Rider game of destiny...

So my homey Trev, now of the Regina Doroshenko's, gave me a hook up to the season opener of the Saskatchewan Roughriders. Which I might also add was against the hated Edmonton Eskischmos. Of course I was not going to turn it down. I am so excited to have football back. It is only a matter of time until the NFL is back. There is nothing better than football on a hot summer afternoon. Especially when your team get the chance to whip the snot out of the Eskimos.

Some of you now might be saying, "Wait, Chris. Did you not at one time have season tickets to the Esks?" I would have to answer yes, at one time I was a ticket holder at Commonfilth stadium. Everyone makes mistakes in their life. I have made many. But everyone is also given a second chance, a new lease on life if you will.

I was shown the light by Dan Kepley on that fateful day back in 2002 when he threatened my life at Eskimos practice. I realized that I was backing the wrong horse. I have changed my ways and moved away from the Evil Empire to a more righteous team. Not unlike God's team, the Green Bay Packers (That is what the G on the helmet stands for is God). The Riders are community owned, just like the Pack. They issue stock, just like the Pack. And they travel well, just like the Pack. You go to a game in any other barn in this country and you will find more Rider fans than the locals. Oh and the S on the Riders helmet stands for, uh, SuperAwesome, uh, I think. So lets get back to the issue at hand, the Riders beating the snot out of the Esks on Saturday.

Trev and I decided to head to the stadium early enough to get a Pilsner and a Bratwurst. As we were enjoying the fine Saskatchewan weather and one of the tastiest brats this side of Lambeau Field, Trev noticed a dude that looked strangely like the commisioner of the CFL. After a few moments of discussion and disputing, we decided that it was him and I decided that I needed to get a brush with greatness photo. How could I pass up the opportunity to get a pic with the commish? The guy on the left in the pic is Commisioner Mark Cohon, and the dude on the right is the CEO and President of the Riders Jim Hopson. Oh and the good looking dude in the middle is me. How cool is that? The Commisioner of the freaking league and the CEO of the Riders was hanging out drinking Pilsner in the tailgate area. Only in the CFL. Cohon also told Trev that he has Pilsner shipped out to him in Ontario he likes it so much. Nice.

As we were taking that fine picture Mr. Hopson commented on my awesome Ray Elgaard jersey. I mentioned that I was a big fan of Ray and he told me that Ray was at the game today. I have been trying to get Ray's autograph for a long time. Apparently he does not come back to Regina much. Mr. Hopson then laid out the plan on how I was going to get my jersey autographed by the big WR. Sweet, this game was turning out great already. A Bratwurst, a few tasty beverages, I met the commishioner, AND I get Ray Elgaard's autograph. Hopson told us to meet him in the green and white room and he would make it happen. You do not have to ask me twice.

Ray was totally cool and even gave Trev some shit. Trev told Ray that he was a big fan and Ray said "So that is why you chose to back DeFrance (74 jersey that Trev was wearing)." Sweet.

The game hasn't even started yet. So then we roll to our seats to watch the game. We again aquired a few tasty beverages to cool our parched throughts.



The commish came out gave a little speach and they played this video up on the big screen. It was awesome. It would be good for those of you south of the border to see what the CFL is about. Just a little bit of love for the CFL. CLICK HERE and then click on "This is our league" to see it if perhaps you cannot see the video above.

The Riders started slow but finished strong and whipped the Eskischmos 34-13. Even better during the game Me and Trev managed to get on the scoreboard three times. I have said it before and I will say it again... It helps when you know the guys who run the cameras. Great time had by all.

So for those of you south of the border, if you per chance want to come up to a CFL game, and get on the scoreboard, give me a call. Just do it soon because most of the games are sold out. I highly recommend a trip to Taylor field for a brat, a few tasty beverages, and most importantly a Rider win.

Venckus responds to Nordic Mans volley...

First things first. I COMPLETELY forgot the Gamblers had a Sign Boy night. Looking back, that is even funnier now than it was then. Awesome- and a well-deserved honor.

Next.... Nordic Man needs to relax. He's a great American and a great Cheesehead. I have the utmost respect for him. Let me go on the record as saying that, if I had a vote, I would vote him into the posse.

I also have no problem with his Mom campaigning for him to be a member of the posse. Years from now, when historians look back on the posse, there won't be an asterisk next to Nordic Man's name because his Mom nominated him. It's all about winning.

Also Nordic Man.....relax about the curling issue. You're way too defensive. I played baseball for most of my life and I think if it was invented today, nobody would go to the games. Boring sport. I love golf, but if you want to make the argument that it's a boring sport, I can understand that perspective. Cycling? I could see why someone would think the Tour is boring until they learn about the strategies and intricacies of the sport.

