Our December, 2009 Newsletter is now available. Members (and others on our mailing list) should have received their copy by email. If you believe you should have received a copy and did not, or if you are unable to view the newsletter by email, please contact communications@jacketbackers.org.
To view the newsletter online, click the read more link below, or click here to download a PDF version of the newsletter.
Our December, 2009 Newsletter is now available. Members (and others on our mailing list) should have received their copy by email. If you believe you should have received a copy and did not, or if you are unable to view the newsletter by email, please contact communications@jacketbackers.org.
To view the newsletter online, click the read more link below, or click here to download a PDF version of the newsletter.
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Volume 7, Issue 2 | December 7, 2009
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Upcoming Events All Members Welcome - Looking for Enthusiastic Fans with New Ideas to Help Our Committees! Join us at BT Hoagies Please RSVP to president@jacketbackers.org so that we can save you a seat. All Events Sat. Dec. 19 - The Jacket Backers are happy to promote #3 Ryan Salmons Day of Giving, see our website or www.teamsalmons.com for further details on this event to benefit the Blue Jackets Foundation Upcoming Road Trips Join the Jacket Backers on our upcoming ticket-only Road Trip to Detroit on Sat., 12/26 at 7 pm - tickets just $65 for members. Contact Jeff and Anne Little to reserve your seats and make payment arrangements, travel@jacketbackers.org RESERVE YOUR SPOT ON THE ST. LOUIS BUS NOW!! TAKING DEPOSITS OF $110 IMMEDIATELY TO SAVE YOUR SEAT - LIMITED NUMBER OF SEATS AVAILABLE Total cost just $215 - pay remaining $105 by January 7th. Includes ticket in group area with the Jacket Backers, deluxe motor coach transportation to and from St. Louis hotel, 1 night stay double occupancy hotel room within walking distance to arena and downtown attractions, and a pre-game reception with drinks and appetizers at Scottrade Center. And more! Contact Anne and Jeff Little to reserve your seats and make payment arrangements, travel@jacketbackers.org Check the website soon for further details on upcoming travel opportunities! Links to Other, Great CBJ Information Get your very own Jacket Backers jersey! Check our website or email blast soon for details and sample photo! Why Join or Renew as a Jacket Backer?
Other News The winner of the personalized Jacket Backer t-shirt from the puzzle from last issue was Tricia Baldwin. The winner of the team signed jersey at the last game watching party was Jon Winans.
Interested in doing more? 2009-10 Jacket Backers Officers
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Greetings {FIRST_NAME|Jacket Backer}, It's been quite a season so far - with the typical highs and lows that come with an 82 game schedule. We've seen a great start to the season, followed by a so-so stretch, then up again and currently on a bit of a rough stretch. Nash has been tremendous offensively but is also -11. Filatov went back to Russia with KHL (hopefully to return next season). The Power Play has been great but the goals against average is near the bottom of the NHL. Rusty Klesla was lost for 4-6 weeks due to torn groin and stomach muscles (get well Rusty!). The story of the season so far has been inconsistency. During some games or stretches of games, the Jackets look like one of the best teams in the NHL; at other times, they can't seem to get out of their own way. As others have observed, this is still a very young team and they are learning how to put it all together. Thankfully, this is not Coach Hitchcock's first rodeo. Let's Go Jackets! President's Column Hi Jacket Backers! Well, I wrote a pretty long story about how the ice was installed in Nationwide, and so I’ll make this short and sweet. We have a number of upcoming events planned for the near future, including game watching parties and club planning meetings. Our early arena tour dates unfortunately had to be postponed, but we’re working on selecting a few new dates and will let you know as soon as possible when those tours will take place. We’re still looking for new discount opportunities to pass along to you. We are continuing to work on enhancing our website too, and we could use a few volunteers to monitor and add new information to our forums. We’ve got several upcoming travel opportunities, and our bus trip to St. Louis is even less expensive than last year at only $215 per person. So get as involved as you feel like, and have some fun! I’m looking forward to seeing you all at the games and events! Carry the Flag! Buffalo Wars
