanistan are facing the most severe and deadly tasks, then at least they know their military heritage includes such situations. Perhaps it could even be considered a compliment that the coalition has asked Canada to play the part they have. Maybe Canada’s history of producing courageous and determined soldiers led to our forces being in the situation they are now in. It is far from a desirable situation, but I believe our soldiers are continuing a legacy of bravery and sacrifice that they have inherited from those we are remembering. I am proud of them - proud and grateful.
The second complaint has to do with Canada carrying a burden in Afghanistan that is disproportionate to other NATO countries. I think this is likely true as well. When one considers our population, our military resources, and our finances, I think a case could be made that we are doing more than our fair share when compared with other countries. We have been warned that our military is being stretched thin by our work in the Afghan mission. Again, I encourage the reader to remember that this is not the first time we have been in a situation like this. I sincerely believe from the little history I have learned that in the past world conflicts, Canada has done more than what can be expected from a country of our size. We have fought with allies whose populations dwarf our own. We have fought alongside countries whose military might was considerably greater than ours. Our soldiers shouldered their loads, and then some. So if our part in Afghanistan is bigger than it ought to be, we might forgive the other countries this oversight. Perhaps they have come to expect this due to the legacy of our fighting men and women. It seems to me that our brave forces of days gone by have set that standard.
The complaints of a current conflict remind us that we live in a country that has been served by soldiers of great courage, valour, and determination. And we ought to remember - remember and be grateful.

Last Stop: “Thank you forever.” - Message written in English in the Book of Remembrance by a local Dutch visitor to the Canadian War Cemetery.

Rails from the Rails #9 - Politics

Rails from the Rails – Nine (originally posted on October 30, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: “Politics is not a bad profession. If you succeed there are many rewards, if you disgrace yourself you can always write a book.” – Ronald Reagan

Tickets Please: The recent election in Ontario to determine our provincial government has me thinking about politics. To be honest, most of my thoughts are negative. I wish that wasn’t the case, but it is. I would not say that I am an avid follower of the political landscape of Canada. However, I do think that I keep tabs on what is going on more than the average person. I follow politics on the news, both TV and radio. I follow it on the internet at such news aggregates as www.nationalnewswatch.com. I find it somewhat interesting and I believe it has a huge cultural impact on Canada. That being said, I will reiterate that many if not most of my thoughts about the subject at hand are not positive. Allow me to share a few of them with you.
First, I am bothered by the fact that I do not believe the individual politician has the impact that he or she should have. With the strong party-politics that is the current trend in Canadian politics, I fear that the individual politician does not and almost cannot make a significant contribution individually. Politicians are compelled to vote along party lines or they are expelled from the party. The fact that a “free vote” must be announced by a party’s leader is ridiculous to me. Hence we are left with voting for the party instead of voting for an individual. And I don’t like this. If there was an excellent candidate in my riding who agreed with me on the issues which I deem are important but he or she was a member of a party with whom I largely disagree with on policy matters, I do not feel the freedom to choose the candidate who best represents me. That is an unfortunate state of affairs.
Another issue related to politics that I find bothersome is “partisan politics”. Partisan is defined as a person who takes the part of or strongly supports one side, party, or person. Obviously, I believe politicians should strongly support the side they feel is best for their constituents. However, it seems that politics these days is nothing more than playing the devil’s advocate ad infinitum. One party says black and the opposition says white. This seems to occur regardless of the true colour of the thing itself. I am waiting for the day when a leader of the opposition stands before the media and announces that, although they may disagree with their opposition on many issues, their opponents are right on this particular issue and will have their support. It seems to me that far too often Canadian politics is about choosing the opposite viewpoint and arguing about it irrespective of the merits of the original idea. I am not saying this is always the case. I just think it is usually the case and things need not necessarily be that way.
One final issue about politics that rubs me the wrong way is that I believe, more and more, politics is becoming more about image and less about ideas. As J. P. Moreland wrote in a book I am currently reading: “The make-up man has become more important than the speech writer.” Moreland was bemoaning the fact that public opinion of candidates following debates was more influenced by feelings, image, and likeability than ideas and substance. This is truly a shame. It bothers me that negative ads work on voters…voters like me. What does it say about a member, leader, or party when the main thrust of an election campaign is not the ideas and policies that they are promoting but rather what is wrong with the other guy? Should we blame the politicians for this or should we look in the mirror and ask why these types of advertisements are effective?

Last Stop: Amidst all this negativity, let’s not forget that we can vote. We can vote! Freely, without undue manipulation, without fear of reprisals, in fair elections, we can vote. And vote we should. If you missed the most recent provincial election it looks as though it will not be long before you can participate in a federal one. Don’t miss it.

Rails from the Rails # 8 - Thankfulness

Rails from the Rails – Eight (originally posted on October 16, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: There Before most meals, my wife and I ask our children if any of them would like to say grace. Usually 2 or 3 of them race to raise their hands so they are chosen to give thanks. The prayers that follow are usually very sincere and often quite humorous. The children routinely forget to give thanks for the meal we are about to eat while they give thanks for almost anything else they can think of. As parents, one of the reasons we encourage our children to participate in saying grace is to cultivate an attitude of gratitude. We have much to be thankful for. Our pre-meal routine is one way we can instill thankfulness.

