After living in Saskatchewan for the past eight months I recently decided to make a trip to the home of the watermelon helmet for my first Saskatchewan Roughriders game.
As a new resident to Saskatchewan I was always told that going to a Roughriders games was something I needed to do, especially as a sports fan.
So with Ottawa coming to town I saw the perfect opportunity to go to the game, especially considering I had some time to go.
As a journalist there is not a whole lot of free time that you get so when you have some you have to make the most of it and that is exactly what I did.
The two and a half hour drive alone to Regina was not ideal and not something I would be quick to do again, I was at least semi-used to it having driven from Ontario alone less than eight months prior.
The first thing I learned when I got to Regina was that you cannot park at the stadium. That was news to me. I am used to attending sports events where there are huge parking lots dedicated to the stadium.
The cool thing about not being able to park at the stadium is everyone has to walk there. On my way through the city I saw countless Rider fan all dressed in green walking in packs to the stadium.
It kind of looked like a green zombie apocalypse, but with people that were very much alive. It was cool.
A lot of my experience as a fan attending a sporting event is hockey, where the temperature is roughly 40 degrees colder outside and fans are wrapped so tightly in their toques, gloves, and coats that you do not get the experience of seeing
packs of people walking from a parking lot into the venue all dressed in the same colour.
Once I got to the stadium it was cool. Knowing that I was standing in the stadium for probably the final time was a surreal feeling.
Mosaic Stadium at Taylor Field has played host to some incredible moments.
On a bit of a side note, it was nice to see that despite the stadium commercializing its name in 2006 when The Mosaic Company purchased the naming rights to the facility, the name Taylor Field stayed.
The name Taylor Field is apart of the history of the facility, which is something we need to embrace. All too often in society, whether sports or otherwise, we are quick to forget about or dismiss history as if it is not import, which is a shame.
The stadium has played host to three Grey Cups, including the epic hometown Riders win in 2013, is the site of the four longest field goals in Canadian Football League history with kicks of 62 yards, 60 yards, and two-59 yard field goals.
In addition to its great football lineage the stadium has also played host to a number of musical legends including the Rolling Stones, whose concerts set records in 2006, AC/DC, Bon Jovi, and Paul McCartney.
Being able to say I was in that stadium before it closed was a cool moment for me.
I love old buildings and the history of them. I have a picture on my wall of the Original Six National Hockey League arenas, which included the Montreal Forum, the Olympia in Detroit, the third Madison Square Garden (the current is the fourth), Maple Leafs Gardens, Chicago Stadium, and Boston Gardens.
Those buildings are beautiful. With the way technology and society is moving we tend to be moving away from the classic old buildings and into newer, more modern styles of buildings but they tend to lose some of their beauty.
It is what makes the downtown of Humboldt so cool. The buildings are old, beautiful, and full of history.
As for the game itself, it was not great. It seemed like both teams were trying to lose the game instead of trying to win, but with the score 30-29 in the end the excitement level sure was there.
Then it was back in my car for the two and a half hour drive back to Humboldt, but what an experience. The game, not the drive. I could have done without that.
But those who told me I needed to go to a Rider game were right. What a cool experience, even if I did not get the opportunity to wear a watermelon helmet.
Next time.
