Gapers Block published from April 22, 2003 to Jan. 1, 2016. The site will remain up in archive form. Please visit Third Coast Review, a new site by several GB alumni. ✶ Thank you for your readership and contributions. ✶
Already there are signs that an icy doom is fast approaching. There are pumpkins out at the farmers' markets, there's a chill in the morning air, and the daylight is becoming a scarce commodity. Yes, summer's last gasp is wheezing out, but this is the best time of the year for a bike ride. The cool breeze carries away the sweat, the air is easy to breathe, and one can wear their tweed. Wait, tweed?
Yes, tweed, the rough wool fabric that looks so dashing with a pipe and handlebar mustache is the cloth upon which one of the more interesting group bike rides pivots (or slides upon).
This Sunday, October 3rd, the BBC is hosting its last summer Tweed Ride in Forest Park, leaving from O'Sullivan's Public House (7244 W. Madison, Oak Park) at noon. The ride will meander along the Illinois Prairie Path to the Sheldon Peck homestead for a picnic. Participation is free, but helmets and sharp woolen outfits are recommended.
Very breaking news but numerous local/national news outlets are reporting that Green Bay safety Nick Collins and an unidentified Bears fan got into it following the Bears last-second win. Collins reportedly spat his mouthpiece at the fan who allegedly hurled racial slurs at Collins. Unsportsmanlike conduct on both parties. Be nice, people.
The Bears are going to be better than my predicted 6-10 record. How much better? I can't say. Playoffs? No, probably not, but hey, three wins in three attempts gets you somewhere. If Minnesota falters anymore and Brett Favre gets decapitated then opportunity will be knocking. The Packers are still going to win the NFC North and wow, wasn't the Monday Nighter a weird game? Bears fans surely will even concede that, yes? The Bears were outgained by a net 103 yards, which means nothing when you consider Green Bay's comical 18 penalties for a whopping 152 yards, which really is grounds for an LOLCat or something: "I IS IN YR BACKFIELD BEFORE THE SNAP" "Chuckle, chuckle, guffaw!"
But really how much longer can this wacky good fortune continue for the Monsters of the Midway? There's of course the flukey Detroit win wherein "there but for the grace of obscure rules and miasmic interpretation of said rules go the Bears." Then was the thorough handling of the Dallas Cowboys, who may be the most schizo team thus far in this nascent NFL season.
Hide the women and children, because the Big Ten schedule this weekend consisted largely of vicious beatings applied to hapless cupcake opponents paid handsomely to be destroyed for sport.
Sound cheery? Come along as we review The Weekend That Was in Big Ten football (plus Notre Dame, because they own this town).
The Cubs have been stuck in the same old "wait 'til next year" meme that they've been using for over a century now. Trite? No doubt. Still, when one company wants to have a little bit of fun (see pic above) at the North Siders losing ways, BAM!, the Cubs upper management springs into action. Behold, the new and improved Miller ad that replaced the old one after one whole day of gentle ribbing.
The Chicago Outfit are sliding into their final home bout of the season on Saturday, Oct. 9, when they face off against the Killamazoo Derby Darlings from Portage, Michigan.
The Outfit's Shade Brigade will also play against the Lafayette Brawlin' Dolls from Lafayette, Ind.
The bout takes place at 7pm at the Windy City Fieldhouse (2367 W. Logan Blvd). Tickets are $15 if you buy them presale online or $20 at the door.
As the season winds down the Cubs continue to play out their final games. After this afternoons affair with St. Louis the Cubs will have eight games remaining including tomorrow's home finale. The end is nearing on another dismal Cubs season and the mantra becomes once more Wait Until Next Year...again. In the mean time the Cubs have some business to finish playing the spoiler role.
This one got off to an auspicious start. Almost similar to yesterdays game as the Cardinals jumped out to an early 3-0 lead until the Cubs struck back in the bottom of the third. They would score four runs in the inning one coming off a botched run down by the Cardinals catcher Brian Anderson. Cubs center fielder Sam Fuld would put them ahead for good with a two-run single.
The Fire, like Mustafa in Austin Powers, are not dead just yet.
