Back in the day, this writer started a youth soccer league that included age groups U-8, U-10, and U-12. The fields were on a football field and in the outfields of two baseball fields, so there was plenty of room. Today, this league is the second largest in a three-county region.
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On opening day at the park, all the teams played, starting early Saturday morning and continuing into early afternoon. Every hour on this one day, businesses with costumed characters
were invited to come out and engage with the kids, their parents, and do some self-promotion. Each mascot was scheduled for a solid hour, and then another character would arrive.
So, the Chick-fil-A cow came out for an hour, and next, the local radio station Cat Country’s Cool Cat mascot. The Forestry Service had Smokey the Bear, and the area’s AA professional hockey team had a military seagull costume. And there were lots of others, so filling up a schedule wasn’t an issue. And businesses loved the opportunity to be involved with children and spread the word of their commerce in hopes that folks would shop there with the free advertising.
All of these costumed characters had two things in common: a) they brought along an escort so that kids didn’t jump on the character’s back or pull their tail, and b) inside the costume was a sauna.
Opening day was always the first Saturday in September, which is a very hot month. Each character would mingle for 20 minutes, sit in an air-conditioned van for 20 minutes, then go back out for the final 20 minutes.
Many Cleveland Browns superfans have similar experiences on gameday. They come to games every week in full regalia.
“John Big Dawg Thompson” always wore that hot, sweaty mask all game, sitting in the old Dawg Pound. “The Bone Lady” had a huge get-up costume that grew and grew each year. “Captain Cleveland” wore a mask that only covered a portion of his face, but wore long camo pants with a huge cape. “Pumpkinhead” wears a fancy headgear that certainly gets pretty toasty inside. And “The Macho Fan” shows up in long pants, and sometimes a long-sleeved shirt or full jacket with a championship belt around his waist.
All of this is hot. And it can become inconvenient. But yet, they press on. It’s their character. It’s their passion. It’s what they have become for their beloved team, the Browns.
“Brownstronaut” is another Browns superfan. And anyone who comes across his path in the hallways underneath the stadium seats wants a photo, or at least to say hello. Or as they say in the South, to say hey.
What is this character? How did he get started? Why a space suit to a football game?
If this NFL club were the Dallas Cowboys, perhaps the association could be that he was a “Space Cowboy.” Or rooting for the Houston Texans, the parallel was that the City of Houston is the space capital of the world. Or maybe it’s not a space suit at all, but fireproof racing attire to attract the comparison regarding the Indianapolis 500 and the Indianapolis Colts. A pilot’s jumpsuit for an affinity with the New York Jets?
What are the common denominators with a NASA space suit and a team named Browns whose logos are dogs and elves?
But yet, there he is.
His original season ticket seats were literally in one of the highest points in the stadium: Section 528, Row 32. If fans looked up in the nosebleed section, guess what they would see? Yep – an astronaut. No, really, that makes sense.
The character is “Brownstronaut.”
The person inside is Cody Boyles. He is a 31-year-old salesman with T-Mobile who grew up in Massillon, Ohio, and graduated from Perry High School. He has been married for eight years to his wife, Kayla, and the couple has an 11-month-old daughter, Delilah.
His superfan character is completely different than the ones that came before him.
Many of these Browns superfans have gained national notoriety. Big Dawg had his own cereal. The Bone Lady was invited to do national commercials, such as for McDonald’s, and is in the VISA Superfans Hall of Fame. Pumpkinhead is seen on the stadium Jumbotron on key third-down conversion attempts and has been involved in plenty of team functions.
The Macho Fan, yeah!, is still around on game days. You can’t miss Pumpkinhead. But the others have either retired their superfan characters or no longer have season tickets and now attend the occasional game as themselves. There is a new generation of superfans, and Brownstronaut is an obvious choice.
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Every one of these Browns superfans has their own story. And guess what? None of it was planned out or discussed in a strategy meeting. Things just happened on their own and gained notoriety without trying. They simply progressed.
