“We’re not Cyclone fans because it’s easy. We’re Cyclone fans because it’s awesome.” You can find those words printed on a T-shirt made by Iowa State fan site, Cyclone Fanatic. But they’re more than just words on a shirt. It’s a saying that generations of Cyclones embrace. There are fans who lead the rallying cry. Some who never miss a game. And those who start traditions that span generations. Through the highs and the lows of fandom, Iowa Staters live up to the words that weave through their fight song: loyal, forever, true.
Cyclone Superfans
Cyclones Everywhere
Written by Matt Van Winkle | Images by Matt Van Winkle
Dan Barrett, pictured at Jack Trice Stadium, has been to all but one Iowa State home and away football game since 1976.
Tim Gleason
It’s game day in Ames. Kickoff is just two hours away, and there’s a buzz in the air. A line of buses carrying ISU football players and coaching staff cruise down University Avenue.
Tim Gleason (’81) hops into his cardinal and gold painted retro firetruck, the cab filled with Cyclone fans, and sirens blaring.
It’s time to lead the team into Jack Trice Stadium.
“When we first started doing it, there were a few parents waiting for their kids,” says Gleason, a life member of the ISU Alumni Association. “Now it’s driving through a sea of people.”
The tradition began back in 1998 when Gleason pulled up to head coach Dan McCarney’s house.
Says Gleason: “He came out, and we told him, ‘Coach, we’re tired of losing to Iowa 15 years in a row. We’re going to take this thing and drive it to Iowa City and cheer you on.’ He poked me in the chest and said if we could find a way to drive this old thing over there, we will find a way to win.”
The Cyclones beat the Hawkeyes that day, and now, 25 years later, the tradition is still alive.
Gleason invites anybody who wants to ride the firetruck to hop on. “Only one rule,” he explains. “Can’t cheer for the opposing team. And it can never be a Hawkeye.”
Tradition keeps him and the truck going.
“One of the most endearing moments happened a couple of years ago. A young man in his mid-20s came up to me holding a 2-year-old and asked if his kid could ride the firetruck. He said, ‘I had so much fun doing it when I was a kid.’ So, we’re on the second generation. We just want to get people fired up. We bleed cardinal and gold.”
Dan Barrett
There’s simply no other way to put it — Dan Barrett (’74) is a Cyclone superfan. Since 1976, the Iowa State alum has traveled to 561 of the last 562 home and away football games.
That’s 426,710 miles traveled over the past 47 years. And yes, he keeps a running spreadsheet.
“There was one day I woke up and thought, hey, it’s 6:15 in the morning. I might as well drive to Manhattan, Kansas,” Barrett says. “And from that point on, I went to every home and away game.”
A fraternity brother’s wedding broke his streak back in 1985, but that’s the only blemish on a nearly perfect attendance record.
A life member of the ISU Alumni Association, Barrett played in the marching band as a student and even performed during the Sun Bowl in 1971, the football program’s first bowl game. He hasn’t missed a bowl game since.
Barrett — who lives just outside of St. Louis — typically travels by himself. But when he arrives to a game, it’s always like a reunion.
“I’ve met Iowa Staters I never knew before going to away games,” Barrett says. “I see them, and we immediately give hugs. It’s that comradery, like being in Ames at the tailgates.”
Recently retired, Barrett says he plans to keep traveling to watch the Cyclones as long as he can. “I don’t want to break the streak!”
Russ and Carolyn Copley
It would be hard to find a couple who has been more loyal, forever, true than Russ and Carolyn Copley.
While Russ (’55) was studying agricultural engineering, Carolyn was busy in her own right at Iowa State.
“She worked [on campus] and helped pay my way through college,” Russ says with a smile. “And I enjoyed it,” Carolyn adds.
Life members of the ISU Alumni Association, Russ and Carolyn have been cheering on the Cyclones since 1951. Russ remembers well those cold games at Clyde Williams Field, sitting in the stands with Carolyn and leaving class early with his twin brother, Ross (’58), to watch Gary Thompson (’57) and the Cyclone basketball team beat Wilt Chamberlain and Kansas at the Armory.
“I was just a big sports fan,” Russ says. “I loved it. We went to as many events as we could.”
More than 70 years later, the Copleys still attend every home football game and are proud women’s basketball season ticket holders. “I enjoy the atmosphere [at Hilton Coliseum],” Carolyn says. “I’m always amazed at how the crowd gets so behind the players.”
Russ and Carolyn’s passion for Iowa State has been passed down to their two sons and six grandchildren — all Iowa State alums.
“It’s amazing,” Russ says. “It’s really something. Iowa State has been a great place.”