Labour Day Classic photo fun Roughriders, Bombers style

Darian Durant (#4) fires a pass downfield in the 2016 Labour Day Classic.

    The Labour Day Classic in Saskatchewan equals the ultimate annual great lost weekend.

    Traditionally, the Labour Day long weekend clash between the visiting Winnipeg Blue Bombers and the host Saskatchewan Roughriders provides the perfect celebration weekend for Rider Nation and a great CFL rivalry. The celebration for Rider Nation part is helped by the fact the Roughriders have won 14 out of the last 15 Labour Day Classics.

    The lone Bombers victory came in 2016 thanks to a 43-yard walk-off field goal by kicker Justin Medlock. That allowed Winnipeg to take the final Labour Day Classic ever played at Taylor Field 28-25.

    Of course, the Roughriders have a massive advantage as this game is usually a sellout, and the crowd in most years sounds louder than any other home game in that respective season.

    While most of the stadium is full of Roughriders fans, a sizable following usually follows the Bombers from Winnipeg to Regina for this game.

    For a number of years, there was a time fans from out of town started arriving in Regina on Friday night to party. The party ran Friday and all day Saturday leading to game day on Sunday.

    Following the game, the parties usually continued all through the night and people began returning home on Monday.

    I’ve been to 19 Labour Day Classic games with the first coming in 1996. The Roughriders have posted a 17-2 record in those contests.
    Star quarterback Cody Fajardo lead the Roughriders to victory in last year’s game.

Cody Fajardo (#7) slings a pass in the 2019 Labour Day Classic

    I made the last 12 straight Labour Day Classics in a row dating back to 2008. Unfortunately, this year’s CFL season was cancelled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, which means there is no Labour Day Classic in 2020.

    Starting around 2004, I began taking photos of the happenings on the Labour Day Classic weekend. From 2004 to 2011, those photos were usually taken on a disposable film camera.

    I got my first digital point and shoot camera in 2012. Yes, I was late to the game getting to the digital camera world with my own equipment.

    Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos from the parties that took place post-game at Bart’s on Broad from the late 1990s through to 2006. As a result, there are no pictures of the Blue Bomber Cheer and Dance Team, which was then known as the Blue Lightning Dance Team, doing a performance to “Don’t Cha” by the Pussycat Dolls.

    Of course, that song has the chorus lyric, “Don’t cha wish your girlfriend was hot like me.”
    Trust me, that was an epic night at Bart’s.

    Anyways, I hope you enjoy checking out these photos. I could have posted a tonne more, but I though this supplied a good sampling.

A dream scoreboard for Roughriders fans

    This is the final scoreboard from the 2012 Labour Day Classic.

    The Saskatchewan Roughriders down the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 52-0. For many Roughriders fans, their favourite Labour Day Classic game is the 2012 contest.

Drum guy rallies the fans

    Of course, the fans are a key part in making the Labour Day Classic great. In this photo, a drum guy named “Spanky” rallies the Taylor Field crowd in 2013.

Bombers walk-off win in 2016

    Right here might be the most memorable moment for Bombers fans at the Labour Day Classic.

    In 2016 at the final Labour Day Classic game at Taylor Field, kicker Justin Medlock nails a 43-yard walk-off field goal to give the Bombers a 28-25 victory over the Roughriders.

“This Is Our House”

    During the 2010 season, the Bon Jovi song “This Is Our House” blared throughout Taylor Field pregame to pump up Rider Nation for contest that was to come.

    Here fans are waving rally towels the team gave out before that year’s Labour Day Classic game as “This Is Our House” played throughout the stadium.

Lauther’s walk-off 2019 Roughriders win

    In 2019 at Mosaic Stadium, Brett Lauther’s 26-yard walk-off field goal sails true to give the Roughriders a 19-17 victory over the Bombers.

    After this kicked went through the uprights, Lauther and punter Jon Ryan made a mad dash to Pil Country in the south end zone, where Lauther ultimately drank a beer. The celebration capped that year’s Labour Day Classic.

Fans prefer rock over banjos

    This group of Roughriders fans in 2004 had a response to Bombers kicker Troy Westwood’s infamous comments towards those in Rider Nation.

    They brought this sign out before the Labour Day Classic that year and it said, “Rider fans play more than banjos! Rock on Riders!!!”

