Web forum gives fans opportunity to chat
Nate Dougherty
Issue date: 12/6/02 Section: Sports
It's 6 p.m. and gametime quickly approaches. In a little under an hour the Bonnies will tip off against the Boston College Eagles.
In Olean, 475 miles from the game, mild-mannered postal employee John Firkel assumes his alter ego, Fox. Fox is the driver of the fanatic Web site BonniesBandwagon.org, a site dedicated to all things Bonnies basketball.
Fox took over the duties of webmaster in 1999, two years after the site was founded by then-St. Bonaventure student Scott Rucinski. When he graduated in 1999 and took a job out of the area, Rucinski asked Firkel, a friend of the family, to take over as the leader of basketball afficianados who frequent the Bandwagon.
"When they asked me, I said, 'Sure. Why not?' It sounded like fun, and it has been," he said.
As part of becoming webmaster, Firkel adopted the moniker Fox.
"I work for the post office, and I was a fan of 'The X Files' so I naturally picked the name Fox, as he's one of my co-government workers, sort of," Fox joked.
For about an hour every morning before and after work, Fox logs on to the Bandwagon to update the scores, check the links and read over the new messages. Despite the hours he puts into it, Fox wouldn't want it any other way.
"I make no money off this Web site, and I don't want to," Fox said. "I've been a Bona fan my whole life. Always."
Since Fox took over, the Bandwagon has gone on an impressive run. From its birth, over 1.7 million fans have jumped on the Bandwagon. Fox says that currently the site receives about 1,000 to 1,200 daily hits. Although Fox says most of the hits are from the East Coast, there are also hits from the Midwest, California and from points around the globe. Fans who frequent the Bandwagon range from students to alumni and even former Bonnies players.
"Peter van Paassen is on every morning from Belgium. We have quite a few from Argentina that are regular visitors and some from Lithuania, I assume they're friends with Saulis Dumblauskis. They're pretty diverse," Fox said.
In Olean, 475 miles from the game, mild-mannered postal employee John Firkel assumes his alter ego, Fox. Fox is the driver of the fanatic Web site BonniesBandwagon.org, a site dedicated to all things Bonnies basketball.
Fox took over the duties of webmaster in 1999, two years after the site was founded by then-St. Bonaventure student Scott Rucinski. When he graduated in 1999 and took a job out of the area, Rucinski asked Firkel, a friend of the family, to take over as the leader of basketball afficianados who frequent the Bandwagon.
"When they asked me, I said, 'Sure. Why not?' It sounded like fun, and it has been," he said.
As part of becoming webmaster, Firkel adopted the moniker Fox.
"I work for the post office, and I was a fan of 'The X Files' so I naturally picked the name Fox, as he's one of my co-government workers, sort of," Fox joked.
For about an hour every morning before and after work, Fox logs on to the Bandwagon to update the scores, check the links and read over the new messages. Despite the hours he puts into it, Fox wouldn't want it any other way.
"I make no money off this Web site, and I don't want to," Fox said. "I've been a Bona fan my whole life. Always."
Since Fox took over, the Bandwagon has gone on an impressive run. From its birth, over 1.7 million fans have jumped on the Bandwagon. Fox says that currently the site receives about 1,000 to 1,200 daily hits. Although Fox says most of the hits are from the East Coast, there are also hits from the Midwest, California and from points around the globe. Fans who frequent the Bandwagon range from students to alumni and even former Bonnies players.
"Peter van Paassen is on every morning from Belgium. We have quite a few from Argentina that are regular visitors and some from Lithuania, I assume they're friends with Saulis Dumblauskis. They're pretty diverse," Fox said.
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