LINK: BROWNSTRONAUT FACEBOOK PAGE
One thing is certain: Brownstronaut has evolved. This venture is no longer a guy with a leftover Halloween costume, some patches, and a tube of Super Glue. He currently has two seats in Section 530, Row 2.
Dawgs by Nature’s Barry Shuck was able to chat with Brownstronaut to discuss his character, how he navigates stuff like drinking and stairs, and how the heck does he handle the heat and cold?
Shuck: How long have you been a Browns season ticket holder, and how much were your seats that first year you got them?
Brownstronaut: I have had my season tickets since 2019. I was on a waiting list, and finally got the call the day after the Odell Beckham, Jr. trade. I was on that list for six months and thought I didn’t have a chance to get season tickets. The sales rep called and said two seats opened up. They were the highest seats in the stadium in Row 32 in Section 528. That is where the idea of the astronaut came from: Look up into the sky as high as you can and see an astronaut. They were around $1,800 for the pair. I have since relocated to Section 530, and these cost $2,400.
Shuck: Every Browns fan has this. When was the moment that you realized that you were an actual Browns fan?
Brownstronaut: For me, it was actually later in life. Neither of my parents was a Browns fan, and in my childhood, I split weekends between the two. My dad enjoys hunting and fishing, and didn’t really care about sports. We didn’t even have cable. I started watching the Browns when (Eric) Mangini was the head coach. Then I went to my first game and sat opposite the Dawg Pound. At some point, running back Isaiah Crowell busted off an 80 or 90-yard run right at me and my friends. And just that energy and excitement is when it started to consume me. I started watching podcasts and reading articles. Just to hear that crowd roar was awesome.
Editor’s note: In 2016, in Week 2 against the Baltimore Ravens, Crowell busted off an 85-yard run up the gut to up Cleveland’s lead to 14-0, but lost the game 25-20.
Shuck: Describe what is involved in your costume? And where did you get those cool shoes?
Brownstronaut: It’s got a little bit of everything. I started with super-gluing patches I got at garage sales and flea markets. I realized it was something that people liked. Some pins on there as well. With the back nameplate, there is a company called “Stitch and Switch” which specializes in taking a jersey you own with a player that is no longer with the Browns, and providing a new nameplate for the same jersey number to make it current. They did that for me, and I had it sewn on the back of the suit. Some local podcasts, like Burning River Sportscast, and some company patches. If I liked the patch, I put it on. As far as the shoes, a fan sent those to me. He is a family friend of my mom’s named Thomas Chait. He said he liked what I was doing and does custom shoes and sent me a pair out. They are custom made that started out all white, and are now orange and brown. I love them and wear them every game.
LINK: STITCH N SWITCH JERSEY NAMEPLATE REPLACEMENT
Shuck: When was the first time you wore the suit to a Browns game?
Brownstronaut: The original one was a Halloween costume and came with a NASA patch. I wore it in the first game I had season tickets, so in 2019, for the first game of the season. I remembered I had an orange astronaut costume, and being on the very top row, it just made sense. When I brought the idea up to a friend of mine, he actually dared me to wear it, stating that he would cover my food and drinks if I did. The game was against the Titans and was a horrible game. Derrick Henry ran us up and down. It was brutal. I love to make people laugh and have a good time, even if it makes my buddy laugh and I look ridiculous. But it brought so much attention with people wanting to take photos, so I thought, okay, this is going to be a thing. Then I started to deck the suit out.
Shuck: How did you come up with the character name Brownstronaut?
Brownstronaut: There was a very intoxicated guy who gave me that name. He just stumbled up after coming up the escalator, and it was my first time in that area of the stadium, and trying to find out where everything was. He said, “What are you? Are you an astronaut?” And I said, “I’m an astronaut. I am Space Browns.” Then he said back, “You’re not an astronaut, you’re the Brownstronaut.” And I said that is what I am going with. Do I know his name? I don’t think he knew his own name.
Shuck: How many patches do you have on the suit, and how have they evolved over the years?
