When you became a fan of the Miami Dolphins!

Tonight, we have another answer post based on a suggestion from one of you. This evening’s post comes to us courtesy of daytonadolfan, aka Tona, aka Joe. The question was-

How long have you been a Miami Dolphins fan? How old were you when your fandom kicked in?

For those who might be wondering what my answer would be, I couldn’t tell you the age or year that I came on board. I was born in 1970, and I was a fan as far back as I can remember. My fandom came mostly from my grandmother, who might have been the biggest fan ever. My grandparents were day-one season ticket holders. I can remember going to games at a very young age. While they only had two season tickets, they were in the middle of the closed endzone, and there was bench seating. Back in those days, so long as we didn’t take up more than our designated space on the bench, they could bring me in with them, so they did.

Below are some of your answers and thoughts on the question of the day-

PA phinphan likes marine mammals. Flipper was the gateway drug.

While I was born the last year Flipper was doing tricks when the Dolphins scored, I remember seeing videos of him when I was 4. Back then, I really liked orcas and dolphins. So, I was hooked once I saw the videos. Not to mention, they finished the undefeated season a month before my 5th birthday. That didn’t hurt either. They are my favorite professional sports team and always will be.

sand_in_shoes was at the 85 Bears game, and now we are all jealous.

1978 my dad takes 8-year old me to the Orange Bowl to watch the Dolphins defeat the Dallas Cowboys. Griese was still the QB, and so was Staubach for the other guys. He spent three hours explaining the rules to me, patiently, and I will never forget that.

I did spend some time watching Flipper in the end zone that afternoon of course…

Later he got season tickets and he took me to most of the games with him. I was actually at the Bears game in 1985 and remember watching Buddy Ryan lose his sh%t over and over again and it was glorious. By this time I was an absolutely rabid fan and have been ever since.

Smont-12_13, like many of us, enjoyed the greatness of the Orange Bowl.

I grew up in Miami and became a fan right from the beginning, I was 12 years old.

Went to the games with my Dad at the Orange Bowl. I met Bob Griese & Larry Zonka when I was in JR. High when they came as speakers.

gatorfinfan, like me and many others, started in South Florida and has since moved away but carries our fandom with us.

I was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale and have been a fan since 1966 when I was 13 years old (you do the math). I remember Kim Bokamper coming to visit Ocean World in Fort Lauderdale to swim with the dolphins when I was working there. Now that I’m retired and living in Denver, I am still a fan. Go fins!!

sdphinsfan is a rebel and a Dolphins fan!

Christmas Day, 1971. All of the family (Chiefs fans) were at my grandparents house and for some reason, I decided to cheer for the other team…and it stuck.

tpl came on board at the very beginning of the 80s.

I became became a dolphin fan around 1980. I remember book em danno’s first game. We lost, but he threw for 300 yards. No one has an arm like Book Em Danno!

21Dave is a tortured convert, and it’s me. I’m the cool person that he met here. Yeah, it has to be me, right?

Let’s see, born in 1972 , Mothers family was from Pennsylvania so I was a Steeler fan growing up and will still pull for them most of the time , damn sure won’t when they play the Phins. Lived in Virginia and Maryland growing up. So yeah I was a Skins fan as well. I’m High school I got a chance to hang with some Pro Football guys for a summer and I kinda stopped rooting for teams and more for the guys I knew and there team. I moved to South Florida, Dolphins drafted a buddy of mine and all my friends were fans as well, so they kinda sucked me in. Now a Phins fan since and have nothing to show for it other than headaches and some cool people I have met on here. Over the years I have gotten a chance to hang out with a bunch of the Dolphins and I can tell you they were all awesome other than Dan “The Dick “ Marino. The stories are true was around him twice and both times just a bad person.

Call_for_the_Priest’77 is from one of the most beautiful places I have ever visited! The people were also very chill and friendly.

My oldest brother became interested in Miami during the mid 70s given that they were a successful team, played in such a great stadium (Orange Bowl) and had this freaky cool creature flipping around in some pool! I was about 8 in 1980 when I started watching football with him sparingly. The next year I started following the game more seriously. I started peppering him with questions about what pass interference was, how many guys are on the field, why can’t the linemen catch passes…. My brother was not known as the patient type yet he put up with me, never getting exasperated though perhaps a bit of well contained consternation on occasion.

A few years later my mom, dad and I moved out east, near Toronto ON. My oldest brother stayed behind in BC. But by now I had a firm grasp of the basic fundamentals of the game and I figured I would be rooting Dan Marino back to many more Superbowls and eventual wins. His return the bowl game wasn’t to be but my rooting for him and team never stopped through all the thick and thin.

So here I am 43 years later still rooting for these guys. I am hoping that my unwavering dedication would allow me to make one request of the team. Bring the Lombardi back to Miami? Sure, that would be cool but that’s not the big ‘fish’ I had in mind…

Bring back Flipper and his pool for Miami home games! Unlike my brother, I never got to see him do his thing!

TheRoo1 just wanted to find a team that wasn’t being shoved down people’s throats by the local media.

1972 I grew up in Virginia Beach, and was so sick of everything Deadskins from several TV shows weekly, to half hour sportsdesk by local stations that I just wanted something different. And not having to watch a repeated cloud of dust for 2.5 yards every play was refreshing.

Finsanity 13’s grew up out West, but dad was a big Shula fan, and the rest is history.

