On Mondays a Sun staffer gets to know a sports figure a little better in Up Close. This week, Kirk Penton heads to Steeltown to chat with Brandon native and Hamilton Tiger-Cats receiver Chris Bauman, the first overall draft pick in 2007 who has five catches for 46 yards in three games this season.
Sun: What's your favourite memory of attending Vincent Massey High School in Brandon? It doesn't have to be football-related.
Bauman: Probably just Grade 12 year in general. It was just a fun year to play.
Sun: Speaking of your Grade 12 year in the nine-man Rural Manitoba Football League, you and quarterback Tim Feasby hooked up for touchdown after touchdown after touchdown. What's Tim up to these days?
CB: He's actually an RCMP officer up in Lynn Lake, Manitoba. He's isolated up there. He's doing well. I was just talking to him the other day.
Sun: Are you guys close?
CB: Yeah. We went to university together (at the University of Regina). We still keep in touch.
Sun: Do you guys talk about the old days a lot?
CB: Once in a while, yeah. Maybe over a couple years.
Sun: That was some magic you guys had.
CB: It was. I'd give anything to go back there.
Sun: What's life like in Hamilton?
CB: I love it here. Growing up in Brandon, it was a small town. Not too much around there. And then I went to Regina, which was a bigger city. But there's so much around here. The States are right here. You've got Toronto if you want to go in there. You're never bored here.
Sun: Married yet?
CB: No, not yet. I've got a girlfriend. She's up here.
Sun: Who's the better former Vincent Massey Viking: Chris Bauman or Israel Idonije?
CB: Paycheque-wise? It's hard to say. I'd go with Izzy.
Sun: Yeah, he might be hauling in a little bit more money, but how many touchdowns does he have?
CB: Probably none.
Sun: Where's the best place to eat in Brandon?
CB: What kind of food are we talking here?
Sun: Whatever you want.
CB: I've always liked The Keg.
Sun: If you weren't playing football, and you had a chance to play another pro sport, what would it be?
CB: Golf.
Sun: What's your handicap?
CB: I would say between five and eight.
Sun: What's your favourite course in Manitoba?
CB: Glen Lea (in Brandon). My buddy runs it, so it's fun to go there. But if you want more of a challenge, I'd go to Shilo. I love Shilo.
Sun: What's your favourite part about being a CFLer.?
CB: Doing something you love to do for a living. I played as a kid, so to get to play as a grownup is unbelievable.
Sun: Who's the most famous person in your cellphone?
CB: Nick Setta.
Sun: What's a TV show you can't miss?
CB: I'm not a big TV guy. I like Iron Chef. I don't know when it's on. If I catch it I'll watch it, but I don't watch much TV.
Sun: If you could be anybody for one day, who would it be?
CB: Tiger Woods.
Sun: How long have you been golfing?
CB: Since I was five.
Sun: Did you play competitively as a junior?
CB: I did the Tamarack (at Clear Lake) once. I was first going into the second round and then self-destructed. I hit someone else's ball, so it was a two-stroke penalty.
Sun: That's not good. So you'll stick with football.
CB: Yep. For now.
