Sailor the Touchdown Dog and Frisbee Rob head for NFL halftime show in Atlanta
It didn't take Sailor the Touchdown Dog long to make it to the show.
On October 23, at McMahon Stadium, Sailor – a border collie and greyhound mix – and Rob Macleod, aka Frisbee Rob, set a new record for the longest catch at a live sporting event: 109 yards.
It wasn't entirely out of the blue – Frisbee Rob has already set six Guinness World Records, so he clearly knows what he's doing.
And when the Stampeders posted a video of the greatest pitch-and-catch duo since Brady and Gronk, it didn't take for the world to discover the duo, either.
"That went huge on the Stampeder (web) page," Macleod said. Then ESPN added the video to their TikTok page, and it went viral.
"That's when people really started to pay attention," said Frisbee Rob. "It just went wild."
Next thing they knew, they were invited to play catch during halftime of an Atlanta Falcons game this Sunday, when the Falcons take on the Super Bowl champion Bucs, led by Brady and Gronk.
And while a new world record is always something lurking in the back of Macleod's mind, an NFL field like Atlanta's presents a few challenges.
"An NFL field is 10 yards shorter than a CFL field," Macleod said, "and so at the Stamps game, we ended up a yard short at the end zone – so our goal here is to go end zone to end zone."
"But it's also lower altitude in Atlanta than in Calgary," he added, "So the disk doesn't fly as far. I won't really know until the rehearsal Sunday."
Macleod knows it's a big step up in eyeballs to do an NFL halftime show, but he's taking it all in stride.
"Whether I succeed, whether I fail what does that really mean?" Macleod asked. "People just want to see a show up and try something and I think that's what it's all about."
As for Sailor, Macleod suspects he has a dog that feeds off a big crowd.
"Stampeders was really our first big crowd," he said, "And I think he ran faster. It seemed like he really fed off the energy. He was so focused on the disc."
McLeod says the fantastic Frisbee feats he executes with Sailor has given him a platform to encourage others.
"I just want to show people what's possible," he said.
And to draw attention to safety for those inclined to pick up a Frisbee themselves. "There's a lot of people that throw discs that are not dog safe," he said, "and so the most positive thing that's come out of this that I'd say is people knowing that there are dog discs and pointing them in the right direction."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.
Manitoba government tables bill to end ban on homegrown recreational cannabis
Manitoba is planning to lift its ban on the home growing of recreational cannabis.