What is a bandwagon fan, anyway?

[ms_sox]

I see the term bandied about in derogatory fashion, and I think I know what people mean...ie, fans who only like teams when winning and 'jump ship' when they're losing. But sometimes I see people use it in a way that seems to mean ... anyone who hasn't been a fan since a certain year, or has only been a fan for a few years, or who doesn't know enough minute team details/history etc., as if these things are actual job requirements of being a "real" fan. Sports fans are a crazy lot, y'know? :lol:

*musing* I still have no idea where to place myself in terms of the seeming royal hierarchy of fandom. On the one hand, I've liked the team for 30 years.

On the other hand, until very recently, I've never been able to watch even 1/20 of their seasonal games. I have never been to Fenway and likely never will be. I don't care about organization ins and outs, player stats or trades or who played 1st base in 1982 etc of any baseball team.

I watch the games simply because I love to watch baseball as a game, that's it. It's always been like seeing a great film and wanting more. There's something about the Boston team that's always hit the emotions that the Giants/A's/Dodgers et al never have, so I watched when I could. Now that I can watch almost every redsox game, it's like being able to finally feed an addiction that I had to keep under wraps for decades because I had the misfortune of being raised/living nowhere near Boston.

I guess I'm a ... visceral, longterm, bandwagon fan? :thumbsup:

[Jacoby_Ellsbury]

Casual fan sounds more accurate.

[a700hitter]

I've had some assholes use that term with me, and I've been following the Sox fanatically for 43 years.

[ms_sox]

Casual fan sounds more accurate.

Yeah, someone else used that one before.
I think I'm a bit more than that tho...I tend to think of casual as someone who would never obsessively schedule their days around daily games etc...so not bandwagon, not die hard, not casual. Unless...obsessive-compulsive casual? :lol:

:dunno:

Altho, now that I can watch almost every game, in another five years I might be a few steps closer to die hard in attitude, if nothing else. I do find myself a bit more interested in stats (or at least long-term records/stats) as time goes on. But I'll probably never be like you guys.

[schillingouttheks]

You get into the games when they're on. You're rather dedicated...if someone pays for mlb.tv to watch the Sox, they are more than a casual fan.

[yeszir]

I am a bandwagon celtics fan.

[Dipre]

You get into the games when they're on. You're rather dedicated...if someone pays for mlb.tv to watch the Sox, they are more than a casual fan.

Then i'm definitely more than a casual fan, because i paid for both mlb.tv and Xtra Innings package to get the Sox.

And i'm poor.

And i live in DR.

[WhiskeyBreath]

I've had some assholes use that term with me, and I've been following the Sox fanatically for 43 years.

haha. I've been called bandwagon Bruins fan on a message board before:lol:

I can't wait until they actually win a Stanley Cup in my lifetime.