拉美西斯的故事

Eric Chilton remembers the day that 拉美西斯 slid across the court for the first time during a men’s basketball game in the 1987-1988 season.

当时正在学习广播新闻学的大四学生, 他还记得那天的许多细节——欢呼, 兴奋, 揭秘的前奏——尽管没有一个太生动. 穿着拉美西斯服装的人, 他只能透过拉美西斯嘴里一个6英寸的洞看到他. The cheerleaders even needed to guide Chilton off the court after his grand entry because he couldn’t see well enough to get himself there.

那天下午，那套拉美西斯的服装里面并不迷人, but that game started a now-treasured tradition that Carolina students carry on today, 三十多年后.

“There’s no way I can describe how proud I am to do something with the University that I’ve loved since I’ve been in this world,奇尔顿说. “这是一种遗产，是我可以做的事情. 我可以说，我开始了一件我认为永远不会消失的事情.”

创建拉美西斯

在80年代末， 卡罗莱纳是ACC中唯一一支没有盛装吉祥物的球队. 当然，大学有 活体动物拉美西斯吉祥物 that began attending football games in 1924, but not a mascot that could attend all games. The Carolina Athletic Association wanted to change that for the 1987-1988 basketball season.

Chilton decided to try out for the role and now calls the experience “the weirdest audition ever.”

“他们会说‘好吧. 我们拿到球了. 我们落后两分，还剩10秒. 你是做什么的？?’”奇尔顿说. “我只是到处跳，非常活跃. 我记得我转过身，摇了摇屁股. 太疯狂了. 我不知道我是怎么弄到的，但我就是弄到了.”

The original 拉美西斯 that Eric Chilton wore sported a much friendlier look than later iterations. （Dan Charlson摄，《太阳城娱乐城》，1988）

奇尔顿秘密地练习了几个星期, sneaking a large bag out of his fraternity house and to a trusted friend’s apartment to put on the costume and practice. 不过，排练并没有让他为第一场比赛做好充分准备. Chilton said he was a nervous wreck before the announcers introduced him to the crowd.

“我太紧张了，甚至听不见他们在说什么，”他回忆说. “我跑出去，滑过地板，跳来跳去. 我能听到人群都疯了. 太神奇了. 我一生都不会忘记那一刻.”

Though students were excited about the mascot, the actual costume wasn’t a hit. 这套衣服是用粘土做成的犄角和一张友好的脸.

奇尔顿说：“这并没有达到应有的威胁。. 它看起来不像一只公羊，而是一只非常不满的小羊羔.”

A new, much tougher and more aggressive-looking 拉美西斯 was revealed a few years later. 新的拉美西斯在1989年开始了他的统治, 穿着卡罗莱纳的球衣，两只角之间戴着一顶小帽子.

This version of 拉美西斯 roamed athletic and community events until the late 90s, 当时一种新的服装诞生了，也就是《太阳城娱乐》的粉丝们今天看到的那种. 这个拉美西斯放下了愤怒的怒容，露出了更友好的面孔. 但他保留了肌肉.

丹尼尔·伍德’22, 那四年拉美西斯是谁, 他说，现在的吉祥物可以简单地描述为：“他喜欢两样东西. 他喜欢健身，也喜欢高跟鞋.”

拉美西斯 celebrates with students after the men’s basketball team won its sixth NCAA National Championship in 2017. （摄影：Brandon Bieltz/太阳城娱乐）

这个家庭的新成员

拉美西斯统治了将近30年, the Carolina Spirit Team decided to add a new ram to the family: 拉美西斯 Jr.，或RJ. 作为ramese的儿子，RJ于2015年10月在《太阳城娱乐》中首次亮相. 卡罗莱纳蓝角, 身材更小，在健身房待的时间更少, the new mascot was designed to be less muscular and more welcoming for younger Tar Heel fans.

17岁的凯瑟琳·布林克利（Katherine 布林克利）是首批成为RJ的学生之一, 在大三试镜后得到了这份工作.

