by Ethan Johnson
June 4, 2007

Warning: Lonnnnnnng entry. Sorry!

Number one question asked between the hours of 3:00pm and 7:00pm yesterday: "What's that smell?" Number one answer: "Houston." A bunch of the FCD faithful chartered a bus and made the trek southward. I'm pretty trashed after an early morning into a late night, so I'm going to keep the observational stuff to a minimum and get right to the photos, as there are several. Let's get to it, then:

• After seeing a road game in Houston, I am fully prepared to kiss the hot cement of Pepperoni Park. Much nicer venue, cooler police, and more rational security. Considering how "flipping the bird" got our security detachment riled up, I don't even want to know what happens if a smoke bomb goes off. Homeland Security and the Patriot Act surely factor into that equation.
• Houston fans, or the petulant brats seated to my right, are THE MOST fair-weather fans on the planet. Dallas scored first (way at the other end of the field, so I don't have much in the way of details other than: ball went in the net, and I/we went batshit insane), and the formerly mouthy Houston brats sat down and silently pouted. Seriously... I could have landed a plane on those bottom lips. Pout pout pout.
• Houston tied the score a bit later, returning the wind to the Houston crowd's sails. They don't seem to have the "support your team through thick and thin" thing down yet. Our section provided the example for the rest of 'em, should they be inspired to follow suit.
• I won't be able to attend the FCD/Houston game in Frisco at the end of June, so that put me over the top to make the bus trip. I was expecting a majorly defensive battle in the nets at both ends - Dario Sala for FCD, and Pat Onstad for Houston. I hate Houston, but I respect Onstad. Naturally, because I had higher expectations for the game Onstad managed to get ejected for a dirty hit on Arturo Alvarez. Arguments are being passed back and forth today as to whether it was a plain dirty play or smart tactical decision, but either way Onstad got ejected, and FCD was not able to capitalize on the man-up advantage.
• I don't particularly want to make a habit of naming names when I do my observational stuff specifically regarding the fans, but there is a guy named Harlan who is a member of the Inferno (one of the FCD support groups that put together the bus trip) and represents the kind of fan your team needs to attract to achieve some sort of legitimacy. This is a dicey observation but I'll do my best to spell this out. (And I mean no disrespect to any of the other FCD fans.) Harlan is a big dude, with a boomy voice and zero quit in him. If you get Harlan to chant [whatever], the team WILL hear it. Lots of people lend their voices to the chants and songs, but I can tell when Harlan is "on board" and when he isn't. I think back to Northwestern the year before their nearly miraculous Rose Bowl season in the 1990s. Acres of empty stands, and only the hardcore alums showed up but so sparsely as to not have come to the game at all. Then Northwestern went to the Rose Bowl, and the year after out came the face paint, the funky outfits, the air horns, the chanting, and some semblance of fan unity. But no "Harlan". The not winning bowl games thing didn't help, but the last time I ever saw a Northwestern home game the crowd was thinning out again and the visiting team had a shot at making the atmosphere seem more like a home game - for them. Dig? Anyway, I was glad that FCD has a Harlan, and hope that they don't take stuff like that for granted.
• Sure, it was a long bus trip and a longer day, but it was a pretty good bonding experience, and though I didn't put myself "out there" to the extent that I imagined I would, it was cool to put more names with faces and be part of a dedicated group that made the trek to show support for FCD. I saw a lot of bewilderment on the faces of Houston folk as we marched into the stadium and into our section because - say it with me - they're THE MOST fair-weather fans on the planet. Get 'em back on the 30th, FCD!

Now the photos, of which there are many.

Our bus was almost like an airplane, except it doesn't leave the ground. Some views fore and aft as the fans climbed aboard:

Mister "we're leaving at 9:30am SHARP" breezes in at, uh, 10:20am. Not that anyone gave him any grief or anything.

This is how we roll(ed):

An emissary from the evil Houston contingent makes contact with our group before the game:

We actually got a police escort to the stadium. Fortunately nothing bad happened but I am advised that the potential for violence and so forth is actually pretty high when FCD fans travel to Houston.

Dario Sala always shows appreciation for the fans, both home and away:

I managed to get a rare shot of Dario kicking a ball. Normally he has his back to us or is too far away to get a clear zoom shot.

The rumors are true: Introducing my first sighting of a Juan Toja wig:

Here come the Hoops:

Houston gets streamered (amazingly, that is one of the few things Houston security didn't care about):

Typical Houston jerks flipping us the bird, moments before they were tackled to the ground by the fuzz and sent to Gitmo:

The real Juan Toja:

Pablo Ricchetti hustling for the ball:

Free kick by Houston:

Bobby Rhine in-game action:

Pat Onstad, the Houston goalie:

Free kick by FCD:

Charlie represents FCD through thick and thin, and shows up the fair-weather fans of the Dynamo after the game:

Our side, beaten but united.

OK, I have to update my "to do" list. I met Shaka Hislop, bringing the count up to "one" in the column labeled "number of pro soccer players that I have met who played in the World Cup".

Despite my bashing, I mean... truth-spewing, some of the Houston fans "got it" and made an effort to talk to us. This woman went so far as to approach us after the game to see how we were doing. There's a dim light of hope somewhere, so appreciate it when you see it.

Michael Hitchcock, President and General Manager of FCD. It's not every day that one gets the opportunity to meet someone at that level of a pro sports organization, that is, unless the team is FCD.

A contingent of Trinidad/Tobago fans came out to see Shaka. He hung around for a while and made sure they all got their pictures and autographs. Very cool.

Dominic Oduro, I presume. BTW, that's Harlan on the right:

Alex Yi after the game. Yes indeed, I met most of the starters after the game, which was an unexpected bonus.

Kenny Cooper (obvious) and Dax McCarty (obscured at right):

Pablo Ricchetti and Dario Sala. I was amazed that Pablo shook my hand, and as he did he drooped his shoulders and said, "I'm sorry." As with everyone I said "good game", because hey, they tried. If Pablo looks bummed in this photo, it's not just the sun, he was really droopy. And how can he be droopy when he is posing for a photo with "Facial Gal" from the Inferno forums?

Juan Toja, another hand I didn't expect to shake yesterday. Another humble, cool guy.

Coach Steve Morrow (center), flanked by Bobby Rhine. (Thanks to Travis for the positive ID.)

How FCD rolls. Apparently our bus was the decoy. Great!

So: Who is going with me to the next home game on June 9? <EM>

(Much, much more virtual ink has been spilled by me about Major League Soccer. The fledgling but growing MLS article archive may be found here.)