Spooky sporting events

Scary sports equipment. Not really the football however./Haley Klassen

A collection some truly bizarre and horrific sports events

Sporting events are planned down to the second. Each game has a behind the scenes team scrambling to tie up all the loose ends and create a game day experience. We love it, the rush of anticipation, the music filling your ears, the beer cold in your hand. Not all events go off quite as planned, however. In fact, some down right freaky (and sometimes comical) shit has gone down. From blackouts to spider-dream injuries to angry mascots hurling hot dogs, almost anything can happen. Here are a few of the unplanned, bizarre occurrences that will get you in the Halloween spirit.

5. Blackout Bowl

You know things have gotten very strange when there are players–helmets and gloves off– casually lounging on the turf in what is supposed to be the most important game in the NFL. That is exactly what happened when the Baltimore Ravens faced the San Francisco 49ers at Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans. The thundering music stopped, fans were eerily quiet and over 70 000 people waited in the dark. For a moment it felt post-apocalyptic. Even more terrifying than waiting in the dark, however, is stopping the most anticipated game in football. Scary shit.

4. Creepy-Crawly Nightmare

Throwing it back to Toronto Blue Jays, Glenallen Hill, and the 90s for this one. Hill, who has since been nicknamed “Spiderman”, suffers from arachnophobia, or a fear of spiders. One night, Hill was having a particularly vivid dream that involved spiders. Instead of waking up in a cold sweat, he thrashed through his home, and fell down a flight of stairs. Try explaining that creepy excuse to your coaches!

3. Death by Baseball

In 2001, a pitch thrown by Arizona Diamondbacks Randy Johnson was fatal. As his roughly 90-mile an hour pitch (145 kph) slices through the air, it is intercepted by a dove. The usually graceful creature that symbolizes peace explodes into a puff of feathers. This bizarre happenstance is not only a unique video, but also a bad bird omen. Johnson is pretty much cursed for life.

2. Hot Diggity-Dog (from Hell)

The MLB Champion favorite Kansas City Royals are not a favorite by all. In fact, one fan named John Coomer has a serious hate on for the face of the team. The mascot, Sluggerrr, is accused of hurling a hot dog into the eyeball of the unlucky fan during a September 2009 game. If the embarrassment isn’t enough, the fan claims the incident to have caused a detached retina. I guess part of the “game day experience” doesn’t involve getting hit by Sluggerrr’s wiener.

1. The Thirteenth Trauma

That dreaded day that haunts us all. Let me remind you of the horror, just in case. It was November 29, 2009 and CFL fans were glued to the tube to watch the Grey Cup at McMahon Stadium. Montreal crawled back into the game and Damon Duval was ready to win it all with a final field goal. Rider fans rejoice as the kick goes wide. The ref announces “too many men on the field, Saskatchewan” and the celebration dies, along with our Rider Nation dreams.