Brownstronaut: There are about 25-30 patches on the suit right now. It has evolved. I have some duplicates that I have been saving. I want to do a white version that has some LED lighting in it, and be able to sew the extras on that suit. Maybe wear it when the Browns wear the white jersey.
Shuck: Are spacesuits comfortable?
Brownstronaut: Yeah. I have plenty of room to move. It comes in one size fits all, so with my 160 (pounds), I am doing all right. It’s a little sauna suit in the summer.
Shuck: With NASA, they have orange space suits and white space suits. The white ones are for going outside the space shuttle, whereas the orange ones are officially called “launch and entry suits” worn during the flight out and the flight back. But the astronauts refer to them as “pumpkin suits.” Does that fit with your Browns fandom?
Brownstronaut: The orange color is what lured me. It was a light bulb to me where I had this giant orange suit, let’s light this pumpkin. There’s a NASA research center right here, and astronaut Donald Thomas took a Browns flag and helmet into space with him. Once I found out there is actual lore behind it, I thought this was perfect.
Shuck: The orange space suits are designed to protect astronauts in case of a loss of pressure or temperature. NASA’s suits have a liquid-cooled undergarment to prevent overheating. Does yours combat the heat?
Brownstronaut: They hold the heat for the first couple of games. The suit is good for the winter, but not good for the summer. Actually, I have a little fan that I attach to my undershorts. If turned on too high, I look like the Michelin Man.
Shuck: Needless to say, the suit is probably pretty toasty when those chilly winds come off of Lake Erie in the late fall months. Is it roomy enough to add articles like long johns or sweaters?
Brownstronaut: Absolutely. I normally wear long john pants, and I have a heated vest. I do like to keep it as thin as I can – I like the look better. I don’t like the puffed-up look. But on really cold games, I put on many layers and am pretty thick. There have been games where your drink almost solidifies. The snow game against the Steelers last year was incredible. It wasn’t as cold as it was snowy. Honestly, that goes down as my favorite game in Cleveland ever. The first half wasn’t so bad, but once that snow poured in, it was awesome. The helmet kept my head dry, and the snow just stuck to the top.
Shuck: Is the suit you are wearing to this year’s games the original?
Brownstronaut: Actually, it is the third. The original was a Halloween costume. There are three that, like Iron Man, I call them Mach 1, Mach 2, and Mach 3. The first one came standard with a NASA patch. The first one, not knowing how serious I was going to take this, I Gorilla-glued the patches to it. I started gluing patches after that first game, realizing that people loved it. I couldn’t see too well out of the helmet, so I pulled the visor off and wore giant orange sunglasses. That was pretty ridiculous. That first one was destroyed by the glue. The second suit, I stitched the patches, but spaced them out too far. I have zero artistic ability. Plus, the zipper didn’t go down far enough. This new version is pretty nice.
Shuck: Do you ever see your character becoming a huge thing?
Brownstronaut: I like the slow grind. I am not a person who posts a ton on social media and has to do that every day, engaging. I like the natural build. There are a couple of companies that have reached out. But that is the ultimate goal, and also to get involved with some charity work that will help with donations or raise money. Like the Browns Barkers, and get some puppies adopted.
Shuck: Let’s talk about the helmet. Can you see clearly out of it?
Brownstronaut: It’s almost like really tinted sunglasses.I can watch a full game with the visor down, but it does fog up a bit in the winter months. The visor I can slide straight up, so if it starts to get hot in there or I want to get my “barks” heard, I can vent. There is a QR code on the back that people can scan and take them to my pages. I have lights for the night games. I can communicate with the visor down. There is a “coin slot” right where the mouth would be, or easy just to pop the visor open. If I am doing any serious movement, the visor is up. I don’t want to have to navigate steps with blind spots. I also bought some bicycle helmet pads and glued those in strategically so that the helmet fits my head pretty snug.
Shuck: Do you always stay incognito, or are you able to reveal your face and talk to other Browns fans?
