Tag Archives: Calgary Stampede

Just because he’s hung like a horse, doesn’t mean Tommy Lee knows anything about horse-racing…

Posted by gruesomegreg on

The Motley Crue drummer and reality TV star, known for his big stick, is the latest paid celebrity spokesperson to speak out about the Stampede chuckwagon races, which he’s personally never attended.  As The Globe and Mail reports, Lee “has written a letter to Alberta’s premier urging her to ‘use her influence’ to cancel the chuckwagon races at this year’s Calgary Stampede.”  Funny, I didn’t know Alison Redford had a sister on the Stampede committee—or an ex-husband, for that matter…

Lee’s letter, written by on behalf of PETA, continues, “I love touring Canada, and our Calgary fans are among the roughest and toughest. But I’ve heard about some unwilling participants in an annual local event much harsher than a Motley Crue show – the horses killed year after year in the chuckwagon races at the Calgary Stampede.”  Uh, I’m not sure the chucks are that much harsher, dude.  Can’t he hear Vince Neil’s vocals in his drum monitor!?

“I learned from my friends at PETA that despite new rules to make the races safer last year, three horses had to be euthanized after crippling injuries when their wagons collided,” Lee’s PETA representative wrote, after explaining to him that a chuckwagon wasn’t a van to shag groupies in.  “Dude, it’s the Old West, not Ancient Rome!”  He then had to be reminded that Old West wasn’t just the name of the stripper he chuck-wagoned last week.

Oddly enough, this letter from Tommy Lee comes a year after Pamela Anderson denounced the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth, also as a paid shill for PETA.  Now, if those animal lovers could get Pam and Tommy to make another sex tape, I would gladly support their cause. ;)

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COMMENT OF THE DAY: I dunno guy, but I don’t think Chinese property speculators give a yuan about a heated hockey rivalry…

Posted by gruesomegreg on

From: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/story/2013/04/22/calgary-jarome-iginla-mls-flames-house.html

Well, that didn’t take long.  The puck hasn’t even dropped on the postseason, but Jarome Iginla’s Calgary abode has already hit the open market.  The stylish, custom-built luxury home in the city’s Southwest can be yours for a cool $4-million, effectively quashing the notion that Iggy’s heading back to Cowtown in free agency.  Not sure if he already plans on putting up roots in Pittsburgh, though; what’s he gonna do, buy a nice property on Mt Washington and take the Monogahela Incline to work?  (Yeah, I’ve been to Pittsburgh before…)

In any case, I can sorta see why my favourite black person on earth doesn’t wanna spend his summers in Calgary.  As one CBC commenter pointed out, the city only gets two weeks of warm weather, otherwise known as the Calgary Stampede.  And yes, it has snowed in every single month of the year at least once before.  Nevertheless, it’s still sad to see Iginla go—but that being said, if I had four mil to spare, I would totally jump on that sweet pad!  After all, it’s gotta be worth at least twice as much in Vancouver (or Toronto, for that matter)!

cotd423

Then again, I could never picture Iginla playing for the Canucks.  After all, he says he wants to end his career with a Stanley Cup-winning team—not a team who loses back-to-back-to-back-to-back Cup-clinching games then proceeds to watch its fans destroy the city. ;)

For once, I actually agree with Stephen Harper on something…

Posted by gruesomegreg on

So, it seems that our PM is catching some flak for stating what all Calgarians already know: Calgary is the greatest city in the greatest country in the world.  His statement at the Stampede yesterday has drawn the ire of anti-Alberta NDP leader Tom Mulcair, who whined “‘I’m better than you’ is not the best way to get results.”  But it’s easy to understand Mulcair’s discontent, as his native Montreal is way down there on MoneySense’s list of best places to live.  Calgary, on the other hand, is leading the completely-scientific survey on this page with a whopping 64 per cent of the vote.  Sure, some other studies have said some other Canadian cities are slightly better than Calgary, but as our PM would put it, that’s simply not true.  In fact, I have already written at some length on this topic.

Here’s why Calgary is better than Toronto.

Here’s why Calgary is better than Edmonton.

So, how come I don’t live in Calgary anymore?  Well, let’s just say there are more opportunities for a bilingual person with a creative background to make more money in the financial industry in Toronto—whereas in Calgary, the demand for bilingual professionals is roughly equivalent to the provincial sales tax (Alberta has no PST, in case you didn’t get the hint).  And did I mention that this was the first time I’ve agreed with the Supreme Leader of the Conservative Capital of Canada?  Had I stayed, my MP for life (his life, hopefully, not mine) would be Rob Anders, who’ll hold his seat in parliament until he decides it’s time to start collecting his pension.  I would’ve made a crack about ascending to the Senate, but then again, Alberta actually elects its senators, and I can’t imagine anyone actually voting for the guy… except for the residents of Northwest Calgary, who’ll elect any buffoon decked out in Tory blue.  Erm, waitaminute.  Is it too soon to start Anders’ Senate campaign?

