In the thick of the playoff hunt: Peter James on the Ottawa Gee-Gees

Peter James is Twitter-obsessed sports fanatic, theatre-lover and journalist living in Ottawa.

There’s a refreshing chill in the air as autumn arrives in the nation’s capital.

For nature buffs the change in season means taking in the fall colours in Gatineau Park, meanwhile foodies are getting turkeys and pumpkin pies ready for a Thanksgiving feast.

For sports fans these are cues that football season has arrived in earnest. Ottawa’s latest Canadian Football League entry is still a few years away — pending renovations to Frank Clair Stadium — but one team still calls the old gridiron home. The Ottawa Gee-Gees, a perennial contender in the Ontario University Athletics conference, attract thousands of people to Lansdowne Park for each home game.

Students arrive by the bus load, chanting, cheering and dancing their way to their seats. The most boisterous supporters sit on the west end of the bleachers. If you want a raucous crowd join them behind the Gee-Gee bench, but be warned — their enthusiasm can be infectious.

Things are a bit quieter on the east end where alumni and local football fans tend to gather behind the visiting partisans. The atmosphere is still electric but the intensity is ratcheted down a notch. It’s a good place for the more analytical fan.
To get the full football experience, grab a hot dog and beer from one of the concession stands. Other goodies like pizza and lemonade are also on offer.

Despite the aging infrastructure and half-demolished south side bleachers, Frank Clair still provides fans with one of the most beautiful settings to enjoy a football game. With the Rideau Canal and Old Ottawa South as a stunning backdrop, there’s always something to gaze at between plays.

Canadian university football supplies most of the the non-import talent CFL teams are after. The Gee-Gees are no exception, graduating players to the professional ranks regularly. Quarterback Brad Sinopoli, who was named the top collegiate player in Canada last year when he played for uOttawa, is now with the Calgary Stampeders.

After being a pass-first team under Sinopoli, this year the Gee-Gees are taking a more balanced approach on offence with Aaron Colbon at the helm. Through five games he’s third in the conference in passing with 1,175 yards, but running back Brendan Gillanders is also among the league leaders. He’s second in rushing with 489 yards.

Aside from last week’s 51-point disaster against Laurier, the Gee-Gee’s defence has been reliable in 2011. Although they have the tendency to give up a lot of yards, they generally hold teams in check in the scoring zone.

The team is in the thick of the playoff hunt with a 3-2 record with three weeks remaining in the regular season.

The Gee-Gees wrap up the home portion of their regular-season schedule with games Oct. 8 against York and Oct. 15 against Windsor. If they finish in the top four they will get at least one home playoff game.

Tickets are $12 for adults, $8 for seniors and non-uOttawa students, $6 for uOttawa students, alumni and staff, $4 for children under 12 and children under five are free. For more information, visit geegees.ca. 

9 lives or innings? Peter James takes in Fat Cats baseball

Photo Credit: Ottawa Fat Cats

Peter James is Twitter-obsessed sports fanatic, theatre-lover and journalist living in Ottawa.

Finding the right mix to create an excellent game day experience in minor league baseball can be challenging. Try too hard and it becomes gimmicky, with the game relegated to secondary status amid all the promotions and contests. Try too little and the night at the park can drag on with little to see or do during the inning breaks.

Cody Mombourquette steps into the batter's box

In just their second season the Ottawa Fat Cats have found a combination that works for them and, most importantly, their fans.

The Fat Cats — who play in the senior amateur Intercounty Baseball League — routinely draw more than 2,000 fans through the doors at Ottawa Baseball Stadium on Coventry Road and judging by the smiles on the faces at the park on Saturday night, most leave happy.

On the field the IBL provides a charmingly imperfect style of baseball. The players aren’t as polished as the major league prospects who used to dot the lineup of the triple-A Ottawa Lynx in the 1990s and 2000s, but on any given day fans will still witness the full spectrum of baseball. There’s still clutch hitting, solid pitching and some great glove-flashing defence — case in point Kevin Deitrich’s diving catch in centre field on Saturday night.

