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Post by Vice honcho room temperature on Feb 5, 2013 13:53:10 GMT -5
... before you were born or old enough to appreciate mean to you? I know in my three sports fandoms I have three different ways to look at Devils I saw all three wins, Mets I wasn't around for both of them and the Vikings haven't won it all ever.
I think the fact they won at least one means I don't get as angry as I do when the Vikings don't win one. Of course my father's angst over the Vikings winlessness gets transferred to me. But other wise I guess its nice history.
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Post by Red Impact on Feb 5, 2013 13:57:33 GMT -5
Nothing, really. If I wasn't around or can't remember appreciating it, it really doesn't affect my enjoyment.
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BRV
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Wants him some Taco Flavored Kisses.
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Post by BRV on Feb 5, 2013 14:00:24 GMT -5
Largely, to me personally, they don't mean squat.
Yes, the Boston Celtics have 17 NBA Championships are are considered the pinnacle of professional basketball, but before 2008, all I knew about Celtics glory was a bunch of cloth hanging from the rafters of TD Garden. They were the dregs of the league, a perennial embarrassment, for the large majority of my existence prior to the 2008 NBA Finals.
That's why I was so irritated when people were trying to bemoan how excited some Celtics fans were getting in the 2008 playoffs, because the franchise had 16 previous championships. A large portion of the fan base either wasn't around or was too young to remember any of those championships, so to them, it was a huge deal because it was something they'd never before experienced.
I can't really pop in a DVD of a Celtics game from 1984 and get all wistful and emotional because I wasn't around for it. I've heard tall tales and stories about Bill Russell and Bob Cousy and Larry Bird, but I never saw them in their heyday, so to me, it's just stories.
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StuntGranny®
Bill S. Preston, Esq.
Not Actually a Granny
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Post by StuntGranny® on Feb 5, 2013 14:01:19 GMT -5
Nothing, really. If I wasn't around or can't remember appreciating it, it really doesn't affect my enjoyment. Yeah, same here. I suppose I'm happy they won something, but overall, it really doesn't affect me.
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Post by DiBiase is Good on Feb 5, 2013 14:03:39 GMT -5
It means a lot to me. It's part of your teams heritage and you should be proud of it. It can however be a burden, especially when your team is measured by their winning past and they fall short of those standards.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2013 14:03:52 GMT -5
I wasn't around to see the Oilers dynasty when they were one of the best dynasties in sport history or had some of the best single seasons in sports history. I guess it means quite a bit for a dirty small redneck city that not a lot of people know about had some rich history in the past. It also depresses me that its a stick most likely I'll never see in my lifetime and always continue celebrating mediocrity. Like the best version of the team I've ever saw was a 8th place team in a unlikely game 7 SCF or a team that once finished 7th in the western conference.
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Post by BayleyTiffyCodyCenaJudyHopps on Feb 5, 2013 14:06:30 GMT -5
The two Cardinal world championships I was alive to see obviously have the biggest impact on me, but prior to 2006 I felt a sense of pride in the previous 9 mainly out of interest in the history of my favorite team.
The 1982 Cards were especially fascinating for me because 1) it was Ozzie's (my favorite player as a kid) first year in St. Louis, and 2) because of their success with next to no power in their lineup. They were the Little Mac/Rey Mysterio of MLB at the time.
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Post by Munkie91087 on Feb 5, 2013 14:07:02 GMT -5
I think if you're a long term fan of a team, it's important to honor the past. I never saw the Steelers 4 Super Bowl titles or Pirates 5 World Series titles, but they still mean something to me as fans of those teams. By comparison I've been alive for all 3 of the Penguins Stanley Cup wins. (Though I was pretty young during the first two.)
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Post by Vice honcho room temperature on Feb 5, 2013 14:07:30 GMT -5
The two Cardinal world championships I was alive to see obviously have the biggest impact on me, but prior to 2006 I felt a sense of pride in the previous 9 mainly out of interest in the history of my favorite team. The 1982 Cards were especially fascinating for me because 1) it was Ozzie's (my favorite player as a kid) first year in St. Louis, and 2) because of their success with next to no power in their lineup. They were the Little Mac/Rey Mysterio of MLB at the time. Thinks of the Cardinals wearing red fat shirts.
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Bo Rida
Fry's dog Seymour
Pulled one over on everyone. Got away with it, this time.
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Post by Bo Rida on Feb 5, 2013 14:24:06 GMT -5
Despite my club being around since 1871 we barely won anything before I was born and have never won anything that's considered a major title (winning the top flight, FA Cup, League cup or anything in Europe). As a result the handful of third tier titles and defunct cups we won before I was born don't mean much to me when taken individually (obviously the ones we've won since I've been following do).
Our history in general means more, from personal attachment like multiple generations of my family going to Elm Park to stories about Robin Friday (drinking in the pub five minutes before kick-off and rushing over to make the start of the game) to more serious things like our players that fought and died in WW1.
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Post by darbus alan on Feb 5, 2013 14:33:42 GMT -5
The Yankees' legacy means a hell of a lot to me. I can hear my dad tell stories of how he got to see a lot of the greats like Berra, Mantle, Maris, and Ford play in their primes.
That and I'm a history nerd so I like studying the legacies of these teams like the Murderer's Row and Bronx Zoo teams.
Also knowing the Giants' past legacy of greatness in the pre-Super Bowl era made their suckiness through a lot of the 90's a lot more bearable.
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salz4life
Grimlock
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Post by salz4life on Feb 5, 2013 14:43:43 GMT -5
1908 was a long time ago.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2013 14:58:46 GMT -5
As a younger Boston fan they sadly do not mean to much. We just had a decade where all four major sports had at least one championship win. I know as I get older I will look at my childhood as an amazing sports time. I do wish I was older then to appreciate it as much as I do now (its hit me more over the last few years).