5:38 p.m. Enabling is disabled on the video I wanted to introduce this liveblog with. It's the kind of get-the-eff-off-your-seats-or-die energy that the Fire are hoping for tonight. It's also really disturbing. In that way, I guess, it sums up the night's drama perfectly: it's dramatic, it's a little dirty (rainy), it's life and death, and just being in this situation - with all the talent the Fire have - is disturbing.
Kickoff's in about 90 minutes so I'll be back with starting lineups and more info in the next hour.
Remember to email me (bdschumanstoler@gmail.com) or tweet at me and Tailgate with your amusing musings.
6:00 p.m. I know what you're thinking. You're sitting there, all snug in your flannel pjs, settling into the winter hibernation. You're all, "But Ben, who cares? The Fire are screwed! And anyway, it's windy outside. I'm staying in and watching Threes Company reruns with my cat."
Ah yes, strange reader. You do that. Or you can get up, realize that the Fire aren't completely hopeless just yet, and pray that a good result tonight propels the Fire onto a late season surge exactly opposite of that putrid last month the White Sox threw up. Because they're not dead just yet.
As the war drums of Halas pound and as the faithful line up for joyous reward, a dark, smoldering cloud of glowering fury descends from the NORTH. Caution, Bears faithful. Here be the dragon that is Green Bay. The hated green and gold nemesis that has spurned the Ursa Chicagoans into fits of fury over losses and conniptions of delirium upon winged victory, is once again clawing at the gates of Soldier Field, demanding challenge and expecting no quarter. The Sturm und Drang accompanying this match is unequivocal for Bears fans. A win? Pandemonium. Bragging rights. A game up in the divisional race. A loss? Depression. Bitter pills. A glomming sense of doom that the 2-0 start was a mirage. To say nothing of the fact that this is the 180th meeting of the two squads.
Short Hops is your one-stop (okay, you can go elsewhere) spot for irreverent Chicago sports news, culled from only the finest corners of the digital garden known as the Interwebs...
What will treasonous sports fandom get you? In my case it got me a team that (at the time of this post) cobbled together 11 more wins than the team I abandoned. While this season could have gone a lot better (or a lot worse), I was never naive enough to think cheering for the Sox would be an endless trail of sunshine and RBIs. As a wise commenter on one of my earlier posts said, I "would bleed and taste blood" as a Chicago White Sox fan. That was certainly the case this summer as I spent my first season on the South Side as a friend rather than a foe. The 2010 White Sox produced some of the streakiest baseball possible. Their extended runs of one extreme or the other made it very difficult to judge if this was an under-performing squad of excellence that should have taken the division or an incredibly lucky group of trade fodder that never had any business contending with the Twins in the first place.*
Though it seems as if last year's dream season just ended, the Blackhawks Stanley Cup win created a party that's raged all summer long. As the summer officially becomes fall as of yesterday, it's time to wake up from the hangover (especially, we hope, in the case of Patrick Kane) and prepare for the title defense for the Hawks, beginning with their first preseason game at 7 p.m. tonight against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The game will take place in Jonathon Toews' hometown of Winnipeg, the once (and future?) home of the Jets, and will air on Comcast Sportsnet.
Though Tailgate will have a full season preview of the drastically revamped Blackhawks (We're as guilty of enjoying the championship and taking the summer off) before the team's season opening game Oct. 7 in Colorado, you can check out the roster for tonight's game (and the first start for new goalie Marty Turco) and the first round of training camp cuts here.
You've subscribed to the Cubs Fan Report since those halcyon and oh-so-hopeful early April days. CFR founder/man about town, Andrew Hilsberg, wants to thank you for being a friend, so head over to the Newport Bar & Grill on Thursday for an evening of revelry, good cheer and "Waiting 'Til Next Year."
rolled out their logo and team name (logo: train, name: The Express) at the Sears Center in suburban Hoffman Estates. The newly christened team will be playing in the ECHL which is a AA equivalent for the pro hockey leagues. The team's debut season will begin in October of 2011.
America Scores, the youth group that enriches the lives of at risk youth with an inventive combination of soccer, poetry and service learning, will be holding an obesity awareness fundraiser tomorrow. The event will be championed by the executive director of SCORES Chicago, Amy Vondra Stark, who will be juggling a soccer ball for 14 hours between 5 a.m. and 7 p.m. Starting in the wee hours of the morning at NBC Plaza, Vondra Stark will travel around the loop from 190 State St to Daley Plaza to 120 S. Riverside Plaza.
