Touchdown Pacific: Faces of Victoria

Touchdown Pacific isn’t just about the players. Many fans have been anticipating this game since the beginning of its launch . It isn’t just a regular season game anymore. Many Lions fans are based on Vancouver Island, and commuting across the water to BC Place during the CFL season is a huge commitment for people on the island.

So, the first ever Touchdown Pacific in 2024 will unite football fans across the league, the lower mainland and people on Vancouver Island — to celebrate the game of three-down-football and cross this festival off their bucket list.

During Thursday evening’s pub visit at Bard and Banker, BCLions.com caught up with a few long-time BC Lions supporters and residents of Vancouver Island, sharing their excitement about Touchdown Pacific.

Mark Downton & Terri Downton

Mark has been a Lions fan since the 70’s and Terri has been cheering on the Lions since the 80’s. The couple is a regular at the annual Grey Cup festival and travelled to Kamloops to support the team at this year’s training camp. To them, Touchdown Pacific is a segway leading up to the Grey Cup festival in Vancouver.

“It’s like the Touchdown Atlantic series. We’ve never been. We try to go to the Grey Cup every year. When we heard about Touchdown Pacific, we were like, ‘Oh ya, we are booking early!’”

Terri is also celebrating her 57th birthday on this Touchdown Pacific trip. There is no other way to spend your birthday weekend with the team and fellow Lions fans.

You will see Mark walking around the venue wearing his signature hat with various collections of pins associating with the CFL.

“I’ve got it signed by the players. You’ve got to play for the BC Lions to sign this hat. I will make an exception for Kate Beirness and Milt Stegall because I love those two,” Mark added.

Terri is also a huge Beirness fan because she stopped and talked to Terri’s daughter about her career in broadcasting.

“Our daughter is a journalism student and talking to Beirness reignited her fire,” Terri added.

Jenny Brittain & Kathie Currie of the Lionbackers

Since 1954, that’s how long Jenny’s husband has been going to the Lions games. The die-hard fan club have been building lifelong relationships among the fans, players and the team. The Lionbackers show up to practice every week, bringing players fruits and snacks to keep them fuelled. With the opportunity of the club playing its first-ever game on Vancouver Island, you bet the Linebackers will display their strong presence in Victoria — keeping their tradition of BC Lions fandom going strong.

“This is going to be so good for the Lions. We are finally going to be on the map. I think a lot of people can’t get past the waters. They always get as far as Calgary on the west coast and forget about B.C. and especially Vancouver Island. This is huge, I have family that are coming down from Campbell River, it’s about time that the island is getting their recognition,” Currie said.

A dozen Lionbackers members are coming to the Touchdown Pacific game. The fan club follows the team closely throughout the year. From re-signings, and new draft picks to free agents’ signings, Jenny and Kathy take pride in ensuring the players feel like they’re at home and that they’re getting the best experience playing in Canada.

“For a lot of the players, they’ve never been outside of the U.S. or their country. We want them to feel welcomed,” Currie added.

Despite some challenging games lately, the Lionsbackers are still showing unconditional love to the players and staff.

Jenny speaks about how it’s like your own children playing a sport or learning something new. There’s always the good and bad — and always room for improvement.

“I tell the players it’s just a game. You can get better and you’re going to get better,” Brittain added.

Brian Scarr & Eric Froese

Brian Scarr (Left ) Eric Froese (Right)

Brian is a longtime season ticket holder who started going to the Lions games with his grandfather, dad and his twin brother when he was nine years old.

Brian and Eric met at a tailgate party. Eric would travel from the island to Vancouver for each home game. Eric was living in his van at the time, Brian suggested why not just stay over at his place when the Lions are playing at home.

The two friends are having an absolute time of their lives at Touchdown Pacific.

“This is beautiful. I love it. I wish we could play more games like this. I go to the Grey Cup every year. Sometimes I can’t afford or don’t have time to go to the East Coast for Touchdown Atlantic. I love this chance to have this game over here,” Scarr said.

Brian attended open practice this Wednesday at Starlight Stadium along with many fans, he was stoked to have his jersey signed by Nathan Rourke and David Mackie.

“We got them to autograph in the front and back. And I said, ‘Man, just make it as big as you can!’”

Brian and Eric can’t wait to watch Rourke sling the ball downfield on Saturday.

Liam Smith

Liam Smith (Left)

Liam is a third-year student at the University of Victoria. Seeing the drastic energy change this week also has him excited.

It’s rare to see a swarming crowd in Victoria for a sporting event.

“Victoria is very rugby-based here. Seeing football in Victoria is great. You don’t really see that out in Victoria too often. There are barely any fields that can obtain a professional football team. Seeing the fan base coming here is great. I love seeing the energy here within this vicinity,” Smith said.

“I drove by the field and was surprised that the Lions are actually going to come down to Victoria.”

Due to the growing attractions of tourists in Victoria, the city has become much busier throughout the year. Adding a football element for the town this week can only energize the Pacific coast even further.

“See the actual stadium being built is pretty neat because it takes time and manpower. Victoria has a lot of attractions because of the weather here in the summer. People are travelling here internationally, coming from all over B.C. Adding a football game during peak season is really exciting,” Smith added.

“If this becomes a regular thing in Victoria, it’ll be great for the student life here. Because at UVic, it doesn’t really have a lot of school spirit in terms of sports. If we really wanted to do something, we’d have to go to Vancouver. I’d love to see the Lions regularly in Victoria.”