Stampede Corral starts coming down this month..

[monkeyman]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

Used to be a Stampede security guard many years ago. Did many overnight night shifts There. Lots of old photographs and history, hope they save it all.

Lots of strange sounds and other creepiness as well, including a photo and story on a boxer killed in a boxing match in the Corral. Lots of guards refused the overnight there.

I’d be interested in hearing more about this.

[Julio]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

I don't remember Stampede Wrestling ever being in the Corral, though I suppose there may have been a special event I missed. It was at Victoria Pavilion, aka the Ag Building now.

Stampede Wrestling mainly ran in the Pavillion, but usually did a big show every year in the Corral during Stampede. They would usually bring in the NWA Champion for a title shot.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by Julio

Stampede Wrestling mainly ran in the Pavillion, but usually did a big show every year in the Corral during Stampede. They would usually bring in the NWA Champion for a title shot.

So Harley Race.

[socalwingfan]

or Nick Bockwinkle

[Nage Waza]

Originally Posted by monkeyman

I’d be interested in hearing more about this.

So normally there would not be a requirement to have a guard in the Corral all night, as a normal guard rotation would do a walk through, ensuring doors were locked, no smoke smells or water on the floor. On nights where the building and adjacent buildings had events, a guard would be in the Corral all night. Might be a car show or other event that extended into the Corral.

Anyway, those shifts would start at perhaps ten pm, and would go until the following day. As a year round part time guard with seniority (I forget when guards were employed as both Stampede and Flames guards), I could select events, including flames games, to work at, or longer overnight shifts that gave the most hours. I normally worked the Olympic Lounge for maybe a quarter of home games and an area by the dressing rooms for the rest of the games. I was there for numerous coaches corners, Trevor Kidd's first start (or maybe home start) and lot's of other memories. When I meet Flames alumni now, they often recognize me, but don't remember it was because I was the guard when they were in the NHL. We were mostly around the same age, me a student earning about minimum wage and they were pro athletes. I was lifting weights so we would often chat about strength programs. I don't recall a negative encounter with a single player on any team. I laughed once at some wrestling shenanigans that poured into the backstage area and the wrestlers kind of pretended to still be angry, but only kind of, and Bruno Sammartino (in a suit, must of been WWF management at the time) sort of scolded me.

Anyway, you get to the Corral and it is already night time, most of the lights are off. I would always bring a tennis ball to throw around (think of the Shining) - no cell phones or electronics available to really keep you busy. There were always odd sounds, things echoing from nowhere. I would always hunt down the photo of the dead boxer, it was behind a curtain wall in one of the doorways in one of the east entrances. Once you find it, it is an old black and white photo and article, with the faint image of the boxer in the ring, I believe facing up towards the camera that seems to be taken from somewhere above the ring, perhaps a seat higher up. I don't remember the year, but a very long time ago. Really creepy for the time and place. Walking around, the old black and white photos just stare at you. Once in a while, a door will rattle, someone on the other side trying to get in. By the time I get there, there is no one there, the street is empty. This would happen, never knew if another guard was messing with me or I was hearing things.

Once you settle down, grab your book and start focusing on reading, a sound would grab your attention and you look around, wondering what it was and where it came from. Only your eyes require time to focus, so you start thinking you see something at the farthest end, in the dark. The longer you ignore it, the harder it becomes to read. This would happen over and over, all night, as you struggle to stay awake.

I probably did a few dozen graveyard shifts in the Corral and numerous other shifts overnight in other parts of the Stampede grounds. For a high school and university student, lots of fun. The Stampede brought it's own challenges, from stabbings, 'gang' fights and other nonsense, but I did meet a few bands and got to flirt with who would years later become my dad's long term girlfriend when she was a regular Stampede act (we never once brought it up to him).

The Corral memories really makes me shudder.

[powderjunkie]

Did you mean to omit the name drop near the end? Performer, or performer adjacent?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Nage Waza]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Did you mean to omit the name drop near the end? Performer, or performer adjacent?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ha, not a dome performer, at least on her own. Not a major international star either, but well known in Canada, at least in the music industry. Not once did 'fans' ever come to ask for an autograph. But she did perform at the Stampede and crowds came and watched. I did meet many Stampede performers that would come to chat with her, but those were like Grapes of Wrath and bands like that.

I did mean to omit her name, it wasn't really relevant, except for the fact we would flirt, then she moved in with my dad years later. Side story - my dad also dated my junior high ex's mom, and the daughter would bring it up every chance she got. Kinda cringy.

[Since1984]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

Ha, not a dome performer, at least on her own. Not a major international star either, but well known in Canada, at least in the music industry. Not once did 'fans' ever come to ask for an autograph. But she did perform at the Stampede and crowds came and watched. I did meet many Stampede performers that would come to chat with her, but those were like Grapes of Wrath and bands like that.

