The signs at both entrances at the erstwhile Celebrity Sports Center in Denver made it clear: No Oakland Raider paraphernalia.
Did the center management ban caps and jerseys touting the San Diego Chargers or Seattle Seahawks, at the time rivals of the Denver Broncos?
Now I say “erstwhile” because it used to be called “Celebrity,” and as I recall, traded that word for “Family,” and now, who knows? The massive entertainment center on Colorado Boulevard might not even exist anymore, but the sentiment still wafts.
Let me explain:
The center was a draw for families. When my three sons were younger — long before the “chip” made everything computerized — we’d drive to Denver twice a year, where all of us (except my wife Bonnie, who’d spend her time reading some Victorian novel), would break loose. We’d score higher than Obama on any of the 40 bowling lanes. But most of all, we liked the hands-on feel of holding a real basketball or tossing a series of wooden balls down a small lane in a game called “Ski-Bowl.”
Remember, that was before the Wii, X-Box or other hand-held video games became standard issue in most families.
Last week, a full generation later, we took three grandchildren to Missouri for an outing. Master of anything that makes a statement, I recently acquired a low-numbered Highlands University license plate, but because it was lonesome, I got a “Raiders No. 1 Fan” plate to go in front.
My grandson and namesake, who’s aware that my team has lost its bad-boy, bully reputation since it won its last Super Bowl in the ‘80s, asked whether it was wise to be driving a car with a Raiders plate in a state like Missouri, where Kansas City Chiefs fans consider the Raiders chopped liver, or worse, menudo.
Truth be told, I thought about that, even wondering whether a couple of strips of broad opaque tape would conceal my team preference. One thing’s for sure: My car would have been in grave danger had I taken it, with plate, to Denver, where being a Raider-Hater is a way of life.
We spent several days in Missouri, without incident, although I admit parking the car in ways that made the Raider plate less conspicuous.
Nothing happened to my plate or car. That bit of (in)action reminded me of the Vietnam-era movie, “What if They Gave a War and Nobody Came?” Was I looking for trouble, expecting someone to take umbrage at the Raider plate? Or it could be as my e-mail friend Ben Moffett says about my team: They’ve lost their tough-guy mystique.
He explains, “It’s better to forget the Oakland Raiders. The wrong-side-of-the-tracks team you and I loved because they were hated, sadly no longer exists.”
Give up my Raiders and become what? A Dallas fan? I’d rather stick my nostrils together with Crazy Glue.
But Ben is right. They’re pitied a lot but not hated as much as in the past. A supreme put-down often involved the Raiders. Remember Karnac the Magnificent, the “seer” aka Johnny Carson, who could provide answers to questions not yet asked? If he got jeered or if an answer failed to get any audience reaction, Karnac would issue a general insult. One was, “May your only son lose his life’s savings in a yak palimony suit.”
The best, in my mind, dealt with the team I love, the Raiders. Karnac said, “May you enter your wife’s bathroom and discover 50 toothbrushes, all belonging to different members of the Oakland Raiders.”
• • •
Rivalries are fine, but fans cross the line when they put down youngsters. The annual Punt, Pass and Kick competition, open to teens, gives young ones their 60 seconds of fame, where they’re introduced to a national audience.
But invariably, some boorish people in the stands who don’t happen to like the team that sponsors one of the winners razz the children.
Last year, 14-year-old Amy Grant, a freshman from New Hampshire, brought out the boo-birds, solely because she wore the jersey of her sponsors, the New England Patriots. Some Pats-hating Indianapolis Colts fans jeered the young girl.
It’s sad that fan(atics) find it even tolerable to boo and hoot at youngsters. For that matter, why should anyone boo anyone anyway? To her credit, Amy disarmed the booers by just smiling and remaining calm through the ceremony.
• • •
Does the word “petty” come to mind, in light of the decision of Las Vegas Fiesta members to halve the $500 scholarship awarded to Carmela Montoya, the 2009 crowned fiesta queen? The rationale for awarding only half of the already-paltry amount? They claim she failed to participate in all the events expected of royalty.
I believe the move is punitive. Her reasons for not being able to participate in every event are detailed in Monday’s Optic. It’s not as if throngs of girls were vying for the award.
The $250 just might buy Carmela a couple of books at the college bookstore. Let’s remember this is not the 1950s, when $500 would pay for a year’s tuition, fees and books. Maybe some reader will pitch in the $250 so Carmela doesn’t have to struggle so much.
Wouldn’t it be great?
A footnote with a local angle: Remember when Carla Garrett, Santa Fe High, reached the regionals of the Pass, Punt, and Kick competition BEFORE there was a separate girls competition? She later became an NCAA national champion in the shot and discus fpr Arizona, an Olympian in the disc in Barcelona, and a world champion weightlifter. Her father: Carl Garrett who played football at Highlands and for the Boston Patriots and beat out O.J. Simpson in one competition for rookie of the year. Carla also averaged 28 points a game for the SF Demons in basketball. Thanks for the quote, Art. It’s nice to be recognized by my favorite columnist, and the only one I read regularly.
A footnote with a local angle: Remember when Carla Garrett, Santa Fe High, reached the regionals of the Pass, Punt, and Kick competition BEFORE there was a separate girls competition? She later became an NCAA national champion in the shot and discus fpr Arizona, an Olympian in the disc in Barcelona, and a world champion weightlifter. Her father: Carl Garrett who played football at Highlands and for the Boston Patriots and beat out O.J. Simpson in one competition for rookie of the year. Carla also averaged 28 points a game for the SF Demons in basketball. Thanks for the quote, Art. It’s nice to be recognized by my favorite columnist, and the only one I read regularly.