My name is Mike Sieber and I’m a distribution clerk at the McKnight Post Office in Pittsburgh, where I’ve worked since 1983.
When I’m off the clock on Sundays, I’m part of the chain crew who hold the signal poles — or “sticks” — at Pittsburgh Steelers home games.
I was born a Steelers fan.
My dad, Ray, held the sticks for 25 years. He started at Pitt Stadium. Later, when they built Three Rivers Stadium, he worked the games there, too. I was always at the games two hours before kickoff in case someone on the chain crew called out sick. I think I held the sticks about five times with my dad.
My dad would always come onto the field about two minutes before kickoff. Bill Hillgrove, the play-by-play announcer for the Steelers, would say on the radio, “It must be close to kickoff because here’s Ray and the chain gang.” He said that every home game.
When my dad passed away, the Steelers offered me his job. It was like a passing of the torch.
Typically, we have to be at Heinz Field by 5 p.m. At about 6:30, we have a meeting and then we are on the field by 7:45. We stretch the chains and stand there, so I’m on my feet for hours. Since I’m 65, it takes me about two days to recover.
My most memorable moment was probably the last game played at Three Rivers Stadium in December 2000. A lot of the retired Steelers, such as Jack Lambert, came back for the final game. Seeing those guys — players I watched growing up — was a great experience.
I’m trying to get my son on the crew before I retire, but I don’t know how long chain crews will be around. The NFL plans to put GPS in footballs, so they won’t need the chain crew to measure because they’ll know exactly where the ball is. There are already a few stadiums set up for it.
I look forward to every home game. When the Steelers win, everybody here is on a high. When they lose, it’s a bad day — but there’s always a lot of excitement.
“Off the Clock,” a column on Postal Service employees and their after-hours pursuits, appears regularly in Link.
