Why did you become a fan in the first place

Lived in Bay Area in mid to late 80s.

Originally posted by CatchMaster80:
When I was a kid about 7 or 8 years old, the 49ers were the ONLY pro sports team in the Bay Area. Imagine, no Giants, Warriors, A's, Raiders or Sharks. Just the 49ers. I grew up listening to Bob Fouts ( Dans father ) and Lon Simmons on the radio. Not all the games were televised back then. Been a fan now for 65 years.

Wow, that's awesome you've been a Niners fan so long! And I thought I was one of the oldest fans on this board in following the Niners for 42 years - not a chance! I became a fan going back to as young as I can remember watching football back in '77. Endured the consecutive 2-14 years shortly thereafter but stuck with them - always, through thick & thin (probably like you and many others). I'm sure you remember the "Roaring Back" slogan from back then? Lon Simmons was such a great announcer...Niners, Giants...I could listen to him all day.

So this thread has quietly become one of the best things ever. Great to hear everyone's stories from the diehards to the blow-ins.

I'm Australian, born in 75. Was enchanted by the NFL and the Niners through the 80's and 90's but would only get to see flashes of San Francisco's awesomeness in the telly or in some newspaper clipping.

Even with internet I couldnt follow the team like today. Australian internet has only stopped being s**t since 2015 and since then it's only become "less" s**t.

But yes, like many of my fellow Strayans I consumed everything 49ers when Hayne came over. Subscribed to game pass (which broke down in the last 3 minutes of the Super Bowl - thankfully, or not, I was watching it at the pub); learnt the rules around buying a jersey (only get classic or veteran players - I bought a Hayne and later a Foster, both of which I now use to pick up dog turds with. I wanna get a Kittle but know bad things happen in threes so.....) and now have large parts of my day consumed with this forum / podcasts / and even have subscribed to the Athletic (bloody good publication).

Suffice to say, I'm all in to witness the completion of the "Quest for Six"!!! I love this team. Love this forum. Love this journey. And in the words of Jeff Fenech -
"I love youse all!"

I was born in 1942 and the 49ers were founded in 1946. We lived on Fulton St. across from GG Park and just before I turned 4 my dad walked me across the street to the Polo Field to watch the "new team in town practice". Met Frankie Albert and Norm Standlee and Coach Buck Shaw. Went to my first game at KEZAR in 1947 and have loved the red and gold ever since. Been a Faithful Niner fan for 74 years.

Originally posted by frenchtoast:
I was born in 1942 and the 49ers were founded in 1946. We lived on Fulton St. across from GG Park and just before I turned 4 my dad walked me across the street to the Polo Field to watch the "new team in town practice". Met Frankie Albert and Norm Standlee and Coach Buck Shaw. Went to my first game at KEZAR in 1947 and have loved the red and gold ever since. Been a Faithful Niner fan for 74 years.

Was born into it. My father was a season ticket holder at Kezar and Candlestick. His friends had 12 seats in a row at Candlestick in section 45. From the time I was very young, I would go to a couple games a year whenever one of pops friends couldnt go. By the time I was 12, enough of my dads friends had dropped out completely so that my brother and I took them. Have had season tickets since 1994 and still do at Levis.

This thread is a fun read.

Originally posted by frenchtoast:
I was born in 1942 and the 49ers were founded in 1946. We lived on Fulton St. across from GG Park and just before I turned 4 my dad walked me across the street to the Polo Field to watch the "new team in town practice". Met Frankie Albert and Norm Standlee and Coach Buck Shaw. Went to my first game at KEZAR in 1947 and have loved the red and gold ever since. Been a Faithful Niner fan for 74 years.

wow

In 1977 I was 10 years old and my dad retired from the Air Force. We lived all over the country including Guam and my mom wanted to settle in the Bay Area where she was born and raised and all her family lived. My uncle and cousins were all die hard Raider fans. They wore Raider hats, Raider shirts and never stopped talking about them. I finally got so irritated with them I said screw it I'm gonna be a niners fan and the rest is history.

Got to States at 4-5 years old.Long story short . My dad bought us a 19 Inch color TV with rabbit ears
Only 2 channels . NBC or CBS.

Born in 1962, at about 10 or so started watching the Steelers when they were killing everybody and had so many personalities on the team. Then I asked myself who was the local team. I had lived in Oakland for a short time and hated it so I said I won't be a raider fan. Started watching the niners. They sucked. 2 straight years of 2-14. I remember they had OJ for a short time. Then they went 6-10 and the rest is history. No real football fans in my family, I just started watching them on my own. At least I can say I was never a band wagon fan because I watched and supported them for 3 straight losing seasons, and got rewarded mightily. Mind blowing success that spoiled me forever. Great times. Hopefully more to come

I wanted to add that when I was in my early twenties I rented a house and bought a used fridge that lasted for years. I would cut out all the articles, pictures and headlines from newspaper and magazines and tape them on the fridge with clear packing tape. After several years the whole thing was completely covered. It was such a cool collage. Hated to get rid of it when it finally died.

My pops ! Born into it just like being a yankee fan ! Good time to thanks my pops I guess lol

Born in SF in 87. My Dad raised me a 49er fan. The rest is history

American Football came to UK tv in 1983. I was bored sick with the negative defensive midfield game which dominated soccer at the time so I started watching it. The presenter, Nicky Horne, was a Redskins fan but had a soft spot for the Niners as well. We didn't get to see them much in those days (one cut-down NFL game a week) but when they showed the other game highlights, it always seemed to be, when it got to SF, Joe Montana rising above it all and snatching the game. Then the following year we went the whole way and my allegiance was set in stone.

Originally posted by English:
American Football came to UK tv in 1983. I was bored sick with the negative defensive midfield game which dominated soccer at the time so I started watching it. The presenter, Nicky Horne, was a Redskins fan but had a soft spot for the Niners as well. We didn't get to see them much in those days (one cut-down NFL game a week) but when they showed the other game highlights, it always seemed to be, when it got to SF, Joe Montana rising above it all and snatching the game. Then the following year we went the whole way and my allegiance was set in stone.

Did you get a SF tattoo? My English cousins have Arsenal tattooed all over their legs and arms and back