I did mean to omit her name, it wasn't really relevant, except for the fact we would flirt, then she moved in with my dad years later. Side story - my dad also dated my junior high ex's mom, and the daughter would bring it up every chance she got. Kinda cringy.

Carolyn Dawn Johnson?

[Nage Waza]

Originally Posted by Since1984

Carolyn Dawn Johnson?

I am not confirming or denying anyone, but you are incorrect.

How many people here would buy a Corral/Dome seat? I need about six and my high level contact gave me a big maybe, but he is stuck south of the border and probably not in a position to grab anything.

[DT77]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

How many people here would buy a Corral/Dome seat? I need about six and my high level contact gave me a big maybe, but he is stuck south of the border and probably not in a position to grab anything.

I'd buy a Corral seat or 10 in a heartbeat. I find the lead paint excuse to be kind of ridiculous. But, what do I know...

[Scroopy Noopers]

Originally Posted by Nage Waza

I am not confirming or denying anyone, but you are incorrect.

How many people here would buy a Corral/Dome seat? I need about six and my high level contact gave me a big maybe, but he is stuck south of the border and probably not in a position to grab anything.

100%.... depending what we’re talkin price wise.

[P-DAZZLE]

Some great memories at the Corral even though it was still very much from before my time hockey-wise. A couple of family friends used to rent it out on Boxing Day and tons of people would go skating in the morning on the 26th every year when I was a kid. I'd always spend some time in the concourse on the way out as the adults chatted looking at all the pictures and things on the wall.

Super Dogs of course. Franz Ferdinand. Thin Lizzy with zero original members (!!!) opening for Deep Purple. Saw The Strokes there, when we got to our seats it was one of those two-person bench seats and my buddy said "What is this? A bench?" when he pushed it down. Fab Moretti, their drummer, was dating Drew Barrymore at the time and from where we were sitting we could see her backstage (kind of sidestage) a few times.

One specific anecdote always sticks out though. I went with my buddy to see The Offspring there the same night the Red Wings and Penguins played in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final. We were both just back in Calgary for the summer after finishing a university year. My buddy really wanted to go and I was able to get super cheap tickets off a guy who wanted to watch the hockey game. We planned to catch as much of the hockey as we could and enjoy the show. When we got into the Corral we found a tv showing the game by one of the concessions and got in line to grab some beers and watch. The line was really long as tons of people were grabbing beer before the show started. My buddy ran off to go to the bathroom figuring he'd make it back before I got to the front of the line. All of a sudden the line moved quicker so I was at the front and he wasn't back yet. I asked for four beers but they weren't allowed to sell more than two per customer. I told them my buddy would be back in a moment, so the woman supervising agreed to sell me four if I would just wait for my buddy to get back before I walked off with them. So I am waiting, and my buddy appears with four beers in his hands. He had found a concession with a short line on the way back from the bathroom and they just sold him four with no questions asked. When he walked up the supervisor woman goes "Oh boy, I see that. You guys better drink some of those before you walk off". We hung out at the concession counter and watched the game as we drank most of the beers and as things quieted down the staff started chatting with us and were really nice and found the situation funny. I won't go into much more detail, but we probably didn't need eight beers at that point in the night. My friend and I lost each other at some point and ended up meeting up at Denny's in Motel Village. I'll never forget negotiating to buy four beers just to watch my buddy walk up with four of his own and the look on the face of the staff.

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by P-DAZZLE

The Offspring

Off topic, but I'm not sure if there is another performer that draws an audience with such a vast disparity of attire. From nerds to jocks to scantily clad to preppy to hardcore metal attire to uncategorizable...in a roughly equal distribution. I think I'm recalling from that same show in the Corral.

[MrMike]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Off topic, but I'm not sure if there is another performer that draws an audience with such a vast disparity of attire. From nerds to jocks to scantily clad to preppy to hardcore metal attire to uncategorizable...in a roughly equal distribution. I think I'm recalling from that same show in the Corral.

I’d say Blink 182 would be a comparable.

[getbak]

Outside demolition work is starting. First the Saddledome walkway...

https://twitter.com/user/status/1326169938403364865

[CroFlames]

Sad.

[Redrum]

And a shiny new non-urine smelling arena will rise it's place like a phoenix.

[Dion]

The Corral was host to the Memorial Cup back in 1974....

[FiveSeven]

I got some seats from the old Montreal Forum given to me from Claude that owned Shanks.

Dude is so nice, also gave me signed Rob Blake, Brian Leetch and Mike Vernon all-star jersey's. I would kill for some seats from the Corral.

[dino7c]

Originally Posted by heep223

Always loved playing men’s league with the Queen watching over us.

Just came to post this...having the queen watch over a Marylin Manson show was also a highlight. Pretty sure he called her an old bitch or something lol