Everyone from CPS teachers and administrators to professional soccer players to people off the street are welcome and challenged to join her marathon juggle and raise money as well. Individual donations can be pledged at: http://kickclickscore.org/
Cubs starter Carlos Zambrano threw six innings of shut out baseball, but had zero offensive support to back him up. His command was solid as he struck out eight and only walked five. However, a high pitch count would cut short his night. Zambrano would not suffer the loss in this one.
It was 10:19 back home in Chicago when the White Sox absorbed the first blow. As Mark Buehrle pitched the bottom of the fifth inning in Oakland, the Minnesota Twins closed out a comeback win against Cleveland, moving to the brink of another AL Central title.
Little more than an hour later, team MVP Paul Konerko grounded out to end a 7-2 loss, the eighth in a row and 12th in 14 games for the Sox. Their postseason hopes were pronounced dead at 11:37 by Hawk Harrelson, as he graciously congratulated the Twins, the first team to clinch a playoff berth, on their sixth division title in nine years.
Michigan State won a wild one against Notre Dame, Wisconsin survived a visit from Arizona State and an anthropomorphic mascot was the only man capable of slowing the Buckeyes.
Come along as we review The Weekend That Was in Big Ten football (plus Notre Dame).
It pains me to say this but Jay Cutler is looking really great this far into the NFL season. Two games, 5 touchdowns, one pick and an insanely efficient completion percentage of 68.8. In no way, shape, nor form did I expect to see this from the heralded Cutler-Bot 5000 --whose, to be honest, mainframe and processor had been bludgeoned into the Stone Age last season. The offensive line is still a tear-inducing, hair-pulling experience for the Bears faithful, yet, somehow Cutler has managed to largely avoid the pressure and find his open receivers who --gasp-- have been catching the ball. A concept that even a scant month ago seemed highly unlikely. Now after two weeks, Cutler is looking the part of a Japanese chef behind center, paring, slicing and dicing opposing secondaries with Ginsu-inspired sharpness and accuracy.
From the "Don't See That Every Day" department: Tyler Colvin- outfielder, rookie, vampire? was impaled by the shattered (maple) bat of Wellington Castillo. Colvin suffered a partially collapsed lung and a rather deep stab wound as a result of the wooden shrapnel in one of the more surreal moments baseball fans would ever see at the ball park. Of course, the game was in Miami so literally dozens of fans actually witnessed the gruesome incident.
On August 25, 2007, Tahirah Johnson, aka Tequila Mockingbird, a star Jammer for the Windy City Rollers team The Fury, took what at first seemed to be a run-of-the-mill tumble during a bout. But when she couldn't get up again, it was horribly apparent to everyone that something had gone very wrong. Johnson had sustained an injury to her C4 vertebrae, rendering her unable to move below the shoulders.
What's more, at the time Johnson was self-employed as a project attorney and didn't have health insurance. While she concentrated on her recovery, fans and derby girls across the nation pitched in to help Johnson financially.
Having just past the third anniversary of the accident, I followed up with Johnson, who now lives in Oklahoma City. She's still wheelchair-bound, but thanks to therapy and rigorous workouts she is able to walk several hundred feet on a platform walker with a little assistance. As always, Johnson is gracious, optimistic, driven, and still a Windy City Roller at heart.
Believe it or not, the year is already 3/4 done. 2010, we hardly knew ye and with time's inexorable march forward we can begin to wrap up the 2010 baseball season. [Of course, Cubs fans have been doing that since what? August 1? No rimshot? -Ed.] In any case, the basketball season is nearly upon us and football is already here and ready to rock you like a hurricane. Onward to Short Hops...
Tailgate's own Turncoat
was interviewed by TimeOut Chicago this week about his new found allegiance and abandonment.
to show off and Sam Smith has new ways to ramble on about how great and invincible Rose is... Ugh, someone --anyone-- should give this dude (Smith, not Rose) the FJM treatment.
Bears Lineback Hunter Hillenmeyer Out For Season
with concussions and Rick Telander (who earlier this summer did a series on football players and concussions) defends Hillenmeyer's choice. Note: concussions are insanely dangerous to mess around with. Like juggling chain saws on an ice berg...or something?
