Whitecaps Dane Richards Playing for BurnleyFC Next Season

Taken from cbc.ca

So, it was fun while we had him.  According to news from the Vancouver Whitecaps this morning, Dane Richards has signed for the European team Burnley FC and will start his new season with them in January of 2013.  Heading into his final year left with MLS, Europe was bound to come calling for him.  Coach Rennie had anticipated that and we are still in good shape for the future with allocation money received from the trade for him with Sebastien Le Toux.  We wish Dane a great future with the Burnley FC team.

BC Place Community Open House

BC Place held an open house this weekend for the community to come out and see what was new with the stadium.  It also gave fans a chance to meet their residents. The BC Lions and Vancouver Whitecaps FC.  Both teams put on a fun interactive session and it also allowed fans to walk on the field and walk under the dome as it opened up just as it looks in the picture shown above.

I started my day off with a coffee and bagel at the local Tim Hortons on Keefer and Abbot.  I ran into a girl dressed in a Whitecaps Jacket and shirt.  So I asked her if she was with Whitecaps.  Turned out she worked in the merchandise store and was working that day at the stadium.  So I introduced myself as a Whitecaps Team Leader.  She said I looked familiar to her and she had seen me around.  We decided to walk back to the stadium together.  At 11:30am this morning, I walked up to Gate A to lineup to be among the first 100 people to get Bob Lenarduzzi's book, Bob Lenarduzzi: A Canadian Soccer Story.  The DJ was playing music on the plaza and the felions came and did their dance routines to entertain the crowd as they waited for the doors to open.  Once the doors were open, everyone rushed in and was handed a copy of Bob's book.  We were then handed a BC Place Newsletter highlighting all the things to see and do while you were there.  I followed the herd of people into the suite area where they had opened up a few of them so people could go and see what they looked like.

The path that was laid out for everyone led to the ramp decending to the 2nd level.  Once on the second level, you could make your way down to the field where all the activities were set up.

 
The Vancouver Whitecaps were set up on the left side of the field and the Lions were on the right.  I made my way down and was caught in the middle of the felions doing a dance routine.

I then started to look around to see where a good place would be to start exploring.  I spotted a tent with Bob Lenarduzzi signing autographs for his book so I decided I would start there.  I took my book and stood in line for 15 mins before I got up to him and he signed my book for me.  He said he knew that I worked for him and he made it out to me.

I left his tent and wandered off towards the two long lineups on the right side of the field.  Travis Lulay and Akeem Foster were busy giving autographs in one line and the other was for taking a picture with the Grey Cup.  You were not allowed to pick up the Cup though like we were able to after they won it.  So I didn't bother getting in that lineup.

 Instead I decided I just wanted a pic with Lulay and Foster.  Once that was done, I headed towards the football lineup and got myself a miniature football and threw it thru a small hole in the cardboard cutout as I was directed.  I got a lot of cheers for it from the crowd.

From there I moved on and went for a tour of the dressing rooms.  Although I have been in there before for other events, I have never seen it with the Whitecaps and BC Lions equipment in the room.  So I went out the West Airlock tunnel and headed first for the Lions dressing room.

Compared to the their training facility locker rooms in Surrey, this was crazy neat. I'm sure it was spruced up for the photo ops.  I then headed past their lounge and ice bath/massage areas into the connecting Whitecaps dressing room.

This room held a different vibe than the Lions dressing room.  The room lights were turned off and only the spotlight in each of their stalls were lit to give this dramatic ambiance.  I was also greeted by my Whitecaps staff (family) who know me and was called a "traitor" for wearing a Lions jersey instead of representing the 'Caps.  I told them I came as a fan today.  Nothing more. When they were done teasing me, I moved onto the next part of the tour.  The path then led to onto the "ring road" inside the stadium that took me right back out an entrance to the field.  I walked back onto the field and decided I would take a break and sit in the stands for a little bit and take it all in while I waited for my friend and her daughter to arrive.

