Thursday, February 03, 2005

What kind of fan are you?

This is basically an edited and updated reposting of something I wrote in the blogs in mid-December. At the time, I had been frustrated and mystified at some of the confabulated negativity of some of the bloggers on the Seattle PI site. The following was my pensive rant:


IMO there are four basic types of fans these days. I know there are probably several dozen subtypes, but for the sake of coherence, I will cover just the basic types:

1. DIEHARD FAN. Self explanatory, but for contrast this type of fan will root for their team (albeit quietly) even when their team is 0-16. They bleed their team's color, cheer a 8 yard completion on third and 10, etc.. They mentally circle dates on the calendar when their team will play a rival or a touchstone team. Either already has, or currently longs for, freinds that are fans of the same team. RESPECTS FANS OF OTHER TYPES AND EVEN OTHER TEAMS, BUT IS LOYAL TO THEIR TEAM TO THE BITTER END. Caught referring to the team as "we" more often than the other types. Not only knows of the players on the team but also 2nd, 3rd string and practice squad. For some unrelated reason if they have a pet, they spend time with it. They also tend to be the 'giver' in human relationships.

2. BANDWAGON FAN. May have freinds that are Diehards, but tend to 'jump on' or 'jump off' the teams' proverbial bandwagon almost entirely dependent on the W-L record of the team, but also effected by the comparison the record to perceived expectations. They can't tell you much about the history of the club or the players; they weren't there during the hard times. Because of this sometimes their analysis and insight into the team falls short, but their enthusiasm for the team is fun to watch. You'd swear they were bipolar. But the biggest difference between DIE HARD and BANDWAGON is one essential human quality: Loyalty. If BANDWAGON has a pet, they most often merely feed it and leave it in the yard. Usually the 'taker' in human relationships.

3. CLOSET FAN. Sort of a hybrid of BANDWAGON FAN and DIE HARD. They are unusual in that they jump on and off the bandwagon the same as the BANDWAGON fan but they are still loyal to the team like DIE HARD. They stop following the team when it becomes just too painful to watch them be continually trampled. They are still true to their first love, however, and never really bring themselves to even liking another team. They can't even follow the sport, the pain is so great, because it reminds them of their fallen heroes. This type has usually had some bad experiences with pets. Tends to yo-yo in human relationships.

4. ANTI-FAN. This sort of fan is the one I am recently becoming aware of. They are another offshoot of BANDWAGON but they deserve their own category, because of their unusual psychosis. They start out by tending to drift from team to team in a sport, jumping from one bandwagon to another, but they attatch themselves to their home team at some point, usually when expectations are high and they win a few games. What is interesting about this fan is they finally BEGIN to understand loyalty, and they get a taste of what the love of the home team is all about, but when the team loses a few games it really hits the fan.

They become internally conflicted. At this point with their former favorite teams they would normally have moved on; but when they try to do this with the home team, they realize the knawing hunger they have for community and camaraderie that come with rooting for the home team. They have not developed the maturity necessary to give support in a disappointing season, but now coupled with the desire to have the home team win, they implode. Instead of 'jumping ship' on the whole team they abandon, and even turn against, individuals in the organization that they would like to love.

They do this in a way that defies reason. In a particularly rabid manner, they find fault with people that are actually among the best at their postion and are responsible for the amount of success the team has had up to this point. They end up being in the ludicrous position of rooting AGAINST these people and will flame out on the message boards with horrible basesless takes whenever their team loses, and be mysteriously silent when the team wins. For this reason I will now call them ANTI-FAN.

For whatever reason, these people do not tolerate pets and have difficulty maintaining human relationships.

Sorry about the long post. I'm in a groove.

GO SEAHAWKS!

8 comments:

  1. Hey Bluefoot, You already know what I think of your post, so I won't heap any more praise on you as it may lead to a swelled head. (Still working on those double meanings). Anyway, since you asked people at the P-I, adn since I have already begun a site of my own, I would be highly amenable to collaborating with you in any way you would like.
    I think you're right that a collaborative work might be a better approach to doing this sort of thing.
    BTW, nice intro about the sasquatch, LOL!

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  2. Oh, I must ask as a favor, that you would check out my site as well, and let me know what you think. I'm open to criticism.

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  3. Sho, give me an example of bonehead coaching mistakes made by Rhodes or Holmgren. (refresh my memory) Seems to me Paul isn't in agreement with you're assessment of the coaches, Nor am I. I think they did a great job wit the tools they had this season, and I think Mike and the F.O. did an excellent job of working within the restaints Whitsitt put on them.