You're Charles Tillman. World-reknown athlete, Chicago Bears football player, man of charisma and a million anecdotes (if you meet him, ask him about his triathlon experience); but what you really wanna do is just be an excellent chef at an esteemed restaurant in downtown Chicago. Mission accomplished, Peanut. Tillman and some of his Bears teammates will be donning the various roles of servers, hosts and chefs at Morton's The Steakhouse this coming Monday as part of the Celebrity Servers Dinner. All proceeds go to The Charles Tillman Cornerstone Foundation which benefits children and families afflicted with rare medical conditions.
Tillman spoke with Tailgate at a press event in downtown yesterday after cooking up a few lamb chops and steaks with a big assist from Morton's head chef, Chris. Peanut's thoughts about playing the Cowboys and more after the jump...
To be completely honest, I have become far more immersed in White Sox culture this summer than I expected. I figured that, at best, my treachery would result in me listlessly distracting myself with another team while I subsisted on a hatred for the Cubs. Maybe after a couple years, I would come to fully love the White Sox, but in the meantime, they would be a way to be entertained by baseball while I refused the brand offered on the other side of town.
Lo and behold, this was not the case. I quickly became so adequately obsessed with the Sox that I forgot why I ever cared about the Cubs in the first place. I was aided by a great ballpark and a bizarrely streaky team. Every game I went to this season was baseball bliss. The great fans, the park with its staggeringly low supply of bad views, and the team that dared you glance away for even a second because they were always one play away from their next huge string of wins rapidly accelerated my passing interest in Chicago's oft-neglected team into a full borne fascination with the Southside. The only thing more surprising than my sudden willingness to chirp out random renditions of "Let's Go, Go-Go White Sox," was how quickly I came to loathe the motherless collection of small-market dirtbags that hail from Minnesota. My god, how I hate the Twins.
See because he's hanging out with Navy recruits and the Bulls primary color is red and their season starts in October, see? No? Okay. In any case, the newest Bull dropped by the Great Lakes Naval Base wherein he teamed up with Converse for their Open Gym program.
Whilst on base the affable Korver --who, yes, Ashton Kutcher does uncannily resemble and they're both from Iowa. GO! conspiracy theorists-- spent some time talking with recruits, troops and their families while also giving a few on court pointers and engaging in one or two three ball contests. Oh yeah, and he sat down with Tailgate for a quick interview where he talks about being in Chicago, the team's expectations for this season and the "Jazz East" movement. Vid after the jump.
Ohio State hounded Miami into madness, Penn State folded at Alabama and the nation saw the birth of a new college football star in Denard Robinson, whose historic day at Notre Dame Stadium nonetheless left me curiously unmoved.
Come along as we review The Weekend That Was in Big Ten football (plus Notre Dame because those bastards own half of Chicago).
In case one hasn't been paying attention, cyclocross is one of Chicago's more popular, err...more anticipated, amateur sports. We do a good game of talking 'cross here in Tailgate, but really, the sport has seen a huge amount of attention and what was once a weird splinter discipline of cycling is now something that people exclusively train for. This Sunday's race in Jackson Park is almost sold out and October 3rd's race at Hopkins Park in Dekalb is getting there.
And just to think that five years ago, CX races in the region were lucky to have 30 people show up.
The Detroit Lions --a team that has won exactly two games in the past twoseasons-- defeated the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on a late touchdown strike from backup QB Shaun Hill to Calvin Johnson. The electric Johnson, aka: Megatron, leapt over the pedestrian Bears covermen and maintained full control and possession of the ball while placing two feet firmly within the end zone before landing on his bottom with certainty and a degree of panache with the ball still in hand. Bedlam ensued before the refereeing crew restored order by making a decisive and logic-based decision upon Johnson's reception to stick with the original ruling on the field of the play being called a "touchdown."
Nonsensical headline? Sure. It doesn't matter when you're invited to partake in a fantasy football draft at a luxurious hotel suite as a guest of Thrillist and Yahoo Sports. Which is exactly what happened to me a few weeks ago as I was treated to the blush-inducing sorts of spoils and riches that kings typically get. Grotesque amounts of the delicious, savory, cardiac-arrest-inducing food stuffs? Check. Free booze? Check. Gratuitously attractive and scantily-clad Yahoo! cheerleaders? [cursory glance to picture at immediate right] Check.
