I Bleed Orange
I have been a fan for the past 4 years.
I don’t believe that you can be a true fan if all you are looking for is another championship. That is not what it is all about.
“Fanship” is about support for your favorite team. You cheer their goals, their trial and errors and wins, losses and draws. The players we watch are a “world” that we watch and hope to influence. If we wear the right colors and eat the right meals we can influence the outcome of an important game and we (who watch from the sidelines) make every game important. We forget that under the masks and uniforms there are human beings; humans who make mistakes, humans who tire out, humans who get angry, disappointed and sometimes frustrated. These are also humans who forget that they are human. They want to be the superheroes that we make them out to be. Tell me who would want to disappoint or anger 10,000+ fans in an arena. Let alone have your every movement and gesture analyzed by people who in some cases have never even put on a pair of skates.
We (the fans) have created this. We even need this on some level. We all want heroes.
Please don’t forget that when you want someone to be a hero maybe it won’t happen but that does not mean that the effort made to please us is not heroic and win or lose the Komets deserve our respect and unconditional support.
But come Thursday, like many of you folks, I will be sitting in the stands praying to the hockey gods for a win for the Komets. I will be dressed in my orange shirt and ugly black pants, orange colored fingernails and an orange hat. I will clutch my hands to my chest begging please just another goal. But in the end regardless of the result I will be cheering for the Fort Wayne Komets because ….
I BLEED ORANGE----- GO KOMETS!!!
Comments
Well written & spoken! I agree! LETS BLEED ORANGE & LETS GO KOMETS!
Well said..I've been saying the same thing all season. No matter what...I'll be there cheering them on! Let's rock the jungle tonight.
Win or lose, komets have had a successful 60th year. But, I really want to go to Kansas.
I guess I don't understand the context to which this is aimed. Hockey is a game. It isn't something that should change your life. Sure, fans are going to 'root" for their favorite team, maybe even provoke an emotion or two. Still, at the end, it is simply a win or a loss.
I don't view these guys as "heroes". The real heroes are those who sacrifice their lives for others. In this post, no doubt very sincere, the very players one would view as a "hero" today, will sometimes be skating against you the very next season. Are they "heroes" then?
Humaness? Have you ever booed a referee? If so, why? He's human too, right?
These guys get paid to play. Along with the pay they expect some interaction of sorts by the crowd. It comes with the territory. I know of no sport where great play won't be followed by loud cheers. By the same token, substandard play will be met by consternation. These guys aren't so tender that they can't take it. If accolades are accepted, then some criticism should be expected, too.
Only one team wins a "championship" each year. I'm not sure why anyone would think that a championship is all a so-called "true fan" expects. I expect the front office to do its utmost obtaining the best players it can. I expect the Coach to provide the direction so the players have the chance to win. Then, I expect the players to play to the best of their ability. Their goal is a championship. Win or lose, I will be a fan. Maybe we should give a participation trophy to all players so no one feels left out.
The post above reveals some sort of psychological need of the writer. Wear your orange and black. Cheer for your team, but don't preach to the flock about heroes, superheroes, humaness, and their feelings. Do you cheer when the Komets score a goal? Why? Maybe your cheering hurts the feelings of the opposing goaltender. He's human too.
Telling people how to be a "fan" is a thin tightrope to walk.
Many of us bleed orange. I'm glad you enjoy the games. Just don't let it affect your life. It is only a game, a past time, a form of entertainment. Nothing more, nothing less.
I agree, I also bleed ORANGE I feel that this was well stated. LETS GO KOMETS!!!!!
Alan, for just once in your life, just once, don't overanalyze everything.
Lets break Alan's analysis down:
First two words "I Guess"
I don't think i have to go any further.....
I know what Alan means in the sense that when I first heard that the neame of that old TV show regarding the Komets (and other sports?) was Heroes and Villains. I had never really thought of it quite in that sense. But it is true that announcers often refer to the opposing team as "evil" and "the bad guys", so I guess this is a common way of seeing things. I do think of the New England Patriots as evil, so there you go.
Not every year -- maybe once or twice in a lifetime -- a truly special team comes along. One that gives you something to believe in. One that makes you believe that anything is possible when you put your mind to it. One that's accomplishments make your own life seem even better just because you had the privilege of to watch them play. I suppose you could rightly call them heroes. Even if it is just a game.