(Credit: www.shakethecurse.com)
Considering he’s the visionary—or chief curse eradicator—behind the Shake the Curse Web site, it should come as no surprise that Columbus resident Doug McIntyre is a New England native who grew up believing wholeheartedly that the curse of Babe Ruth haunted the Boston Red Sox for the better part of the 20th century.
Bill Buckner notwithstanding, that situation ended a few years ago. However, as a diehard fan of the Columbus Blue Jackets since their arrival in the NHL, season ticket holder McIntyre, who actually owned the advertising company that helped brand the team upon its inception, sensed déjà vu and decided to do something about it with Shake The Curse blog and statistic site.
This grassroots (READ: Crazy!) effort to end the curse and get the team to the playoffs for the first time has drawn the attention of not only Blue Jacket players but the national media.
It’s for this reason Metromix decided to further investigate McIntyre’s paranoia.
Bill Buckner notwithstanding, that situation ended a few years ago. However, as a diehard fan of the Columbus Blue Jackets since their arrival in the NHL, season ticket holder McIntyre, who actually owned the advertising company that helped brand the team upon its inception, sensed déjà vu and decided to do something about it with Shake The Curse blog and statistic site.
This grassroots (READ: Crazy!) effort to end the curse and get the team to the playoffs for the first time has drawn the attention of not only Blue Jacket players but the national media.
It’s for this reason Metromix decided to further investigate McIntyre’s paranoia.
Just so we get this straight, it’s your belief the Columbus Blue Jackets—the prepubescent team of the National Hockey League—have been cursed in the same fashion as the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs?
Anyone who has been going to the games the last eight years can tell you there’s a curse. They’re the only team in the NHL not to make the playoffs. There’s an uncanny amount of games lost in the last minute. There are injuries, all kinds of overturned goals in the NHL crew in Toronto, etc. etc. It was always something, so we determined there had to be some kind of negative spiritual vibe in play. So a group of us decided we would do something about that. We started Shake the Curse, and basically we’re involved in the curse eradication program so the team can make the playoffs. We started in the first week of November and they had just gone 4-7. And of course they are now six games above .500 and in sixth place in the conference [entering the weekend], so we think it’s working pretty effectively.
OK. Um ... how exactly are we eradicating this curse?
Two things: One, we salted the perimeter of the arena. So we hired a ghostbuster to lay down a trail of sea salt around Nationwide Boulevard, which will keep evil spirits out. We also opened a portal outside so the evil spirits can leave. The other big tactic we did was snuck into the arena and blessed the ice and also put real holy water into the Zamboni. So every time they clean the ice they’re in fact eradicating the curse.
Let’s just hope you didn’t step on any sidewalk cracks. What has the team’s reaction been to these unconventional shenanigans?
There are two camps from the team standpoint. One is the players are saying if these guys want to get on board and do something to try to help out the team, we’re all for it. And I think the other view of it is they’re just kind of amused. We wear blue wigs in the arena, and I see some of the defensemen laughing at us. So I think some players are amused.
With the team’s recent success, any chance that fate is just toying with you and ultimately will break your heart before the season is over?
I’ll tell you ... they’ve been doing pretty well since the All-Star break, even though Steve Mason the goalie had mononucleosis. That was a big concern. So toying with our emotions, we hope that that’s not the case. We’re going to give it a full effort until at which point we are confirmed to be in the playoffs.
You know some readers of this will paint the Shake the Curse individuals as nothing more than whiny bitches exemplifying this instant gratification world we call home.
I appreciate that, but we’re not asking for too much. Our first thing is we just want to get in the playoffs.
Be honest, how close are we to sacrificing goats?
We have a board that has a number of extreme tactics on it if we have to get to that point. But who knows?
Anyone who wants to join the "Shake the Curse" team is encouraged to do so. All that's required is that you wear a blue wig to a game, shake your curse eradicator and tell your friends about the cause.
Anyone who wants to join the "Shake the Curse" team is encouraged to do so. All that's required is that you wear a blue wig to a game, shake your curse eradicator and tell your friends about the cause.
