By Josh:
At first glance it can be easy to mix up one stereotypical fan with another. At first glance a bandwagon fan may appear to be a loyal long time. The spouse of a fan may appear to almost be a casual fan to enjoy their time at the ball park. Today’s stereotypical fan can easily be misidentified as a ‘Drunk Fan’ if you don’t pay close enough attention to the fact that they haven’t even touched alcohol all game long.
Today’s stereotypical fan is THE CRAZY FAN!!!
Now let me begin by saying the crazy fan can become even crazier with alcohol but their craziness is evident even when they are sober.
The Crazy Fan is the guy (or girl but let’s be honest it is usually a guy), who thinks that the wave should start in the first inning and never stop until the game is over. They are the ones that try and start every chant in the game.
The Crazy Fan is normally the source of energy for the fans in the stadium. Not only are they not afraid to make a fool of themselves, which they do throughout the game, they are just flat out excited to be at a game.
Energy like that is infectious. Sports fans go to games to have a good time and laughing, yelling at umpires and screaming their lungs out to cheer on their team are often parts of that.
Having been to numerous games where the fans are barely living it is nice to have a source of energy and excitement in the crowd. If I wanted to go to a boring and silent sporting event I would get tickets to a cricket match. (Is cricket even considered a sport in America?)
A lot of Crazy fans don’t realize that they are the crazy fan. So here are some questions you can ask yourself to see if you fall into the crazy fan category.
- Do you have a pregame ritual to get yourself psyched up?
- Is the first pitch of a game your cue to stand up and start you taunting of the visiting team?
- Do you ever yell the phrase ‘you da man’ to players each time they get a hit?
- Do you have special game apparel that you have to wear to every game you attend to help you prepare for the game?
- When you look around the stadium during a game are you unable to find a crazy fan? (Hint it might be because YOU are the crazy fan)
- When you make a fool of yourself at a baseball game do you just brush it off because you’re having fun?
If you answered yes to even two of these questions you are probably at least bordering on the Crazy Fan level. It isn’t a bad thing, just remember keep it fun for everyone.
Previous posts in the fan series:
The ‘I never played but I’m good enough to play in the majors’ fan