For most guys fantasy football drafts have, in a sense, become an annual bacchanal: part bachelor party, part sports talking B.S. session and all fun; and Thrillist and Yahoo Sports! certainly ratcheted those aspects up by providing some of Chicago's luckiest sports fans with a chance at having a fantasy draft war room/man cave all to themselves. Well-played, Internet news/cultural/sports companies.
More pics after the jump. All pictures are courtesy of: Dwayne Kuan
The Bears faithful are in for an extremely painful and bleak fall. The Chicago Bears will only win 6 games and Footballic Ramblings has already busted out the self-hurt razors and delicious bourbon to help us forget about how awful this season will be. Now, as always, Footballic Ramblings is not a column written about the Chicago Bears for Chicago Bears fans. No, instead this column is an incredibly fun exercise in realism and fact about the ineptitude of the Bears and the blind optimism (some might use the word "clinical insanity") that their fans do possess. In any case, the Bears are going 6-10. That's it. No playoffs (again) and Lovie Smith will likely be fired mid-season if the Bears do not come out like gangbusters in the first quarter of the schedule (which they won't do).
This just in: The Windy City All-Stars, who are currently competing at the Thunda on the Tundra regional tournament held in Green Bay, just won their bout against the Cincinnati Rollergirls 172-147. This win assures them a chance to compete in the 5th annual WFTDA Championship, Uproar on the Lakeshore, scheduled for Nov. 5-7 in Chicago.
At least the White Sox were considerate enough to slip out of playoff contention before football season really got going. It's time to turn over our lives to the Bears and the Big Ten, and the Sox (and of course the Cubs) have ensured we don't really need to worry much about fall baseball around these parts.
As if Tailgate needed an excuse to pump Ms. New Booty. Still, the NFL is here and just like that bangin' young lady (or guy, right, ladies?) sporting that bootilicious booty. The NFL is back and its trunk is packin' plenty of backin and traction for action and satisfaction. NFL. USA! USA! USA! USA! Awesome season starts tonight at 7:30 with Minnesota Favres playing the New Orleans Saints. On NBC, suckas!
Rumors are swirling about the Internets that Denver Nugget forward/scoring machine, Carmelo Anthony is seeking a trade to either the Bulls or New York Knicks. In return for the 'Melo Gold the mountain dwellers of Denver would expect a package of players involving, likely, Luol Deng and Joakim Noah. Tailgate says "no" to trading JoNo, still, 'Melo is a great scoring threat from anywhere inside the 3-point line...
White Sox Drop Another One
The South Siders lost to Detroit 6-3 in Motown this afternoon. Not good news for the post-season chances of Ozzie's Boys.
It's that derby time of year, folks, when it seems there are more bouts than you can shake a stick at. Which is a very good thing indeed.
On Saturday, Sept. 11, get your derby on when the Chicago Outfit skate against visiting team the Sioux Falls Roller Dollz. This season, the Outfit has had an odd home-game pattern: When they lose their bouts, it's only by 10 points, but when they win, they absolutely slay the other team. Their game against Sioux Falls, who ranks 15th in the region, should be an interesting match.
The bout takes place at 8 p.m. at the Windy City Fieldhouse (2367 West Logan Blvd.), and tickets are $12 presale or $15 door. As always, the parking is free and the beer is cheap.
6:18 Heyyyyyyy everybody. See that photo up there? I just took that with my phone. There are currently 18 people in the stands right now. It's sort of creepy, although it's just a Wednesday, the crowd will get here eventually. I do like that now - a good 75 minutes before kick off - is when they announce all the anti-racism, anti-prejudice, anti-feminist, anti-drunkenness rules. The 18 people here took note, I guarantee it.
In the surprisingly traffic free commute down I-55, I was listening to the most underrated LCD Soundsystem song off their new album: "Home."
Here's my preview of today's game over at Chicagoist.
