My wife’s riding the RBC GranFondo Whistler this weekend.
It’s, like, hundreds of kilometres to Whistler (give or take), and she’s going all that way on a bicycle.
The start of the RBC GranFondo Whistler. Pretty easy ride, Vancouver to Whistler.
Impressive, really. She trains long and hard for these rides. And she goes hard. Doesn’t just participate. She wants to kick some butt.
Again, I say, impressive. And I would normally be there to support her, to stand at the finish line, grande latte in hand, cheering her on while super exhausted from having to walk all the way to the finish line (and it’s never as easy to find as you’d think).
But I won’t be there this weekend. Nope. Told her that I can’t. We can’t, I mean. The kids start soccer this weekend. The big jamboree for the eight-year-old on Saturday. The big season opener for the 11-year-old on Sunday. It’s soccer, man. And I help coach. Why, I’m the third assistant coach on both squads. Or fourth. Certainly the third, I think, on perhaps one of the squads.
Point being, super busy. Super busy! While she’s off pedaling her 10 speed (give or take) to Whistler, I’ve got to help run the benches, serve the cut-up oranges at halftime, and make the effort to get the kids organized to go out for sushi Saturday night. Think it’s easy being the primary care-giver? Nope. It most definitely isn’t.
What I’m not telling my wife: huge weekend in sports. And it pretty much appears that, other than calling other parents to get them to pick up my kids to get them to their games, I’ll be in front of the big screen, 42 big inches of baseball and football and basketball and tennisball entertaining me for about 48 hours. Exhausting.
I may seem like a jerk to you, but I’m also kidding. Sort of. I will indeed be coaching all weekend — I’m a bit more involved than I previously suggested — and maybe going for sushi. I will be watching the odd sport or two, when I get the chance.
But I’ll also be sorry that we’re not in Whistler, seeing my wife turn that final corner onto Blackcomb Way, outgunning three-quarters of the competitive riders, the kids and me yelling and high-fiving and hugging their mom and then sending the exhausted, relieved racer off with her friends for a celebratory beer.
That being said, it is the first truly incredible weekend in months to be sitting in front of the TV, right?
Here’s the final Morning Skate of the week …
The Lost Art of Couch Surfing
Like I said, phenomenal weekend for sports. Here are the five things I’m most interested in, in no particular order:
U.S. Open: Another year, another great tournament. It’s never disappointed. And so you have numerous solid storylines headed into the final weekend. Serena Williams going for the rare calendar grand slam — all four grand slam titles in the same year — with world No. 2 Simona Halep (above), who’s won zero grand slam titles to Williams’ 21, likely the one standing in her way. There’s Roger Federer going for his record 18th grand slam title — and his first in more than three years. Loads of tennis fans have long since written Federer off. He still needs to get past Stan Wawrinka today — and then, likely, Novak Djokovic. If he can do that, banish all doubters. Side note: Lots of people have complained that Sunday’s men’s final is deep into the TSN stable of channels. I agree. It sucks. (Friday: women’s semifinals, 8 a.m., TSN2; men’s semifinals, 2 p.m., TSN2; Saturday: men’s doubles final, 9 a.m., TSN2; women’s final, noon, TSN; Sunday: women’s doubles final, 9 a.m., TSN4; men’s final, 1 p.m., TSN4.)
Toronto Blue Jays at New York Yankees: I was lucky enough to be at Rogers Centre a month ago when the most anticipated series of this surprising Jays season — the Yankees coming to Toronto — was on. Amazingly, this one is even bigger. The Jays have 23 games left in the season, the Yankees 24. The Jays are leading the Yankees in the American League East by a game-and-a-half — which makes this four-gamer at Yankee Stadium massive. Like the U.S. Open, all sorts of storylines. The rainout Thursday, turning Saturday into a doubleheader. The return from injury of former Vancouver Canadians pitcher Marcus Stroman (above) to the Jays’ starting lineup, so much pressure on a kid who has an 11-6 career record. The hope that things aren’t going off the rails after the Jays were whipped a couple of times earlier this week by the Boston Red Sox. And many, many more. (Friday, 4 p.m., SNP, TSN 1410; Saturday, 1st game, 10 a.m., FOX, SNP, TSN 1410; 2nd game, 30 minutes after first game ends, SNP; Sunday, 10 a.m., SNP, WPIX.)
FIBA Americas playoffs: The math here is simpler than the MLB math. If Andrew Wiggins, Kelly Olynyk (above) and the rest of the Canadians beat Venezuela in today’s semifinal, Saturday’s final will be largely meaningless. I say largely because the Canadians will have already clinched a spot in the Rio Olympics — their first Olympic berth since 2000 and just second since 1988. But there’s still some meaning. If they get past Venezuela, they might play Mexico in the final in front of a, shall we say, partisan crowd in Mexico City. Or they might play Argentina, the traditional hoops power than won gold in 2004 and bronze in 2008 and who beat the Canadians in the preliminary round. Again, if you haven’t bought the entire TSN package, you might as well do so now. In TSN’s defence, their third, fourth and fifth channels do show lots of live events that would clash with other games that TSN and TSN2 are showing live. (Friday semifinals: Canada vs. Venezuela, 3:55 p.m., TSN5; Argentina vs. Mexico, 6:30 p.m., TSN5; Saturday final, 6 p.m., TSN4.)
