HOUSTON – Pretty much every sports team has the fans that shine brighter than the rest -- die-hard fans who go out of their way to cheer on their team in a unique way. The Astros have the Adcock family who cheer on their team and honor Houston's history with space.
"It's a lot of fun. The crazier the better," said Astros superfan Brad Adcock.
Many Astros fans have probably seen Brad and Heather Adcock in person or on the big screen beaming with pride, wearing their space helmets at home and away games.
"We got on Amazon and found some that already had Astros colors," Brad Adcock said. "So really we just bought those and added decals and stuff to them."
"It's kind of cheesy and some people think they're kind of lame, but we have fun with it." Heather Adcock said.
Soon enough, wearing the custom plastic space helmets became a family tradition -- inspired by Houston's rich space history.
"The astronaut helmets, they come from the old grounds crew from the Astrodome, and they all used to dress up as astronauts when they would go out there," Brad Adcock said.
"Some people know about Houston being space city, but some people don't, and it's been really fun to help educate them about it," Heather Adcock said.
Heather Adcock said she and Brad have even gotten their children to participate…sometimes.
"We always try to get them in their orange and their blue and try to get them in their helmets," Heather Adcock said. "It doesn't always go super well."
However, rain or shine, home or away, plastic or not plastic, this family makes it happen, wearing their helmets even at away games.
The family even has back-up soft helmets. Brad Adcock had his signed by pitcher Justin Verlander.
"I heard from other friends that travel with their helmets that you can't bring in plastic ones, so the soft ones fly, so we brought those in," Brad Adcock said.
The tradition is a precious touch of Houston history that any galaxy geek or Astros fan could appreciate. It is a building of community that screams, "Space City."
"I feel like we found our own community in the Astros community. We love it," Heather Adcock said.
Brad Adcock uses his gear to promote a good cause, the local chapter of the Ronald McDonald House Charities. He is also a leader of the Facebook fan page, Houston Astros Nation.