Inverness Caley Thistle produced great memories along the way on a rollercoaster ride
In deep midwinter Caley Thistle's Caledonian Stadium can be a bleak and inhospitable sporting venue, but some fans will have had the stamina to endure the long-haul journey, which began 30 years ago when the club was formed, in its entirety. All credit to them for their grit in being there at the outset in 1994 and still being loyal and active supporters to this day.
Many others who were there at the beginning will have fallen by the wayside. And that's hardly surprising. As you get older, the more you accept the memory playing tricks with the passage of time. But nothing seems quite as surreal as the fact that it's now three full decades since the Caley Thistle story began.
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A sweep across the youngsters who first gathered in the stadium would now find them in middle age. Those of us who were loud and proud supporters in our vigorous 30s or early 40s are now old men. And many whose blue and red excitement in those early days was tinged with shades of grey will have undergone their final transfer.
Following a period of appalling mismanagement - one of the turnstile operators or tea ladies selected at random would surely have made a better job of running the club - Caley Thistle are now at the lowest point in their 30-year history.
The irony is that they are close to the bottom of the heap and with pessimism clogging the air it seems the only way could be down. But 30 years ago they began at the bottom of the heap and amid irrepressible optimism it seemed an absolute certainty that the only way was up.
And that's how it worked out, first at Telford Street Park where I saw my first Caley match as an infant in 1960, and then at the exposed new stadium battered by the winter weather, which much of the time we were able to ignore.
Supporters going through the current, endlessly troubled times will always have particularly grim memories of this fraught period where the future remains very uncertain. In a city with a population of around 47,000 there aren't all that many of them, and it's just as well they're there. But some or maybe many of us who now view reports of Caley Thistle doom and gloom with interest rather than anguish or despair never had to go through that.
I was a season ticket holder with a colleague and close pal who was to die in a hillwalking tragedy, and we relished the buoyant atmosphere at home games, and were keen enough to make long-haul midweek trips to places like Ayr and Methil and Celtic Park. These were arguably the best years of the Caley Thistle story - the early years. And we were very lucky to be part of them.
But good and bad times followed and now the debt-ridden club is at its lowest ebb.
It may count for little now as businessman Alan Savage and a handful of others strive to map out a future for the club.
But some of us - many no doubt - will retain indelibly happy memories of our liaison with Caley Thistle, however long or short a time it lasted. And it wasn't a free ride, we paid our dues along the way.
Those who have made the whole journey have been on an exhilarating rollercoaster ride. Despite the current dismal state of affairs, I'm sure they're grateful for the experience. Whatever lies ahead Caley Thistle have added a vivid dash of colour to many, many lives over the the past 30 years.
And just like it was at the beginning, there's a formidable challenge to be faced - and the only way is up.