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darthalexander
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Post by darthalexander on Feb 5, 2013 15:03:21 GMT -5
It means a lot to me. It's part of your teams heritage and you should be proud of it. It can however be a burden, especially when your team is measured by their winning past and they fall short of those standards. You should see what it's like in Montreal. Many are horrified that we've gone 20 years without a Cup. Jean Beliveau once said (after the team hadn't won the Cup in about 2 years when he was a player) that it was unacceptable and that the team needed to get back in gear to please the fans. Naturally they did, but if those people thought 2 years was bad....they should see it now. I always take pride in the fact that we stopped the Flyers in the 70s. I find that more awesome than the "too many men on the ice" game against Boston.
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TCM
Don Corleone
The Outcome Justifies Even the Biggest Lie
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Post by TCM on Feb 5, 2013 16:26:09 GMT -5
It hurt more in 2006 for me knowing that we had the chance to add another Super Bowl victory next to the 1985 Bears win, but lost it. I personally dislike having to look back at past success when it starts to build up, I will forever appreciate them (although say in the Bulls dynasty, I didn't as much considering I was growing up around that time), but it always stings when we have to wait "One more year". Sure, White Sox and Blackhawks won before the 2000s ended, but surely we could have had more during their respective droughts?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2013 16:46:58 GMT -5
For me, 2002 was the first time any Boston/New England sports team won a Championship. I know it happened a long time ago, but that was the first one that meant anything to me.
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Post by tigermaskxxxvii on Feb 5, 2013 17:19:03 GMT -5
Largely, to me personally, they don't mean squat. Yes, the Boston Celtics have 17 NBA Championships are are considered the pinnacle of professional basketball, but before 2008, all I knew about Celtics glory was a bunch of cloth hanging from the rafters of TD Garden. They were the dregs of the league, a perennial embarrassment, for the large majority of my existence prior to the 2008 NBA Finals. That's why I was so irritated when people were trying to bemoan how excited some Celtics fans were getting in the 2008 playoffs, because the franchise had 16 previous championships. A large portion of the fan base either wasn't around or was too young to remember any of those championships, so to them, it was a huge deal because it was something they'd never before experienced. I can't really pop in a DVD of a Celtics game from 1984 and get all wistful and emotional because I wasn't around for it. I've heard tall tales and stories about Bill Russell and Bob Cousy and Larry Bird, but I never saw them in their heyday, so to me, it's just stories. I'm the same. The Celtics won their 16th title when I was 3 years old. So from the time I was a toddler/pre-schooler until the time I was a senior in high school (the year the Pats won Super Bowl XXXVI) Boston was in the the s***er. Well, actually '86 was a good sports year for Boston, it began with The Pats appearing in the Super Bowl (albeit in a losing effort), that Spring/Summer The Celtics win NBA Title #16, and The Boston Red Sox lost to The Mets in the World Series. But from the time the ground ball went through Buckner's legs until Vinatieri kicked it through the uprights we were in the s***er (all we had in the 90's was The '96-96 New England Patriots winning the AFC Title and the movie Celtic Pride ) and any previous dominance was nothing but tall tales from old timers to me. I'm a big history buff (I even have a B.A. in the subject) so while I can appreciate those past championships for their historical value there's nothing like the experience of your team winning a championship in real time. Watching old footage of Bobby Orr flying across the ice after winning the '71 Stanley Cup is cool and all, but it doesn't have that adrenaline rush of when I watched the Bruins win it all in 2011 because the outcome is in doubt unlike looking back on history and those championships have already been determined.
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Post by HMARK Center on Feb 5, 2013 18:26:32 GMT -5
As a history teacher/masters student/nerd, a team's history means a lot to me, even if I wasn't there for it. Will it always effect me the same as stuff I can remember? Not necessarily, but I still enjoy it.
For me, a lot of it has to do with the formation of a "fan culture" that springs up around a team. Very often a fandom's culture springs up around those moments of success, though it's often influenced by long periods of failure, as well. They're all important, from day one through today. I like to tell myself that I'm not just a fan of certain teams "just because", but that those fan cultures have an impact on me and draw me in to cheer for or boo against a team.
That said, no, I don't exactly walk around crowing about the Mets winning the World Series in 1969. It's what made dealing with Yankees fans so infuriating while I was growing up, having to hear about all their world titles when the only ones any of my peers and I had been alive for happened in the 90's/2000's (a dynasty run, I'll grant you).
But again, for the history and culture involved, I do feel some level of connection with those moments, even if I wasn't alive/way too young during them.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2013 18:47:14 GMT -5
Having been too young to really remember anything the Bulls did in the 90's, it's saddening that Chicago hasn't won much of anything except minor league hockey. (3 of which I witnessed)
So when the Hawks won the Cup in 2010, I was ecstatic. I witnessed a real rebirth of a team that was a laughing stock then to a real force to be reckoned with now.
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Post by BayleyTiffyCodyCenaJudyHopps on Feb 5, 2013 19:10:07 GMT -5
The two Cardinal world championships I was alive to see obviously have the biggest impact on me, but prior to 2006 I felt a sense of pride in the previous 9 mainly out of interest in the history of my favorite team. The 1982 Cards were especially fascinating for me because 1) it was Ozzie's (my favorite player as a kid) first year in St. Louis, and 2) because of their success with next to no power in their lineup. They were the Little Mac/Rey Mysterio of MLB at the time. Thinks of the Cardinals wearing red fat shirts. Ok, so they were the 1996-2005 Rey Mysterio.
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