Sheets meets the public

    It seemed like Roughriders star running back Kory Sheets never missed an opportunity to meet Rider Nation.

    Here Sheets signs autographs for the gathering of fans that wait outside the Roughriders dressing room after the 2013 Labour Day Classic. Sheets would be the MVP of the Roughriders Grey Cup championship win later that year.

Gainer loves meeting the public too

    At the 2008 fan festival that occurs the day before the Labour Day Classic, Roughriders mascot Gainer the Gopher satisfies an autograph request from a young fan.

Durant TD celebration

    Roughriders star quarterback Darian Durant poses for this sweet celebration photo after scoring a touchdown in the 2016 Labour Day Classic.

Rally at “Wayne’s World”

    Bombers fans rally at “Wayne’s World” before the 2008 Labour Day Classic. These pre-game rallies at “Wayne’s World” are an annual tradition for Bombers fans.

Fans takes over south end zone

    Fans take over the south end zone at Taylor Field during the 2004 Labour Day Classic. Before stands were installed in that spot, fans jammed on to a hill that used to be located in that part of the Roughriders old historic park.

Harris on the run

    Bombers star running back Andrew Harris tears downfield on a run during the 2016 Labour Day Classic.

Rider Cheer Team entertains

    The Rider Cheer Team entertains fans with a little stunting at the 2011 fan festival that occurred the day before that year’s Labour Day Classic.

Carter aims to muscle out of a tackle

    Roughriders star receiver Duron Carter tries to muscle his way out of the grasp of a Bombers tackler in the 2017 Labour Day Classic.

Reaves family reunion

    The family and friends of Roughriders defensive lineman and special teams ace Jordan Reaves, fourth from right, pose for a group photo following the 2018 Labour Day Classic.

    In the front on one knee is Jordan’s proud father Willard, who was a star running back for the Bombers in the 1980s. Willard Reaves was voted the CFL’s most outstanding player in the Bombers Grey Cup championship year in 1984.

We can all be friends

    The final picture is of yours truly with a couple of members of the Bombers Cheer and Dance Team before the 2016 Labour Day Classic.

    I just bought the Blue Bomber Cheer and Dance Team calendar off them. Remember folks, it is always better to make love and not war.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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Appetite for Destruction – GnR will rake in money in Regina

An LP of Guns N’ Roses debut album.

    “Are you out of your mind?”

    That was my first reaction when I saw the ticket prices for the Guns N’ Roses concert in Regina on Sunday at new Mosaic Stadium.

    When I looked at the Ticketmaster map to see how well ticket sales were going, I began to question if I was lost with some parts of today’s world.

    The prices were outrageous. Most seats were tagged at $165 and upwards plus fees. Floor seats were going for $275 plus fees. Admission for the standing pit area in front of the stage was $350 plus fees.

    Tickets are also available for $75 each plus fees, and a handful of those went on sale in the north end zone of new Mosaic. The Friday ploy is a standard entertainment industry practice were a handful of tickets are held for release a couple of days before the event.

    While the pricing was a shocker, the other shocker was tickets were selling. The Ticketmaster stadium map was dominated with white, which is the colour that marks a sold seat.

The back of a Guns N’ Roses debut album in LP format.

    The biggest concentration of open seats are in the two most expensive areas on the floor and in front of the stage. With that said, the floor is about 60 per cent sold.
    Doors open for Sunday’s show at 4:30 p.m., Our Lady Peace goes on stage at 6:15 p.m. and Guns N’ Roses hits the stage at 7:30 p.m.

    GnR’s current tour is dubbed the “Not in this Lifetime….. Tour,” and it features the reunion of core members in frontman Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan.

    Anyone that is aware of this band’s history figured this reunion would never happen. Following the band’s heyday in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Slash departed in 1996 and McKagan followed in 1997. The feuds between Rose, 55, Slash, 52, and McKagan, 53, appeared to revolve around ego.

    A reunion of the three core members was always possible from the standpoint it could happen because way too much money could be made. That reason was a big factor in KISS reuniting with its original lineup in the late 1990s. Motley Crue would constantly fly apart and reunite bringing in boatloads of money in the process.

CDs of GnR’s Use Your Illusion albums.

    In the case of KISS and Motley Crue, there always seemed to be an underlying respect and actual brother type caring between the band members.

