Portland is affectionately known as “Soccer City USA” thanks to its fervent support of the sport from the professional ranks to the youth leagues. The Portland Timbers have undoubtedly helped buoy this soccer moniker. Since beginning play in Major League Soccer in 2011, the Timbers have made a significant impact on the local sports terrain. The team sells out every home game. Nearly 10,000 people are on the season-ticket waiting list. The Timbers enjoy the best supporters section in the league: the rambunctious Timbers Army, which features a social-justice wing that volunteers in the community for an array of projects. On the pitch this season, the Timbers have put forth a quicksilver style of soccer that has gained notice across the country. The team is dynamic, offensive-minded and skillful, but it also plays with great heart.
Timbers player David Horst is emblematic of this blend of skill and spirit. After being acquired by the Timbers in the 2010 MLS Expansion Draft, Horst clawed his way into a starting position anchoring the central defense. In 2012 he played the full 90 minutes in 20 of the team’s final 22 matches, and in that stretch he earned MLS Team-of-the-Week honors four times. He will forever be remembered for his game-winning goal against the arch-nemesis Seattle Sounders FC and for his role in the raucous celebration that ensued. A leader both on and off the pitch, Horst has worn the captain’s armband for the club.
In April of this year, Horst broke his right leg during a match against Houston Dynamo. In the wake of this injury, Timbers Head Coach Caleb Porter said of Horst, “He’s a fighter, he wants to be on the field, he loves this club.” Street Roots recently sat down with Horst to discuss a range of topics, including his almost-completed comeback.
Jules Boykoff: In 2012 you were named the Portland Timbers Community Player of the Year in honor of your avid civic involvement. Why have you chosen to get so involved in public service in the wider Portland community?
David Horst: I chose to get involved so much because we are put in a position, we are given an opportunity, to give back to the community that comes out every single week to support us. If you haven’t seen, we get 20,000-plus fans every game, so this is an opportunity for me to give back to those people who support us week-in, week-out. Also, there are a lot of organizations that the team supports through (the community program) Stand Together, so it’s a great opportunity for me to get out into the community and support more causes. You know, I didn’t realize how bad some things were in Portland until I got out there and now it’s made me even more interested in a lot of the causes that I’ve been a part of. It’s great to open my eyes to more of the things that are going on—outside of the city as well — I’ve really enjoyed being a part of that.
J.B.: More specifically, what are some of the meaningful activities you have engaged in? Also, you said you were surprised at some of the things that you’ve seen out in the community and realized that there are some fixes that are needed. What do you mean?
D.H.: Most definitely. One cause that I volunteered at was Schoolhouse Supplies, where they get supplies from a lot of local businesses, and it allows teachers to come in and get supplies for their classrooms. I found out that teachers in Oregon are not reimbursed for the supplies that they buy for their classrooms, which for the whole year could be two or three thousand dollars worth of stuff that they have to spend. If teachers don’t have that money, their students aren’t going to get the best experience in school. And I’ve been told that the drop-out rate in Oregon is quite high. So, teachers need these things. My parents were teachers — both of them physical education teachers — and so to see that kind of thing, you know, it really opened my eyes to that problem. In September, I’m volunteering again with Schoolhouse Supplies for a backpack drive to get backpacks to give to kids.
J.B.: That’s interesting both your parents were phys ed teachers. Rumor has it your dad was also a football coach, as in American Football.
D.H.: Yes, he was an American high school football coach.
J.B.: OK, so you’re a big man: six feet, four inches, more than two hundred pounds. You have the physical attributes to play football if you so desire. What was it that put you on the soccer path instead of the USAmerican football path?
D.H.: I have older siblings, and my dad didn’t want any of us playing football at a young age. He didn’t think our bodies were ready for that kind of pounding, so we decided to play soccer and grew to love soccer. And, you know, my dad did not have a problem with it. He eventually stopped coaching football and started coaching soccer for me.
