Haha funny good topic
I'm not a sports lover. I do cycling, which is like solitary except also awesome in groups, where you get to be a collective of individuals...
Off topic, but late in life I realized that a missing piece of my entire life was probably an ADHD diagnosis. (I haven't been able to see a doctor for 15 years. Can't work for a boss on a schedule, work for myself, no health care, circular american problem...) I've read that cycling is proven as effective as medication for that. And only cycling, not swimming, running, etc... makes sense if you think about it. If you stop you fall down!
So I dare say non-neurotypical people and furries have high crossover. And I can't follow sports. But I don't hate. And I do love mascots when I see them.
I don't think of them THAT much but Gritty is pretty cool. I love a furry nightmare. You have to go back to the classics though.
Like this bad ass motherclucker:
https://i0.wp.com/dogpatch.press/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/chicken.jpg?resize=768%2C981&ssl=1Not my best photo, but the San Diego Chicken was guest of honor at Anthrocon, and his panel was so inspiring! Even for a non sports lover. He gave a room full of furries an inspiring history talk right from the horse's ... beak. His stuff was made to perform live so isn't as rebroadcast and internet-ready as it is iconic. But this guy turned mascotting into art. He showed archival video of a show where he hatched out of an egg driven into center field, it was amazing the size and power of the show. I think before him mascots were mild side entertainment not a big part of the show or very special, but he drove ratings and then it became a big deal.
So mascots are different from furries in being more symbol and made for big live far away shows than personality you can hang out with, but the Chicken was both. I do like the individuality of furry custom designed personality that isn't a brand.
Another pretty cool one is the Phillie Phanatic who is also iconic, from the acting and design (muppets related). The original performer does a "mascot boot camp" and founded a mascot museum.
I did quite a few stories on certain mascots and the museum:
https://dogpatch.press/tag/mascots/- There are pro sports mascots designed by furry fursuit makers! Because the makers are so good, and cheaper than the pro operations too, they can give them a run for the money for pro commission work.
- Typically these are under NDA but I've been able to figure it out. One time I asked a maker about a certain mascot (who I didn't know she made) and she said "I can't talk about that one" and I was like AHHH I know what that means
- A russian pro hockey team had one made openly by a big furry maker.
- Some furries get camera time from suiting up at sports events for fun, like those big silly painted fans but more silly and cuter. Sometimes they're even invited to join the show.
- Related: there were a few reality shows about mascots, and The Masked Singer, and that dating one where people meet in prosthetics. These can be interesting crossover. I really loved
interviewing Margaret Cho.
- I dated Sammy, the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slug mascot. Notice sammy isn't a boy or girl name because slugs do hermaphrodite reproduction haha and I'm going to leave it like that but UHH HOT and very special memory.
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