Sometimes short, sometimes long loading times. WTF?!

Ok this has been happening with me since the beginning I played this game. Here's what happens. When I load a map, I tend to finish it within 2-3 seconds. Sometimes (odds are 1:10) it takes more then 3 minutes and counting. I don't know why.

Here are my specs.
2.8 ghz HT
512mb of ram Dual Channel
ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
and Shaw Cable

Can anyone tell me why sometimes it takes forever to load? The current thing I do now is to turn off the game and restart it.

Maybe you have many multiple programs loading/running during the process. It happens to me sometimes when I minimize the game as it loads and chat on AIM.

probably your ISP...it's called Hiccupping. It's when your computer loses a connection to the ISP servers...but knows that it hasn't been kicked offline...so it waits until the connection resumes. 3 minutes is a long hiccup...but it's possible.