This story was originally published on mynorthwest.com.
If there was ever a sign the 12s have invaded the Bay Area and are ready for Super Bowl LX, it was the celebration Saturday afternoon in the parking lot of the Golden Gate Bridge visitors center.
A sea of blue and action green, 12 flags, and fans. The Seahawks drumline, Blue Thunder, is banging out beats at a fever pitch. Overhead, a larger flag – a 35 by 35 foot 12 flag – towed by a small plane, circled for close to an hour as a sign to the city and the thousands of travelers on the bridge, the 12s had taken over the party.
“I can’t wait to tell all my family back home about this,” one fan, who made the trip from Seattle just to be here to watch the Super Bowl on TV with friends, said. “Being a 12 is something other teams just don’t understand. It’s special, it’s awesome, and it’s everything.”
Among the highlights was the Beast Bus — a restored double-decker bus decked out in full Seahawks colors — which traveled all the way from Seattle with a small breakdown and repair in Medford, Oregon. When it rolled into the lot, fans screamed and chanted, “SEA … HAWKS!”
“I live in the other Washington and I fly back to Seattle to see every home game,” one fan told me, explaining her passion for the team. “If this doesn’t prove to the world that we are ready for anything – to win Sunday – then I don’t know what else we can do. We are going to win.”
Organizers hatched the idea for a pep rally more than a week ago – to make a flag and fly it over the Golden Gate. After launching a GoFundMe page and pitching their idea to the media, the word got out.
Soon, donations started trickling in, and days before the Super Bowl, they raised more than $30,000 to pay for the 12-foot flag, the plane, and the pilot.
However, from the beginning, the plan was never about the money or bragging rights. For organizers, it was about giving back to the 12s, the diehard fans.
“This was really for the 12s,” the organizer said. “It was about giving people a way to be part of something big. Tickets are astronomical, and so many fans want to show up for the team but just can’t.”
Stunned by the crowd, local police stepped in but realized they couldn’t shut down the event – they could only try to keep the massive crowd as close to the street as possible. They were surprised but interested too. At one point, a California Highway Patrolman took out his cell phone and recorded the moment.
It was one of those rare, magical moments born from a simple idea and fueled by a deep, roaring passion for the Seahawks. And it brought together a community in a way none of us will ever forget.
What began as a spark in someone’s heart became something real and unforgettable when fans stood shoulder-to-shoulder under that giant 12 flag. It wasn’t just an event. It was a living memory and a moment of unity and pride that will stay with everyone there for a lifetime.
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