I was born and raised in Northern Nevada,Reno Carson City area to be specific. 1971 Superbowl is one of my earliest memories.I was not even six yet.My Father’s a big Shula fan never liked Dallas so we watched the game and rooted for Miami.Obviously we got hammered by Dallas. I was heartbroken. When next season started I started following the gang in the paper. Pregame shows on Sunday and Halftime highlights on MNF. Turned out to be the magic perfect season and have been hard-core ever since. DO even play fantasy because I am not rooting for other people. Turns my stomach to think about rooting for Brady, Allen,Big Ben,any Raider,any Jet ect…They will put me in the ground a Miami Dolfan fan and play the fighting at my funeral.

Spok507 was five and just looking for a team with a “nice” mascot.

When I was five. My dad was a big Washington R#dskins fan, and I watched games with him every Sunday afternoon. But I didn’t like all the ‘mean’ names of the teams around the midwest — Lions, Bengals, Bears (Oh my!), which was basically all that was shown here in Iowa. I wanted to root for a ‘nice’ team. Hey, I was a little girl, what can I say? And I loved the water and all things aquatic, so it was a perfect match. I was able to cheer the ‘72 team to their perfect season and SB win even tho I didn’t really understand the game at that point. I was thrilled when they drafted Marino — cuz he was cute — who is still the best QB who ever played the game imo. The best was when my dad, who was a photographer, went to the SuperBowl between Miami and SF and was on the field taking pictures for his client MUSCO Lighting. I have some great photos — even tho he was standing on the SF sideline. My husband is a life-long Dolphins fan as well. Whew. That would’ve been a tough sell if he wasn’t! So basically, my whole life and I’m 61. Not changing now, just have to be patient I guess.

dedstrk316 was just following in Dad’s footsteps.

From birth, I remember loving the Dolphins very early on. I was too young to remember 72 and 73, but my dad loved them, and by the time I was 6 or so, I was wearing Dolphins shirts.

Miami7 followed Warfield over to the Dolphins and never left.

!970 @ 11 yrs. of age and Paul Warfield was my favorite player (still to this day). He ‘was’ a Cleveland Brown (local TV only played the Browns & Giants games – and I grew up 90 miles from Buffalo!

Anyways, was a Browns fan from about 8 -11, then Warfield was Shula’s 1st move as the new Coach and I was hooked…helped ‘solidify’ that we went to 3 straight SB’s!!

TommyNascar started out as a fan of Csonka and then became a fan of the entire team.

Not sure of the year but around 1969/1970. My dad was a Giants fan and so i was also, but Miami had this guy named Larry Csonka from Syracuse near where i grew up. Loved watching him run over people and was a gan of his, then eventually the team. Some glorious years soon after and then during the Dan era we had great hope but no defense to get us over the hump. It’s been painful since but still holding out for one more please!!!

72Phins4ever watched the 72 Super Bowl and hasn’t been able to turn away since.

72 season, 7 years old. Watched the SB in my grandparents living room with my dad and uncle who had recently returned from Nam (uncle). We lived in Miami not far from the original stadium, my grandparents house was in North Miami where my dad grew up. Been a fan ever since.

PGPhinsFan started out wanting to see the so-called “greatest team ever” play the Dolphins and was won over by Dan and the boys.

1985 There were a lot of kids I was growing up with backing the 85 bears as the greatest team ever. I remember asking my dad if I could stay up late to watch the Monday night football game to see the Bears. Rather than becoming a Bears fan that day I saw the most amazing game played by the Dolphins led by Dan Marino. It’s been a long ride of ups and downs. I long for the days where the Dolphins were a consistent playoff team. Maybe we will finally get a playoff win soon.

Blincoe23 became a fan living in beautiful Fernandina Beach.

We lived in Fernandina Beach my 3 Rd grade year. Peck School to validate. I was 7. I am now 57. I’ll spare you the details but 50 years now!!!! BTW 56 years I’ve lived in Kentucky

NCSurferMike just wanted to root for the hometown team.

Born and raised in South Florida and Miami has always been my team. Over half a century and counting.

finfanfromsiam just likes those colors.

Evening! 1970 was when I became aware of the Dolphins. Everyone was a Squealers or Giants fan and local tv showed both mostly. One game Pitt was playing a newer team to the league- the Miami Dolphins. The uniform colors caught my attention and they were a different team than anyone else liked. Been a fanatic every since. Am glad to have been there when they won Superbowls and were a power in the league. Have been waiting for the team to return to that prominence every since.

daytonadolfan started out with some handmade swag. Now he has his own mini Miami Dolphins swag museum.

Evening , thanks James. I was 11 yrs. old and it was 1969. We had a small grassy field we used to play baseball and football on and I had no particular team at the time . One of my buddies showed up one day with Dolphin helmet on and I really liked it and did a little research (pre-internet) . Soon I had some majic markers and a white T-shirt with a hand drawn Dolphin logo on it , that was it , I was hooked for life. 55 years later i’m still a rabid fan and so grateful to have witnessed 2 super bowl wins , the perfect season , the Marino years and the decline over the years but I never gave up on them and hope I am around when we regain the trophy and are back where we belong ….. on top !

It is interesting how many of our site’s fans are not actually from Miami or even Florida, although many, like me, were born there and grew up there. I want to thank everyone who took the time to answer the question of the day and share with us how they became fans of the great Miami Dolphins. We will return tomorrow evening with a new question of the day post.