What is Greg Ellingson doing out west in Edmonton? Should he have taken a left turn at Albuquerque like Bugs Bunny used to say?
Ellingson, 30, likes sunshine and beaches. He was born in Florida, grew up in Florida and went to college in Florida. Both of his two NFL opportunities were in Florida with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
When he came up to the CFL, he spent his first six seasons with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Ottawa RedBlacks, so he was still in the Eastern Time Zone.
“I’m trying to get a feel for the mountains and elevation,” Ellingson explained his unexpected shift across the country to play for the Eskimos this year. “I drove quite a ways to get here from Tampa to Ottawa and then Ottawa to here. Actually, I looked it up because I was curious. I drove half the diameter of the earth, so I could have driven to the centre of the earth if that was possible.”
It took Ellingson a total of 64 hours to make his journey.
“It was beautiful, though,” he added. “It was like a nature hike. I saw two moose that I had to stop on the Trans-Canada Highway in northern Ontario. They’re huge. I’ve always heard they were big, but they’re like giant hippos on stilts and really hairy.
“I almost hit a bald eagle. As I was driving by, it decided to fly at that moment (from the grassy area between highway lanes).”
Ellingson did a little research to see what the giant bird was.
“It’s like a $5,000 fine and up to a year in prison (for killing a bald eagle in the United States, but only a $100,000 fine in Canada),” he said.
Is Ellingson having any difficulty adjusting to the Mountain Time Zone?
“With as much work as we’re putting in in the meeting rooms (during Eskimos training camp), you sleep like a baby at night,” he said. “But the light, though, is nice … to almost 10 o’clock — I kind of like it.
“It does feel different being (near) the West Coast, but it feels like a fresh start, and I’m excited about it.”
Despite his Florida roots and love of summer activities – “I picked up surfing in Costa Rica when I went there (on holidays),” he said – Ellingson is basically an honorary Canadian about to embark on his seventh season in the Great White North.
He even spent a recent off-season in Ottawa, bought a pair of skates and went skating (on the Rideau Canal), skiing and snow-tubing.
“I’m used to the snow,” he said. “I’m not scared of it.”
Ellingson brought his skates with him to Edmonton. And even though he only skied one time in Ontario, “I didn’t pizza (snow-plough) and French Fry it,” he pointed out. “I think that counts as I did it because I got down the mountain quite a few times. Ate it a couple of times, too, but it was fun.”
He’s already heard great things about Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper and is looking forward “to making those trips when I have time.”
So when football season winds down, and the weather turns cold “maybe I can stick around for a bit and enjoy the mountains and do a little snowboarding and winter activities,” Ellingson said.
Edmonton Eskimos take on the BC Lions this Sunday, May 26 in pre-season action. Get your tickets here!
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