Of course there’s also plenty of errors, wild pitches and other mistakes mixed in, which keeps fans, and sometimes even the players, guessing.

A member of the grounds crew paints the lines prior to a game

The Fat Cats know that developing a family friendly atmosphere is key to their success and looked through that lens while developing their game day package. Competitions like Stadium Idol and parent-child spelling bees keep fans entertained and children involved whenever there’s a break on the diamond. Take Me Out to the Ball Game gets fans
of all ages out of their seats at any park.

Of course the stadium staples — hotdogs, beer and 50/50 tickets are all available. Indeed, the Fat Cats provide an impressive assortment of brews for a minor-league team.

Ottawa Fat Cats tickets

The tickets are priced in such a way to make it easy to bring a family, or go for a night out with friends. Children under six are free as are military members and veterans. Adult tickets are $12 and students and seniors are $8 and children under 12 are $6, with discounts available for online purchases.

When attending a game, arrive 20 minutes early to catch the dedicated grounds crew get the field in tip-top shape for the game. The stadium was built for triple-A ball and although it’s not as polished as it was during the early days of the Lynx, it field is still maintained in excellent condition.

The 10,000-seat venue does seem cavernous at times for amateur ball, but the rush-seating model the Fat Cats use gives fans the luxury of spreading themselves through throughout the park.

The Fat Cats still have nine home games left this IBL season, including a pair this weekend against London and a three-game set over Canada Day weekend against Barrie.

Anyone craving peanuts and crackerjacks? Thanks for the post, Peter!

The Ravens: basketball at Carleton University

Photo credit: Murray McComb Photography

Peter James is Twitter-obsessed sports fanatic, theatre-lover and journalist living in Ottawa.

Sports fans in Ottawa have their fair share of options, but there is no better value for your entertainment dollar than basketball at Carleton University.

Carleton is home to a Ravens program that has become a dynasty over the past decade with six men’s national championships in the past eight years. Coach Dave Smart has built a legacy of success and in the process has created the premier collegiate basketball program this side of the U.S. border.

The 1,500-seat Ravens’ Nest is ideally suited to college game — it’s big enough so fans can create a genuine atmosphere during the game, but intimate enough that fans still feel that they’re right on top of the action on the floor.

This past Saturday night, the gym was packed as the Ravens took on the University of Toronto in a fast-paced, physical game. Fans in the bleacher seats were doing the wave. Their chants and cheers punctuated key baskets as the Ravens won again.

Photo credit: Murray McComb Photography

Carleton’s style of play lacks flash (you won’t see many high-flying ally-oops and dunks are rare), but is built on hard work at both ends of the court. Their game is focused on exploiting any weaknesses the opposition presents.

This year’s team is once again at the top of the table. After this weekend’s wins over Ryerson and Toronto, the Ravens are 10-0 in league play and 17-0 against Canadian opposition overall. They are the No. 1-ranked team nationally in the coaches’ poll, are first in the RPI index created by The CIS Blog and No. 1 in the CISHoops.ca rankings.

The team is as intense as its coach. Part of the charm of attending a Ravens game is watching Smart patrol the coaching box, constantly working the officials or correcting his players. The Ravens aim to create a family-friendly atmosphere at games by catering to their younger fans. At most home games, there are booths where children can make signs supporting their favourite Ravens and they set up small basketball hoops behind the court so youngsters can run around and blow off some steam.

Photo credit: Murray McComb Photography

For more seasoned fans, the Ravens have also introduced a beer garden at select home games this season.

The men’s team has been at, or near, the top of the heap for the better part of a decade, but the Ravens’ women’s program is also beginning to earn its chops. The Lady Ravens lead the OUA East with an 8-2 conference record this season and are ranked seventh in the country.