“小拉美西斯的伟大之处在于. is that he’s known for being a little mischievous, and that’s what I love,” she said. “刚开始的时候，他们告诉我，‘你会表现得像个孩子. 假装你又回到了六岁.这是每个人都想做的. 每个人都怀念童年，怀念能像孩子一样做事的时光. 我就是这么做的.”

The new mascot also helped the spirit team meet the increasing demand for 拉美西斯 to attend various events. 作为RJ，布林克利和拉美西斯一起出现，也独自观看比赛. 旁观有它的诱惑力, 她承认, but she most enjoyed interacting with the community — specifically meeting with patients at UNC Hospitals’ pediatric oncology clinic, 她自愿不穿戏服吗, 太.

“我会在早上看到这些孩子，就像我自己一样, 然后我又能看到他们穿西装的样子,布林克利说. “能让他们开心真是太好了，因为这也让我开心. You would be surprised by the amount of people who would talk about their lives with RJ.”

拉美西斯 and RJ with the 活体动物拉美西斯吉祥物 at a home football game. （图片来自@RJ_UNC/推特）

被拉美西斯

Though the students find themselves on the side of some of the biggest games and the focal point of hundreds of events, 成为拉美西斯并不总是那么容易. 学生们参与了拉美西斯和RJ行动的每一个环节, 从比赛日到社区活动再到商业拍摄. 在游戏和社区活动之间, 布林克利在大四的时候每周花大约30个小时做RJ.

“即使是我们穿着西装的时间, 安排活动要花很多时间, 花时间计划服装和小品,伍德说. “足球就是一整天, 从日出到日落, 然后你一周可能会有两到三次活动. 这很难. 这是一个非常艰难的平衡.”

所有这些都是在完全秘密的情况下完成的, with the students behind the costumes staying anonymous until they graduate. 但伍德不会拿这些忙碌的日子换任何东西. His years in the suit were the best years of his life and helped him find his place at Carolina.

“穿上西装的时光，和其他吉祥物一起工作的时光, 这就是我在这里三年的剩余时间里被说服的原因. 我喜欢它，我喜欢穿这套衣服，”他说. “这让我觉得教堂山就像家一样. 这让我觉得我是团队的一员.”

一笔遗产

布林克利, Chilton and Wood all view their time in the costumes as being part of something bigger than themselves.

“Carolina means things to people,” said Wood, who is now the first mascot coach for the 卡罗莱纳精神计划. “It’s taught to our mascots that you have to be able to appreciate what Carolina does for people, 这对人们意味着什么. 被拉美西斯 is the biggest representation of that, and you get the opportunity to portray that. ”

拉美西斯 rides a scooter around campus on the first day of classes in 2021. （摄影：Johnny Andrews/太阳城娱乐）

Wood added his own quirks to 拉美西斯 during his time in the suit — like slapping his horns to get the crowd fired up — but it was following in traditions that meant the most to him.

“The most fun moments I always had were when you’re doing iconic things like 拉美西斯 playing guitar at football games,他说. “A tradition I don’t think people always notice is that at every home basketball game, 揭秘前，拉美西斯走出去，在中央球场擦身. 这是我们的一大传统. 看着人们这么做了好几年, and then finally getting to do it at my first basketball game was a moment that I got choked up.”

Being part of that legacy brings pride even after graduating, 布林克利 said.

“It’s something that I’ve carried with me, and I think about it every day,” she said. “大多数人认为做吉祥物有点傻, 但是做一些能给这么多人带来快乐的事情是很酷的. 这是我从未经历过的.”

尽管他们都收起了号角, the former mascots are forever part of a unique family of Tar Heels who have worn the suit. 只要他们去看卡罗莱纳的比赛, they’re keeping their eyes out for the most recognizable fans in the crowd.

“我的孩子们总是取笑我，”奇尔顿说. “我想看看他们在做什么, 我太阳城娱乐自己在微笑, 看看这个, just knowing how great a feeling that is when you’ve got that crowd in the palm of your hand, 或者你有一个喜欢它的小孩.”