    In Guns N’ Roses case, it seemed like tensions were always so toxic that a reunion would never happen. At times, it seemed tensions were beyond toxic as far as a hate meter was concerned.

    When Rose, Slash, and McKagan, did get back together in early 2016 and their initial reunion grew into the band’s current tour, I know for myself I didn’t know how to take it.

    During my high school years, Guns N’ Roses was my favourite band. In my Grade 11 and 12 years, I became sort of minor cult figure in Winnipeg’s J.H. Bruns Collegiate singing GnR songs in the hallway and also performing “Don’t Cry” once at a gym rally. There were a number of classmates that just knew me by the nickname “Axl.”

    It should also be noted my high school sweetheart hated Guns N’ Roses in an extreme way, and that might have played a part in us breaking up right after her high school graduation ending a two-year relationship, but I digress.

    That part of my life would appear on the odd occasion during my university years in Regina. I sang “Patience” and “Don’t Cry” at the impromptu after party of the University of Regina Cougars award night in 1998 at the now defunct Bart’s On Broad in Regina. In my best suit out of all things, I sang in front of all the school’s athletic teams and a number of coaches, who clearly enjoyed the entertainment that night.

Guns N’ Roses concert VCR tapes from a show in Tokyo.

    Most of Guns N’ Roses songs had a rage and emotion to them that seemed linked to the late 1980s early 1990s time period. Even power ballad type songs like “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” “Don’t Cry” and the softer “Patience” required you get to that emotional point that was linked to a romantic relationship.

    You went to KISS to enjoy yourself and to Motley Crue to party. I paid $145.50 for a floor seat for Motley Crue’s farewell tour stop in Saskatoon in December of 2015, when they toured with Alice Cooper. Both groups put on iconic performances that night that were true to who they were.

    Guns N’ Roses was an attitude and you went to a show to act out in a pissed off way.

    Concerts in 1991 in St. Louis and 1992 in Montreal ended in riots, and part of the draw was seeing an act that was so unstable that mayhem might break out. I had a friend that went to the Montreal riot show, where GnR toured with Metallica, and he recalled seeing live fires all over the place.

A Guns N’ Roses VCR tape.

    In recent years even before the reunion, I often saw signs that the band wasn’t forgotten. The GnR tribute band The Nightrain seems to have been around forever.

    I would see Guns N’ Roses T-shirts on sale in respectable clothing outlets, which was something you would never see in the late 1980s or early 1990s.

    I would also see the odd young lady in her late teens wearing a GnR T-shirt or the T-shirt of another hard rock band that made its name in the 1980s. It always struck me how these young ladies knew of these bands.

    In early April, I was in Prince Albert covering hockey. I was checking out a retail store hours before the hockey game, when I visited with a really good looking young lady with blonde hair, who had to be 18 or 19 years of age.

    She was wearing a Guns N’ Roses tour T-shirt, and she had the bottom part tied to her waist, so the T-shirt fit tight to her body. She also donned black yoga pants and cute set of sandals.

    She looked amazing. I told her stories about the band in its heyday, and she was entertained and laughed with amusement at them. She was clearly in for the nostalgia.

    It struck me you would never see any young ladies dressed like her back in the band’s heyday, where GnR’s every day female fans dressed like tough head banger chicks with tight jeans or black leather pants. They also wore stylish footwear that could do damage in a fight. They still looked hot, but they had the image that they could really mess you up if given the chance.

    So far on their current tour, Guns N’ Roses sound like they are delivering. They are expected to have one of the top grossing tours of 2017.

A Guns N’ Roses poster from 1991.

    They played at Investors Group Field in Winnipeg on Thursday night. According to the review in the Winnipeg Free Press, which is one of the last bastions of good independent journalism in Canada, Guns N’ Roses turned back the clock and were as good as their best days in their prime ripping through a three-hour set.
    The show also started on time, which harkened back to the fact GnR concerts had a habit of starting notoriously late in the early 1990s.

    Having only casually followed news on the band since 1996, I am finding I can’t get myself back in that emotional place to go see one of their shows. On an impulse whim, I find I can’t dish out money for a ticket with the crazy prices that are being charged.

    Judging by Regina ticket sales, a lot of people want to see the reunited band, and they are willing to pay big amounts of money to do it.

    I hope they enjoy the show and the band impresses. For me, my passions in life have changed, so I believe I will take a pass on this concert.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.