Spirit of St. Louis

There has been something I wanted to set straight for a while now. Last spring I was sitting at one of my favorite local establishments, Welch Avenue Station, when I made conversation with a guy sitting by himself at the table next to me. It began with chatting about the baseball replays one of the five TV's was airing but only after we caught the end of a Chicago blown game in the ninth it was revealed he was a Cubs fan. And actually, I think I recall him assuming I was too. (The Station is notorious for being a huge Cubs bar.) I quickly let him know I was indeed a rival Cardinal fan but went on to discuss the Cubs' woes anyway. Like any good midwest fan, I gave props to my foe where due and he did the same--it was actually a good conversation with someone who knew what he was talking about.
However, before he got up to leave he made a comment about St. Louis having "fairweather fans," something you can imagine I took issue with. Fairweather? I wish I had the chance to ask him why he would make such a claim. For starters, I'm probably a St. Louis fan for the same reason he might be a Cubs fan or why someone living in Florida is a Marlins fan. I do realize that Iowa is home to the Cubs, but I don't think someone needs to have a damn good reason to not be a faithful but instead pick a different midwest team.
By definition, being a fairweather fan requires only being a fan when your team is winning. Throughout MLB history, the Cardinals have been pretty consistent with a few highs and lows, and any time they've finished at the bottom of the division they've bounced right back into contention the next season. St. Louis is revered for having the best fans in baseball (as verified in a Sports Illustrated survey given to 200 MLB players a couple years back) that always support their team. I think this may be a good time to point out the year 2003 when Cubs fans were absolutely crawling out of the woodwork once they made the playoffs. Everyone became a Cubs fan overnight. I distinctly remember Homecoming with a group of Chi Omegas that would ask nightly if the Cubs won, passing in and out of the coliseum to cheer them on, having never watched a Chitown game in their life, not being able to name two players without "Sosa" on his back. And we're "fairweathered"?! I don't remember any red and white bandwagon two years ago.
What actually instigated me to writing this entry was that recently I did have someone tell me I follow St. Louis because "they're good." For a team that made it to the World Series only once in the past decade and hasn't won it all since a couple weeks after I was BORN, yes, that must be it. In the years following 1982 the likes of the Tigers, Reds, and Blue Jays (twice in a row) have won the title, but it would be silly to think such a thing of their fans, wouldn't it? Now, I will admit that the Cards have had their share of winning seasons and postseason success, but one could argue a portion of the Chicago fans are simply a result of their "lovable loser" reputation. (I remember in "03 talking to Derek Watson, a Twins fan, about how his dislike of the Cubs stems from the fact "they don't earn their fans." He just can't see how they continue to be so bad and have the largest following while his Twins have been competing at a high level for years and gain no support. Needless to say, we both relished in their NLCS collapse.)
I doubt that guy ever thought twice about his ridiculous claim about me and my follow redbirds. Oh well, I guess that's just part of the rivalry. After all, I have to respect the Cubbies because I don't think I could tolerate such a downtrodden club year in year out. I'd rather fly high in St. Louis, regardless of the weather.