Tickets Please: Having just spent a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend with my family, I thought I would write about thankfulness. I mentioned above that we try and say grace before meals regularly. It is a way for our family to give thanks to God for the many wonderful things we have in our lives. The word “grace”, when used to denote a pre-meal prayer, comes from the Latin word gratia which means thankfulness or to give thanks. So the prayer before meals giving thanks has been aptly called grace.
As with most traditions or rituals, they can become a meaningless endeavour if we do not participate in them purposefully and intelligently. As a result, we encourage the kids to think and then to thank. They continually open my eyes to the many things that we have to be thankful for: pets and playmates, family and food, safety and sanity, football and the future. This thankfulness displayed by the young ones reminds me of a quote by G. K. Chesterton: “You say grace before meals. All right. But I say grace before the concert and the opera, and grace before the play and pantomime, and grace before I open a book, and grace before sketching, painting, swimming, fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.” During this Thanksgiving season we have much to be thankful for!
Gratitude is like a barometer. Our level of thankfulness can give us a good idea of how much “pressure” we are under. But it does not just indicate “pressure”; it can release it as well. When we come under the pressure and stress of difficulties, disappointments, and drudgery of daily life, it is easy to feel sorry for ourselves and even become embittered. But taking time to be thankful, even in tough times, alleviates the pressure and stress and gives us a new perspective on our lives and how good we have it.
My family was preparing for a wonderful and rare occasion: all of my siblings and their spouses and children were going to be in the same place at the same time. The roll call would be as follows with my siblings in bold: Ray and Meaghan with their children Robbie, Noah, and Molly; Mike and Heidi with their children Maleah, Michaelah, Malachi and Micah; Jon and Bryar with their children Jacob, Jesse, and Sparrow; Kevin and Kylie with their children Kayden, Mekhi and Jayla; Nicole and myself with Ena, Adele, Mara, Judah and Arwen. And to really gild the lily my mother, step-dad and grandmother would also be in attendance. I hope you can appreciate the difficulty in arranging everyone’s presence at the festivities. It has not happened with this entire group…ever. We were looking forward to the food, the fellowship and the fun of this Thanksgiving Day. As it turned out, some sickness prevented this reunion. Bryar’s children became sick and she and her husband made the tough choice to return home. They did not want to risk passing the bug to others and would have their hands full with caring for their own children. Though this was disappointing for us all, we chose to be thankful on Thanksgiving Day and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. That is the thing about thankfulness and gratitude - it is a choice. We can choose to see things in our lives from different perspectives. We can find things to be thankful for or we can find things to complain about. I definitely need more thankfulness in my life and if I take a moment to contemplate the list of blessings in my life, I quickly realize that I could not easily exhaust that list.

Last Stop: "In ordinary life we hardly realize that we receive a great deal more than we give, and that it is only with gratitude that life becomes rich."
- Dietrick Bonhoeffer

Rails from the Rails #7 - Reading Between the Lines

Rails from the Rails – Seven (originally posted on October 8th, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: There has been a preponderance of injured quarterbacks this season: Bishop, Allen, Printers, Calvillo, Burris, Ray, Dickenson, Pierce. And all this after the league has gone to great lengths to protect quarterbacks. If a defensive lineman looks at a quarterback in an unkind manner, he risks being penalized for it. This obviously isn’t working. But fear not, I have a solution. Instead of worrying about what defensive players are doing to Quarterbacks, the league should adjust the rules to allow offensive linemen to use all means necessary to keep their quarterbacks safe. I can assure you that if there were no holding penalties called on O-Linemen, the throwers in the league would be significantly safer. Problem solved: No holding in the CFL. I can’t see Defensive Linemen having a problem with that.

Tickets Please: I enjoy reading. Since I was young, I have found reading an easy task and I have enjoyed it as long as I can remember. I thought I would share some of the books I have read over the past year and some of the genres that I prefer. Ooops, I didn’t mean to startle you…yes, football players can read…really, we can.
The genre that I read most often these days is biographies. I find true stories of real people to very inspirational. I find motivation for life in them that can be applied to many different areas. They are also a great source of learning. There is much in life we will never experience unless we have the opportunity to live vicariously through others. Biographies are a good means of tapping into a resource otherwise inaccessible. During training camp, I would spend the evenings playing cribbage with Chad Folk. Yes, we are just like old men, thank you. Then, in the few minutes before my eyelids would come crashing shut, I would read biographies of two English authors. Michael Coren has written a short quasi-biography on J.R.R, Tolkien. The Lord of the Rings is by far my favourite work of fiction and I enjoyed Coren’s book on this literary giant. The other English author whose biography I read was Malcolm Muggeridge. It was a very interesting read. Over the past months, I have read some military biographies as well. A dual biography on Lee and Grant was fascinating. Following that military theme were books full of biographical snippets of military personnel written by Colonel Jeff O’Leary (Ret.). Though not a military man himself, Raoul Wallenberg was involved in saving Jews during World War II. The biography Righteous Gentile tells his story. He may have saved 100,000 Hungarian Jews from the holocaust. I found it hard to put that book down. Another genre I enjoy reading is spiritual/religious books. The Confessions of St.Augustine is a classic that contains both autobiographical information as well as spiritual enlightenment. St. Augustine is one of the foremost minds in Christianity’s history. I have his well-known City of God on my “To Read” pile. I spent many trips on the train reading through Alister McGrath’s textbook on Christian theology entitled simply Christian Theology. This was a difficult read but one that was well worth the effort. This past year, I also read spiritual works by Canadian pastor and author Mark Buchanan that I found informative and inspirational.
In an earlier column, I shared with you some of the things like to ingest through my mouth, now you know some of the books that I feed on through my eyes. As I look at this list, I have come to realize that I do not read fiction anymore. I am not sure when that stopped, or why it happened, but I think it needs to be remedied. I enjoy fantasy and science-fiction books so I think I need to find a few titles to read in the closing months of 2007.

