Chris Erskine: Mr. Mohawk makes quite an impression
This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.
The young fans came out in force Friday night, and downtown Vancouver became as rowdy as a school bus. By Saturday, the crowd was older. Wiser? Well, you decide.
Take Phil Andruss, aka “Mr. Mohawk,†a 280-pound sports fan with red-tinted hair spikes rising eight feet into the air and Olympic rings carved into the side of his head. He was creating quite a stir Saturday afternoon outside the tourist offices on Cordova Street, posing for photos and giving high-fives to rain-soaked visitors passing by.
“It has turned into a great conversation starter,†says the Seattle resident, who started getting into costumes like this several years ago, starting with the Seahawks. “A buddy of mine has a barber shop. He’s a white guy with a black barber shop. He can shave anything into your hair.â€
One of his passions is hockey, and Mr. Mohawk has been to three Kings games in L.A. over the years.
But on this day, he’s like a 2010 version of Uncle Sam. And he doesn’t take much guff.
“Yeah, some guys say stuff but mostly when they realize how big I am, they just shut up,†he says.
God bless America for that.
--Chris Erskine