Brownstronaut: I’ll talk to anybody. I’ll either flip the visor up and even take the helmet off and throw on a ballcap. I’m in sales and love to talk and pick people’s brains.
Shuck: How do children react to your character?
Brownstronaut: They love it. I give out stickers and take photos with them. I have always loved kids, and something I enjoy.
Shuck: Does your character have a catch-phrase that you use?
Brownstronaut: My signature thing when I take photos is I point a finger up at the sky. And a ritual of mine is to salute the NASA Glenn Research Center.
Shuck: You have a young daughter. Does the full suit in her home seem menacing to her?
Brownstronaut: It’s stashed away at home because it does spook her. She is 11 months old. Or I would say more confusing because it’s more like, “Where’s dad?”
Shuck: Was your only child conceived while wearing the head?
Brownstronaut: No. That was after a bad loss to the Broncos.
Shuck: How do you drink some brews during a game?
Brownstronaut: Just toss the visor up. I am able to pop the helmet off and on pretty easily, but a cup fits pretty well in the opening with the visor up, so I don’t have to use a straw or anything.
Shuck: And going to the bathroom? Do you ask someone, “Here, hold my head?”
Brownstronaut: I will give somebody the helmet, or if I am on a solo mission, helmet on with the visor all the way up.
Shuck: Yourself and Pumpkinhead each feature a Browns Superfan who uses a full head covering. Who would win in a wrestling match between the two of you?
Brownstronaut: One of us is a Marine. I’m 5’-8” and a buck-60. Now, if it were a foot race, I’m still pretty quick. But yeah, he’s choking me out for sure.
Shuck: What do you think about the Browns’ dome stadium idea?
Brownstronaut: The older I get, the dome idea is pretty enticing. I used to love the cold and knew you were a sissy if you couldn’t sit out in it. I love the idea of something new. I think ultimately it will happen because there is a billionaire who wants a new facility. Everybody is getting worried about it being bad for the city, but there will be a lot of money brought in for concerts, Final-4, and a Super Bowl one day, they can’t all stay in the hotels they build, so they will have to stay in nearby Cleveland. My biggest fear is being outpriced. I am just your average guy trying to make a living and raise a child, and provide for her. Everything I have, my wife and I earned. I can afford a couple of extra bucks, but there is a line. Hopefully, the team does something for the loyal fans who have been around. There are people who have had season tickets for decades, and then when the team is bad, they are stuck with tickets to games that nobody wants to see. And it’s sad to see. The team can pay anything they want to a guy who is questionable for $230 million, and we will be there. If I had a chance to talk with the Haslams, that is the only thing I would discuss with them – don’t price us out.
Shuck: Who was your favorite player when you first became a Browns fan, and who is your fav on this year’s roster?
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Brownstronaut: The everyday guy Joe Thomas. He had loyalty to the city with a hard-working mentality. The 10,363 consecutive snaps for some really bad teams. And you didn’t hear him every year wanting a new contract or to be traded somewhere else. He played for us. Currently? Now that Nick Chubb is no longer with the team? I do love the rookies they have this year. I am going to go with Harold Fannin, Jr. He’s local to me, as he went to high school 15 minutes from me in Canton. And he’s also the tight end for my fantasy team.
Shuck: What is your fondest moment of being a Cleveland Browns fan?
Brownstronaut: The Jim Brown memorial service. As a Browns season ticket holder, I got invited. I didn’t know anything about it or what to expect, and I showed up with my wife’s dad. They corralled us in, and I noticed extra security. I thought they were going to show a short film or a documentary. In walks Roger Goodell, behind him the Haslams, and then all the Browns players and media people. Then, 50 Hall of Famers in their gold jackets walk in right there in the theatre at the Hall of Fame. Now, he is a player way before my time, but it was really cool to find out how competitive he was. I knew, but I didn’t know. And to find out so much about one of the greatest players to ever play the game was awesome. Ray Lewis gave a speech that gave me chills. And these good things Jim Brown did were in a Cleveland Browns jersey. Just an awesome day.
