My wife and I moved from western Pennsylvania to Colorado a little over a year ago, so this past Tuesday, while 350,ooo faithful descended on the capital of the Steeler Nation for a victory parade to welcome home the most storied and successful franchise in the NFL, I was heading to work in Denver. While those same Steelers faithful were bundled up against the wintry cold and the snow showers that day, it was 65 degrees & not a cloud in the sky here in the Mile High City. No, we’re not in Pittsburgh anymore, Toto.
Having lived in the very heartland of Steelers Country for so long, it came as a rude shock to move to a place where people actually root for another team. I have to give these folks in Colorado credit, they love their Broncos… but it seems as if all they have to hang onto are faded, past glories. The Steelers, on the other hand, have now won division, conference, and league championships in the 70s, 80s, 90s, and 2000s. Since 1969, the Steelers have had just three head coaches (Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Mike Tomlin). Each of those coaches has won the Super Bowl. While other teams measure success in winning seasons, in Pittsburgh the standard is Lombardi Trophies.
Living in western PA, you hear about this thing called the Steeler Nation, but it never really clicks. Living in Steelers Country, where Pittsburgh’s fortunes on the gridiron are much more important than such trivial matters as life and death, it only seems natural that the whole world would be Steelers fans. But then you move away and you realize people do in fact root for other NFL teams, and so for you to be a Steelers fan is now not just a way of life, it’s a matter of pride. You become determined to make the corner of the world where you now reside into a small part of the Steeler Nation. You still wear your Steelers jersey out & about and still cherish the flag of the Steeler Nation: the Terrible Towel.
I should have known the Super Bowl was in the bag as soon as the mayor of Phoenix pretended to blow his nose with a Terrible Towel and then threw it on the ground. You don’t mess with the Towel and get away with it. Just ask the Bengals, the Ravens, or the Titans. The Terrible Towel has been to the summit of Mt Everest and proudly displayed on the international space station. Steelers fans in the armed forces have taken it with them to Iraq and Afghanistan. No matter where the Steelers play across the country, it’s a given that there will always be a few (or more) Terrible Towels waving in the stands.
I took my Terrible Towel to the top of 14,259-foot Longs Peak (the northernmost 14er in Colorado & the highest peak in Rocky Mountain National Park) with me this past summer. I’ll never forget the smiles and delight of the other people on the summit as I dug into my pack and broke out the Towel. To a Steelers fan, the Terrible Towel is much more than just a piece of cloth; it is the outward symbol of hearts that will bleed black & gold until the day we die.
I was really homesick during the exciting run up to Super Bowl XLIII. I would’ve given anything to be in Pittsburgh this past Tuesday for the victory parade. For now, I’ll have to be satisfied with being a proud member of the Steeler Nation. After bagging Longs Peak last year, I'm making it a goal to climb a couple more 14ers each year that we live here in Colorado… and the Terrible Towel is going along with me to the summit of each one!
1 comment:
Hey Rich,
Your Aunt Shirley, by brother's mom-in-law, sent this to me, as I am a fellow ex pat. I guess the difference is that I live in New York, a city full of ex pats who are exes of all kinds of places. I offer two sources of comfort for you:
1. Remember that Pittsburgh is only the capital of Steeler Nation. You are still a citizen, and in fact you are a native (as opposed to those born-and-raised outside the capital—they're naturalized).
2. Build up your own naturalized citizenry. I have converted many a fan, especially this year, both by example (extremely passionate waving of the Terrible Towel in public places) and by persuasion and debate (i.e. trash talking). The best part is, you're the leader of this new Steeler Nation outpost. Plus, when you return to visit the capital of our great nation, you are received with the respect and welcoming arms of any diplomatic emissary who is advancing Steeler Nation's interests in the wider world.
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