Last Stop: Canadian children’s author David Carruthers and I visited quite a few schools this past year with a literacy program we call “Charge Through Life”. I have had the opportunity to encourage young boys and girls to become life-long readers. Reading is a skill that has enriched my life and the lives of countless others. Take some time to read, and more importantly, take some time to encourage some young ones to do the same.

Rails from the Rails #6 - Dog Fighting vs. Hunting

Rails from the Rails – Six (originally posted on September 20, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: Stephon Marbury: "I think we don't say anything about people who shoot deer or shoot other animals," the Knicks point guard told an Albany TV station. "You know, from what I understand, dog fighting is a sport. It's just behind closed doors."

Mark Twain: “It is better to remain quiet and thought a fool than to open one’s mouth and remove all doubt.”

Tickets Please: I recently participated in an on-air interview with Mike Hogan and Adrion “Pee-Wee” Smith during the “Inside The Argos” program on The Fan 590. Mike asked me to comment on the quote by Marbury that appears above. He was interested in my opinion as he knew that I was a hunter. Mike asked what the difference between hunting and dog-fighting was. I told him one of the main differences was that hunting was legal and dog-fighting was not. I was stating the obvious, but, I feel that this fact cannot be overstated. I have heard similar comments concerning the similarity between dog fighting and deer hunting from other people interviewed in the media as well as from people I rub elbows with. I would like to expound on why this obvious yet essential point differentiates the two activities.

Since hunting in general, and deer hunting in particular, is a legal activity it follows that it is under the watchful eye of the public. The activity does take place off the beaten path; however, it is open to scrutiny from landowners, outdoors people, and Conservation Officers. Hunting is also placed before the public in the form of magazines, television shows, internet sites, trade shows and books. It falls under the responsibilities of the Ministry of Natural Resources. Thus government agencies keep tabs on the happenings in the hunting community. Is this no different from dog fighting? The dark details of dog fighting are not known to the public. The recent investigation of Michael Vick has brought some facts to light, but, information about this canine enterprise is scarce. That is the rule for illegal activities - they are participated in behind closed doors.

Hunting’s legality leads to it being regulated. Governments, with input from stakeholders such as hunters, outdoorsmen and outdoorswomen, scientists, naturalists, conservationists, and even anti-hunters, make laws to govern the activity and those who participate in it. It seems to me that dog-fighting and dog-fighters answer to nobody. This secret society answers only to itself. Deer hunting has been deemed acceptable by the public and it remains under enforceable guidelines, rules, and laws which is the way it should be.

Deer hunting is also a tool for benefit of the environment. Government agencies use hunting as a method of managing animal populations so they remain at stable and healthy levels. They require hunters to pay money for licenses to participate. Often this money is returned to the system to aid environmental issues in many ways.

As legal activities, hunting and fishing also facilitate our economy in Ontario with over $3 billion in economic activity. Hunting’s legitimacy allows it to contribute such benefits. There are many people across North America who are employed in various jobs directly due to the outdoors industry. There are certainly economics tied to dog fighting, but it is mostly gambling-related and I assume that this is why it is a federal offence.

Deer hunting’s legal position in our society leads to several things: it is under the scrutiny of society, it is regulated by government with many interested parties having input, it provides economic benefits, and it provides a valuable service to the environment. This is not an exhaustive list by any means. These are a few examples of how being a legal activity makes deer hunting different from dog fighting. I could also go on about many other issues such as: the inherent prolonged suffering of dogs in dog fighting versus the intended minimal suffering intended to deer by hunters, the use of venison as a source of food versus the seemingly senseless death of fighting dogs, the penchant for hunters to contribute time and money to environmental groups and causes, or the vast legal and storied tradition of hunting versus the unknown, illegal history of dog fighting. You may not agree with hunting. But you cannot say that it is the same as dog fighting. I have only focused on the most obvious difference which separates the two activities which places them beyond logical association: one is legal, the other is not.