Seattle Seahawks at St. Louis Rams: It seems like forever since Russell Wilson (above) threw that ill-fated pass at the end of the Super Bowl. Or, if you’re a Seahawk, it seems like yesterday and unless you believe in divine intervention you might think, until your dying day, that you should have gone into the 2015 NFL season as two-time defending Super Bowl champs. So, it’s been both a long time and a very short time. But the new season got underway Thursday night with the lying, cheating New England Patriots doing their lying, cheating thing. Sunday it gets real for the Seahawks. Fun. (Sunday, 10 a.m., CTV, FOX, TSN 1410.) Closer to home, I’ll be curious to see how the B.C. Lions fare with 34-year-old QB John Beck at the helm full-time, in the absence of regular No. 1 Travis Lulay. Some people don’t think it will go well at all. Then again, they simply have to stay ahead of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers to make the playoffs. Or, hmmmm, the now 1-9 Saskatchewan Roughriders, who are on a one-game win streak. Stranger things have happened in the CFL. (Sunday, 1 p.m., B.C. Place, TSN, TSN 1040.)
Vancouver Canucks prospects: Here’s one that’s not televised — but if you were so inclined, you could do an impromptu road trip. Friday night’s Young Stars game between the Canucks and Connor McDavid’s Edmonton Oilers should prove to be a sellout at Penticton’s South Okanagan Events Centre (TSN 1040). How will the young Canucks, some of whom could actually make the big team in the next year, two or three, fare against the guy Steven Stamkos says is already better than he is? Gulp. The Canucks also face the Winnipeg (Junior) Jets Sunday (2 p.m., TSN 1410) and Calgary Flames Monday (3:30 p.m., radio not yet announced). There are plenty of fans who want to see the Canucks continue to win. There are also plenty of fans who’d like to see the Canucks burn the roster to the ground and start again. Not sure anyone will be perfectly satisfied.
Virtanen’s the Next One; Is Shinkaruk the Forgotten One?
You know who’s in Penticton with the prospects? Our man Jason Botchford, that’s who. Botch drove to Penticton Thursday morning, then took in the kids’ practice, then wrote about Hunter Shinkaruk.
In the story, Botch talks about how the blue-chip prospect got passed by others, for various reasons. Suggests he may have dropped well down the depth chart. But then he tantalizes us — damn you, Botch! — with this:
Do not sleep on Shinkaruk. He remains the player you first saw two years ago. The one who faked pass multiple times flying down the wing in a preseason game against the San Jose Sharks. The one who lasered in a shot from a sharp angle, hitting the top corner. He remains capable of being the most entertaining sniper the Canucks have had in years.
Well, there you go. More from Botch later tonight, after the Canucks beat the Oilers 7-0 and McDavid is a shocking minus-8 (give or take).
And if McDavid’s minus-8 (just sayin’), that probably won’t last long:
It’ll be interesting to see how Jake Virtanen fares this weekend. In Thursday’s Morning Skate, Paul Chapman asked which Canuck you’d take first in a fantasy draft, other than a Sedin. Just two per cent picked Virtanen. Nearly 64 per cent, on the other hand, took Radim Vrbata. Hmmmm. Interesting. Where’s Vrbata going to get his points this season? Will he be with the twins? Or will he be with Brandon Sutter and, uh, Sven Baertschi?
Meanwhile, here’s your latest NHL 16 trailer. Solid work by Ryan Getzlaf — perhaps better even than Kevin Smith’s contributions:
And no, kid, you have NHL 15. We are not getting NHL 16.
Local Boy Feeds Hippo, Lives to Tell Story
After the B.C. Lions beat the Montreal Alouettes eight days ago, I got a call from Howard Tsumura.
Our longtime high school sports expert had watched the game — and was particularly animated about one of the game’s key plays, where former Lower Mainland high school football star Boseko Lokombo tipped an Alouettes pass high into the air and into the hands of teammate Eric Fraser (a former Stamp, as you can see from the above photo), who’d also starred here as a kid, though a few years before Lokombo. Fraser, ball in hand, high-tailed it into the end zone, Lokombo in hot pursuit to block, then celebrate.
Howie was pumped. He knew Fraser’s story, to a certain extent. And then, when he made a couple of calls, he got an even better story. That, inspired by then-Vancouver radio station Z95’s latest promotion, “The Phrase That Pays,” young Fraser’s community ball coach thought “The Frase That Pays” might just stick to his prodigy.
Howie was watching the game because, at that moment, he was joining the committee I drafted to replace Lowell Ullrich, our longtime football reporter who retired last week after a long, superb career here at The Province. And wasn’t it sweet to be able to decide to tell a great story about a local guy who’s been through the football battles?
