This week we start things off with the Rain City Brigade.
We caught up with founding member Mike Kruk, and he was gracious enough to do a very lengthy Q&A to help introduce his crew to the rest of the city.
We covered a tremendous amount of ground, so much in fact that I'm holding quite a bit of it back for now. It's my intention to visit a few specific issues in future postings that relate to the growing supporters movement, such as ticket prices, pub culture and stadium policies that are either helping or hindering the efforts of supporters to be at their best. Mike provided some great stuff from the RCB perspective, but for now we'll just stick with the introductions, the basics, the how do you do's. Be sure to revisit this blog as I bring those other important discussions forward later.
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JMFC: Tell us about the formation of your supporters club... how has your group grown over the past couple of seasons?
Mike: Basically we were a group well before our brand and name of Rain City Brigade came about. We were a core group of about 10-20 friends who have been going to VWFC games for many years now. It wasn't until the move to Empire where we decided to try to all get tickets together. This worked a bit, as there was a vast difference in the desired price, but wasn't perfect. Then again, once the move to BC Place came, we decided to once and for all move to one single section, that being 248 (VWFC FO gave us that section as it was the only lot available), and claim it as our own. We then came up with the name, designed a logo, and branded ourselves RCB.
The group officially began in 2010-2011 season with around 20 people. We are currently sitting around 125 members at the start of the 2013 season. Our growth is generally attributed to our organic approach to having fun and supporting the team; that being, meet up, drink beer, and see friends, all while supporting the team we love.
JMFC: What sort of factors do you think are driving that growth?
Mike: Driving our growth is two things. We are not about having a strict regiment for chants, etc. We chant what we want to chant, when we want to chant. No predetermined timings, no routine to follow, we just go off the vibe of the game and the crowd. The other force attracting people I believe is our brand. The idea behind the clothing/merch/etc that I designed is that I wanted to make something I would gladly wear anytime, not just at a Whitecaps game. Most of the initial members in the group are of a similar style, kind of old school east Vancouver punk rockers/skateboarders, so most of us don't wear jerseys or team colours as a fashion sense. The black and white colours, the themes of the logos, and the look of the merch more fit with our own personal style.
People who know what RCB is, will know it supports the VWFC, but if you don't know what RCB is and you see the logo, it encourages you to ask about it. This seems to attract people to the group and get people talking. Both are good traits of a logo design and brand.
JMFC: Supporters groups are congregating at a variety of locations around BC Place. What has been the match day reaction / response from non-members near your section? Do you reach out to them in any way ? Do you try to engage them in what you are doing, or do you just let those who are interested in your style of support come to you?
Mike: With our section, 248, it has been a mixed bag. We are on the cusp of the "supporters sections," and there is a soft line between 248/246 which is not defined by a staircase or anything. Occasionally this means we have to explain why were are not sitting down and why we are yelling like crazy. Nobody has really had a problem with it, we have just found a education gap there. This generally applies to one off tickets for the games, as to the season ticket holders in the section, they enjoy having us there (from what they have told us anyways). Within the first few games at BC Place people were asking us what we were about, so we would explain and invite them to our events at the bar before the match. Sometimes give them some free swag to make them feel included. It generally has been a success.
An interesting thing we have noticed, which I'm sure the other groups experience as well, is that after the halftime break, we always have a few dozen more people in our section. They just pile in and want in on the action. Sometimes they join up after, sometimes we never see them again. But everyone has fun.
JMFC: Each supporters group has its own style of support. What is unique about your group’s identity and personality that sets you apart from others at BC Place?
Mike: Well, I think we just are there to have a good time and support the team. We don't desire to be the largest group, or the oldest group, or even the group with the most flags, we just want to drink beer, have fun, and be with our friends. That, and our East Van edge, and the fact that we don't take ourselves too seriously make us a bit more unique then the other groups.
JMFC: You’ve been handed a magic wand. The instruction manual says “Wave this wand at BC Place, and 20,000 people will participate in ONE song or chant of your choice for 15 minutes.” What's your pick?
Mike: Another tough one. To be selfish, I'd like to see our "Goals" chant kick in one day [Editor's note: It's posted at the end of the article]. But in a real world, it would have to be to a chant that we don't have yet. As supporters for the team, all of the individual groups need to figure out a single chant that will raise the spirits of anyone who hears it, make them want to join in and will invoke fear into the visiting team and fans. Seattle has their "Take em all," Portland has their "Portland Boys," and we don't have anything really yet.
This will be a difficult endeavour until all the supporter groups for the VWFC come together and create an over-arching name for team supporters. We can keep our own names, our own brand, etc, but we need some kind of singular name to represent the VWFC supporters, and this is where the decision by the FO needs to be influenced.
My personal first place winner for what song to use is The Exploited - "What You Gonna Do." Great old-school Scottish punk band if you don't know them.
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Thanks to Mike and everyone at RCB for bringing the noise at BC Place. They've been a great asset to the betterment of match day atmosphere, and I'm personally looking forward to singing my guts out alongside them during Cascadia awaydays.
If you're looking for more info about the RCB, I suggest visiting their Facebook page or following @raincitybrigade on Twitter.
Now here's that chant Mike is hoping will catch on... it's catchy, it's recognizable and it has great potential if Whitecaps fans give themselves permission to have a little fun once in a while. There's a YouTube video underneath to give you a sense of the tune.
Cheers,
@johnniemonster
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