Soccer Culture
Thursday night’s featured Portland Timbers Food Cart Alliance member is Stumptown Dumplings, better known as Stumplings.
Less than a year old, Stumplings was born out of a friendship between owners Justin Prasad and Nimesh Dayal. The duo wanted to branch out, and after almost two months of planning, their cart found a home serving up dumplings to Portland’s Alberta neighborhood.
“It happened much faster than either of us expected,” said Dayal.
Prasad said he had always worked for somebody else and wanted to prove he would work on his own to succeed.
“It’s exciting because it’s our idea coming to life," said Prasad. "I just want people to connect the ‘Stumplings’ with Justin and Nimesh, and this is a great opportunity for us.”
This will be Stumplings second visit to JELD-WEN Field, after being featured during a Timbers match during the 2012 season.
During the Timbers match against the New England Revolution (7:30pm PT, ROOT SPORTS, 750 AM The Game / La Pantera 940), Stumplings will be serving orders of six dumplings for $5 at the Soccer City Grill concession stand, located above section 93. Fans can choose from Cheeky Chicken, Pompous Pork, Sassy Spinach, or a mix of two of each. Fans will also be able to chose from Asian Chipotle, Chili Hoison, or Thai Mustard sauces.
Last week we shared Jared Montz’s journey across the country, and more specifically about his time in Portland. The former Chicago Fire teammate of Will Johnson is raising funds and awareness for the OSA World Juggle-a-thon and Nothing But Nets.
Since then, Jared has completed his tour and and shared the final video, which includes several Timbers and Thorns players.
Today is World Malaria Day, which means today is the Juggle-a-thon. If you didn’t see Jared’s story, you can catch up here.
It’s also not too late to donate, which you can do here.
In a summer packed with Portland Timbers matches, Portland Thorns FC matches and the CONCACAF Gold Cup coming to town, there’s no shortage of the beautiful game to be found in Soccer City, USA.
Grant Wahl knows this as well as anybody, which is why he came to town to see the Portland's 2-1 home opener win against Seattle Reign FC as part of a larger story for Sports Illustrated on the Thorns' Alex Morgan.
Wahl, a longtime college basketball and soccer writer for SI, really made his mark in 2009 with his excellent book, The Beckham Experiment: How the World's Most Famous Athlete Tried to Conquer America. Written in near real-time during the MLS season, it was an in-depth look not only into Beckham’s arrival with the LA Galaxy but also an inside look into Major League Soccer as a whole entity.
Since the book, Wahl has covered World Cups and international soccer along with a bid for for the FIFA presidency on a platform of more transparency. Through it all, he has continued to tell insightful stories across the soccer universe.
I sat down with him to talk about his impressions of the Thorns home opener, where MLS is at now near four years past his book and the importance of this summer’s CONCACAF Gold Cup to the U.S. Men’s National Team..
The Backcut Podcast sits at the intersection of Timbers, Thorns, soccer & culture to explore the unique elements of the beautiful game. You can subscribe to The Backcut on iTunes in the same feed as the Talk Timbers podcast.
Sunday's Portland Thorns FC home opener was memorable for many reasons.
There was the 2-1 win over the Seattle Reign FC.
There was the record setting 16,479 crowd in attendance.
There was the goals by Marian Dougherty and Alex Morgan.
And then, of course, there was THE HAIR. Hear goalkeeper Karina LeBlanc talk about her special edition 'do for the first ever Thorns home opener:
Want more Karina LeBlanc? Vancouver B.C.'s The Province, fresh from their great profile of fellow Canadian Christine Sinclair, does an excellent feature on LeBlanc's arrival in Portland and her deep commitment to the UNICEF Sports Ambassador program. Read it here.
One of the most beautiful things about soccer is its ability to unite people around the world, whether it’s behind a team, a nation, or in this case, a cause.
Former professional soccer player Jared Montz believes that part of being a pro is giving back to your community. He started the Online Soccer Academy to provide free online resources and training to soccer players around the world.
This year, the Online Soccer Academy is putting on their 3rd annual charity event called the OSA World Juggle-a-thon to raise money for Nothing But Nets. On April 25, World Malaria Day, players of all ages will juggle at 6pm their standard time anywhere in the word they have a ball. Jugglers try to beat their personal juggling records and in the process they raise money for Nothing But Nets.
Every 60 seconds a child in Africa dies from a malaria infection. With this in mind, the UN Foundation created Nothing But Nets in 2006 to raise money to provide African children with anti-malaria bed nets. The campaign was inspired by sports columnist Rick Reilly, who challenged each of his readers to donate at least $10 to purchase anti-malaria bed nets.
As part of the campaign, Jared Montz is Soccer Walking America. This 45 day, 15-city video series tour to raise awareness for the event included a stop in Portland, where Montz juggled with some of the Timbers and Thorns.