You haven't seen hockey until you have seen it in Syracuse. Well, maybe. Last year, the Jacket Backers traveled to Buffalo and Syracuse for a long weekend. First stop was Buffalo. Thanks to a former CBJ broadcaster, we had an introduction to a bar up in Buffalo. This bar was within walking distance of the hotel in which we were staying. Off we went, past the statue of everyone's favorite president, that's right, the only president to serve two nonconsecutive terms and the Mayor of Buffalo - Grover Cleveland. Some of our more observant members noticed that the bar kitty-corner from the bar we were in was called "Badda Bing." (We are not making this up.) It was a really neat bar, though. There were a lot of hockey fans in attendance, some for the CBJ, and some for the Sabres. They had more people, we had more beer. Eventually, we made it down to the arena for the game. And what a game it was! We sat upstairs and had a wonderful time. Of course, the 25 of us were easily the loudest of the 18,690 in attendance. By the end of the game, we had some of the Buffalo fans chanting along with us. It was Pazzy's last start for the CBJ and we won 6-1! Deciding to stay to participate in the post game show with Rimmer and Danny, we were a bit late getting back to the hotel. Seriously, the Buffalo arena is a great place to see a game and the Buffalo fans are very nice to visitors. We strongly recommend it and we will go back. The following morning, after reading about the CBJ exploits in the local paper, we headed off to Syracuse for the Crunch game. Some of us decided to make a detour to Canada. Well, we were THAT close to Niagara Falls AND we needed some ketchup flavored potato chips. We drove up to the Falls. While we are sure that it was beautiful, it was so rainy and foggy that you couldn't see the Falls from the railing on the main road. The good news, we could park right on the curb for pictures. Of what?? Fog, that's what! On to Syracuse. Watching a Crunch game is fun. They have a smaller than usual center ice area, and the arena is intimate. The fans get involved. There was a lot of hitting, a lot of hard checking and even a few goals. The Crunch played the Chicago Wolves. The penalty box monitor was one busy guy. Those Crunch are tough! This is another must do for hockey fans. We can't imagine anyone not having a blast at a Crunch game. We were hosted by the Crunch Fan Club. Their leader is a grandmotherly type who bakes cookies for the team bus. Her husband works the penalty box. After the game, they took us to a restaurant/bar frequented by the hockey people for a party. The Crunch fan club travels with the team from time to time, and from what we hear, they really know how to have a good time. So, for your next Winter vacation, we recommend the Buffalo/Syracuse tour. Did we mention there is a Jello museum in Buffalo? Don't miss it! Putting the Ice In - The Full Story
I am sharing this story from my personal experience and impressions, and I am sure I will inevitably get some of the details incorrect. I also unfortunately was not so good at keeping track of everyone's names that I worked with that evening into morning. If you have any further questions or corrections on this story, please contact me at president@jacketbackers.org. I would be happy to pass your questions along to the ice technicians, and I would also be happy to correct any mistakes that I've made in this narrative. The ice is installed at Nationwide by hand. It begins with the refrigeration tubes being turned on beneath the bare concrete floor. I have no idea how long they were actually turned on for before Brian and I come into the picture. I do know the process was delayed as the breakdown and cleanup of the Creed concert the night before took longer than anticipated. We arrived at noon originally and were asked to come back at 5 pm. Once we arrived, we needed to wait a bit longer for the temperature of the concrete to reach the proper temperature (23 degrees?) before we could begin spraying on the ice surface. I wandered around and took a number of pictures of the tools we would be using to create and paint the ice. I found it mildly amusing that the paint containers were labeled with color names such as " Redline Batch #114" and "Goalcrease Batch #116". Not surprisingly, the paint was made in Canada by a company called Jet Ice, whose trademarked tagline is "We bring ice to life." While we were waiting for the floor to get cold enough, the crew worked on mixing white paint ("Super White 3000") in a big tank, which was filled with hot water from the building's boilers. They put 8 boxes of powdered colorant in per tank, and each 44-lb. box per the instructions printed on the side made 30 gallons. They stirred the paint with an old hockey stick. While we were waiting for the floor to reach the proper temperature, Brian and I and a few others were handed sport water bottles filled with hot water and asked to fill in divots, bolt hole areas, and any irregular or low spots on the concrete. This was to allow a bit of extra time and water in those areas to make the ice sheet a bit more level in those spots. Both the patching of holes, the first clear coat of ice, and the first coat of paint are done with warm/hot water. This melts the frost on the concrete and helps the ice adhere better. To read the rest of this detailed story, including a timeline and links to a photo slideshow, please visit the Jacket Backers' website. Blue Jackets Sudoku
Hockey Face
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