Here the Whitecaps had a giant "scarf" that people could sign to show support for the team.

A Whitecaps player kicks the ball around with a future Whitecaps player.

My friend and her daughter showed up and so we headed back down on the field and I got them all caught up on what activities were happening and what they might be interested in doing.  The first thing we did was line up to meet Lulay and Foster but by the time we got close to them, their time was up and the next two players were to come and take over the autograph table.  Paris Jackson and JR LaRose.  Turns out JR LaRose was the only one available as Paris had just texted the Lions marketing  person when she was talking to us and informed her that he was stuck in traffic and will be late.  So while people waited Lulay came back out and went thru the lineup to give autographs until the other two were set up.  Rose was the only one to come out but was later joined by Foster until Paris was able to make his way to the stadium.

I took my friend and her daughter back thru the dressing rooms and back out onto the field and looked around a bit more.  Spike, the Whitecaps mascot was hanging around so we took pics with him.

 This is Spike pretending his heart is thumping out of his chest. Crazy Kingfisher.

We looked around a bit more and then headed back up to the concourse where the BC Hall of Fame was giving away free sample bags of Popchips.  I got the Sour Cream and Onion bag and they were pretty good.  My friend's daughter wanted to buy something from the Whitecaps merchandise store so she got herself a nice hat.  We then headed back up the ramp and out the doors to the plaza so we could make our way back towards skytrain to go home.  All in all, we all had a great time and it was definitely a fun experience.  Sometimes its just nice to be a fan.

Sports Shopping in the City

The Vancouver Whitecaps and the BC Lions both had their year-end sales today.  Of course I had to go to both. 

The first place I went to was the Whitecaps sale which started at 10am this morning.  They were selling their merchandise in a warehouse just off Main St which was very easy to get to.  They had selected items of children, women and men's apparel.  They also had a variety of novelty items such as scarfs, toques, mugs etc. all marked down from 40-60%.  This was a great deal for those looking to buy christmas or birthday gifts.  Although it was small space to manuevor, it worked out well.  I went into the place looking to buy something for my friend's son, whose birthday is coming up.  He's turning six years old and plays soccer.  I was lucky enough to find something that he might like.  However, while I was looking thru the children's apparel, I noticed the very familiar Carl Valentine and his video man lurking in the corner of the room.  They also noticed me.  I tried to ignore them but they came over anyway and for the third time this year, Carl asked if he could interview me.  I said no the first two times. I hate being interviewed.  I felt bad turning him down again so I agreed.  That interview will be up on the Whitecaps website probably tomorrow.  I'll post it here if I can find it.

After that was done, I browsed a bit more and contemplated buying more stuff but I was good. I managed to resist.  I bought what I came to get and then headed towards Rogers Arena to check out the Canucks Store since I had time before the BC Lions sale opened to the public.  The Canucks Store was crazy busy inside.  People were buying up jerseys by the armloads.  I saw something I liked but might wait for the sale.  I also perused the men's section of Jerseys.  I was looking for a small in Bieksa but they only had 2 left on the rack and both were x-large!!  The women's Bieksa jerseys were flying off the rack as well.  He's very popular among the ladies and kids.  It was starting to get clausterphobic in there for me, so I left and headed to Blendz coffee shop around the corner so I could borrow their wi-fi for my ipod touch.  Sat there for a while and then made arrangements with my friend to meet at BC Place at Gate H at noon when it opened.

The BC Lions had their year-end Locker Room Sale and most of the merchandise was marked down.  As I headed into Gate H, I noticed they had set up right in the atrium like one big shop.  My buddy, Rob, who was also a Team Leader with me for Grey Cup was working security at the door.  He mentioned that the season ticket holders were in at 9am which is why it was so busy when I got there.  My friend, Leslie-Anne was already inside looking thru the merchandise.  There were tons of shirts and hats on sale 2 for $20.  One of my friends had requested a mini-grey cup but they were sold out of those last week.  So, I got him the next best thing he wanted, two mini-helmets.  I got myself a BC Lions Championship Hat which I had signed by Wally Buono, Anton MacKenzie and Marco Iannuzzi, who were there.  Some things that I liked were still a bit expensive for my taste so I didn't walk out with a lot.  Just a few more pics with athletes and one with the Grey Cup! 

