Once again, the bad boys of Sportsnet have descended upon America to cover the Super Bowl.
Last year it was Phoenix, this year we are in sun-drenched Tampa, Fla. for Super Bowl XLIII. Under the strictest of orders from my wife not to get a tan, dealing with the blinding sun and Tampa's constant 26-degree Celsius temperature is going to be a real challenge.
This is my third Super Bowl. Our senior cameraman, Mario, is attending his 10th Super Bowl. Dan, our field producer is at his second. Our second cameraman, Alvin, is a Super Bowl virgin. Coming along for the ride this year is awarding-winning journalist and Sportsnet.ca senior columnist Mark Spector. "Spec" as he is known, is a gifted writer and can quaff vast quantities of lager and ale with little or no side effects. This is his first Super Bowl as well.
Mario is like Winston Wolf in "Pulp Fiction", if something needs to get done, he can do it. As long as everyone adheres to his strict rule of no farting in the rental truck, it should be a great week. I am convinced that Dan knows every good place to eat on the planet. Alvin is a great guy and always has energy to spare.
Monday at Super Bowl Week is all about getting your credentials and setting up the game plan for the next seven days. I always love walking through "radio row" at the NFL headquarters. It was great seeing legends like Randy Cross and John Riggins doing their thing and saying "hi" to mere mortals like me.
From there, we hooked up with the NFL Network's Adam Schefter. A true pro, Adam is about as connected an NFL reporter as you will find in North America. We talked about the Cardinals and the Steelers and what to expect this week. After we're done, I tell Adam that I'm a Raiders fan. He looks at me like I have the plague and tells me he's sorry to hear that.
With my wife's warning of "no suntans" hanging over my head like the Sword of Damocles, I tried to avoid the blazing Tampa sun and did my best to stay in the shade. From there we made our way to Raymond James Stadium to tape more interviews. While it isn't as futuristic looking as the University of Phoenix Stadium, Raymond James Stadium is a beautiful NFL facility.
Monday will be an early night because Tuesday is the gong show to end all gong shows, Media Day at the Super Bowl. By the way, the lovely Inez Sainz and the rest of the Latino beauties from TV Azteca are in town and ready to descend upon Raymond James Stadium. I can't wait to see who they propose too this year.