Carleton has four regular-season home games remaining at the Ravens’ Nest this year: Jan. 21 versus Laurentian University; Jan. 22 versus York University; Jan. 28 versus Royal Military College and Jan. 29 versus Queen’s University. In addition the Ravens host their cross-town rivals, the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees, Jan. 26 at Scotiabank Place.

For women’s and men’s doubleheader games at the Ravens’ Nest, tickets range from $5-$8 for youth under 14 and Carleton students, $8-$10 for seniors and non-Carleton students and $10-12 for adults.

Thanks for the great post  Peter…Go Ravens!

Theatre-lover Peter James on The Gladstone

 

Patrons leave The Gladstone after It's a Wonderful Life, Saturday Dec. 18. (Photo credit: Carolynne Burkholder)

Peter James is Twitter-obsessed sports fanatic, theatre-lover and journalist living in Ottawa.

Ottawa is a great city to be a live theatre enthusiast.

From the first-rate professional productions at the National Arts Centre and the Great Canadian Theatre Company, to the outstanding community troupe at Ottawa Little Theatre to the formidable student group at Carleton’s Sock ‘n’ Buskin Theatre Company, there is no shortage of places to watch a play and plenty of opportunity for thespians to perform.

One theatre that’s sadly been overlooked in recent years is The Gladstone. Converted from a truck repair garage into GCTC’s first home in 1982, the theatre has been operated in its current incarnation the past three years by Steve Martin. It’s a become a place for local professional actors to show off their talents.

Crowds have not met owner Martin’s expectations and he put the building on Gladstone Avenue near Preston Street on the market this fall. This year’s mini-season is still going ahead and their production of It’s a Wonderful Life wrapped up Saturday. Oscar Wilde’s classic The Importance of Being Earnest is set for February.

An admirer of live theatre ever since my mother bought season’s tickets to the Manitoba Theatre for Young People when I was a child growing up in Winnipeg, I’ve seen shows at most of Ottawa’s venues over the years. But like too many other theatre-lovers I’d ignored The Gladstone until this weekend when I attended It’s a Wonderful Life.

Walking up to the theatre, the Gladstone’s classic marquee brings patrons back to a time when live theatre was the thing to do for a night on the town. Once inside the small, yet charming lobby, it’s easy to see the work Martin had done to restore the building. It’s a comfortable space to rub elbows with other theatre goers, enjoy a pre-show drink at the bar or simply take advantage of the free volunteer-run coat check.

The theatre itself gives patrons an intimate atmosphere — even sitting in the back row feels like you’re right on top of the stage.

The production of It’s a Wonderful Life itself was superb. It was conceived as a show with a show. The audience was transported to the studios of a radio station and watched the cast perform the radio play. Aside from reading the script, director Teri Loretto-Valentik made sure there was enough action going behind the scenes — playful personality conflicts between the actors, microphones weren’t the proper height and funny signals to the production team — to keep the eyes entertained while the ears heard the heart-warming Christmas story.

Tony Palermo’s stage adaptation of Frank Capra’s iconic 1946 movie worked wonderfully with the simple set used for the show. Keeping true to the 1940s era, the sound effects were done manually and watching sound artist Karen Benoit do her work was entertaining unto itself.

The 236 seats were packed for Saturday’s matinee and the crowd got involved in the show “ooohing” and “ahhhing” on cue and joining the cast in singing Auld Lang Syne at the end of the show.

Located in the heart of Little Italy, The Gladstone is situated perfectly to give patrons a chance to enjoy a fine dinner and a show in one stop. (My favourite restaurant in the neighbourhood is Da Sergio on Preston).

There is no parking lot associated with the theatre and parking on Preston is often at a premium, so remember leave early enough so you’ll have time to find a spot.

Martin told the Ottawa Citizen when he put the building up for sale this fall that Ottawa “probably is a hockey city more than a theatre city.”

With The Importance of Being Earnest coming up soon, theatre fans have a chance to prove him wrong.

Thanks for the post Peter!