Exclusive FenwayNation Interview With Don Hyslop OF The Bluenose BoSox Brotherhood in Nova Scotia

FN: First, when I was vacationing on Nova Scotia a few years back, I remember struggling to find locations where I could pick-up Red Sox games on the car radio (I was on the south shore about half-way across). What is the situation now for NS Sox fans? Can you reliably pick up Sox radio and TV (NESN) games?

Don Hyslop: Well with radio, it all depends on where in Nova Scotia you live. If you live between Yarmouth and Digby you can probably pick up the games on radio both day and night. If you live where I do (the centre of the Annapolis Valley) I can pick up the games on the car radio during the day and on my portable radio at night. There are also places where it would be very difficult to get a good radio signal either day or night. Today, however, with satellite TV if you want to pay for MLB Extra Innings you can watch the Sox play all 162 games. There is also the option of watching them on MLB TV on your computer and numerous people have a satellite provider that carries NESN. That being said I still miss the Friday Night games that WSBK used to carry. Our cable and satellite providers carry all the Boston TV stations. Myself, I subscribe to MLB Extra Innings, so I can watch all the games.

FN: I know there are lots of Nova Scotia-based Bruins fans. Is the Red Sox contingent starting to rival that group, or is there a lot of overlap?

Don Hyslop: Well, I wouldn’t hesitate to say that Red Sox fans in Nova Scotia far outnumber Bruin fans even though we have a Nova Scotian, Glen Murray, with the Bruins. The loyalties in hockey are divided up primarily between Toronto, Montreal and Boston but there are other loyalties as well. Of course in baseball before the Expos, the Red Sox were the closest team to us so the majority of fans in my generation were and still are Red Sox fans sprinkled in with a few Yankee supporters. Of course the Blue Jays have a following but their supporters are no where near as devoted as we Sox fans are. One Halifax radio station carries the Blue Jay games and I will listen when the Sox aren’t playing. Of course since 2004, many younger fans have jumped on the Sox bandwagon as well.

FN: Do Bluenose members get to any games at Fenway? How do you organize that? What are your plans for 2008 games? Have you made contact with the Red Sox brass?

Don Hyslop: As a group the Bluenose BoSox Brotherhood has been in existence only since 2005. We started off as just a handful of members that could fit in a booth at a diner but less than two years later we have almost 100 members. Our membership has really jumped since the Red Sox have announced they are bringing the World Series Trophy to Nova Scotia. As a group we haven’t taken any trips to Fenway yet although we do have a member who saw his first game in 1952 and has been to Fenway every year since then. Myself, my parents took me to Fenway for the first time in 1962 and I have been going ever since. I have made two trips to Fenway in each of the last years and actually have a nine game personal winning streak going. I have tickets for 2 games against the Jays this April and when the summer seats go on sale in January hope to add a few more games in July. As a group, there have been plans for taking a trip to see some Portland and Pawtucket games this summer as well. So up to now almost all of the near hundred members have been to Fenway but have gone as individuals rather than a group. The contact we have had with Red Sox officials has had more to do with issues like having Bill Lee inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame (we sent a petition of over 70 names several months ago outlining our reasons for his inclusion) and of course trying to convince the Sox to bring the Trophy our way.

FN: What are your plans for the January 7th arrival of the 2007 trophy to Nova Scotia?

Don Hyslop: We hope to have a sizable group at the airport in Halifax to welcome them and our Bluenose BoSox Brotherhood Committee that has been actively involved in the planning of this will travel to the Legislature to take part in a reception that the N.S. Government is sponsoring. The United States Consulate which played a big role in the Sox coming to N.S. is also hosting a reception that first night and they have allowed us to have twenty-five invitees to their function. The first night ends with our private BBB Party at a Sports Bar where we think we will have our 100 members plus 100 guests honor the Sox and the Trophy visit. The following day will see a visit to a Children’s Hospital that our group was instrumental in arranging, a public viewing at the Nova Scotia Sports Hall of Fame, a visit to a local elementary school which is located in an economically depressed area. We have linked this visit to literacy and asked our members to donate a new book suitable for that age group to be given to that school’s library. Finally before the Sox return to Boston there is one more public viewing at the area’s largest mall. Hopefully we will have some great pictures of the Sox visit on our website. You can also see more details about the Trophy Tour there as well.
http://www.bluenosebosoxbrotherhood.zoomshare.com/0.html

FN: I know Bluenose members do a lot of charitable work. What are your main efforts on that score?

Don Hyslop: We are just getting under way in that regard. Last year we held a silent auction of Red Sox memorabilia with the proceeds going to the Jimmy Fund. In honor of the Sox visit to the school we are hoping that members will donate close to $1000 of new books for that school’s library. We are also looking to have projects for the IWK Children’s Hospital and Youth Baseball in Nova Scotia in the near future.

FN: Do you get any negative reactions from Blue Jay fans in Nova Scotia?

Don Hyslop: We do not hear a peep from them. Interestingly, Yankee fans still mutter every once and a while. In 2005, Red Sox fans entered a float in Hantsport’s ( a small Nova Scotian town) Canada Day parade. Some of the younger Sox fans (compared to older fellows like myself) on the float carried fire extinguishers filled with water and proceeded to soak anyone wearing a Yankee hat or T-Shirt along the parade route. So I would have to say we have given out more than we have taken. After this year’s World Series win, one town near Yarmouth actually had over 90 cars and vans decked out in Red Sox banners stage their second World Series parade.

FN: What message do you have for members of "The Nation" worldwide?

Don Hyslop: My message would simply be for all Sox fans to enjoy what the “new” ownership group has given to us. So many of us can remember when to be a Sox fan was a lot more difficult than it is today. Enjoy the good times! Also don’t forget the history both the good and the bad. Also don’t forget that a Nova Scotian by the name of Fred Lake once managed the Sox and actually gave Tris Speaker the starting job in centerfield. Not a bad move as history would tell us.

FN: Please talk about the Bluenose association with Johnny Pesky, Dick Gernert and Bill Lee.

Don Hyslop: Well, Bill Lee is our Emperor for Life. After being blackballed from major league baseball Bill played a few years in the Maritimes both for Moncton in New Brunswick and for Sydney here in Nova Scotia. I believe he enjoyed his time here as well as we enjoyed him being here. Also one of our co-founders, Jim Prime, has written a couple of books with Bill. So there was a natural affinity for him in this province. Our group has also been vocal in trying to have him rightfully take a place in the Red Sox Hall of Fame. Dick Gernert actually played senior baseball for Kentville, (our center of operations) Nova Scotia before becoming a regular with the Red Sox. Well, everyone knows Johnny Pesky is about the nicest guy you could ever meet and as a professional athlete should be a role model for how pro athletes should treat the fans. It was only natural for him to be our Living Patron Saint. Could anyone be more fitting of such a title?