Last Stop: This has been a difficult year for professional sports. Gambling, drugs, official’s integrity and other issues have put the pressure on North America’s paid athletes and their employers. I think it is apparent that these problems have always been there. The difference is that they come to light more regularly and more rapidly now than they have in the past. The question I have is: “How much will the fans put up with?” Like it or not, the fans can have the greatest reforming influence on professional sport. They only need to act upon their displeasure by not spending their money on sports-related expenditures or their time on watching them on TV or in the arenas. The players and the administrations have to work for improvements too, but, the fans and their spending habits will have the last say.

Rails from the Rails #5 - Enhanced Performance

Rails from the Rails – 5 (originally posted on August 28, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: I would like to start by making an unequivocal statement such as “I have never taken performance enhancing drugs”. But, I do ingest caffeine in the form of coffee before football games. I have had ibuprofen in my system during a contest. Both caffeine and ibuprofen are considered drugs by some and they definitely do enhance performance. Any statement concerning “performance enhancing drugs” cannot be unequivocal. Definitions and further clarification are necessary when speaking of “drugs” in sport. I can, however, aver the following: I have never taken anabolic steroids. Chad Folk often accuses me of taking “pear-oids” on account of my Bosc-like physique, but, there is no substance to those accusations.

Tickets Please: I am in favour of drug testing for CFL players. I think a concrete drug policy and a testing program is both necessary from a public relations standpoint and beneficial as a deterrent. That being said, I do have some concerns which I will put before the reader to consider.

First and foremost, I would hope that any program that the league implements will be in the best interest of the players. Perhaps this is naïve as I do not believe the motivation behind the current push for testing is the player’s well-being. I think the true impetus behind current discussions of drug testing is public relations. And I don’t necessarily have a problem with that. But my hope is that through the process of development the player’s health, safety, and welfare becomes paramount. I am sure the CFL Players Association will strive to ensure this.

Secondly, I hope the parties involved will carefully consider which models are used when generating a stronger and expanded drug policy for the league. It is irksome that when the topic of drug testing and sports surfaces many people point to the Olympics as a model. I truly believe that from a “drugs in sport” perspective, and some other perspectives for that matter, the Olympics very well may be the most corrupt, complicit, and culpable organization in sports. Note that this opinion comes from anecdotal evidence, such as conversations with Olympians. However, I think a strong case could be made for it. The Canadian Football League needs to create a policy that is effective and just in dealing with this problem. Thus, when considering other examples, those involved in the process need to discern which programs are truly beneficial and productive.

My third concern has to do with the fans and how they perceive drug use is sports. It is a topic that often elicits “black and white” opinions when there are many grey areas to consider. I have a tendency to polarize issues but allow me to present a few situations that may help the average CFL fan to appreciate some nuances of this controversy. Consider an athlete who has diagnostic blood work done and finds that his/her testosterone levels are significantly lower than levels present in the average person. And that athlete takes testosterone to raise his/her levels to a normal range. Should we group such an individual in the same category as those who take steroids to boost their systems far above natural levels? What about the third world athlete, or the first world athlete who lives in poverty, who chooses to secure his family’s financial future by taking drugs? Is this no different from the millionaire athlete who takes pills or injects medicines to stay at the top of his/her game? Or consider the athlete who experiences a serious injury and decides to take some banned substances in order to promote healing. Is enhancing healing synonymous with enhancing performance? There are many similar situations in which it may not be so easy to label the athlete “cheater”. I hope those involved in the process of developing a CFL drug policy will take such dilemmas into account. As I approach the end of my career I better understand the pressure to use substances to maintain or improve performance. I am not as fast or strong as I used to be and that fact makes an athlete consider how he might stave off retirement. Things aren’t as black and white as they once appeared.

Please do not think that I sympathize with any athlete who wants to take substances in order to perform at a higher level. I do not. But seeing things from inside the athlete’s perspective may bring some understanding that was not there before. If the CFL begins a testing and punitive program for performance-enhancing substance users, than I believe that “levels the playing field” in my favour as well as in favour of every other athlete who chooses to “play clean”. But it needs to be done properly, with wisdom and innovation, if it is to be a benefit to all the players of today as well as the future footballers.

Last Stop: I can remember vividly Ben Johnson winning the 100m finals at the Seoul Olympics. That was an incredibly exciting moment in Canadian sports history. The fallout from the ensuing chaos still reverberates in Canadian athletics today. My money says Ben wasn’t the only “dirty” athlete in that race and I believe that fact was well-known by many Olympic and world sports officials. Though not innocent himself, I think Ben Johnson was made the scapegoat for many guilty athletes.

Rails from the Rails #4 - Pinball, O'Sh, and the Legend

Rails from the Rails – 4 (originally posted on August 17, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

Tickets Please: Confession: I have never been to the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. Shame, shame, double shame. I will remedy this soon.

All Aboard: Over the past 10 years with the Argonauts I have played with many good football players. I have shared the locker-room with a handful of great football players. But I have also been a teammate of a very few double-blue athletes who are destined for the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. These players have differentiated themselves from their peers in so many ways it is hard to decide which accomplishments to focus on or which attributes to highlight. I have decided to share their greatness with you by telling you how members of my family have reacted to these players and then sharing a statistic associated with that player which may be overlooked when their careers are considered.

