Wednesday, September 16, 2009

FarParker's Puck Gobbler Bio

"That's okay bud...you'll stop the next one...OR, Ooooh - that was SO close to being great save!...OR, Man...too bad you fell you over on that passout...OR my personal favourite, Holy shiz, are you on DOPE?!?"

Okay. I've heard them all, and yes - every once in a while I do just happen to make the odd save. I've been playing recreational hockey for about 12 years now as a goalie. I never learned to skate all that well, and figured I could be just as spectacular on ice as I had been the other 15 years on streets, ball hockey and lacrosse courts. Wrong. Goalies DO actualy have to know how to skate!

However bad I started out as though, it never once curbed my enthusiasm for the sport I have always loved, but never played "professionally." Donning the mask, I instantly became A GOALIE, and as I've always told my teammates, "hell - it's not how good I play, but how good I look playing." Darth Vader is BAD, but he sure looks cool...!!

With years and years of media and Internet experience behind me, when the opportunity was presented to work with FarParker himself in producing an online community for the fun and betterment of recreational athletes, I instantly ran in the other direction. A few head shots to the cage later, the lights started turning on and I agreed to pursue the challenge with piss 'n vinegar (4 cans of Canadian actually, but I digress...). The chance to exploit my love of hockey by engaging in an incredibly rewarding hobby such as FarParker.com has been a near dream come true. Not quite as intense as a personal training session with Luongo or Martin Brodeur, but pretty damned close.

We encourage you to hang out, try some of the fun stuff we have available, search for local businesses or equipment and read some of the outstanding content we have generated from our local area professionals to help improve the quality of your game, and maybe even your life. So...click back to another part of the site and go FarParker yourself. (But thanks for reading this...people usually don't listen much to the goalies!!)

A Beer League Goalie's Take on Andrew Raycroft Now with The Vancouver Canucks...

Hey...

So a while ago, we had the pleasure of our interviewer-extraordinaire, Aubrey Parker, chat things up with Andrew Raycroft on our site at www.FarParker.com...back when he was a stinkin', no good, Maple Leaf (thanks though Andrew - the interview was awesome!!). Now, Andrew has joined the NHL elite with a backup position to Bobby Lou.

As expected in this town of goalie gravediggers, hype is huge for Raycroft - "the poor buggar has to backup the league's top goalie and will never see any action!" Well...BOO F'ING HOO. Thanks to our ever-accurate media for stirring up yet another pot to build frenzy. As a pretty crappy goalie who'll never see any real NHL action, I felt compelled to state my layman's view on this topic...cuz you know...us beer league guys know EVERYTHING about playing in the big time. Anyway:

Point #1 - Money. Now don't get me wrong, but if someone came and offered me half a MIL to sit and keep the pine warm for Lou's arse all year and basically not risk my body to potential injury, would I turn that down? Yeah...probably not.

Point #2 - Ice Time. Think Andrew doesn't get to see any action? Sweet bajesus, he's practicing daily with one of the league's top teams, opposite Bobby Lou. No offense to the guys in the other nets during my games, but hell...if I had Roberto down the ice, you can bet the farm I'd be pretty stocked.

Point #3 - Fan Experience. Okay...so you have to let fans admire your cool back-of-head haircut and how neat your name looks on the back of your jersey, but let's not forget you do get to show off in the pre-game warmup, or have crazed fans check you out at 8-Rinks during practice. And you still get a hockey card made of you...

Point #4 - Coolness. I don't care what any media dork says...playing in the NHL is cool, and you beat out tens of thousands of other wannabes who never made it. 60 guys get the privalege to state they're in the big show, and nothing can take that away. Plus, I like Raycroft's style.

Point #5 - Last One, I Promise. For those of you who've had the privalege like I have, playing at GM Place (and The Coliseum for that matter), is just awesome. And let me tell you...it's awesome with nobody in the stands. The ice is the best you'll ever get your ass slamed onto, you could run your tongue around every inch of the boards and not get so much as a blister, and looking up at all the seats, billboard ads and the juicy jumbotron just make being there an experience worth remembering. Some of the photos in my gallery are from those rinks, but I DON'T BE PAID NOTHIN to play there...

Am I jealous of Raycroft? You're damned right I am...