If you wanna get a crowd to sing the national anthem in Calgary, whatever you do, don’t play it in French!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth has gotten into some hot water lately due to its decision to drop the French part of its recording of the national anthem.  According to a Stampede spokesman, this wasn’t a case of racism (Quebecois isn’t even a race, anyways) but rather a measure taken to increase crowd participation.  “Our community said they wanted to be able to show their patriotism during the anthem and that’s why we made the decision to go back to the English version,” he said.  Because, let’s face it, their community doesn’t speak French.

As the Globe and Mail reports, “Of the 120 contestants competing in the rodeo events at the so-called Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth, not a single cowboy or cowgirl hails from a province east of Manitoba.”  The Globe also states that the only time they sing the anthem in French at McMahon Stadium is when the Montreal Alouettes are in town—never mind that none of their American-born players are able to sing along.  Even Edmonton, which actually has a French university, had booked an Anglophone country singer to perform “O Canada” at the ’02 Grey Cup until the mayor of Montreal complained.  (Of course, the Als were taking part in that contest as well.)  Not to mention that French was considered a “foreign language” in a recent Calgary court case, which had some people (out east) up in arms…

That said, you’d be hard-pressed to find any French-language media coverage of this mixup—aside from national chain Radio-Canada, the French CBC—and here’s why.  The only people who sing the national anthem en français are not Quebecois pures laines, but rather former French immersion students like myself who grew up singing it at school assemblies.  And speaking of Grey Cups, I was there in Montreal in ’08, where the singer on the field performed a bilingual version of the anthem, but you’d be hard-pressed to hear anybody in the stands singing along.  What, did you really think the separatists would know all the words?  (Incidentally, there is a song called “Ô Kébèk,” but I don’t think too many people know the words to that one, either…)

COMMENT OF THE DAY: Now them’s fightin’ words, pardner!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

From: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/stampede-a-cant-miss-event-for-politicos-of-all-stripes/article4398881/?cmpid=rss1

The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth is underway for the 100th time, and it seems the Eastern haters are out in full force…

OK, where do I begin?  Having grown up in Calgary before the current PM was in power, I can certainly recall the federal Liberals throwing big pancake breakfasts and what have you—nevermind that they haven’t held any seats in the Stampede City since Trudeau.  Speaking of which, Justin does not look good in cowboy duds!

Few Canadians are into chuck wagon races and cowboy hats!?  I’d say there’s a province of 3.6 million people that would prove you wrong…

Toronto’s “music and non-stop cultural parades” surely would outdraw the Stampede, since they’re pretty much year-round.  The Stampede brings millions of people into Cowtown over 10 days.  Not sure NXNE can top that.

Wait, did you actually suggest that the Winnipeg Folk Fest (which surely receives more than a cent of federal funding) could outdraw the Stampede!?  LMAO.  I saw somewhere that the Stampede brought in 1.25-milliion visitors over 10 days last year.  I don’t think Winnipeg has that many people visit in an entire year.  Pfft, shows what you know!

Happy Stampede, y’all! :)

Who’s to say he didn’t just eat a real tough cut of Alberta beef?

Posted by gruesomegreg on

A couple weeks after a Miami man helped himself to a homeless open-face sandwich, Calgary police believe they encountered a man intoxicated by “bath salts” in the southwest part of the city, according to the Calgary Sun.  And apparently, they’re not just for dinner anymore.  The cops were called to the Bridlewood home at 8:30 in the morning Saturday by the parents of a male in his twenties, who were reportedly “fearful of his behaviour.”  (And no, that doesn’t mean they caught him jerking it to kiddie porn, either…)

In fact, it got to the point where the man had to be restrained.  ”In the process (of controlling him) they discovered that he had an extremely high pain tolerance and he was acting very aggressively and combatively,” an inspector told the Sun.  And to think, the Stampede doesn’t start until next weekend…

Hey, that might be a way to get the animal activists off of our backs.  Replace the raging bulls and bucking broncos with drugged-up ravers, and see how many cowpokes can last 8 seconds on top of them.  I know I’d pay to see that!

The Price is Wrong, Bob!

Posted by gruesomegreg on

On a recent episode of The Price is Right, one lucky contestant won a grand prize including airfare to Calgary, five days hotel stay and car rental, two days at the Calgary Stampede and tickets to the rodeo and chuckwagon races—or in other words, my summer vacation.  The prize, valued at $25,329 (according to Canada.com), also included six pairs of leather boots and a new car! (A Toyota Tacoma truck, to be exact.)  However, it seems this generous giveaway has given former host Bob Barker, who also complained about a previously awarded trip to Sea World, a soapbox to rally against The Greatest Outdoor Show on EarthTM.

“I’d like to see the Stampede disappear completely, I’d like to see rodeos in the U.S. disappear. I’d like to see circuses disappear, I’d like to see all forms of animal cruelty disappear,” the senile old fogy said.  That’s funny, cuz I’d like to see Bob Barker disappear, or at least get his ass kicked by Adam Sandler again…