Let us begin with Damon Allen. What can be said about a quarterback that has passed for more yards than anyone who has ever played the game? And what can you add to the fact that he is also 3^rd on the all-time rushing list? At a loss? Well let me tell you something about him that you may not know. Damon is my eldest daughter’s favourite Argonaut. Ena was recently asked by her teacher who her favourite Argonaut player was. It should have been easy to figure out: dad! But my lovely child did not mention her father. No way. Her favourite is Damon Allen. And people wonder why offensive linemen have inferiority complexes. My own daughter didn’t pick me! Please, nobody ask my wife the same question. I couldn’t handle the rejection. At any rate, my daughter has chosen a future hall-of-famer and the choice is a good one. Many people mention Damon’s passing and rushing yardage when considering his greatness on the gridiron. However, let me share with you a statistic that impresses me: 366 games played. That does not include pre-season or post-season. That is 366 regular season games and counting. Damon is number one on the games played list if you disregard special teams players. When I consider the years that Damon has played this game at a high level I am amazed. Damon is a sure-bet for the “Hall”.

One can look like a fool on a football field. I have been there many times. In my second year I made the play that TSN considered their “Turning Point” of the game for a contest between the Ticats, the team I first played for, and the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Not bad for an offensive lineman. Unfortunately, it was because I was offside! I fall down, get knocked down, trip over my own feet, go the wrong way, and miss assignments far too regularly. However, I don’t often play the fool on center stage with cameras rolling in front of thousands and thousands of people. But it does happen occasionally. In 2003 we were playing the Montreal Alouettes in the eastern final. The “Big O” was filled with close to 60,000 loud fans. One had to yell to be heard even if the listener was right beside you. All verbal communication was accomplished only through screaming. In the 4^th quarter the offense made a costly mistake that we had made several times that game. I was furious. We had discussed how we might resolve this error, but we erred again. As I walked to my bench, our head coach asked what happened. I screamed back at him that someone repeated the error that we had tried to fix earlier. So there I was, screaming at the head coach with a scowl on my face. I was screaming to be heard, not because I was upset with the coach. And I was scowling because of our team’s inability to correct the aforementioned problem, not because I was angry with the coach’s question. The camera caught it all. I was angrily screaming at my head coach and the many viewers did not have the explanation I just gave to you. No big deal you say? In many cases, perhaps not. But when it appears as though you are disrespectfully yelling at the nicest guy in professional sports, and the camera catches it, you are in hot water. That is what my wife saw while watching the game at home. Her husband was bellowing at fan favourite Michael “Pinball” Clemons. And I got an earful when I talked to her after the game. Instead of sympathy for losing another opportunity to go to the Grey Cup, I heard “I hope you’re not taking advantage of the fact that Pinball is a friend of yours. He’s your head coach!” As with most, she holds “Pinner” in high regard and wanted to make sure I wasn’t taking his position as head coach for granted just because at one time we played together. That was the first I heard about that incident but it was not the last! Michael Clemons is another sure-thing hall of fame footballer that I had the privilege to play with. His many on field accomplishments are only over-shadowed by his off-field philanthropy. He is one to marvel at. And one could choose to look at his numerous awards and records, such as his all-time all-purpose yards or Outstanding Player award. But let me give you an amazing and often overlooked statistic: 165 lbs. That is what he weighed. And that was probably with his shoes on. When public speaking I use that fact to inspire many young kids and many undersized football players. The man did all he did on the field and only weighed 165 pounds. Incredible! The CFL Hall of Fame in Hamilton will not be without a bust of the “Pinball Wizard” for very long.

The final yet to be recognized Hall of Fame Argo is still getting it done on the field. His impact as a player can be sensed if you ever meet my grandmother. “Nana” is a sports fan. My earliest memories of her are of watching Maple Leaf games together. Until this past year she followed the CFL closely. But recent days have not been good to her. She had been entirely self-sufficient until this past winter. She fell ill and even though she recovered, she was no longer able to solely care for herself. Her health has not allowed her to watch CFL games this year. She has good days and she has bad days. She occasionally forgets her great-grandchildren’s names (she has 21 of them). She doesn’t always clearly remember people and events from the past. But she always remembers a good friend of mine. Her face lights up when I mention his name. When I tell her that I will see him at practice she informs me that I must give him, along with advice for the upcoming game, a big kiss. My Nana loves Mike O’Shea. She loves him because he plays the game the way it was meant to be played. And he plays it at a high level. And he has played it that way for 15 seasons and counting. “O’sh” is another Argo that I have played with who is destined for the Hall of Fame. His 1000+ tackles guarantee his presence there. But the incredible statistic that I would like to mention is a relatively small part of those more than a thousand tackles. More than 160 of those tackles are special teams tackles. That is outrageous. Mike has been a starting linebacker his entire career. He has always been on the field when his team’s defense is playing. But when the ball needs to be kicked, or a kicked ball needs to be received, Mike is still out there. While many starters are resting on the bench, he is still fighting tooth and nail. His defensive competency is well known. His special teams prowess is almost unattainable. Of the two defensive stars who have more career tackles than Mike, one has 85 special teams tackles and the other only 36. O’Shea has excelled at every aspect of the game. We have all been witness to a career that will entitle him to a place among the CFL’s greatest.

