From the CBC archives: Bombers, Roughriders go head-to-head in 1st Banjo Bowl

With more than 34,000 Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Saskatchewan Roughriders fans set to pack Investors Group Field for Saturday's Banjo Bowl, we look back to how one guy's quip set off an 11-year football tradition.

The annual matchup between the prairie rivals, held on the weekend after the Labour Day Classic, was around long before the name "Banjo Bowl" was coined.

The name came from an infamous quip by Blue Bombers kicker Troy Westwood, who had referred to people in Saskatchewan as "a bunch of banjo-picking inbreds."

"It was a statement made in fun," Westwood told Mike Beauregard in this CBC-TV story that aired Sept. 10, 2004, two days before the first Banjo Bowl was held.

A date 'we can own'

The comment fuelled an already heated but friendly CFL rivalry, said Beauregard, who added that "Westwood insists he was only kidding."

Blue Bombers marketers seized upon the opportunity to make the Banjo Bowl an annual event — pre-game entertainment, merchandise and all.

"Over the years a lot of the teams get that labour day game. the bombers have never had it and had a date that we can own," said Jerry Maslowsky, who was then the Bombers' vice-president.

Click on the video player above to watch the full 2004 report.

Over the years, the Banjo Bowl has inspired music videos, creative outfits from enthusiastic fans, challenges between provincial premiers and even a cruise ship package.

What you need to know about this year's game

On Friday afternoon, the Blue Bombers announced that 34,250 tickets have been sold for this year's Banjo Bowl, which will be on Saturday instead of the usual Sunday date.

Regular capacity at Investors Group Field is 33,234, but more seats have been opened up in advance of the Grey Cup game later this fall.

While kickoff for the Banjo Bowl is at 5:30 p.m., the pre-game tailgate party starts at 1:30 p.m. outside Gate 2 at the corner of University Crescent and Chancellor Matheson Road.

Fans can buy beverages and food, take in live music, play in the family fun zone and hang out with Bombers mascots Buzz and Boomer and the team's dance and cheer team.

Winnipeg Transit will run its regular game day routes, and the Blue Bomber Park and Ride service will begin at 3 p.m.

Expect mostly clear skies and temperatures in the mid-20s during game time, says CBC meteorologist John Sauder.