WATCH: Hinterland Who’s Who: Beer Snake
WINNIPEG – A Blue Bombers fan favourite has been paired up with an iconic Canadian television segment to create a humorous promo video for the Winnipeg CFL team.
A video posted on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers website Wednesday features footage of fans building a beer snake at Investors Group Field. A narrator describes the comeback of the creature in the style of the Hinterland Who’s Who segments about Canadian wildlife.
“There was a time when the beer snake like this one and the fanatic fans that built it had almost disappeared from Canada because of the destruction of their habitat,” the narrator says. “But after creating a new sanctuary for the beer snake, it has made a successful comeback into nature.”
READ MORE: Willy solid as Blue Bombers beat Lions 23-13
The beer snake is a long, snaking stack of cups that Blue Bomber fans started building when the team still played at the old Canad Inns Stadium near Polo Park. The stacks were banned when Investors Group Stadium opened at the University of Manitoba in 2013, but a year ago, management decided to create a Fanatic Fan Zone where the snakes would be allowed.
Kim Babij-Gesell, the Bombers communications staffer who provided the voice for the new Hinterland Who’s Who segment, said management under Bombers president and CEO has embraced fan favourites like the beer snake.
“He’s very fan focussed,” Babij-Gesell said. “It’s not just about the football game.”
READ MORE: Return of beer snake to Bombers games unleashes tweet-storm
The whole point of the Fanatic Fan Zone – sections 140 and 141 of IGF – is to provide a place for the people who come for the atmosphere as much as for the game, she said.
“They’re wild and crazy fans,” she said, adding that ticket-buyers are warned about the atmosphere. “That’s a crazy section.”
But other fans are joining in the fun, she said.
“People from all over the stadium are bringing their beer cups,” she said.
The mock Hinterland Who’s Who video has been well-received, she said.
“It’s a cute nod, we hope – we think – to something that’s become a bit of a legend.”
Comments