Virtual Golf Tournament!

The chosen course, Pebble Beach. (Non-virtual edition)

FEBRUARY: Indoor Golf Tournament
Golf it is! However, as it's a roaring cold winter outside, we took it indoors at Golf-O-Max, Ottawa's premier indoor golf facility. As this is an indoor facility, we got to choose where we virtually played. For this event, Frank chose the Pebble Beach Golf Course! Nice course if you're good at golf, a pain in the butt if you constantly fall off the cliffs and are terrible. In this case, this included 1/2 the boys. We didn't even get to 18 holes, we ran out of time after 15.

Frank putting his Wii skills to good use

EVENT DESCRIPTION:
- Location: Golf-O-Max, Ottawa
- Classic Golf Tournament Rules! (50% weight)
- Closest to Pin on Hole 7 (25%)
- Longest Drive on Hole 14 (25%)

Kilts, making golf awesome since the Middle Ages

RESULTS:
Ryan won the event! Playing every week during the summer months definitely helped his cause. Full results coming soon.

Ryan chipping from the "rough"

Olympic Competition Ideas?

Let's face it, finding competition ideas for MOTY is getting more and more difficult as time goes by. As the Olympics have taken over our lives for the past week, we can certainly take a few ideas away and tailor them to MOTY-style competitions. Maybe we can skip the mogul-acrobatics and halfpipe, but there's a few gems in here. Biathlon anyone?!? Maybe a Snowshoe Biathlon?!? Do we have a short-track luge/bobsled track nearby? Could we build one? Could we build sleds? How about a speed-sled building competition?!? These could be awesome!

Check out all the Olympic events and get inspired: http://www.olympic.org/sports.

In the meantime, Go! Canada Go!

Congrats to the Dufour-Lapointe sisters on their success in Sochi!

Minute to Win It Competition!

JANUARY: Minute to Win It - MOTY EDITION

The year began with an onslaught of mini games, and a few beers for good measure. 

EVENT DESCRIPTION:

As in classic Minute to Win It fashion, there was 60 seconds on the clock for each event. After all events were done, the man with the overall lowest time (minus DNFs) won the day.  Here's what went down.

RESULTS:

Here's a tiny grid for your viewing pleasure!

1st - Eric (66)  2nd - Dan (79)  3rd - Cam (85)  4th - Frank (94)  5th - Simon (95)  6th - Zeek (97)  7th - Jazz (111)  8th - Matt (114)  9th - Ryan (119)  10th - Alex (122)

MAN OF THE YEAR 2013

It is with great pleasure and resounding applause that the Men of MOTY announce the Man of the Year 2013: Jazz!

Jazz displaying his sheer strength during the gladiator competition

Jazz came crashing out of the gate for 2013 and held a solid lead for most of the year. In a year of vastly different competitions, Jazz placed well throughout each event and solidified his lead with each passing month. He was so far ahead, in fact, that he could have stayed home for the December event and still clinched the title. Congratulations to you, good sir, on a well earned MOTY title. 

As our long and valued MOTY tradition dictates, to the winner go the spoils. The prestigious MOTY Belt Buckle. Treat it with respect, because this is much more than a trophy, it's the ultimate testament of manliness in its purest form.

As the newest Man of the Year, Jazz joins a super-elite club where very few men have had the privilege of becoming members. Relish this moment Jazz, because starting in January, the Men of MOTY are back at it and you'll be fighting to defend your title. Consider yourself a marked man! As you know, history has been cruel to past MOTY winners. Never has a single MOTY Winner been able to defend his title. Will you defy history?

We'll find out in 2014.

As for the rest of the MOTY Men, it's been a pleasure to battle for victory with you all once again this year. Congratulations to everyone. Competition aside, you're great friends and it's a blast getting together with you to shoot the breeze, have a few drinks and battle in ridiculous competitions. I'm excited for another year of fun, friendly competition and getting out there to do new things with you boys. Here's the final ranking for the 2013 MOTY Season.

Also, here's the assigned months for next year!

MOTY CALENDAR 2014

January: Matt

February: Frank

March: Ryan

April: Alex

May: Jazz

June: Cam

September: Dan

October: Jer

November: Eric

December: Simon

If you're reading this and interested in starting your own MOTY, check out our How To Make Your Own Man of the Year Competition Guide.

Rocket Propelled Popsicle Stick Sled Competition!

DECEMBER: Rocket-Powered Popsicle Sled Competition
This snowy December, the men were once again confronted with a box of popsicle sticks and a glue gun...   What to do?  Add a stick of TNT in the mix and you have a ROCKET PROPELLED Popsicle Stick Sled Building Competition.  The weather was just right, the little bit of rain froze on top of the 3 feet of snow to form a perfect surface for our rocket strapped creations!

EVENT DESCRIPTION:

- 2 hours to build a sled

- 1 box of Popsicle sticks 

- 1 glue gun. 

After the build, each man is given 3x C6 rockets to launch rockets across a snowy field. Sleds are ranked based on distance. The winner is determined by combining the rankings of all three launches. Minor adjustments can be made in between launches.

A few sleds

Our snowy setup

Rocket burn marks!

RESULTS:

Popsicle Stick Bridge Building Competition!