    And we all know I'm a 'dieharder'.(to answer the classification question)

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  4. Hey, can I be a Closet Die Hard fan? I don't necessarily jump on and off the bandwagon -- I tend to follow the 'Hawks even if it pains me. I made a brief appearance in the PI Hawks blog, but I'm too addicted to the M's to really continue to jostle my brain in both arenas.

    I can't name too many guys on the practice squad, but I can certainly tell tales of the days of John Yarno, Dr. Dan Doornink and Sam McCullum. I used to be a HUGE Hawks fan, but the M's took over that honor in the late 80's.

    I went to Jr high and high school with Chad Eaton (and my mother-in-law was his 6th grade teacher), got to meet both Largent and Zorn, my childhood idols, as well as Pete Gross. I was devistated when the Kingdome was imploded, moreso for my Seahawks memories than my M's memories, although that's a close call.

    Like the Sonics of late, though, I've merely kept the Sehawks in my peripheral vision, with my sole concentration on the M's. I do not pay much attention to any other team, other than trying to figure out where the Huards are (attended the cross-town rival high school), and another guy who married a gal I used to have a huge crush on in elementary school.

    So, I guess that makes me a Closet Diehard, and after reading your categories again, I'd have to lean closer to the Closet than the Diehard. But my heart bleeds about as blue and green as anything. Maybe not quite as thick as it should, though, as I was caught being able to slightly justify giving #80 to Rice (though it did tear a part of my heart out, too). Still, I found myself rooting for Christian Fauria in the Super Bowl, merely because he'd spent some time with the Hawks, and I can't not but love Hawks alum.

    Except for Bosworth, of course...

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  5. PositivePaul, It looks like I'm the flipside of you. Although you probable won't find he hunting down the Seahawks GM in an act of contrition, I feel about the Mariners like you feel about the Seahawks, and vice versa. You can call yourself whatever you want!

    Also, SHONUFF, I don't by any means mean to imply that a DIEHARD fan never criticizes their team. Plenty of them do. But it is evident to everyone they meet that they are very supportive of their team during hard times, especially when there are games to be played. If they sense that the players and coaches are giving their best, even in failure, they are much more understanding.

    They also still realistically look to improve their team's talent in the off season, always looking for ways to improve the team. This may mean cutting loose some players and coaches that drag the team down. But they don't call for their heads because of a little frustration. They are more enduring than most fans. That's why they are called DIE-HARD.

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  6. Sho I'll give you the time management one, but on theh lack of blitzing, we do blitz we just can't blitz three or four guys because of the inexperience at LB and teh secondary, if we blitz and don't get to the QB then we get burned on the pass, so yea you're right about the failure to get to the QB, but to say we don't blitz is inaccurate. Ray's defensive style is the same as the Eagles and the Pats, the difference is the experience their players have at reading the offense and getting to the gaps. Remember, our pass rushers we did have were out for a good part of the season this year, and last year half our D were either rookies or second year guys.

    And believe me there are plenty of other mistakes made by other coaches throughout the season. So to rag on Mike for good playcalling gone bad is silly to me, I mean at that point who'd have thought that our WRs would keep dropping balls, if they'd have caught those passes you'd be singing a different tune. Not to mention the fact that it was an inexperienced D that let the Rams score.

    And besides what do you want to do get rid of Mike and Ray? Who would you have replaced them with? We've rehashed al this a dozen times and to bring it all up again seems like a waste of time to me.

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  7. Sho, I'm pretty sure with all your' complaining, you never did answer anyone's questions about who to replace the Coaches with, I don't mind someone complaining if they have an answer or a solution, but to just rag on the coaches isn't very productive. After all, I could've been all over S.A. without any solutions to the problem(which is easy to do), but by having a reasonable solution to problem at least gives me a leg to stand on when arguing for his replacement. You on the other hand have not, I beleive, ever given a reasonable solution to your' Coaching complaints. Am I wrong? If so what were they?

    And I'm just curious, if Ray's scheme and performance are so lousy why is he still the Defensive coordinator? Why is he still considered one of the best at that job? I'm just curious.

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  8. Average? Pisspoor?

    Average, pisspoor teams don't get to the playoffs with WRs that can't catch and a defense made up of second and third stringers.

    But hey I guess I'm "jumpin' your' ass" so I'll stop now, wouldn't want you to think I was picking on you.

    I really don't remember you posting any viable Coaches as replacements. Could ya' do me a favor and name them again?

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