Over the course of the 2014 regular season, the Portland Timbers journeyed all across North America. No matter how far the distance, Timbers supporters were always there – either in the stands or cheering from a favorite viewing locale – and showed how they supported the club with #TimbersAway.
After wading through the more than 2,500 #TimbersAway posts on social media, a photo by Jill Parker of Lake Oswego, Ore., was selected as the grand prize winner, taken during the Timbers’ road trip to Vancouver, B.C., back in August. Parker is the recipient of Alaska Airlines MVP Gold status and 42,419 air miles (the same number of miles traveled by the Timbers to away matches during the regular season).
“We took the family up to see the game at Vancouver,” said Parker. “We were on Granville Island and the kids were starting to get bored so we stopped to see a magician doing card tricks. At the end of his act, he wound up with a full deck of the King of Clubs, so I had to take the picture.”
Additionally, Alaska Airlines regularly handed out prizes of 12,500 miles to one lucky #TimbersAway participant following each regular-season away match, totaling more than 212,500 in miles given away to Timbers supporters. As for Parker and her family, it looks like there is some fun in the sun on the horizon.
“The kids have been begging to go to Hawaii, so we’ll have to take them on a trip out that way,” said Parker.
When adding up all of the miles traveled or pub food consumed to watch the Timbers on the road in 2014, perhaps even greater were the memories that these away trips and road game viewing parties created for Timbers supporters throughout the season.