I'll be back closer to kickoff (730). Email me your favorite LCD song or Fire comments at bdschumanstoler@gmail.com
6:49 Starting lineups are out:
Fire: Johnson (GK), Kinney, Brown-C, Robinson (D), Nyarko, Pause, Thorrington, Banner, Ljungberg (M), Castillo, John (F)
Fire bench: Dysktra, Conde, Krol, Bone, Husidic, Carr, McBride
Toronto FC: Frei (GK), Usanov, Harden, Cann, Attakora (D), Peterson, de Guzman, Gargan, LaBrocca (M), de Rosario-C, White (F)
7:21 Bob Bradley just left the press box after talking to us for about 20 minutes. I'll tell you one thing: the whole "piercing blue eyes" thing? Definitely legit. When asked if there was anyone in particular he was watching in today's game, he said no - but I'd be surprised if Baggio Husidic and Sean Johnson haven't been on his board at some point.
Tailgate's esteemed editor Brian Lauvray also wants you readers to know you can holler at us via Twitter at Tailgate's, Brian's, or my account.
Oh, it is on. It was announced today that local derby team, the Windy City Rollers All-Stars, is now the first-seeded team in the upcoming Thunda on the Tundra North Central Regional Tournament, which will be held Sept. 10-12 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. On Friday, Sept. 10, at 3:15 p.m., Windy City will play the winner of the opening bout between St. Louis and Indianapolis. The league who takes the tournament will be rolling on to compete in the 5th annual WFTDA Championship, Uproar on the Lakeshore, scheduled for Nov. 5-7 in Chicago.
Right now there are 24 WFTDA member leagues in the North Central Region (up from 19 leagues last year), including leagues in South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio and Ontario, Canada.
If you can't haul it up to Green Bay but still want to support the All-Stars, join the viewing party hosted by the WCR on Sunday, Sept. 12 at Rodan (1530 N. Milwaukee Ave.), where fans will gather to watch the final two games of Thunda on the Tundra. Doors open an hour early at 4:45 p.m. to watch the battle for third place at 5. The final game to determine 1st and 2nd place begins at 7.
The Cubs continued to play out the stretch this afternoon against a familiar foe in the New York Mets. Today's 5-3 victory earned them their second series win in a row and gives them an opportunity to go for the sweep tomorrow. They improve Interim Manager Mike Quade's record to 8-3 since taking over for Lou Piniella almost two weeks ago.
Carlos Zambrano continued his string of successful outings this afternoon.Zambrano pitched seven strong innings which included four hits, two earned runs and eight strikeouts. Since returning to the rotation Aug. 9, he is 4-0 with a 1.98 ERA (eight earned runs, 36 1/3 innings) in his past six starts. This may increase his trade value if they are looking to move him during the offseason.
Sup peoples. I'm sitting in the press box here in Toyota Park, where for some reason, a whole bunch of fireworks just went off - only 70 minutes before kick off. I'll be back with some preview/hype stuff, but for now dig Jordan Brown's adventures watching the Fire and the video highlights of the last match between these two teams (above).
Right then, Section 8 is doin their thing over to my left, and the lineups are out:
2:48 For the Fire: Johnson (GK), Kinney, Brown, Conde, Segares (D), Nyarko, Thorrington, Pause, Banner (M), Castillo and captain/retiring hero McBride (F). The major absences are Freddie Ljungberg (suspension) and Marco Pappa (international duty for Guatemala). It's interesting that Carlos de los Cobos opted to start Collins John and Baggio Husidic on the bench.
For LA: Ricketts (GK), Franklin, Gonzalez, Lenoardo, Dunivant (D), Bowen, Kovalenko, Kirovski, Cazumba (M), Donovan - captain - and Buddle (F). No major absences for LA - who will get David Beckham back next week after his lengthy absence from achilles injury.
Ok the t-shirt canons are out! Ten minutes to kickoff. Feel free to send questions, thoughts, or nicknames for Donocan's giant forehead to bdschumanstoler@gmail.com.
2:57 Jonathon Toews in the house! (He's sort of tiny in person.) (Don't tell him I said that.)
3:02 There's a giant cadre of HerbaLife people in the far corner of the stadium - it's weird because they're wearing the kind of blinding green shirt that the Seattle Sounders wear.
0 mins MOTIVATIONAL MUSIC! MOTIVATIONAL MUSIC! MOTIVATIONAL MUSIC! Pumped yet? Galaxy jumping around in white, the Fire in home red. Looks like Banner's going to start on the left, with Nyarko on the right - I wouldn't be surprised to see them switch arount hough as the game goes forward.