So, if you like curling, that's cool. Just understand there's a reason why curling isn't all that popular in the States. Maybe it has something to do with a broom being one of the pieces of equipment.

All that having been said, did you know that a bunch of curling women did a calendar a few years back? It's true. Check out a couple of images. Have fun googling for more.

On second thought, Nordic Man, you're correct. Curling is awesome and I can't wait until the next Winter Games.

Why can't we all just get along? Peace.

-Venckus

P.S.- Hauser, great job on the bike. Remember, pink is the new yellow.



NEXT: Preacher weighs in on the Moto race that I worked...oh and gets in a dig about that shitty wings team...

I know I'm a liitle slow in this but I've still been busy celebrating my Wings winning the Cup! Very cool blog about the motocross race, I do know a few guys that race that. One of my good friends went up and raced Gopher Dunes last year and got 10th. There's even a pro race in Regina (I hope I spelled that right), you should check it out. If you think those jumps were big, check this out:
That's Larocco's Leap at RedBud Track & Trail in Buchanan, MI. I'll be right next to that jump next weekend at the big pro national.
A little story was just released about my MX idol, Doug Henry. You can see it here:


Mike Banaszynski
Preacher

Yes you are slow, but most of us do not hold it against you. That is just Preacher being Preacher. I did know about the Regina race, I was not invited to work it, they had enough guys. I was out on the boat that day so I did not attend. They have one in Edmonton this weekend. We will look for you to get crushed by a bike by that jump. Especially if you are wearing your Kocur jersey.

Just a few things...

Okay first things first. Schmenkus' Podcast has raised the ire of the Nordic One. He seems to think that Venckus was running smak at him. Here is what he had to say...

WOW. Schmeckus runs smack at me? I guess I will take that as a honor as the one to take off the hill. And the he has the balls to Rank on Curling. He was good until he went there.

Nordic Man

The Nordic One is huge into curling. In fact I think it is safe to say in Green Bay, the Nordic Man IS curling. Venckus the ball, or should I say rock, is in your house now. What say?

Okay, lets get on with things...

Why does Danny Mac have that look of 'shoot me now' on his face? Well last Friday the Prime Minister was in town. Okay for those of you south of the border, it is like the President George W. Well, except this PM did not steal an election to get his position. He won fair and square. Any way Prime Minister Steven Harper was in town for a very, very, staged photo op. He is giving all the RCMP Cadets money during their training, which is a good thing. It is hard to find anything bad in this announcement. Still I think the PM is a major dork.

He came in, stood around for the cameras and then held a major presser with a room full of Cadets. That is the key to a good presser, fill it with people that there is no way that they will disagree with you. It is easy to get over in a room full of people you are giving stuff to. I don't mean to be all negative on this, but I am not a fan of Harper at all. Too much of a bully for my taste. I think he is more about his image and taking care of his buddies in the oil industry in Alberta than keeping Canada on the straight and narrow. Anyway, I got my video, and got out. Danny Mac was equally as excited.

Okay enough about the guy who is too much of an uptight dork to hug his kid on the first day of school in front of the cameras. Lets move on.

Well this is what I did on Fathers Day. The Monster Energy Drink Canada tour. We drove to Morden Manitoba and worked a Motorcross race. Not a bad gig. I was positioned on a hill jump about two feet from the bikes. I swear I was bumped a few times as the bikes jumped over my head. It was awesome.

The day started a bit crappy because it rained but it cleared up and the races went off without a hitch. I was invited to go on this trip by Matt, of the trip to Billings to get my truck Matt. That is him in the really gay, not that there is anything wrong with that, rain gear and head band. I know Preacher is a big moto guy so he probably knows some of the guys on this tour but I had no idea. It was a good experience and another thing I can say that I worked. Sweet gig.

Well I am still waiting to hear back from the War Hero Tony Mutzenberger to see if he is going to lower himself to do a Podcast so I will let you know how that goes. Until then,
GET BACK TO WORK!!!!!

"There is no I in Posse." Derek Venckus on TundraTalk...

Allright!!! Derek Venckus, of the Tennessee Venckus', hit TundraTalk last night. To use one of his sports guys phrases, his back was against the wall and he just took it shift by shift and put it in the back of the net, top shelf, back where gramma keeps the cookies. That is Derek in the picture with Craig Newsome of the Green Bay Packers. Lambeau Field is the place he used to spend a lot of time. I worked with Derek in Green Bay, hell who am I kidding, we collected a check in Green Bay. Derek was the weekend sports geek. We both love sports and hate Joel Bernell. Joel Bernell was the ND at WGBA. Major dick.

