Born and Raised: The Viking Way

Growing up in Minnesota, there are three things you learn fast: the winters are frigid, the summers are sweltering, and the Minnesota Vikings are the most popular team in the state.

Yes, cheering for the Minnesota Vikings is a way of life up here in the North. From the day you are born, you are immersed in the Vikings' way of life and its strong history.

As a young boy, I was witness to some of the craziest football antics a kid can go through with his family. My mother grew up in a Vikings household with her dad and two younger brothers.

Sundays in Minnesota are bread for nothing more than our strong religion base and Minnesota Vikings football.

On Sundays my family would go to church, but as soon as 12:00 came by we were flying out the door, into our "soccer mom" van, and speeding home to watch our purple play some "glorious" football.

Since their formation in 1961, the Minnesota Vikings have been know for their winning ways. Almost always among the top in their NFC North division, the Vikings have been to four Super Bowls: Super Bowl IV, Super Bowl VIII, Super Bowl IX, and Super Bowl XI.

However, as any die-hard Vikings fan knows, we have never won a Super Bowl, a pain we feel each and every year. But we still cheer for our men in purple, and the game style they play.

Since they came to Minnesota, the Vikings have been known for their stout defense, once nicknamed the "Purple People Eaters" in the 1960s for their rough play and strong, pressuring defense. This defense saw legends created with Carl Eller, Alan Page, Gary Larsen, and Jim Marshall.

Our offense was also known for its craftiness and skill to reach the end zone with a throws by players such as Fran Tarkenton, or great runs and jukes from guys like Chuck Foremen.

The Minnesota Vikings have become the most popular team in Minnesota sports, with the two-time world champion Minnesota Twins close behind.

What makes this team a part of the state is its fans. As fans, we live and die with the Vikings on every down.

My mother was a believer in the Minnesota Vikings and every aspect they symbolized, and she passed that on to me.

As a Vikings fan first and foremost, there were things we younger fans learned fast:

You had to hate any team that wasn't the Minnesota Vikings, especially your division rivals the Chicago Bears, the Detroit Lions, and the Green Bay Packers.

And when it came to rivals, there was no one bigger than the border-battle with your archrival Green Bay Packers. A team so wrong and horrible that they were seen as an evil runner-up to the Devil.

The hateful relationship towards our Wisconsin "cheese-heads" has been going on forever, but it hit its peak with the arrival of Brett Favre. A talented, gun slinging quarterback from Mississippi.

We Vikings fans made sure when he came to town, he felt the hatred pour on him at the Metrodome...only to our failure, most of the time.

The Black and Blue division, as its sometimes called in the NFL, has become a symbol of what hard-hitting football is about.

Minnesota Vikings will always be the team of the state, and the team of the loyal purple followers. Growing up a Vikings fan, I will always cheer for the purple, white, and gold with every ounce of my body.

As well, I plan to pass the traditions on to the next generation of Vikings fans. One of the many reasons the Vikings still have a hold of our hearts, tradition, and passion is that they're passed down and taught throughout childhood.

So here's too the many Minnesota Vikings fans who gather to rejoice in the men of the North, and the game they play.

S'kol Vikings let's GO!!!