Today I learned about Mr. Kick It, the original Timbers mascot that predates Timber Jim and the Soccer Watcher. I saw the picture on the right uncredited on Facebook, Asking for the source caught the attention of Don Cox, the person who took the picture. Since then the original post has been updated. Digging around further led me to the complete story (and the photo on the left by Kimmy Otterlei) as seen on Green is the Color. Mr. Kick It was Stan Olson. Read about him on Green is the Color. You’d think this was the sort of thing The Timbers would chronicle themselves, but alas… no.
If you’ve seen any of my other time wasting endeavors, you know that Iike to repost some assets because I’m delusional and I think my web properties are going to outlive everyone. Some for sure… here’s some images and text from the Oregonian circa 1975 as also seen on Green is the Color, where you can also find family photos of Stan Olson, and of course the long story.
A Tree Sinks Roots at the Timber Line
By BOB MCEWEN of The Oregonlan staff
Stan Olson likes being a tree.
But before you brand him as your basic variety of nut, think again. For Stan is “Mr. Kick-It,” and wears the foliage of the Portland Timbers soccer team.To benefit the uninitiated, “Mr. Kick-It” appears at Civic Stadium for all Timber home games. Looking much like a Christmas tree run amok, he carries a six-foot broadhead axe and bugle.
Wielding his axe as a baton and trumpeting “Charge!” all the while, Olson coaxes the timid and encourages the frenzied. He’s a sparkpius
“I want the crowd to be spontaneous but, I’d like them to support the players, too,” the 32-year-old Douglas fir said. “I’m a mascot, but I’m also a yell king and an entertainer.”
Stan Olson, however, boasts a background unlike most cheerleaders. A graduate in sociology from the University of Oregon, he went on for a master’s degree in divinity from Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, Calif.
Between his studies, Olson worked in Pasadena and Harlem with “street kids, junkies, basketball players- a whole lot of people with problems.” From there came a change of pace.
“I wanted to ‘get my head together,’ as they say,” said the slender blonde, a resident of Wilsonville. “I became more introspective the last few years. I’ve done some reading and worked on some odd jobs.”
Olson heard about the Timbers job while looking for work at the state employment office. “The notice said they needed an actor. I went over and applied, was interviewed and got the job. It was that simple.”
“I had been a yell king in high school (Salem Academy) and had taken a soccer class at Oregon,” Olson said. “l guess that and the fact that I played the bugle helped my chances.”
Next came his uniform. A $300 job done by a Portland costuming firm, the tree was patterned after a hoop skirt with hood. Heavy canvas covers the hoops, with plastic branches and needles and stems on the outside.
“It weighs about 15 pounds but that’s not the worst of it,” Olson said. “When I put the top on (the tree is a two-piece outfit) there’s only a small hole for me to breathe, see and yell through. And when 1 blow my bugle, I can’t see. I’m blind.”
The lack of vision led to Olson’s “most embarrassing” moment as “Mr. Kick-It.”
“I was in the end zone leading a charge,” he recalled. “I blew the notes three times and got the crowd going. But I couldn’t see where the action was, and right after we finished the cheer, the other team scored.”
Olson dresses along with the players, leading to many wisecracks from the Timbers.
“Once I walked into the locker room to put on the tree and the players all yelled in unison: “Timberrrrrr. They kid me a lot, but they like to have the crowd behind them. It really helps.”
Popularity chases Olson now. When the team visited Washington Square shopping center for an autograph par-ty, “Mr. Kick-It” was the last to leave.
“I sign it different ways.” he said. “Sometimes it’s a ‘Mr. Kick-It,’ or “The Tree,” or even “Timberrrrrr.””
Though immune to the tussock moth, Olson finds some sacrifice necessary. “I really am emotionally drained and physically exhausted after a game. My top leaves a big notch in my neck and some of the fans can be abusive.”
But the play’s still the thing. “Soccer is catching on here,” Olson said. “The fans are not only enthusiastic, they’re getting knowledge. able. They follow the strategy of bringing the ball downfield now.”
He admitted a personal change has affected his own attitude. I’ve been pretty inward the past few years.
I’m getting confident. I wear myself out but it’s for a good cause. The fans have fun; the players’ like it; I get a kick out of it.”
Give ’em the axe.
This was good read until it made me a little sad when I got to the part about abusive fans. I guess they had jerks in the 70’s too…