Derek made his play to be in the posse on TT. If you want to listen to said podcast CLICK HERE or just use the link to the right. On TT we spoke on many things. Soccer reared its ugly and boring head again. There are lots of good sports stories and work stories on this one. Derek was a bubble guy to get in the posse and I think he may have just put himself over the edge on this one. This one is a great listen, but it is a bit long, so plan accordingly.

Derek is also the dude that coined my nickname in GB "Sign Boy". He used to show highlights from the Gamblers games on the weekends and would always show a different sign of mine during the highlights. Therein lies the birth of a legend. From then on I was known as Sign Boy and Donna was Dubbed, Sign Boys Wife. Wow, it almost brings a tear to my eye thinking back to that magical time. Derek was a great TV sports jockey and is now employed in the real world.

I have some video of Derek doing his thing rapping on the news talking about Sign Boy. This clip was late in Sign Boy's career, just before I moved to Canada. Chris Riva is also in this clip. They are hyping up Sign Boy night at the Brown County Arena. Have a look. My favorite part is when Derek almost cracks up on the air when he sees a shot of me in the stands acting crazy. Classic.


Sign Boy in the News from hamiltongbp on Vimeo.


So there you have it. Derek Venckus on TundraTalk. Will Derek get the TT bump? Only time will tell.

Next up on the podcast the schedule calls for Cory to jump in. He told me that he may want to defer since he already did one. That would lead us to drop in Tony Mutzenberger. That is if he wants to lower himself to our level. I will let you know if he decides to give it a go. Things are getting interesting so pay attention.

Have a great day and GET BACK TO WORK!!!!!

The TundraTalk Bump...

Okay, I knew it would finally turn out. You all know about the phenomenon where when we move to a city their teams will win championships. It is a fact, look it up. Now there is a new phenomenon. Howard Stern always talks about the Stern Bump. If Howard talks about, or has a person on his show they will instantly shoot up on google searches or the best seller list. Fact look it up. Well, now we can add TundraTalk to that list. Reg, don't call me Reggie, Rudolph, of the Garrison Rudolph's, was on TT the Podcast last week. He did a great job answering all the questions right or wrong. Now he gets his bump...

I recieved this press release today at TundraTalk world headquarters. Enjoy!!

McLean Electric General Manager leaving for Colorado Cooperative

June 18, 2008

At last night’s McLean Electric Cooperative Annual Meeting, Chairman Don Sorge announced that Reg Rudolph has decided to resign his position. Rudolph was hired July 1, 1997 to replace the retiring Bob Dippold.

Rudolph will be headed to San Isabel Electric Association in Pueblo Colorado to take over the position of CEO for that organization. San Isabel is a 24,000 meter cooperative serving south east Colorado along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Rudolph said, “this is a fantastic professional opportunity and offers many personal opportunities for our family, it was also the most difficult decision we have ever had to make as a family.” Rudolph goes on to say “Garrison has been our home for eleven years and we will miss the area and relationships we have developed.”

During the Annual Meeting, reports were given on the record growth being recognized with new accounts and commercial development. Load growth with the operation of Blue Flint Ethanol, energy sector development, and residential growth; the cooperative is headed in the right direction. Prospective projects that are currently in planning also add to the optimistic outlook. Rudolph said “the future is more optimistic than ever for the cooperative with the load growth, great system reliability, and the best staff I have ever worked with”. “I am honored to have had the opportunity to work for the members of McLean Electric and thankful to the board and employees for all the support provided over the years. In 1997 I remember stating the cooperative was a diamond in the rough. Although my opinion is biased, I feel the cooperative is today a diamond”.

Don Sorge congratulated Rudolph for getting the cooperative where it is today and wished the family well. He went on to say “the board must now begin to evaluate the future options”. Rudolph will start at San Isabel on September 22, 2008.

Reginal Rudolph, General Manager

How about that? Congrats Reg. Now you can move to Colorado and run around the rocky mountains. PLUS you are now near a NFL team that is not as pathetic as the queens. At least the Donks have a couple of Super Bowl Trophies. No more naps on Sunday!!!

Even better than that, the Colorado Avalanche are nearby and you they have two Stanley Cups, not to mention they are the best team in the NHL!!! This is a great move for you Reg. Congrats. Oh and, you are welcome. Who is next to get the bump? Stay tuned to find out.

Do you want to move up in the world? Do you want to get a bump? Just show up on TundraTalk and it is all good.

