The Portland Timbers' iconic “victory log” will travel cross-country in honor of the team’s first MLS Cup, the team announced Wednesday.
For anyone unfamiliar, the log is usually stationed in front of the Timbers Army section atthe north end of Providence Park. In one of the few (only?) major sports league celebrations involving power tools, the team's mascot, Timber Joey, saws off a slice for every goal and shutout, awarding them (after the game, of course) to the players responsible.
It's just not a huge Timbers game without the tradition, so the log's being loaded onto a truck Thursday and transported to MAPFRE Stadium in time for Sunday’s showdown between the Timbers and Columbus Crew SC (4 pm ET, ESPN, WatchESPN, UniMás in US, TSN1/4, RDS2 in Canada, match preview).
It’s the first time in the Timbers' five years in MLS that the log – which Timber Joey estimates to be about 5.5 feet long and weigh between 1,200 and 1,500 pounds after all that slicing this year – has been transported to another stadium.
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But it won’t exactly be welcomed with open arms into the Crew SC’s home after its nearly 36-hour road trip. Joey and company will have to station it outside the stadium, as recently updated stadium rules now forbid both chainsaws and “logs of any wooden variety."
That’s not stopping the Timbers from feting the log, however, as fans were encouraged to send the log off on its journey from Providence Park Thursday morning. Western Star, the trucking company providing its own 4900 semi for the transport, even had a brand manager on hand to answer any questions about the truck.
"The victory log is part of the family," Timber Joey said, "and it is important that it is with us in Columbus."