NOVEMBER: Ultimate Popsicle stick bridge build-off!

EVENT DESCRIPTION: 
2 hour build time to a Popsicle stick bridge using a glue gun and a box of popsicle sticks. The bridge had to be, at minimum, 36 inches wide and the width of at least one popsicle stick. Bridge that could handle the most weight wins the event.

The winning bridge held between 350-400lbs! We had to get creative because we ran out of weights which is why we don't have an exact number.


RESULTS:

Duct Tape Raft Competition!

OCTOBER: Duct Tape Raft Building Competition
As part of the great Canadian Man of the Year Competition (MOTY), the boys battle through snow, rain, mud, icy waters and frigid Canadian wind to build some great (and not so great) rafts!  Thanks to Ryan for organizing and to Jazz and Jer for letting us use La Cabine!

EVENT DESCRIPTION:
- 2.5 hour build time using an axe, a knife and 2 rolls of duct tape.
- Raft had to float (water below rider's knees).
- Riders have to raft around a checkpoint and return in the shortest time possible.
- Failure to reach the checkpoint or falling in results in a DNF.

RESULTS:

Amockalypse Paintball Touney!

SEPTEMBER: AMOCKALYPSE: Paintball, Nourishment and Shelter Competition

We should count ourselves lucky, In 2000, Y2K was nanobytes away from frying our trusted Mac products.  In 2012, the conclusion of the Mayan calendar almost concluded our MOTY calendar!  Astroids and meteors continue to whiz past Earth faster than Ryan and Jazz en route to the cottage.  Epidemics such as AIDS, H1N1 and SARS is turning our planet in one big, giant Gatineau.

If recent weather phenomena and movie blockbusters have taught us anything, it's that the world is going to end.... Sometime... Somehow... So how does MOTY prepare itself?

EVENT DESCRIPTION:

The ultimate test of manhood where our abilities to protect ourselves in the face of impending danger was evaluated through:

1- Combat Field Training at Commando Painball - 10 battle rounds with rotating teams where points are awarded to the winning team and to round survivors.

2- Nourishment Preparation - Prepare a meal that is feasible to be made/available during the Apocalypse.

3- Shelter Idea Roundtable - Come up with 5 key considerations you should take to survive the apocalypse. Points awarded on a Yay-Nay vote by all.

The fields of Post-Apocalyptic Warfare

Some great ideas were shared in the unfortunate event of total apocalypse

such as the "Post-Apocalyptic Super Boat" portraid below.

RESULTS:

Gladiator Tournament!

JUNE: Gladiator Competition

- Are you not entertained!?! (Maximus) 

- Tonight, we dine in Hell! (Leonidas)

- This is SPARTA!!!!  (Leonidas)

- I am the Law!!! (Judge Dredd)

- Get to the Choppa!!! (Dutch)

- Raghrghargh!! (Animal)

EVENT DESCRIPTION:

Event # 1 Maide Leisg (Scots Gaelic meaning 'Lazy Stick') (1 round):

Trial of strength performed by two Gladiators sitting on the ground with the soles of their feet pressing against each other. Seated, holding a stick between their hands which they pull against each other until one of them has risen from the ground.

Event # 2 Hammer Throw (3 rounds):

This event is similar to the hammer throw as seen in modern-day track and field competitions, though with some differences. In the Gladiator version, we’ll be using a sledgehammer! With your feet staying inside the throwing zone, the hammer is whirled about and thrown for distance.

Event # 3 Weight for Height (X rounds):

The Gladiators attempt to toss a weight with an attached handle over a horizontal bar using only one hand. Each athlete is allowed three attempts at each height. Successful clearance of the height, within 3 tries, allows the athlete to advance into the next round at a greater height. The winner is determined by the highest successful toss.

Event # 4 Gladiator Joust (2 out of 3 round):

In this event, Gladiators engage in battle on raised podiums using pugil sticks. The object is to knock your opponent off. Neither participant is allowed to touch their opponent's platform or deliberately touch their opponent's pugil stick using their hands. All offensive moves must be made with the pugil sticks; no hand-to-hand combat or kicking is allowed.

Event # 5 Spear Throw (5 rounds):

Gladiators will be asked to construct a spear from their natural surroundings with the help of their own hunting knife of choosing and string, which will then be used to compete in a throwing competition. The Gladiator who accumulates the most points by throwing their spear and striking point zones over 5 throws wins. In case of a tie or dispute, an additional throw will be conducted.

RESULTS:

Maide Leigs and Hammer Throw

Simon fearing for his life

Spear Throw!

Kettle Bell Weight and Height Throw!

Gladiator Jousting!

Building the Gladiator Jousting Set:

3D Dodgeball Tournament!

MAY: 3D Trampoline Dodgeball Tournament

Just think of it as a small arena of death, where there's 2 weapons and 12 guys running around trying not to get hit in the face. Glorious madness!

EVENT DESCRIPTION: 

- Over 25 rounds of 3D Trampoline Dodgeball Tournament MADNESS!!!! 

- Points are awarded based on order of death from a match. Last man standing wins the most points. Honour system was in place as it was a pretty fast pace game.

- After 25 rounds points are tabulated. 

RESULTS: