Benchwarmer Bob

[PurplePorsche]

Met a fellow Vikings Fan in law school, 1989, and he asked if I subscribed. I had no idea it existed.  He brought in a copy, I subscribed to the end.  Used to love to hate on “Dark Star” giving the ‘not so optimistic’ take on the Vikings. Before the internet, man I couldn’t wait to tear through my copy when it arrived!

[StickierBuns]

p.s. Yeah, I also subscribed back when it was Viking Underground before Lurts got it. I might have been subscribing still when it went from Underground to Update actually, hard to remember for sure. I think in the offseason during the summer they went every two months for a new issue?

[1VikesFan]

Wow, the memories this brings back. I lived in California and my subscription was my lifeline to the Vikings.

[MaroonBells]

I don't think it was ever called Viking Underground was it? That was a message board and a community of Viking fans that started on Sports'nYou (Dan Hildreth's site?) and broke into other various internet fan forums. 

I remember it being Viking Report before Viking Update. The first one I got had Joe Senser on the cover. But my God, if my Viking Report didn't come in the mail on Wednesdays, it would ruin my entire week. 

[purplefaithful]

The print publication was never called Viking Underground that I recall...Like many, I subscribed to Viking Update for years!

I believe it was Dan Hildredth who brought the Viking Underground to the internet and it was the first Viking forum I belonged to. That was probably mid to late 90's

The website may have gone from Hildredth to Mike Olson & Tom when it evolved to VikeFans. 

One of the mods can correct/chime-in if my recollection is incorrect.

[greediron]

I think the original site was Viking Underground, and then changed to Vikings Update at some point when Lurtsema bought it.  I can't remember the exact time line of that.  So I may have been getting the magazines prior to the Vikings Update message board.

One story to add, when I was a kid, my dad had a Pro Football Almanac.  In the Almanac under the teams information, they had apparently published a phone number for marketing or something...Anyways, one of the most trouble I got in when I was a kid, was in 1982 during the first NFL strike, I called the number for the Minnesota Vikings and had a conversation with the whomever answered the phone about how the strike was stupid and they need to play and whatever.  I don't have first hand recollection, it was a story my dad told later on and when he realized who I was on the phone with...Apparently it was a pretty pricy long distance call..

Pretty sure I found the message list around 96-97.  Read that religiously searching for any Viking news out in the Northwest.  Don't remember when it transitioned to the VU site, but I was there and have been thru all the renditions, eventually landing here at vikefans.

[Vikesrock]

I don't think it was ever called Viking Underground was it? That was a message board and a community of Viking fans that started on Sports'nYou (Dan Hildreth's site?) and broke into other various internet fan forums. 

I remember it being Viking Report before Viking Update. The first one I got had Joe Senser on the cover. But my God, if my Viking Report didn't come in the mail on Wednesdays, it would ruin my entire week. 

No the print was always called Viking Update.  I found the forum called Viking Underground and I think it was Hildreth who ran it.  On there somewhere is where I found the way to subscribe to the magazine and I got it while I was in Germany.