Stamps’ mascot sidelined for centennial Grey Cup
Posted Nov 20, 2012 8:13 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s going to be a tough pill for most Stampeders fans to swallow ahead of the Grey Cup; Quick Six has been sidelined.
The seven-year-old gelding has been a fixture for the team for years, traversing the length of the field each time Calgary scores a touchdown.
According to The Calgary Herald, team officials say they were told there’s no room at the Rogers Centre for the animal and that the mascot is against the rules of the 54,000 seat complex.
However, CFL officials tell 660News the decision, made by the league, is due to safety concerns for the horse.
Rider Karyn Drake is disappointed with the decision and says she’ll be planning a party at her house on Sunday.
Drake, a former Stampede Queen and Miss Calgary, joined the club in 1993 and has only missed a handful of games.
She’s participated in six Grey Cup games, including Calgary championships in 1998, 2001 and 2008.
“It would have been a thrill of a lifetime, being in the 100th Grey Cup,” she tells the paper.
Former Stampeders president, Ron Rooke, has seen this before and says if he were a betting man, he believes there’s still a 98 per cent chance the horse could be allowed.
“This issue came up in 1992 when the Stampeders travelled in 1992 to the Grey Cup and after much controversy, the horse was allowed,” he tells 660News.
Rooke says he wasn’t surprised to see the issue surface in the news again.
“These other stadiums aren’t equipped for it,” he says.
Quick Six never travels with the team; officials always use a local replacement during road games.
