• This week's Vik Walk begins at 2:30 p.m. and will begin on the Park Blocks adjacent to the Stott Center.

The huge crowd at the Park Block's Farmers' Market watched with a combination of smiles and bemused expressions as the Viking football team, cheer squad and about 300 fans made their through the park blocks and up SW Taylor to JELD-WEN Field prior to the Vikings' game with Montana State University.  A lot of them cheered.
     
Traffic was stopped all along the route.
   
The brain child of the Viking coaching staff, it's called the Vik Walk and happens 2 1/2 hours before each home game.  It takes about 25 minutes and fans can go straight to the Coors Light Tailgate.  It's fun and PSU football officials think it has a great future.
     
The crowd that followed the team before the Montana State game, the largest to date, loved it.
     
“I love this.  It's a great tradition.  I think it will bring the team more publicity downtown,” said one fan who followed the Northern Alliance Drum Line, the Viking team and cheer squad on a pleasant Saturday morning.
     
It has really grown, said assistant defensive line coach and team community liaison Richard Seigler, who head coach Nigel Burton has put in charge of organizing the event.
     
The first week, it was just the team.  The team members liked walking to the stadium and Burton thought fans might enjoy walking with them.  For the Northern Arizona game, Seigler added the drum line.  He changed the route to take it through the Farmers” Market and added the cheer squad for the Montana State game.
    
“Coach Burton is trying to establish a new tradition.  It's growing every week and we hope we'll see the day when the fans following the team will be numbered in the thousands.  It's a natural for students who live on campus and are going to the game,” said Seigler.
      
Among the walkers was the family of linebacker Khalil Bass.  They came all the way from Los Angeles for the game.  Bass' father Kevin has been to each home game, it was mother Darlene's second game.  Bass' sister Monique, a high school senior at Woodland Hills high school, was at her first PSU game.
    
“This is really great,” Monique said as she watched cars stop to let the march proceed.  She indicated she's considering transferring to PSU after spending some time at Pierce Community College near her home.
      
As the procession approached the stadium excitement picked up as it proceeded past parking lots filled with PSU game tailgaters.
     
“Go Viks,” yelled the tailgaters.
      “
Go Viks”, responded the walkers.
     
Seigler thinks the Vik Walk can be as successful as similar events at some other schools. Tennessee, for instance, draws several thousand fans to a similar event.
    
“Can you imagine the effect we'd have if we had a couple thousand people following the team.  We'd turn Portland on its ear,” Seigler said.