Tag Archives: fans

Sports Enjoyment Heightened by Taking the Fanatic Out of Fan

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By Jason Menard,

If you could watch me watch a sporting event, you might be struck at how little passion I display. But I’ll tell you right now that I appreciate and enjoy sports more than I ever did in my youth.

The main reason? I’ve become less of a fanatic and more of a fan.

Despite the fact that the word fan is derived from fanatic, there are significant differences between the two terms. And the clearest distinction is that fanatics live and die with their teams; fans love the sport unconditionally. Continue reading →

NHL’s Brightest Lights Won’t Shine without Essential Fuel – Intensity

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By Jason Menard

The NHL went deep into its bag of tricks this weekend trying to drum up interest in the annual all-star game. And while some of the ideas worked, overall maybe it’s time for this star to go nova.

I tried. I tried to translate the excitement and hype generated by the changes to the all-star format into actual interest in the game. I bought into the pond-hockey hype, but like many ideas, what worked conceptually failed miserably in the execution. Continue reading →

Oilers’ Move Talk Shows So-Called Canadian ‘Fans’ Slippery Nature

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By Jason Menard

It’s amazing how those so-called Canadian hockey ‘fans’ – the very same ones who are generally so vociferous about returning hockey to abandoned Canadian NHL markets – have little to say now that one of their own franchises is allegedly in danger.

It’s only fitting that on a night when the Edmonton Oilers are in la belle province to pay a visit to the Montreal Canadiens, a story has emerged that key senior administration members of the Albertan NHL franchise have met with Quebec City officials to discuss relocation.

Interesting. That regular group of carrion who usually love nothing more than to circle the not-quite-dead corpses of NHL franchises got quiet all of the sudden. I guess it’s OK to wish ill on franchises as long as their south of the border. Continue reading →

Is Rooting for Vick Out of Tune?

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By Jason Menard

On Nov. 15, 2010, Michael Vick was on top of the world, with thousands of people cheering his name as he led the Philadelphia Eagles to a resounding 59-28 victory on Monday Night Football. Just over three years ago, countless more were hoping to see him locked up for so long that the only football he’d ever play would be for the Mean Machine.

So was anyone uncomfortable watching that spectacle? As fans, how much does a player’s personal life impact your enjoyment of the game? And should it? Continue reading →

True Fans Remind Us That Games are Supposed to be Fun

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By Jason Menard

In the song Coax Me, iconic Canadian band Sloan sang, “it’s not the band I hate, it’s their fans.” And while I normally feel the same about attending sporting events, last night I had the pleasure of sitting next to two people who reminded me of the joy that being a sports fan can hold. Continue reading →