Maybe whoever designed this cornhole board didn't think about the fact that the hole is placed so that the Bears never quite reach the endzone. Or maybe it was designed by a Packers fan.
Time Out has a slideshow of even more Bears-branded products for your perusal.
It was a tough week to be a week-long Fire fan. Suffering a devastating loss in stoppage time, and losing our DP for next week's match against the LA Galaxy isn't the way I wanted to cap my Saturday, but these are the breaks.
This was my second viewing of a televised Fire match, and I have to say that we didn't look so bad -- it took some genuine heroics by Seattle's Fredy Montero to see the Sounders wrestle a respectable draw point away from us. The Montero brace had an hour between each goal, and the story of the loss was really the story of most our losses this season -- shaky defense. To be fair, we were without choice centre back Wilman Conde, but the archives I've pored over of Fire games this season show a sieve-like back line as a running narrative.
Short Hops is Tailgate's round-up of Sports Internet nuggets of information, really it's a lot like a 10-piece McNugget order except there aren't ten items and it's waaaay lower in trans fats/chicken viscera.
Chris Chelios Finally Retires
Chicagoan/NHL ironman Chris Chelios has finally walked away from the ice for good. The 46 year-old is a veteran of 26! NHL seasons and as recently as March of this year was mounting a comeback with the Atlanta Thrashers. The future Hall Of Famer leads all NHL players in playoff games, represented the United States in four Olympic teams and played in the fourth-most NHL games all-time (1,651).
Is Joakim Noah High in this Video?
It's not really a secret that JoNo likes to get a little blazed from time to time, so would it shock anyone that he was in a slightly altered state in this video from the Bulls Charity Golf Outing?
Oh, goodness. Last Sunday's cyclocross relay race hosted by xXx Racing-Athletico in Jackson Park was real steamy and crazy. Hot temperatures brought on by an unrelenting sun, bikinis, and the shenanigans of the Chicago Cuttin' Crew all made for a day of massive action. Lots of photos of the day are available here. Also, registration for the Chicago Cyclocross Cup series is open. Get in on the action early and you'll maybe get a preferred start, which in cyclocross, is absolutely crucial.
Note that the cyclocross season this year is going to be a real killer with extra races and surprises. Yes, surprises! I'm privy to some details that can't be yet unleashed, but rest assured that it's going to be a good season of muddy racin'.
Also coming up on Sunday, September 12 is the Urban Assault Ride, organized by New Belgium Brewing, and hosted by Murphy's Bleachers (3655 N. Sheffield). Think of the Urban Assault Ride as a sort of alleycat/scavenger hunt/adventure with checkpoints to hit, obstacle courses to maneuver and a city to navigate. The afterparty will feature tons of New Belgium suds, food, music and other enjoyable things. The ride costs between $30 and $65 and the proceeds benefits West Town Bikes. Click here for more information.
After previously announcing that 2010 would be his final year as a Major League baseball manager, and subsequently his last year on the Cubs, Lou Piniella decided to take a well deserved early exit from the crumbling confines of Wrigley Field to take care of his mother. It was not a surprising move, nor was it a decision that had much consequence on the 2010 Chicago Cubs. Their season ended in the visitor's bullpen at U.S. Cellular Field on June 11th when Carlos Zambrano smashed his way through his team and some Gatorade coolers because Derrek Lee gave up that home run. The look on Lou's face during that incident said it all: "Please god, I am but an old, tired but accomplished man. Please get me the hell away from this train-wreck. I'll even go back to Tampa. What? They're good now? Well, sh*t!"
And so the Cubs' Piniella era came to an end. He was the first manager to bring the Northsiders to two consecutive playoff appearances since 1908, the last time they did that other thing. He brought the promise of intensity in a post-Dusty town. He was the Lovable Losers' lovable old codger. After a Cubs win, he was snappy and affable, drawing laughs from the media. After a Cubs loss, he was surly and quick to anger. He was the most memorable manager the Cubs had in ages and he is now gone, off to the Florida sunset so he can take care of his family and meander around his house in his old Reds jersey.
It was a tough week to be a week-long Fire fan. Suffering a devastating loss in stoppage time, and losing our DP for next week's match against the LA Galaxy isn't the way I wanted to cap my Saturday, but these are the breaks. 
