Egg-Static Tigers Win Chicken Rubber Chicken Crosses Hill

Sat., Jan. 11, 1997

By Kevin Blocker kevinb@spokesman.com

FOR THE RECORD (January 16, 1997): Correction: Allen Bredy is assistant principal and activities coordinator at Lewis and Clark High School. He was incorrectly identified in a story Saturday.

“Chuck” the Rubber Chicken crossed the road to get back to the halls of Lewis and Clark High School.

In the annual Rubber Chicken duel between Ferris and LC, the Tigers grabbed the piece of poultry for the first time in three years.

And it didn’t matter that Ferris’ basketball teams beat LC.

“Oh man, I’ve been waiting since my freshman year to get Chuck back,” Dan Thompson, an LC senior, said.

“We got our butts kicked in basketball,” Thompson said. “But that’s OK. We got spirit, we had fun, and we got Chuck.”

Earning the right to Chuck has nothing to do with the basketball games. The school making the most noise keeps the Rubber Chicken. The battle has raged since 1983.

The fight for Chuck looks like a controlled burn - U.S. Forest Service-style. It’s organized chaos.

During breaks in the basketball games, the cheerleading squads from both schools take to the court and work their classmates into a frenzy.

It is a spirited pep rally that is not allowed to get unruly. Such behavior in past years has actually cost both schools a chance at winning Chuck.

Students are encouraged to show their school spirit by being as loud as possible. Profanity and vulgarity are not allowed.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Ferris activities coordinator and assistant principal Allen Brady. “This may be the biggest non-state championship event in Washington.”

In past years, members of the Ferris boys team have shaved their heads just for this game. Friday, the Saxons added another chapter to chicken lore.

This time they all dyed their hair yellow.

“This is the biggest game of the year,” said Ferris player Justin Bursch. “Anything can happen.”

Attendance and decibel level for the game easily surpassed the crowd of 5,000 that watched Washington State University and the University of Oregon play basketball at the Arena on Thursday night.

“The basketball games are not central to this event,” Brady said. “It’s a community event.”

Though North Central and Shadle Park fight for the Groovy Shoes, and Central Valley and University scrap over the Stinky Sneaker, the Rubber Chicken is clearly the big brother of them all.

But in the weeks leading up to the event, it is hard to tell that a rivalry exists between Ferris and LC.

Friday afternoon, cheerleaders from both squads made appearances at Chase and Sacajawea middle schools, both feeder schools for LC and Ferris, to drum up pre-game excitement.

And during intermission between the girls and boys games, student body presidents from the two schools presented a check to Special Olympics for $1,373.

Ferris and LC have a combined fund-raising program for charities.

“I think the whole thing is great,” said Ferris teacher Stacey Ward. “It’s a natural rivalry, but it’s also a more civil and friendly rivalry because most of these kids went to school with each other in junior high and grade school.

“It’s just a good chance for them to get all worked up and have fun,” Ward said.

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