A British visitor once declared that Chad's Fish and Chips were the most authentic he had tasted anywhere in the US. What is not British is the singular enthusiasm Chad has for the Oakland Raiders, an American football team. The photo of the back wall, above, shows only a fraction of the team paraphernalia on display at Chad's. A former Raider has even stopped in a few times. As you can see, if they are playing in a game, you can be sure it will be on the widescreen TV for the dining area, as well as on another in the kitchen. His devotion spans decades, to a time when they were one of the leading teams in the nation, and when their on and off-field reputation was notoriously wild. I'm not a follower of the sport, but even I can figure out they weren't doing too well against New England the day I snapped this. Times have changed, but loyal Chad has not.
9 comments:
Great shot, E. I'm still not used to the Raiders being located in Oakland!
You mean they were located someplace else? 6^) They won the Superbowl when I was a teenager in Sacramento, so even non-football fans were aware of them in the region. A rather small male friend of mine was in Oakland watching their victory parade that year, and John Matuszak pulled him from the sidewalk, lifted him by his chest/neck, and swung him around as a celebratory gesture! I'll bet Ken tells his kids that story now.
I'm not a football fan of any kind,but that's a pretty impressive display!
Now that's fan-aticism!
Bibi and Hilda - When the weather is better, he flies a Raiders emblem flag outside, along with the American flag. He is a FAN.
Did he remain a fan on their sojourn south, or was he boycotting?
Kris - I can't imagine he boycotted.
I think, in ancient times, they were the LA Raiders. Is that the sojourn south?
Your photo conveys the fan obsession. I've never been a rabid fan of anything, although I understand devotion.
P - Check Wikipedia. My memories of the Raiders go back to before they temporarily went to Los Angeles. Their true home and birthplace is Oakland. Los Angeles had a team called the Rams back in those days, with the cutest helmets in the sport, but cute helmets weren't enough to keep them alive, apparently.
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