Damon Allen, Pinball Clemons, and Mike O’Shea are three players adored by my family and are surely to be enshrined by the Canadian Football League.

Last Stop: Perseverance is not the same as patience. Many people use the words synonymously. But perseverance is patience with hard work. It is defined as continued, patient effort. And it is an attribute highly esteemed in the sports world. Great achievements over the course of one or two seasons will get you recognition. But perseverance in a sport over the years will get you respect and recognition. Respect from fellow athletes and recognition by Hall of Fame committees. Most of us will never experience the latter. But achieving the former is success enough.

Rails from the Rails #3 - Food For Thought

Rails from the Rails – 3 (originally posted on August 4, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

Tickets Please: It was a sad day for me when the Hamilton Ticats released Rob Hitchcock. Rob and I were rookies together in Hamilton in 1995. We endured that tough camp and have both battled in the CFL ever since then. When we would see each other on the field, which was frequent since we play for the Ticats and Argos, we would encourage each other to keep playing the game we both love. Rob had a great career and played the game the way it was meant to be played; with intelligence, great passion and great teamwork. He is respected by both those who played with him and those who lined up opposite him. As an Argonaut, I am glad that we do not have to face that fierce competitor anymore…he bettered us many times. As a friend and peer, I recognize that not having “Hitch” on the field is a loss to all of us who love this game.

All Aboard: As I enjoy a coffee and bagel with cream cheese having just left the Oakville VIA rail station, I have decided to share some thoughts I have in a field of which I consider myself an expert. Food! My expertise is not due to a degree or diploma from a culinary educational institution. But rather it comes from the practical experience of doing what true offensive lineman do best: eat. I have decided to share with you some in-season eating practices as well as the names of some eateries frequented by my teammates and myself during the football season.

A very common question that is presented to me has to do with the nutrition I ingest before a game. I have a fairly concrete routine which I am prepared to share with you. You must understand, however, that this regimen is not from a textbook and thus should not be taken as an ideal method of feeding oneself for competition. This was developed from years of trial and error and if it meets nutrition professionals approval it is only by coincidence.

The evening before a game has Chad Folk, Mike O’Shea, and me (and whoever else we can convince) looking for a sushi restaurant. I first got hooked on sushi (pun intended) when Mike O’Shea convinced me to join himself and some others at an all-you-can-eat sushi restaurant in Vancouver. To be honest, my first impression was less than stellar. That being said, I persevered by trying the Japanese-style food several more times and soon found myself craving sushi the night before games Does it taste good? Absolutely! The straight raw fish, called sashimi, is my favourite. But it also serves another purpose. Being a beefy person, I prefer my vittles in large portions. However, this is in conflict with my desire not to feel bloated the night before a game. For clarity, I want to eat a lot without feeling like I ate a lot. Impossible you say? Not so. All-you-can-eat sushi accomplishes both goals; a full stomach without feeling stuffed. This is an offensive lineman’s ideal meal.

On the actual day of the game, my pre-game meal ideally consists of a deli sandwich of some sort along with a bean or grain salad and some fruit. I do not have a favourite sandwich, but if I cannot find a deli I like than a good fallback is an Italian BMT from Subway. You can always find a Subway. I have also started to drink fruit smoothies if I can find them. Finally, despite warnings from some of the therapy staff, I must have a coffee or two. I do not do this specifically for football, but I drink coffee daily and I do not make an exception on game day.

For the second part of this article let me share some places my teammates and I like to frequent during a practice week. We have had the good fortune of finding a great all-you-can-eat sushi place near University of Toronto at Erindale campus called Momiji. They have sushi, maki, sashimi, and other Japanese inspired foods in quantities only hindered by the size of your stomach. The entire offensive line recently ate there and our eating exploits will be shown on national television in the near future.

To sate the appetite for Caribbean cuisine, shrimp or chicken roti from Calabash is the answer. It wasn’t until I joined the Argos that I first tried roti. This little Caribbean restaurant is a favourite of my wife as well. I often stop and pick some roti up from her and deliver it to her in London. Food from all over the world is one of the many benefits of Mississauga’s multicultural society.

And is there a better sandwich than a California’s veal sammy with onions, hot peppers, cheese and mushrooms? You would have to feed me one to prove it to me. It is not often that one sandwich is enough for me, but California’s does the trick.

Viet-Thai food from Pho Big Bowl or Pho Ben Thanh is the ticket when noodles, curries, smoothies and spring rolls are the desired meal. It is tradition for us to go to Ben Thanh at least once during training camp. This tradition started when Paul Masotti was the assistant GM for the Argos is the Sherwood Schwartz era. He took Chad Folk, Mike O’Shea and I out for lunch. We have done this ever since.

And for coffee I must confess that long ago I joined the cult of the faithful followers of St. Arbuck. A coffee or the occasional specialty drink gets me my daily dose of caffeine. I have at least one other fellow Starbucks disciple in Dave Costa. As a matter of fact, it was Dave’s cheery face and a warm cup-o-joe that helped get me through training camp this year.

I hope this less than exhaustive list of some of my favourite eating establishments has given you some insight into an offensive lineman’s eating activities.

