20 years ago this week ...

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D
Team Captain
Posts: 8320
Joined: Tue Oct 01, 2002 7:43 pm
Location: Springhill
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20 years ago this week Lionbackers.com was launched.

I built the site because I thought the internet was cool and when I found something cool I would try to figure out how they did it, After awhile I got enough skills I thought I would build website of my own. My first thought was a Canucks fan site but there were already a few around so when I found out there was no fans site for the BC Lions I got to work.

In the beginning it was just me reporting on signings and game reports. somewhere in year 1 I went to a database driven user forum much like what is in use today.

First player to visit the site was Robert Drummond.

Just to compare the age of this site to a few others you may have heard of
Facebook 15 years
YouTube 14 years
Twitter 13 years

I want to thank you all for your participation it has been a GREAT hobby and led to a lot of friendships and good times! :beer:

Also a big thanks to the Team Captains for their efforts over the years
:wave:
I own The Grey Cup! .com
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Hambone
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Posts: 8173
Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2004 10:25 pm
Location: Living in PG when not at BC Place, Grey Cup or Mazatlan.

Well done D and terrific milestone. BTW which came first? Lionbackers.com or the grey hairs? :wink:

Interesting because the reasons you give for starting LB are literally identical to why Brad started Total-CFL.
You're as old as you've ever been and as young as you're ever going to be.
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B.C.FAN
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Posts: 12579
Joined: Mon Nov 15, 2004 10:28 pm

Thank you, D. I missed the first five years but I wouldn’t know what to do without this site nowadays, especially with fewer options for fans seeking news about the Lions. We can count on finding everything here, including some good commentary and analysis.
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David
Team Captain
Posts: 9364
Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2002 10:23 am
Location: Vancouver (Kitsilano)

Thank you D for providing this forum for us to share information, opinions, stats, pics, and links to our favourite football team. This has been a Godsend for me as a fan (haha, you call it a hobby, I call it an obsession) and I am truly thankful for all your hard work through the years. Impressive to think that all of this was self-taught. :good:

What makes this site so enjoyable are the people. I learn so much from others and glean so much useful info from this site. It has often caused me to view things in a different light or consider another opinion, so to all a big "thank you!"

:beer:


DH :cool:
Roar, You Lions, Roar
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Robbie
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Posts: 8380
Joined: Sat Oct 09, 2004 10:13 pm
Location: 卑詩體育館或羅渣士體育館

Thanks for creating the site, Derek!

This message board has survived the test of time, even though a lot of members have come and gone. But it survived nevertheless and also withstood competition from at least two others sites: the official BC Lions site and another site created by a former member who decided to create his own site (details not necessary). In both cases, those two competitor sites no longer have message boards, unlike this one.
祝加拿大加式足球聯賽不列颠哥伦比亚卑詩雄獅隊今年贏格雷杯冠軍。此外祝溫哥華加人隊贏總統獎座·卡雲斯·甘保杯·史丹利盃。還每年祝溫哥華白頭浪隊贏美國足球大联盟杯。不要忘記每年祝溫哥華巨人贏西部冰球聯盟冠軍。
改建後的卑詩體育館於二十十一年九月三十日重新對外開放,首場體育活動為同日舉行的加拿大足球聯賽賽事,由主場的卑詩雄獅隊以三十三比二十四擊敗愛民頓愛斯基摩人隊。
祝你龍年行大運。
恭喜西雅图海鹰直到第四十八屆超級盃最終四十三比八大勝曾拿下兩次超級盃冠軍的丹佛野馬拿下隊史第一個超級盃冠軍。
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Bosco
Team Captain
Posts: 2333
Joined: Wed Jun 04, 2003 1:56 pm
Location: Coquitlam, B.C.

Congratulations and Happy Anniversary, Derek!

Sometimes, I thought that I was alone as a Lions fan, but when I stumbled onto this site in 2003, I was happy to see that there were other supporters in the wired world. Your hard work and dedication is always appreciated and you should be proud of the community that you have helped build.
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Sir Purrcival
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Posts: 4621
Joined: Sat Aug 23, 2003 11:48 am
Location: Comox Valley

And you are still as handsome as ever!
Tell me how long must a fan be strong? Ans. Always.
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dtrain
Starter
Posts: 182
Joined: Mon Aug 29, 2011 11:57 am

Congrats on 20 years Derek,
This is the go-to site for hardcore Lions fans.
Appreciate your efforts. :)
Dtrain.
jwbavalon
Rookie
Posts: 74
Joined: Sun Jan 22, 2012 8:42 am

Thanks Derek. With very little Lions coverage, this site is a godsend for info .