Good luck and have a great day!!!!

Marty and the Stanley Cup...

Okay, Marty sent me this note yesterday about the Stanley Cup on Leno. As you can see in the clip above Osgood and Lindstrom took the cup on the Tonight Show. Marty had a chance meeting with the cup and decided to share it. Take it away Marty...

Dude! I have touched greatness..

They had Niklas Lindstrom and Chris Osgood from the Red Wings on the Tonight Show tonight.. Right after the monologue they come on with "the cup"... After they were done, they went downstairs to their green room and the Tonight Show publicist who knows me called me up and told me to get down there if I want to touch the cup..

So - I went down and met the NHL "keeper of the cup".. Really nice guy who travels everywhere that the cup goes and secures it at night - wearing a very warm looking blue wool NHL blazer.. The cup was standing majestically in the center of the room while the guys were watching the rest of the show and talking to a Detroit newspaper reporter..

Then the "keeper of the cup" asked if I wanted to touch it - I said "sure" so he took me into the green room - I said Hi and congratulations to the guys and touched the cup with my left hand.. just on the edge so as not to smudge it at all - because it had been all shined up for the show... Everyone stopped talking for a second and then Chris Osgood said "It feels like a dream - doesn't it"? - It sure does Chris... it sure does.

No cameras allowed - but I've got three NBC people who were there and saw it..

Marty

Great story Marty, we are just waiting for the picture. I hope you had a chance to see it in the parking lot. I remember the first time I got to see the cup. Craig Ludwig was with the Dallas Stars and had just won the cup. He is from northern Wisconsin so on his day with the Cup, it was July 4th and he was in Wisconsin. I decided that this would probably be the only time I would EVER get to see the cup. So I conned Venckus Schmenkus and Jeff Conner into letting me take a camera up to Eagle River on the weekend to get some video of the cup. Just so I could get a pick with the great trophy. Again thinking I would never get near it again.

Well, I still did not know I was moving to Canada and that I would see the Cup nearly every year that I was in Canada. The cup does a tour of every NHL city every season. It makes it's rounds on the local talk shows and then out to the rink. So I saw it plenty, as the pictures are witness to. It truly is an amazing thing to see.

The dude you see in the Mastercard commercials really does follow the cup around all the time and he is really a class act and has some serious stories to tell. He was a target of TundraTalk the Podcast but we could never meet up at the right times to do our thing.

Really a person could spend hours just reading the names and looking at the dents and such on the cup. There is so much history on that trophy. From what I heard this year they added a new ring to the bottom and the damn Wings will be the first team on the new ring on the bottom. Damn Wings. Oh well, the cup rules and I have enjoyed every time I had the opportunity to see it.

If you ever have the chance to see it, even if you have to drive 4 hours, do it. It is sooo worth it. Just ask Marty, or Chris Osgood.

Now, GET BACK TO WORK!!!!!

Cap'n Crunch has some company...

Yup, that is right. You are seeing correctly. I am sitting on a boat. Not just any boat, MY boat. Oh yeah. I can now rule the seas as well as the road.

This weekend we went down to Hazen and picked up the boat. Last year my dad said he was going to sell the boat so I told him that he was not allowed to sell it to anyone without offering it to me first. He offered and we scrounged up some cashola and bingo. New (new to us)boat. This boat was made in 1978 and purchased by my dad in 1979. A thirty year old boat. It is in great shape because my dad took really good care of it and I can only hope that I do half as good.

So If you happen to like boats, want to fish, or you just want to ride in one, just head north to Regina, stop by our place and I will be happy to take you out fishin'. I plan on sitting in my boat (in the driveway) this week in the evening, weather permitting, and sip a few tasty beverages. If you would like to partake and you are in the area of Devonshire drive, swing in and have a bevy with me on my boat. It will be just like Lethal Weapon 3, well, except with out the shooting and Mel Gibson.

One real cool thing is that the state (North Dakota) issued number for the boat is really cool. It is like density that I have this boat. Click on the picture and see if you can see it. The number on the front of the boat is ND-004. It truly is density. Dad called the boat Treble Hook, I think I am going to rename it Number Four. Of course after the greatest QB to play the game. Out of the thousands, maybe millions of numbers they could have issued this boat, they issue 004. Sweet. Yup, I rule.

NEXT: Oh, and Trev had something to say about my last post. He has a great story about the A-channel billboard and a comment about my hatred of the Red Wings. Sorry Trev that you feel that way, but that is the way it goes. At least I don't hate them as much as the queens...