Last Stop: Consider the following quote by Woody Allen: The food here is terrible, and the portions are too small. It gets right to the two issues that are of most concern to an o-lineman when contemplating a meal; quality and quantity. Any true offensive lineman has only one answer to the question of the superiority between quantity and quality. When asked “What is more important in regards to food, quantity or quality?” the lineman will simply respond YES.

Rails From The Rails #2 - Old School

Rails from the Rails – Two (originally posted July 18, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

All Aboard: Abraham Lincoln is quoted as saying “Don’t worry when you aren’t recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition.” There is a player on the Argonauts who epitomizes this quote: Chris Hardy. “Hard Rock” has toiled in the CFL for 11 years and has played in a manner worthy of recognition. I’m afraid he has not received as much as he should have. However, he received a little this year as the coaching staff named him an Argonaut special teams Captain. Well deserved!

Tickets Please: One of the things older football players worry about, and by older I mean those having played at least 10 years, is the question of who will carry the torch once they have ended their careers. The elders in a football locker-room are always looking for certain qualities in up-and-coming athletes that will ensure the storied tradition of CFL players will be honoured and upheld. And what type of qualities do they look for in younger players? One phrase can answer that question: “old school”.

Wikipedia defines “old school” as a slang term referring to an older school of thinking or acting and suggests that it may be used to refer to a time of perceived higher standards or level of craft. That is the way in which I am using that term. Older football players are looking for the next generation of players to demonstrate they can play football, and be players, reminiscent of those in the good old days. When we see players of that ilk, we say “he’s old school”. To clarify this idea, allow me to list a few traits and give you a few examples off of the current Argos roster.

There are 3 traits in particular that I would like to highlight; toughness, humility, and teamwork. I admire football players who will collide with opposing players with such velocity and violence that they actually knock themselves silly. I also admire teammates who may be smaller in stature than their peers but play as if they were giants. Players who play in this fashion make their courage and toughness evident by the way they play. This is truly “old school”. Mark Twain put it like this: It is not the size of the dog in the fight, but rather the size of the fight in the dog. This trait is something the old men of the CFL love to see. The Argos have such a player in Brian Crawford. “Crawdaddy” will not back down from any assignment that he is asked to perform. Seeing him hurl his body at defensive lineman considerably bigger than himself is inspiring. Last year I gleefully watched “Crawdad” propel himself into a Ticat with such vigor that he did not know where our bench was when he picked himself up off the ground. I made sure the aforementioned Chris Hardy would escort him back to his teammates. That is how the game was meant to be played. Toughness is an “old school” character trait.

Humility seems to be a rarer commodity amongst rookies and young players every year. I am amazed at the arrogance of some young players who have never proven themselves at a professional level. The arrogance usually becomes evident when young players open the mouths with too much regularity. Now, call me a curmudgeon, but I like to see players speak with their pads before they speak with their mouths. Or as ex-Argo Elfrid Payton would say, “Let’s see you bring it before we hear you sing it”. The Argos have an excellent corner in ex-basketballer Byron Parker. The league recognized him as an all-star this past year. Interesting thing about Byron, despite his early success in the CFL, he goes about his business of being one of the best defenders in Canadian football with little fanfare and even less tongue wagging. If you would like to engage him in some fun, verbal jousting, he will oblige. But he made his mark, and continues to do so, with his skill on the field… which is the way it should be. That is “old school”. That’s what us over-the-hill footballers like to see.

Finally, the noblest trait in the eyes of over-the-hill CFLers is the ability to be a team player. Football is a game which requires more teamwork than anything I have been a part of. Teamwork is held in reverence by veterans of the gridiron. And seeing this understanding in a young footballer gives us old-timers hope for the game’s future. One such player is Toronto Argonauts offensive lineman Jeff Keeping. Now in his third year, “Keep” exemplifies what teamwork is all about. The key to teamwork is the deferring of one’s own goals for the goals of the group. Jeff will do anything that is asked of him. He has played offensive line, defensive line, tight end, fullback, special teams, and even lined up as a wide-out. He will put what is best for the team at the forefront. If anything is “old school”, willingness to put the team first is!

As I consider the future of this great game, I am one old-timer who is confident of the able young men who will carry on when I am done. I hope that other teams have some equally “old-school” athletes on their rosters. It appears as though the Argos have a glut of them with the addition of rookies such as Brian Ramsay, Glen January, and Durham Cato. It looks like a good crop of “old-school” rookies to keep us old guys from fretting.

Last Stop: “Honouring tradition” is one of the mottos being used by the Argonauts this year. Here is a quote by G. K. Chesterton about tradition: Tradition refuses to submit to that arrogant oligarchy who merely happen to be walking around. Some of my arrogance was quickly subdued when I read the list of offensive guards who were nominated for the All Argos Team. Their collective accolades and achievements are incredible. The tradition that the current Argonauts have inherited from these players as well as the other nominees is something truly worth honouring.