As soon as I picked up the hat, I headed over to Wally Buono and told him I worked for the CAT team.  He said I was part of the team and thanked me. I congratulated him on an incredible season and told him I wanted him back as coach next year.  He signed my hat and then I asked if I could get a pic with him as well.  His wife was around with armful of clothing she wanted to purchase so he flagged her down and asked if she could take a  pic of us together.  He said getting her to take the pics keeps her busy from picking up stuff to buy...lol.  Here's the pic which I will always treasure.  What a great person.

After I purchased my items, I headed over to the signing table where McKenzie and Iannuzzi were sitting.  I got them to sign my hat and then took pics with them too after congratulating them on an amazing year and chatting for a bit.

Next up was the Grey Cup! Light as a feather and yes I know, its almost as tall as I am!

Here is the hat I had signed by Wally and the players.

I also picked up another poster for my friend of the Stadium on Grey Cup along with the mini helmets he wanted.  It looks fantastic!

Leslie-Anne and I were a bit hungry after all that, so we headed to Rosie's for a bite to eat and then headed home. I've got another early morning on Sunday as I will be attending the Santa Claus Parade downtown with more friends.  No ice skating as I had too much baggage with me today but I'll get it in there somewhere. :)

Crazy Sports/Wedding Filled Saturday

Today was the motherload of all days for me! Sportswise, Canucks played a rare 1pm afternoon game against the Minnesota Wild and won 3-2 in overtime.  The more games they play, the better they look.  Kesler doesn't look like he's having any problems re-adjusting without having attended training camp.  It was slow at times, but picked it up when they needed to.  Lets hope this just keeps getting better. The game winning goal came from Sami Salo.  Here is the video evidence of the winning play.

Then the Vancouver Whitecaps played their last season match at BC Place vs. Colorado Rapids.  They closed the season out with a 2-1 loss with the only goal coming from Alain Rochat.  I was supposed to be working at the match but skytrain's schedule was erratic with their track maintenance this weekend and I had to be at TWO wedding receptions after the match and wasn't sure I'd make it back home in time from downtown.   It was a fun year with the Whitecaps but also very challenging.  I hope this club improves next year as we all saw the potential is there to be the best.  Good Luck next year Whitecaps! 
This is what Joe Cannon had to say after the match.

The BC Lions also took on the Hamilton Ti-Cats and ended up licking their wounds 42-10.  Their 8 game win streak had come to an end.  They are now home preparing to take on the Edmonton Eskimos on Saturday, Oct 29th.  I will be working at that game.  The Leos have suffered alot of player injuries in the last couple of games and I'm hoping there is enough depth and character on this team to get them through the next game.  If the BC Lions win on Saturday, they will be in first place as they would have won the season series against them.  SO, lets cross fingers and say a little prayer that our Lions will prevail.

This is a ritual performed by the Rugby team before every match called the "Haka".

For those who follow Rugby, another sports team I was following was the New Zealand All Blacks Rugby team.  They played the final match last night at 1am against France.  It was a close match and ended in a 8-7 win for the All Blacks. So congrats to the All Blacks.  I'm sure my cousins in NZ are having a blast celebrating their win.  If you don't know what tournament this was, it was the Rugby World Cup 2011.  It started with 30 teams and finally after 2 months, it all came down to France and New Zealand. It was 24 years ago when the Kiwis won the Cup last.  As my Aussie cousins would say,  "Good on ya!"  I only wish our Canucks could have ended our 40 yr drought of the Stanley Cup earlier this year. 

Speaking of Canucks.....

THE CANUCKS TRADE

David Booth on the left and Steven Reinprecht on the right. 