Your hatred of the Wings amuses me. You sound like a four year old, who doesn't like broccoli. That would normally be funny...but you're 40....so it's just kind of sad. Anyways, I hope you take some time today to enjoy the Wings' Stanley Cup parade.

As for your A-Channel billboard flashback. I remember it well. Mike Simpson and I were in the middle of shooting a story in the SW end of Edmonton...when we were told to come back to the shop. It was a 'mandatory' photo shoot for this all-important ad campaign. This was back in the day when we still had our noon, "Live @ 5" and "News @ 6" shows. More often than not, you had to put something together for all three of these lame-ass programs which drew a combined viewership of 36 (we used to greet our audience by name). So needless to say, you didn't have a lot of time to put together award-winning stories.

TWO HOURS we pissed away getting back to the station, having some doorknob with a kodak disc herd us like farm animals...then getting back into the field to finish our shoot. A month later we find that out of the 100 people posing for the picture, the ad company only used around 25, with several (Mrs. Klippenstien) appearing six times over. It was hard to be angry at that moment...because it was just easier to laugh at a company that was so repeatedly inept at decision making, but so effective in wasting it's employees time.

Nice work, A-Channel. Thanks for the raise........oh, wait a sec...

Trev

Reg takes a shot at glory, A Channel Sucks, and I hate the Red Wings...

Okay, I know, it has been a while. Just to let you know, I have been working my ass of, and it is summer so here in Canada, since Summer is only around two weeks long, you better enjoy it or your winter will be that much longer.

First off, the Entourage competition is still ongoing, it just has taken a while to get this one done. Reg was okay with the wait, which was nice. What did he have to do anyway? It is not like he has a queens Super Bowl to celebrate. Okay, Reg played along well and did okay. CLICK HERE to listen or just click the link at the top right of the page.

Next up on the docket is Derek Venckus, of the Nashvegas Venckus'. He usually swings for the fence so that one should be good. Good luck Derek, you are gonna need it.


NEXT: The Red Wings won the cup, yeah I got your thirty five texts Preacher. Shut the hell up. I am sorry. I know that Trev usually gets behind the Pack during Football season and I appreciate that, but there is no way in hell I can get behind the Red Wings. I just hate that team. It is a hate that is similar to the hate I have for the queens. They are similar teams, well except that the Wings win and have won many championships and the queens suck and they have NEVER won anything. I guess the only similarity is that I hate them.

Moving on, I hate the Wings because I do and that is all you need to know. I was really hoping to see Ty Conklin's name on that cup, but alas he was foiled for the second time. He will get it, oh yes, he will get it. It is just a matter of time. The Wings uniforms are ugly also. Too much like the Russians. I wouldn't doubt if they are all communists. Really. Hate 'em, hate 'em, hate 'em. Sorry Trev, your team still sucks in my book.

Don't hate them enough to never capitalize their name though. That is reserved only for the queens, right now.

NEXT: Here is a good story. Back when I worked at that shitty station called A-Channel. Some promotions idiot had the brilliant idea to take a picture of all the employees and put it on the billboard. Sweet I thought, me on a billboard. Larger than life. I can't wait to see it. Anyway, the day comes to take the picture and I get in there and put on my best smile. This is gonna be awesome.

Well along the way some jerkoff who I don't know who it was, really liked to screw with photoshop. He or she, decided to monkey around with the image. He or she, took out about half of the employees, including me, and cut and pasted some of the employees in the picture several times. Lauralee Klippenstein, of the Edmonton Klippensteins is in the shot around 6 times. Needless to say I did not make the cut.

Really, who sat back when they saw the proof of the picture and said "Yup, that's a good idea. Lets cut half of our employees out of the ad that shows all of our employees. Great Idea!!!" A grade A A-HOLE, that's who.

Mark Sholtz, who I will give credit for this one thing. AND ONLY THIS ONE THING. On the air pointed out this fact, live on TV, to the 35 viewers that A-Channel had. He made fun saying that Lauralees cousins and twin sisters also worked at the channel. Funny stuff that landed him in the dog house. Needless to say the ad came down soon after that.

Shittiest job I ever had. Hands down. Shitty accross the board. Bad bosses, bad equipment, bad work environ, bad shifts, bad bosses, bad schedule, bad news, bad shooting style, bad promotions dept, bad pay, bad bosses, and bad work. Did I mention bad bosses?

Thanks to Evan Klippenstein for the photo. Look close at it, no me, and 6 Lauralee's. I also like how they just squeezed Stacey Brotzel in between Doug Downs and Maclellen. Bad, bad, decision. Messing with the wrath of Brotzel.

Have a great weekend and GET BACK TO WORK!!!!!