Rally rags are all the rage for the Breen family
The orange rally rags have been all the rage in my home this
week as the San Francisco Giants continued their magical
season.
When we went to the second-to-last game of the season and the
Giants were one game away from clinching the National League West
Division title, we had high hopes of watching the celebration in
person.
Alas, the team lost, but we had a great time rooting them on
– and we each were given a plain, orange rally towel to wave
like fools whenever we want to exhort the team to success; or wipe
the sweat from our brow as they battle for every run. The towels
came in handy this week when a game got tight, which happened a
lot.
Rally rags are all the rage for the Breen family
The orange rally rags have been all the rage in my home this week as the San Francisco Giants continued their magical season.
When we went to the second-to-last game of the season and the Giants were one game away from clinching the National League West Division title, we had high hopes of watching the celebration in person.
Alas, the team lost, but we had a great time rooting them on – and we each were given a plain, orange rally towel to wave like fools whenever we want to exhort the team to success; or wipe the sweat from our brow as they battle for every run. The towels came in handy this week when a game got tight, which happened a lot.
My youngest son and my wife made sure that our supply of rally rags was on hand in the family room when the playoff games were on. We laughed at each other as we whirled the mini-towels above our heads when a Giants pitcher was making a two-strike pitch and yelled in unison when the pitch resulted in a strikeout – no doubt because fans like us were waving cheap dish towels while sitting on our couch.
It was a silly exercise, to be sure, but it felt good to have a rooting interest in something. It wasn’t as silly as the Atlanta fans incessantly waving foam tomahawks and doing a Native American chant to cheer on the Braves – wow, that’s irritating.
The love of sports teams is often passed from generation-to-generation. My dad grew up as a Giants and 49ers fan and so did I. Now, my two sons are doing the same.
We also like the Sharks (once the playoff start) and the Warriors (even though they are barely in the NBA). I converted my wife from being a Dodgers and Raiders fan after we started dating and she thanks me for it now – except for the small matter of the Niners playing horribly this year.
During Game 4 of the National League division series against the Atlanta Braves on Monday, my sons and I watched the first three innings at home, then committed to going to the gym for the middle three innings. We listened to the game on the radio while in transit to and from the gym, and we watched the game on the gym’s TV while we were there.
My wife joined us and we all kept an eye toward the screen as we went through our exercise rituals. When Cody Ross hit a home run to put the Giants ahead 1-0, I let out a yelp and quickly turned around to apologize to the room for my outburst.
The Braves quickly answered and we headed home hoping that our rally rags would do their job and bring San Francisco back. Sure enough, the little orange towels worked – or at least that’s what you tell yourself when you believe that an orange towel is going to influence the outcome of a professional sports contest. The Giants rallied and eventually won, sending them to the National League championship series against the Philadelphia Phillies starting this weekend.
We will put the towels away for a few days and then bring them out again when the games start. It makes no sense, and it makes perfect sense.
There’s something about your favorite team doing well that makes life better. Rooting for the Niners and Warriors can let a guy forget that feeling. It was nice recapturing it over these past couple of weeks and sharing it with the family.
A rally rag can wipe out years of frustration.
Adam Breen writes a blog at http://thebreenblog.blogspot.com and teaches newspaper and yearbook classes at San Benito High School. He is a reporter at The Pinnacle and former editor of the Free Lance.