To become a juggler and fundraise, or to make a one time donation, please visit the OSA World Juggle-a-thon website.
Follow Jared Montz on Twitter to keep track of his tour.
The Portland Timbers Food Cart Alliance (PTFCA) is a free, cross-promotional program designed to highlight the Rose City’s vibrant food cart culture. Through the PTFCA, select Portland-area food carts will have the opportunity to serve their food cart fare on Timbers and Thorns FC match days at JELD-WEN Field via fan vote.
Now’s your chance to choose the next round of carts that will serve at the stadium this season. Choose carefully, the five carts that receive the most votes on this poll will serve at three JELD-WEN Field events!
Know of any additional carts that should be included in this program? Post in the comments below or learn more about the program here.
“What a night!”
This was Christophe Vezinet’s initial reaction when we asked him about his experience at the Timbers match on April 6th against Houston. Christophe and his family were the recipients of a Spread the Love welcome package for that match.
Althea and Dougal Cullen, Timbers Army season ticket holders and former Waiting List members, nominated the Vezinet family to receive a Spread the Love welcome package.
“My brother Cedric, his daughter Madison, my daughter Manon and I had a lot of fun,” said Christophe. “You could feel all the great soccer vibrations all over JELD-WEN Field that night.”
Christophe is used to watching top-flight teams in Europe, and says the Timbers experience was very comparable.
“Even for the people that are not ‘soccer connoisseurs’, the Timbers team is really fun to watch,” Christophe explained. “Every time I see them playing I feel like they are going to crush the other team. I have yet to see a Timbers game that was boring, and since there is a little bit of French blood in that team, it can only increase my interest.”
However, says Christophe, his daughter and niece were likely more excited than him and his brother.
“A staff worker gave our daughters some passes to the autograph sessions with the players at the end of the game,” said Christophe. “You can imagine how excited they were to meet the players. I also received a hand written note from Manon thanking me for tickets. One of the highlight moments for me was getting to see how excited she was for the whole night.”
Christophe says he and his family are grateful for the opportunity, and are looking forward to coming back for another match.
“But most of all, a big thank you to the Timbers organization for letting us experience those moments; we will certainly do that again. It is a great way to spend a family night out. My daughter keeps asking me for another game night and she can’t wait to go to a Thorns game very soon.”
Rey was the recipient of the Spread the Love welcome packet for the April 6th match against Houston.
Die-hard Timbers season ticket holder and Stand Together advocate, Dwight Adkins, nominated Rey. Dwight is a good friend of Rey’s, and is a member at the gym where Rey coaches and trains.
“Rey is a trainer at Skogg, a kettlebell gym in the Pearl,” Dwight explained. “All day he motivates others to be healthy, strong and happy. Rey does a great job of inspiring others, and I thought a night at a Timbers match would be fun for him to sit back, relax and enjoy some awesome soccer with his family.”
Rey has only attended one Timbers match, about five years ago when the team played in the USL. The match against Houston was his first MLS Timbers experience.
“The fans were amazing,” said Rey. “I have been to tons of high school, college, and professional sporting events, and have never been in an atmosphere like the one I experienced that night at the Timbers match.”
Rey was also pleased with the result, as the Timbers took three points from Houston.
“The Timbers looked awesome scoring two goals against the Dynamo. I had a great time!”
He also expressed his gratitude toward Dwight for giving him his welcome packet.
“I was very excited that he chose me to give this opportunity to,” said Rey. “My schedule and budget haven't allowed for many extra activities and to get four tickets to three different events was so generous! “
With the Timber’s first win stirring up Portland soccer fans last week, Kevin Carroll’s exhibit The Power of Sport + Play at Mercy Corps’ Action Center gallery could not have been better timed. The author of Rules of the Red Rubber Ball knows exactly how sports can empower a community just as they have electrified Portland.
Carroll’s exhibit features a mixture of sports media including books, paintings, "dream boxes," inspirational quotes, and balls from around the world. Hidden in gym lockers are mementos from Carroll's life, each with different themes such as his first childhood book Where the Wild Things Are as well as memorabilia from his time as the Philadelphia 76ers trainer. The exhibit ranges from Carroll’s own personal life as well as from inspirational athletes, philosophers, and international communities with a common denominator of sport and play.
Carroll kicked off the exhibit this past Tuesday night in a special lecture about on his own background as well as his philosophy that a ball can change the world. Sport and play bring people together by breaking down prejudices and creating a common ground. Carroll simplified the idea of sport being an amazing medium for communication because, as he put it, "We all speak ball."
Carroll’s exhibit The Art of Sport + Play is on view April 4 - July 31, 2013 during Mercy Corps Action Center hours 11am – 5 pm, Monday – Friday. For more information on Carroll and his inspirational story, visit his website. To learn more about the Portland Timbers pillar partner Mercy Corps, visit them here.