The Lions (4-5) host the sophomore Ottawa RedBlacks (5-4) Sunday at 1 p.m. at B.C. Place (TSN, TSN 1040). It’s a big game for the Lions, as mentioned previously. And on Sunday, there will be more Howard Tsumura, and excellent stories by both Steve Ewen and Ed Willes. I know what they’re up to, and am looking forward to reading those pieces. And if you want a good snapshot of the RedBlacks, here’s a midseason report card that serves up a solid B-plus to its 40-year-old quarterback, Henry Burris.
Rog, Bill and the Brady Bunch
The NFL is filled with epidemics, it appears. Concussion epidemics. Spouse-beating epidemics. Cheating epidemics.
As the NFL season kicked off Thursday night, our Ed Willes thought it might be a good time to weigh in on cheating. The Lions’ Wally Buono quite happily admitted that cheating is part of the game, that stealing signals is just something teams do, or try to do, to get a competitive edge. And no, it’s not going away. And no, no one really seems to care as long as they’re entertained.
Solid movie. Stands up even today. I remember back when Future Shop and those types of stores were into selling the big-screen, surround-sound experience. Gladiator was the DVD they used to pop in. The opening battle scene had arrows flying around your head. I’ll buy it!
Anyhoo, here are 50 storylines to celebrate the year of Super Bowl 50. (Among them, the fact that the Cleveland Browns have had 23 starting quarterbacks since their rebirth in 1999.) And in case you were wondering, new Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan has quite happily remade that team in his own image.
Little Man, Little Money
I took in Wednesday’s Vancouver Whitecaps win over the Colorado Rapids. The Caps came out strong, delivering a bunch of threatening corners in the first 10 minutes. And then the game got dull. So dull, in fact, that I started to worry that I’d be devoting too much space in the Thursday paper to a nil-nil draw between one of MLS’s best teams and one of its worst.
Thankfully, the Caps won. And won because, frankly, at $85,000 wee Cristian Techera is probably the best value for any pro athlete playing in Vancouver. No doubt about it. Which led to our man Marc Weber writing about how the Whitecaps, whose highest-paid player Pedro Morales is still paid less than the four highest-paid L.A. Galaxy players, have been delivering the goods at a bargain.
Incidentally, I found myself sitting beside a celebrity at the game: Kirk Lapointe, who valiantly fought Gregor Robertson in the last Vancouver mayoral race. Lapointe was once the boss at the Vancouver Sun, so we never worked together, but he’s an engaging, fun guy. Good company.
Acting His Age
As you know, I caught a doubleheader last Thursday: Ian McKellen in Mr. Holmes, and the Canadian camping horror movie Backcountry.
I got there early, as I always do. Because I’ve always said that if I miss the trailers, I might as well miss the entire movie. It’s part of the experience.
There were lots of trailers. At least a couple were two thumbs down. And then there was this stunner, from Canada’s own Atom Egoyan:
Honestly, if there was an Oscar category for trailers, this would be nominated. And mark my word: Christopher Plummer may have become the oldest winner in any acting category when he scored the supporting actor trophy in 2012 for Beginners — at the age of 82 — but he may well shatter the best lead actor record that Henry Fonda, then 76, set in 1981 for On Golden Pond. At very least, I promise you that he’ll destroy the oldest best-actor nominee record by six years. Incredible. And it should be noted that former best supporting actor winner Martin Landau, who appears opposite Plummer, is 87.
Records could fall, everywhere. And Remember has a gala premiere Saturday night at the Toronto International Film Festival.
I Leave You With This
I caught former Dire Straits lead singer Mark Knopfler several years ago at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, and was stunned by his guitar-playing abilities, all these years after his former band was one of the biggest in the world.
On Thursday night, Knopfler was back at the QET. Now 66, I am pleased to report that he hasn’t slowed down one bit. He hasn’t forgotten a lyric, and his fingers still fly all over what must have been 10 different guitars during the evening. The man is a gem. Thank you, Mark Knopfler, for Telegraph Road. I wish he’d played Your Latest Trick, as he did in Barcelona in his final European show before coming to Vancouver. And I wish he’d played one of my all-time favourites, Brothers in Arms, as he also did in Barcelona.
He played it at Wembley Stadium in 1988, when various bands celebrated Nelson Mandela’s 70th birthday. I’ve always loved this concert video:
No Wait, I Leave You With This
You guys know I love Key & Peele. I was stunned Thursday to learn from my colleague J.J. Adams that America’s funniest duo is about to call it quits, that they want to go out on top.
Damn. Don’t they know that we prefer that stars go out when they can barely stand up any more, like the Rolling Stones?
Here’s your pre-weekend treat:
Have a great one. Enjoy the weather. Enjoy the sports. Patrick Johnston will be your guide in Monday’s Morning Skate — and we introduce big daddy, J.J. Adams, to the Morning Skate fold later next week.
