Elections Matter

Our American readers (and Canadian political nerds like myself) are definitely following the U.S. mid-term election results as they come in. Sports fans should also keep an eye on former Tennesse Volunteers and NFL quarterback Heath Shuler, running as a Democrat in North Carolina's 11th congressional district, and Hall of Fame wide receiver Lynn Swann, running for Governor of Pennsylvania. The former is seen as having a good chance of winning, while the latter is probably toast.

A couple of other sports connections that I know of:

• Incumbent Virginia Senator George Allen is the son of the football coach of the same name. He's in a tight race for reelection.

• Rhode Island Senator Lincoln Chaffee used to work as a blacksmith at horse racing tracks, including Northlands Park in Edmonton.

I'm sure there are lots of other sports connections, but I don't have the time to look them up.

Oh, and thank goodness that CNN just showed the Mellencamp Chevy ad. I've been experiencing serious post-World Series withdrawal.