Mikaeel Samuelsson was "supposedly" out with his injury and Marco Sturm was "supposedly" a last minute change and didn't skate with the team either.   A press release was announced following the game that both Sturm and Samuelsson were both traded to the Florida Panthers for LW David Booth, Centre Steven Reinprecht and a third round draft pick in 2013.  I have to be honest, I haven't heard of either of these guys before so it was hard to make a judgement call on my part if this was a good trade or not.  But after much research on both players, it seems as though we got the better end of it.  I'm excited.

Here is a video I found on youtube that I found interesting regarding the trade.

I will be watching the game vs. Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday as this will be the first game Booth will suit up for the Canucks.  I hope this line dominates...nicknames such as the "American Express Line" or the "Americano Line" are already being dubbed by hopeful fans...but you never now what will happen and who will play with who unitl it happens.  Bring on Tuesday!

We Love You Long Tan

I was at Bell Pitch downtown tonight for the second to last game of the season where the Vancouver Whitecaps pulled off their very first back-to-back win of the season!  Thats right folks, the 'Caps won another one tonight with a score of 2-1 against DC United who were hoping to come out of this with an easy win to gain a playoff spot.  However, the Caps weren't so willing to give up this win.  The crowds were still coming in thru the doors when the first Whitecaps goal was scored by Camillo.  Thats another reason i'm glad there are TV screens up at the Gate entrances.

I was positioned at Gate A again with my volunteer partner of  3 yrs, Margo.   Together with a few Langara College interns, we gave out programs and answered questions and helped people find their way to their seats.  I met more of my Season Ticket holder families from our Swangard days and they were even saying it was like our family was reunited again!  It certainly did feel like it.

Bobby Lenarduzzi was signing autographs for his new book "A Canadian Soccer Story" on the second level and vowed to stay and autograph until the last person in line was done.  Gotta love him.

For the second half of the match, the volunteers and I went and sat in our area below the media box between Sections 204-207.  The roof was open again tonight and thank god it didn't rain.  It was extremely chilly inside however but the view of the moon right above the open roof with dark clouds shadowing it at times was beautiful to see thru the sparkling lights.  We stayed there with the Whitecaps Youth Team around us.  They get to come in and watch the games for free if they have their passes with them.  Great bunch of young guys.  The best goal of the night was obviously when Long Tan scored the second goal and what also was the winning goal of the night.  DC United came back with a goal but it was too late.

Eric Hassli substituted Long Tan towards the end of the game to a standing ovation in appreciation for Long Tan.  Then the cheers for Eric Hassli started ringing out from the Southsiders corner.  He is obviously a favorite among them.  Can't blame them.  He's had some pretty amazing goals this year.  One in particular comes to mind against the Seattle Sounders.

Close to the end of the game, we all headed back to our gates to say goodbye to everyone leaving and then headed downstairs to the East Airlock to give in our reports of the day.  The people left happy and smiling. My fellow volunteer, David and I talked to one fan waiting for skytrain who was amazed they won back to back...she said that it felt like the season had just started for this young MLS team.  Hmmmmm...maybe they should have moved into BC Place sooner.  Hopefully they can earn their last win of the season on October 22nd against the Colorado Rapids.

One thing to note is that with this win, the Vancouver Whitecaps are no longer at the bottom of the MLS League.  They have surpassed the New England Revolution for the 17th spot.  Woots!!

Can't believe there's only one game left.....feeling kinda sad now.  Come out and support your Vancouver Whitecaps at their last match of the season.  I'm sure they won't disappoint.

Welcome to Bell Pitch Downtown

"Would you like a Program??"

So today was the Whitecaps turn to have their first game inside BC Place.  The Whitecaps revealed the new soccer specific roof which comes down to cover the 4th level which isn't being used (as seen in the above pic).  We were close to a sellout with  just over 21,000 fans.  Compared to Friday night's football game of 50,213, there were no long beer lineups and there were plenty of hot dogs to be eaten.  It went pretty smoothly.  My volunteer partner and I were positioned in the Season Ticket Holder entrance at Gate A.  This suited us fine as we used to be the Ushers at Swangard Stadium and had known many of our members.  It was wonderful to see them again after being at Empire Stadium since April. It felt like our family was reunited again.

Bob Lenarduzzi and some officials were outside the Gate before doors opened for the Official Opening of BC Place for Whitecaps.  Once this was done, the fans were let in and were free to look around and get familiar with the Stadium.  Overall, everyone seemed to like it.  The roof was also opened this morning as the sun was out and shining bright. You can see in the pic below that the roof material gathers into the middle area when its open.

This is a view from the 4th level between the second roof panels.

Here's another look at the roofing panels.

The Portland Timbers won this match 1-0.  They had a legion of fans in one corner of the bowl where they were dressed in green and dancing in rhythm and chanting in tune.  Our Southsiders were barely audible...in fact, I never saw them cheer.  It was very unusual.  Oh well....we may have lost another one but the atmosphere and love of soccer is what brings the fans to the matches.  No complaints like Friday and everyone left home in a good mood even though we lost.  Gotta love soccer.

Grand Re-Opening of BC Place and Lions are 2nd in the West!!

WOW!!!  Another win for our boys in Orange!  33-24 against the Edmonton Eskimos....at least they were a bit of a challenge unlike Saskatchewan last week! haha!

The Grand Unveiling  of BC Place was held before the gates were to open on the 3rd floor of the building and lucky me, that's just where I was positioned for the first hour and a half.  It was a mixture of Whitecaps and Lions players and Management holding a very long ribbon that Cristy Clark was to cut.  I took pictures of them as they marched out of the forum to outside of the gates where they were to cut the ribbon.

Once this was done, the BC Lions players were taken away in golf carts to get ready for the game and the gates were officially open. The lions fans were very curious and anxious to get in to take a look at what their 563 million dollars got them.  I gave out maps, answered questions and helped people find their way to the 4th and 2nd floors where they were seated.  At one point I turned around and saw an old favorite of mine, Pat Quinn.  Some people had spotted him and were taking pics with him so I took one of him as well.  Always love seeing Pat at sporting events.  Reminds me of the "Gentle Giant"...for those of you who remember that show.

So, once the game started and people were for the most part seated, I headed to my alternate position on Level 2.  The crowd was massive and usually while the game has been on in the past, the hallway is pretty quiet.  Not tonight.  We had 50,213 people in the building tonight!  The lines for beer and food were crazy and constant.  This is where I thought adding all those extra TV's came in handy.  Everyone was able to watch from the lineups they were in.  The ATM's were even co-operating tonight! Unreal...that never happens at a Lions game.

At half time I went up to the 4th floor to find a friend and get his impression of the building as it was the first time he had seen the inside.  He thought it looked great as well.  The only thing I hadn't thought about was that with the roof open, the stadium did become somewhat cold.  I know I was freezing and so were some of the Ushers who hadn't thought about wearing a jacket either for this game.  In the past because of the dome, the air was still and that made it hot inside the stadium everywhere, in the stands, hallways and anywhere else!  Looks like we're gonna have to get used to the "fresh air" now.....it was nice however.  Here's a pic I took with the roof off.  Amazing.

When half time ended I went down to the 1st floor of the building for break with all the other volunteers.  We sat and watched the game on our big TV and cheered on our Lions as they defeated the Eskimos in Lion fashion.  We used to be able to hear the crowd cheer and feel the rumble of the feet on the bleachers by our area but not anymore.  If we hadn't seen the touchdown with our own eyes on TV, you wouldn't have known the crowd was cheering.  Kinda eerie if you ask me.

The 50,213 people who came to celebrate the re-opening of BC Place and to cheer on our Lions went home very happy and in some cases, were also extremely drunk.  It was a good night had by all and I get to do it all again on Sunday with the Whitecaps!

Raise a Reader Day 2011!!

For those of you who don't know what Raise a Reader Day is, here's a little background information for you!

