COLUMN: Catching a game… as a fan for once

If there’s one thing I learned this past Saturday, it’s that Chuck Norris approves.

Stay with me here, I know it’s an off-beat intro. I was informed of this fact, though, by way of a looping video of Chuck Norris giving a radiant thumbs-up of approval. (I think the clip originated in the movie Dodgeball, but I’m not sure.

I watched this video, a repeating deal that lasted about four seconds each go-round, on the Macon Coliseum jumbotron probably 40 times Saturday evening. I owe that to the Macon Mayhem, who scored a whopping five goals in a rousing win over the Pensacola Ice Flyers on home ice.

The Chuck Norris GIF played, in amusing fashion, each time Macon netted a goal. It was accompanied by short flashes of Tiger Woods, WWE wrestlers and other 2000s-era pop culture clips.

My family and I, in the crowd that night for the awesome 5-1 win, were puzzled. Then I remembered that the SPHL hockey team is owned by Charles Norris, who goes by Chuck. Go figure.

I start off my column with this not to make fun of the old-school memes that showed up on the Coliseum’s big screens this weekend but do so instead to reminisce about my first in-person sports experience as a fan in a while.

I mean, seriously — as a sports editor, I rarely attend Bibb County athletic events when I’m off the clock. After all, it’s my job to keep track of the sports happenings around the area. (And really, you’re reading about this game in the newspaper… am I really ever off the clock?)

Jokes aside, it was nice to sit in the stands instead of the press box. My family and I went to Saturday night’s game and had a blast. A guy I’ve had my eye on while writing Mayhem recaps for the Melody, Tao Ishizuka, had four points and a nice goal as part of a pretty sweet performance.

The action on the ice was great, of course — there was a brisk but exciting fight only a few seconds into the game, the 5-1 score provided plenty of action, and the Mayhem won — but I think the other small things made it an even more enjoyable experience.

First off, I didn’t have to keep notes or stats! What a relief… except I did still keep some mental notes, if not paper ones. But still, it wasn’t my primary focus, which was a small blessings.

The real highlights were the fan-involvement stuff from the Mayhem — after all, in what is more or less developmental hockey, the game itself is only one piece of the overall experience. 

Saturday happened to Elvis night, much to our delight. The Mayhem players wore all-black jerseys printed with a gold pattern emulating the King of Rock’s signature sequined suits. They played Elvis songs and egged on fans to dance.

But oh, lawd, what would an Elvis night be without an Elvis impersonator?

When the man in a sky-blue, sequined jumpsuit emerged from the rafters for a performance during the first intermission — it was still a tie game after one period, mind, so the game had not yet become the happy jaunt it would evolve into in the second period — we raised our eyebrows.

When his voice began singing Presley’s famous tunes, our mouths dropped open, too.

We might have been shocked for the wrong reasons, as the guy sounded nothing like Elvis. But all the same, it was great. It’s probably what I’ll remember the most from a pretty distinctive experience. It was quite nice to sit there and engage with all the cheering, nonsense and general fandom instead of being focused on the story at hand.

Here’s the fabled “but,” though — I kind of wish I had been there as a journalist.

Now, I would not be the best suited for covering a hockey game since I don’t know all the rules. I admit I had to google a couple penalties at the game. But the sound of the puck slapping against the stick and the sides of the rink, the lights dimming as the goal horn sounds… even small things, like the goalie tapping his stick on the ice to signal the end of a power play, seemed large.

That’s the type of stuff that makes me want to pick up my pen and take notes. I guess that’s why I’m a sports editor. Even when I’m in fan mode, I can’t seem to let the writer in my head take a day off.