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View Full Version : do you think its a good idea to meet our heros?



murfsteve25
01-13-2013, 01:22 PM
Most of us have favorite athletes and had childhood heros while growing up. Watching them as we were kids, these heros were untouchable. They werent regular people like you and i are. They were so much more. Watching them on tv or at ball games, we couldnt get close to them back in the day like we can today with social media and internet and things like that. We couldnt read about their every move whenever they werent on the playing field, basically what im saying is its almost like their life was mysterious. We idolized them but we knew little about them. We couldnt get close. Do you think we should meet our heros? Or should we keep it mysterious, keep them in that untouchable hierarchy? What would happen if we met them, and for whatever reason that experience completely tarnished how we felt about them? Its known on this board that i am a huge fan of David Justice, to me he is untouchable. To me, as a kid i thought he was more of a superhero. I idolized him and watched every game i could just to see him play. During his at-bats, i didnt move from in front of the televison. At live games, id watch his every move. Studying everything. Never even dreamed of one day interacting with him on twitter or anything else. I did have the opportunity once to get his autograph once after a game, and that was one of the happiest moments while growing up. That signed baseball is priceless to me and i consider it a treasure. I would hate for all of those memories to be tarnished and find dissapointed, so im happy keeping the distance and him remaining untouchable in my eyes. Anyone else agree or dissagree?

frikativ54
01-13-2013, 02:09 PM
Great topic. It's a tough thing, because we cannot control the outcome of our encounter. We look up to these people as heroes, yet they can sometimes behave like anything but. I actually had some good experiences meeting my childhood hero, Jeff Bagwell. I met him in Houston when I was in seventh grade and even got belated Happy Birthday wishes. Later that year, we were eating in an Arizona restaurant after an extra innings Astros' vs. D-Backs game, when there were rumors that Bagwell was there.

Sure enough, at a table not too far away were both Bagwell and Brad Ausmus. My Dad took me up to meet Baggy, told him how big of a fan I was, and I explained to him how much he meant to me and high-fived him for his home run in the game. While I didn't have too much to say to him, that was the single most meaningful moment I've ever had with an athlete. He treated me like a fellow human being, and that meant so much to me. The next day at the park, Bagwell signed for both me and my brother; it was a great experience. And I will never forget it.

However, I've had some poor experiences with players I looked up to. Growing up in Seattle, I was always a huge Randy Johnson fan. We had season tickets, and I would check the schedule to make sure I was at the Kingdome whenever the Big Unit pitched. However, after RJ was traded to Houston in 1998, we were in AZ for the Astros' vs. D-Backs series, and Randy was doing a special for a TV station.

He was signing autographs, when my Dad said, "Randy, we miss you in Seattle!" Dead silence. So my Dad repeated it. Johnson shot back, rudely, "Okay, I hear you, alright." My father's comment, without RJ's response, made it on TV. However, Johnson was livid and made sure to not sign any autographs for me, my Dad, or my brother. While seeing the Big Unit pitch was one of the highlights of my youth, I have never been able to collect Randy Johnson. Even when I could have had one of his jerseys for $400 at the Mariners' sale, I couldn't even bring myself to go to Safeco and buy one.

I would love to read others' thoughts on whether we should meet our heroes.

coxfan
01-13-2013, 08:57 PM
A related thought concerns what to do if you unexpectedly run into a famous athlete. My wife and I live right by the University of SC campus, so such casual encounters are not uncommon. For example, I recently saw Cal Ripken Jr sitting with family at a fall baseball practice here, watching his son Ryan who's an incoming freshman. I also recently found myself standing behind Marcus Lattimore, who was a Heisman hopeful before his injury, in a soda line at a sub sandwich place by campus.

Sterling Sharpe, who starred here before the NFL, stood next to me briefly at a softball game. Steve Spurrier has sat near us a couple of times at Women's basketball games, after the Bowls are over. And there have been several others, including Alex English, who sat in the next booth at an IHOP near us.

My general rule has been to respect their privacy, but make occasional exceptions. I couldn't resist shaking Ripken's hand, but left him alone thereafter. I didn't bother Lattimore or Sharpe, respecting their privacy. Sometimes just a friendly wave will do, and is usually returned. But famous folks are people too, and like to enjoy their games or meals like the rest of us.

godwulf
01-14-2013, 11:13 AM
Growing up in Seattle, I was always a huge Randy Johnson fan. We had season tickets, and I would check the schedule to make sure I was at the Kingdome whenever the Big Unit pitched. However, after RJ was traded to Houston in 1998, we were in AZ for the Astros' vs. D-Backs series, and Randy was doing a special for a TV station.

He was signing autographs, when my Dad said, "Randy, we miss you in Seattle!" Dead silence. So my Dad repeated it. Johnson shot back, rudely, "Okay, I hear you, alright." My father's comment, without RJ's response, made it on TV. However, Johnson was livid and made sure to not sign any autographs for me, my Dad, or my brother. While seeing the Big Unit pitch was one of the highlights of my youth, I have never been able to collect Randy Johnson. Even when I could have had one of his jerseys for $400 at the Mariners' sale, I couldn't even bring myself to go to Safeco and buy one.

I've already told my R.J. story on this board a couple of times, so I won't repeat it here. Suffice it to say, my best advice for anyone to whom Randy Johnson is a particular hero: go out of your way not to meet him in person. Ever.

I think one important thing to remember about meeting your heroes is that they are flesh and blood human beings - and you're not guaranteed to get them on a "good day". I love Matty Williams, and have had an opportunity to interact with the man probably twenty or more times in the past fifteen years. He can be warm and chatty, respectful and friendy, but there were a couple of times when he was cold as ice - not rude, just no human reaction whatsoever. If I'd only ever gotten the chance to meet him one time, and he was like that, I'd probably be really bummed out.

coxfan
01-14-2013, 04:35 PM
Some simple rules for any encounter:

1) Keep it very brief, smile, and be polite. Avoid gushing, and minimize interrupting something they're actively doing. Don't violate personal space of them or people with them.

2) Smile and speak to the people with them. A common complaint of spouses or family of the famous is that they're treated as though they don't exist, even when they're sitting right there.