Rails from The Rails #1 - Introduction

Rails from the Rails – One (originally posted July 10, 2007 at www.argonauts.ca)

Many people marvel at the fact that I commute into Mississauga from London. For the past 5 seasons I have made the trip from The Forest City to either Erindale Campus for practice or to The Rogers Center for games. My wife Nicole and I made the decision to make our home in London after we had our third child. Both Nicole and I grew up in London and most of our family resides there. We now have 5 children and we are both glad we made the decision to live close to the support that only family can offer. At least that is what I tell myself repeatedly on the boring stretch of 401 between Woodstock and Brantford. Commuting doesn’t seem like such a great call at that moment.

Anyways, I share the reasons for my commuting as an explanation for the opinion piece you are now reading. I am working on this little piece of prose as I watch the beautiful southwestern Ontario countryside pass by. No, I am not hurtling down the highway with a laptop balanced on my thighs while my knees do the steering. Rather, I am enjoying the commute in comfort aboard a VIARail passenger train. The cost of fuel, the difficulty of driving, the hazards of the road, and many lost hours led me to consider taking the train to work. And the ease of this type of travel allows me to work on my laptop without endangering other 400 series commuters. And so the name of this section of the Toronto Argonauts website is Rails from the Rails. The dictionary suggests to rail is to complain or to speak bitterly. My contribution will not necessarily be so negative, but it may venture down that track on occasion. And it is coming from my mobile office; a VIARail passenger car. Hence, you have Rails from the Rails.

I hope to cover many topics from many areas, but the majority of my writing will be related to the sport that has been my profession for the past 12 years. The topics will be presented in a three-part format. Part 1, “All Aboard”, will be an introductory paragraph on nothing in particular. Perhaps a quote I read, maybe a joke I hear, or even an anecdote that our head coach, and sometimes sage, Pinball Clemons has shared with the team. It may or may not have anything to do with rest of the article. Part 2, “Tickets Please”, will be the main body of my online musings. The third and final section will be called “Last Stop”. Here I will attempt to sum up my document with something the reader can take with them the rest of the day. This first article will give the format a test run. Let’s give it a try!

All Aboard: Before our home opener Coach Clemons shared a battle strategy used by famous warriors coming to the New World. They learned this strategy from the ancient Greeks. When they arrived at the country they were invading they would disembark from their boats and burn the ships to the ground. That is commitment! It was an apt illustration for a football team named the Argonauts.

Tickets Please: As I sit in my seat, feeling a tad guilty for enjoying my commute so much, I am struck by some similarities between this train that I am riding and the Canadian Foot ball League. It may seem like a bit if a stretch, but bear with me. I remember learning about Canada’s transcontinental railroad in history class. I still recall the textbook picture of Lord Strathcona driving in the last spike in 1885. It seems to me that both the Canadian railway, and the companies that built them, and the CFL are Canadian institutions with rich histories. The CFL was officially started in the 1950s, but the formation of the Argonauts predates the completion of the transcontinental railroad. We have been playing Canadian football in this country for a long time. My vague memories of history lessons on the Canadian railway have left me one overriding impression. The railroad that linked British Columbia to eastern Canada was a unifying force for Canada. I have forgotten many of the details, but the idea of a mode of travel bringing the country together has not left me. I think the CFL serves a similar function. It is a truly Canadian institution that brings us together. I never grow tired of talking football with Canadians all over this great country. And they are truly proud of their football league. Yes, I run into the NFL fans too, but the hordes that supposedly prefer the American game to ours seldom discuss it with me. I sometimes wonder if they are really out there. I believe the CFL is a point of unity for many in this country.

I am also always amazed by the two relatively thin strips of metal that guide and control these racing metal vehicles. Without the rails to ride on, this train would go nowhere. The CFL also rides on two rails. One of the rails that helps make this league successful is the players. They are individuals who are truly responsible for the sport. Whether it is Brent Johnson in BC, or Jeremy O’Day in Regina, or Anthony Calvillo in Montreal, it is the players who are largely responsible for the success of this league. I could name hundreds of players who in hundreds of ways have shown this to be true. They are the treasure of the CFL. The other rail on which this league depends can be seen on the business side of things. Canadian Football is a sport indeed, but the CFL is also a business. I, and many others, endured some bleak years in the 90s when bad business practices brought this league to the edge of oblivion. These days seem to be much better. The various owners, presidents, front offices, and commissioners of the recent past have brought health and vitality back to the business side of football in Canada. And that is good because the CFL needs two rails to ride on. It needs an exciting sport, supplied by the players, and good business practices, offered by the owners and their offices. Let’s hope that both these groups keep the CFL hurtling down the tracks safely and speedily.

Last Stop: I recently watched a documentary on Garth Brooks. I was intrigued when he spoke about the strained relationship between musicians and the record labels that they are under contract to. Garth suggested that this relationship was healthy when there was conflict. He suggested that musicians care about the music where as the record labels cared about the business. Good musicians put the music first; good businesses make money. And he wanted his records to make money. But he also cared about the music. Thus, conflict was inevitable if things were running like they should. Keep that in mind the next time you read or hear about the CFL Players Association being at loggerheads with the Commissioner or the owners. Maybe it’s not just about the money…maybe it’s about the game that the players love and the businesses that the owners are running. And maybe it’s a good thing they are in conflict.