Every fall Canucks veterans and newcomers take to the streets of Vancouver to hand out newspapers and pose for photos with smiling fans. Today, they were all at it again with the Vancouver Sun in hand, with all proceeds going towards literacy programs on Raise a Reader Day!  You can get a picture taken or autograph from them in exchange for a donation.  A toonie is usually suggested.

So I didn't sleep a wink last night cause I was so excited to be meeting my Canucks.  Left the house at 6:30am and got downtown by 7:30am.  I was hoping for a Canuck to be stationed out at Burrard Skytrain but there were only the "red shirt' volunteers.  No Canucks.  So I made my way up Burrard and Georgia where Bob Lenarduzzi and Victor de Bonis were handing out papers on one side of the street, and another group of Spike the Mascot, Jordan Harvey, Joe Cannon and Carl Valentine were handing out papers opposite them.  I didn't get pics done with Lenarduzzi and de Bonis as they were busy being interviewed for the news so I walked across the street to the other group and bought a paper and had my pic taken with them. I finally got a picture with the elusive Spike!! Couldn't find the dang bird anywhere at Empire! Woots!!

Please keep in mind that all these athletes are at least 6 feet tall or over and I am not even close.  The sad part is that I am wearing boots with heels in these pics. :(

My next plan was to find out where all the Canucks were hiding.  So I crossed the street and headed down W.Georgia towards the Art Gallery where I ran into Joey Kenward, who does all the Canuck interviews on Canucks.com since Kristen Reid left.  I asked him where I could find Ryan Kesler.  He said he had no clue and that they were looking for him as well. So I kept walking on towards Granville where I passed Darcy Rota and kept going towards a huge crowd forming outside of London Drugs.  This is where I found Ryan Kesler.  He had a huge lineup and for a donation you could take a pic and get an autograph from him.  The front page story of the Vancouver Sun this morning was featuring Kesler and his family as well so it was a no brainer to get him to sign it for me.  The line took about 20 mins and it was awesome.  Such a sweet guy...he did all the poses the girls wanted and was just awesome with the crowd.  Luv this guy!

Once I was done with Kesler, I went back and got a pic done with Darcy Rota!! Jeez....I honestly didn't think the man was still alive!!  He's such an awesome guy...shook his hand and he autographed the newspaper for me and took a pic with me.

After this, I headed towards Robson cause I know sometimes they are at the Starbucks too by Thurlow.  As I was walking down there I ran into the Vancouver Giants volunteers who I stopped to talk to and they were asking if I had seen any Canucks yet...I told them about Kesler and Rota.  One of the volunteers then suggested I head over to the Burrard Skytrain Station cause he had seen two of them there!  I first walked across the street to get a pic with the Vancouver Giants Mascot and then headed to Burrard Skytrain Station.

As I was walking back towards the skytrain station, I was wondering who the two Canucks could be?  As I got closer, I saw it was Mason Raymond and Steve Pinizzotto!!  Of course!! All the Canucks out today were on the injured list...lol.  The line was short so that told me that they had just got there as they weren't there when I had first shown up at 7:30am.  It was now 8:30am.  Mason is soooooo sweet....he autographed my newspaper and then I turned to Pinizzotto and welcomed him to Vancouver and to the team..he smiled and said "Thanks!".  He also signed my newspaper and then we took a pic together. It was sweet. :)

At this point, I was getting hungry as I hadn't had any breakfast as of yet. The Foodbank had set up in front of the Art Gallery and were hosting an organic breakfast by donation.  So I went in, donated, received a little green reusable bag from a volunteer and then received a vanilla chai tea drink box, three different types of granola bars (which I still have in my bag), an expresso donut and a coffee....they had cereals and yogurts too but I wasn't interested in it. I sat at the fountain and ate my food in peace.  I watched the crowds walk down W.Georgia as I ate.  When my tummy was full, I headed down towards Coal Harbour and chilled out there for bit and then met up with friends from work.  It was a great way to spend my morning. :)