REGINA - The latest signing by the Saskatchewan Roughriders comes from the ranks of the media.
The club announced that Rob Vanstone, longtime sportswriter for the Leader-Post, has been hired by the Roughriders in a new role as Senior Journalist and Roughrider Historian.
Vanstone’s final column after 37 years at the Leader-Post ran this weekend, and he starts officially in his new role Tuesday. In his new position Vanstone will contribute stories, features and columns to Riderville.com and will be logging and recording the club’s history as their Roughrider Historian.
In addition to his work at the Leader-Post, Vanstone has written a number of books on Roughriders history including West Riders Best, about the 1966 Grey Cup team, and The Greatest Grey Cup Ever about the 1989 team. More recently, he wrote 100 Things Roughriders Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die.
In speaking to the News-Optimist/SASKTODAY.ca about that latter project in 2019, Vanstone said it was the “first all-encompassing project about the Riders I’ve ever done.”
“I’ve followed the team since the early seventies, so I’ve seen and lived a lot of it, and I’m pretty familiar with the history into the Sixties and Fifties and whatever, but I never really dove into anything dating back to 1910, 1911, 1912. That was a real eye opener for me, was really for the first time exploring and diving into and immersing the details dating back to the Riders’ inception.”
“Rob Vanstone is a generational voice in the sports landscape of Saskatchewan, and his storytelling abilities paired with his knowledge of our football club and its history is unmatched,” said Roughriders President and CEO Craig Reynolds in a statement. “When Rob approached us just a couple of weeks ago about the potential of joining the team and writing our stories – past, present and future – we knew it was an opportunity we just had to bring to our fans. We could not be more thrilled to have him join the Roughriders.”
“I am so honoured and flattered by this opportunity and simply cannot wait to begin telling Roughriders stories in a new capacity,” said Vanstone in a statement. “It feels as though I have been informally and unintentionally preparing for my second dream job since Mom started taking me to Roughriders games — while she was expecting me.
“Another milestone in my life is set for Feb. 21, 2023 and I plan to unrelentingly thank the Roughriders and their unrivalled fan base every day by immersing myself in my new and varied responsibilities — hopefully for another 37 years.”
