Jeff Piercy
CFL.ca
It is the greatest week of the year, and it is upon us. Obviously, I am speaking of Grey Cup week. The one week of the year where it is OK to deck yourself head-to-toe in Calgary Stampeder’s gear and line up at 8am at Tim Horton’s as if no one is looking. The one week of the year where it is not going to be uncommon to see people walking down rue St. Catherine in Montreal with watermelons on their heads. The one week of the year where you will find Riderville merged with Tiger-town in the name of excessive partying.
Friends if you own a car, and don’t mind sleeping in the back seat, drive to Montreal immediately. You just might make it in time.
I have been to the Grey Cup both as a fan and as a player, and there is no time in the year that is more truly Canadian. It is the celebration of our league and our country and football and incase you missed it the first time Riderville and Tigertown are merging! Not since NAFTA have two juggernauts come together for such a good cause. NAFTA was about trade and this is about celebrating our game and our league.
There are player awards and media luncheons and cheerleader competitions and live bands and team pavilions and don’t forget that there is some football at some point and if you haven’t thrown the kids in the back seat and filled up the tank I don’t know what is wrong with you! Last I heard there were 56,000 tickets sold and room for another 12,000 and all you have to know is that when the PA announcer says “First down Ben…” you say “Cahoooooooooooooon!”
Now I am not here to twist your arm. I’m not here to tell you what to do, and I am certainly not here to put pressure on anyone. I am a fan first and I feel obliged to explain to my fellow CFL fans just what they would be missing if they aren’t at “The Big O” on Sunday. I want to shout it from the top of a mountain, but I don’t have a mountain, I have a blog on CFL.ca.
And when you get to Montreal, and you’re coming over the Pont Champlain, just look for the lights and the fireworks and the music and there you will find Ridertown, or Tigerville, or whatever they are going to call it.
They have built it, and they are expecting you to come.
Jeff Piercy is in his fourth CFL season. He was a second round pick in the 2005 Canadian Draft.
