On this day in 1984, I woke to the news that Robert Irsay, owner of my beloved Baltimore Colts, had packed up all of the team’s gear in three Mayflower moving vans in the darkness of night, heading to Indianapolis and their new home. It was seen as a terrible perversion of money and sports, and Baltimore would never be the same. Even non-sports fans will admit that the loss of a professional sports team casts a dark cloud over people’s perception of that city (attention Tampa Bay Rays fans). Not only did Baltimore’s image suffer as a result of the traiterous behavior of an owner, who until 1984 was happy to garner fame and profit from the Colts, but the city failed to protect the Colts trademark, leaving them today with the mascot of a filthy purple bird !
Move forward a decade, and yes, Baltimore set out to filch the team of another city (Cleveland), and in 1995 successfully stole the Browns from the city of Cleveland. But those wily Ohioans (?) fought tooth and nail to retain the rights to the Browns trademark, and in 1998, the NFL granted a new franchise to Cleveland, retaining the Browns moniker in Ohio. And in Baltimore, “quoth the raven, nevermore”.
Yes, it has been 37 years since this dark cloud descended on Charm City, but I have a long memory. Firstly, I vowed never to set foot in the state of Indiana, and by definition in Indianapolis, and I have maintained that personal travel restriction. After all, the Colts ‘ vans were met at the Ohio/Indiana border by an Indiana state police escort, thus forever making the state complicit in this misdeed. Secondly, if I ever meet the old Colt owner, Robert Irsay (even though he is now dead) or his son, who orchestrated the Mayflower move, I promise all Baltimore Colt fans that I will soil his shoes with my spittal. Finally, when we moved to Florida from Baltimore in 1988, my lovely bride was in charge of obtaining moving van estimates. In what was probably one of the very few major mistakes of our marriage, she entertained the use of the Mayflower company. Of course, Mayflower has been permanently banned from our vendor list. Remember this day, Baltimore ! WHAT THE HECK !