I'm looking forward to another year.

Go Lions Go
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Belize City Lion
Hall of Famer
Posts: 3592
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 1:39 pm
Location: Belize City, Belize

This group played a big part in me reconnecting with the Lions and CFL. When I moved to Belize in 1999 we only had dial up internet and it was super expensive. So forget about streaming radio of games (or streaming of anything at 64k/ps). There was no CFL on TV in Belize. Quickly the Lions fell of my radar.

When I finally got DSL internet in 2004, one the first things I did was find this group. I was finally able to listen to 1040 broadcasts of Lions games, but more importantly chatting about the BC Lions in this group gave me a community of Lions fans to enjoy the games (and the time in between games) with. I was likely the only person in Belize logging on to 1040 to hear every game, but I wasn't alone. Lionbackers.com helped me rekindle a love affair with the BC Lions that had grown dormant for 5 years.

Thanks Derek!
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Robbie
Hall of Famer
Posts: 8380
Joined: Sat Oct 09, 2004 10:13 pm
Location: 卑詩體育館或羅渣士體育館

What are your thoughts and memories about this site over the last 20 years? I've noticed that there have been some significant changes - both in terms of features and members. I'll list some observations and memories since I first joined this site back in 2004:

1. Many members have come and gone, and this includes many members who were in the Hall of Fan site:
viewforum.php?f=22

2. As a continuation of #1, the demographics have changed as well as there used to be a fair amount of women members like bbgirl, CatsEyes, Pinkfreud, Charlene, Mrs. LFITQ, and two Felions Christa and Angela who have all gone now.

3. While the forums were revised, one forum was named after Bob Ackles shortly after his passing. It looks that memorial forum reference is no longer made.

4. For a period of time, Derek created a Snack Bar site which was similar to Lionbackers Pub but was catered for non-adults as well. I remember creating four topics about the best restaurants offering Chinese, Japanese, Italian, and Greek cuisines. It looks like that forum was unpopular and was removed.

5. There was also a page that allowed users to play classic arcade games like Pacman and Donkey Kong, and high scores for each game was recorded. That site is no longer there.

6. Finally, I know about any criticisms and feedback about myself - both positive and negative. Most members like the pictures and videos that I include which include things like trophy presentations. But other members didn't like the fact that I would have a tendency to revive older threads.
祝加拿大加式足球聯賽不列颠哥伦比亚卑詩雄獅隊今年贏格雷杯冠軍。此外祝溫哥華加人隊贏總統獎座·卡雲斯·甘保杯·史丹利盃。還每年祝溫哥華白頭浪隊贏美國足球大联盟杯。不要忘記每年祝溫哥華巨人贏西部冰球聯盟冠軍。
改建後的卑詩體育館於二十十一年九月三十日重新對外開放,首場體育活動為同日舉行的加拿大足球聯賽賽事,由主場的卑詩雄獅隊以三十三比二十四擊敗愛民頓愛斯基摩人隊。
祝你龍年行大運。
恭喜西雅图海鹰直到第四十八屆超級盃最終四十三比八大勝曾拿下兩次超級盃冠軍的丹佛野馬拿下隊史第一個超級盃冠軍。
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B.C.FAN
Team Captain
Posts: 12579
Joined: Mon Nov 15, 2004 10:28 pm

My experiences and memories are all positive. I love exchanging viewpoints and learning from others but I also regret that we no longer appear to have many, if any, regular female posters. For any women are reading this thread, please chime in. All backgrounds and perspectives are welcome here.
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cromartie
Hall of Famer
Posts: 5004
Joined: Thu Oct 03, 2002 2:31 pm
Location: Cleveland, usually

Congrats on 20 years. It was a pleasure having the chance to have dinner with you before you headed out east. I'm grateful for the venue around which Lions fans from disparate geographies can meet up and build a sense of community, and look forward to 20 more years.
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