J.B.: You mentioned the pounding that you take in football at a young age. But soccer’s a full contact sport as well. No one knows this better than you. You’re coming off a broken leg. Aside from the obvious sort of physical rehab regiment that you have to undergo to comeback from such an injury, what have you done psychologically to overcome this hurdle?
D.H.: I have a good support system. My parents are constantly there. My older brother, older sister, my girlfriend, who’s from Oregon, they are constantly around me, supporting me, there to cheer me on. To have them there was a big boost. If I didn’t have them there, I don’t think I would have been as diligent in my rehab as I have been, and worked as hard as I have to get back. That’s really helped. And just to see the outpouring and support from the Timbers Army has been fantastic. When it first happened and they had the banners in the crowd and everything. It really showed the love towards me and it shows that people appreciate the hard work I’m putting in on the field, that they appreciate what I do.
J.B.: Indeed they do. Timbers General Manager Gavin Wilkinson once called you “a fan favorite,” and he was right. Aside from the support of Timbers Army and the fans in general, what else do you like about being in Portland?
D.H.: This is my third year in Portland. Outside of soccer, I love the culture here. I actually live on the east side so I get to see so many different kinds of people. I go to a lot of different restaurants, a lot of different bars. To mingle and hear some of these people’s stories is pretty amazing. Some of these people have been all over the world and come back to Portland. Also, my girlfriend and I, every weekend we go on a different hike or to see the sights like Multnomah Falls or Eagle Creek. I’ve really enjoyed the different things that go on in Oregon. It’s just a great place to live and to spend my twenties. My previous three years, before I came to Portland, I spent in Salt Lake [City], so this is quite an eye opening experience and I’ve loved every moment of it so far.
J.B.: I wanted to ask you about the locker room life a little bit. You’re from Pennsylvania, but you have people from all around the world on the team. What kinds of things you do to get to know each other, to relate to each other, to get along? We know you have the common language of soccer, but what else do you do?
D.H.: The big thing — which I haven’t been able to be a part of this year — is road trips. You learn so much about your teammates on road trips, you know, sitting next to guys on the plane, rooming with guys, sitting down at dinner with guys, you learn so much about your teammates. If they have a family, what they’re home life is like, what growing up was like for them, other places they’ve played, people they’ve met. I haven’t been able to experience that this year, but in the previous two years I’ve gotten to know a lot of guys, guys from Colombia, guys from Scotland. I think that’s what’s so great about soccer — you get to meet people from all over the world. You play other sports? Football is not a very diverse sport. Baseball? You get a lot of Spanish-speaking players in baseball. Basketball? It’s getting more diverse, but not as much as soccer. That’s what’s so great about soccer. In the locker room every day I sit next to Darlington Nagbe on one side and Sal Zizzo on the other side. I know everything about their lives now because we sit there and we talk every morning. Things like that help you get to know your teammates.
J.B.: Who among your teammates do you admire most?
D.H.: Definitely, Jack Jewsbury. He’s been around for a long time, he does it the right way, he’s a great pro. I hope I’m still playing at his age and as well as he is also. I admire his persistence, the way he plays. You see Jack out in the community. You don’t ever see him getting thrown out of games or causing trouble off the field. I aspire to be that kind of pro. Another person that I really admire is Donovan Ricketts for the same reasons. Donovan’s got a few years under his belt, he’s played all over the world, and he has won championships. Hopefully someday I’ll have the decorated career that he’s had. For these guys to be able to play as long as they have and still play at such a level, hopefully, I can do that.
J.B.: Shifting gears, what’s the best book you’ve read recently and what do you like about it?
D.H.: I’m very much into sci-fi fantasy books and I got hooked on “The Game of Thrones” TV show, so I started to read all the books. The most recent book in the series was the fifth book, “A Dance With Dragons,” and it was an awesome book — I’m into the continuing storyline. I enjoy getting lost in those books and getting out of my everyday life.
J.B.: In May 2013, Robbie Rogers of the LA Galaxy became the first openly gay man to compete in a major professional sports league in North America. What’s your reaction to this?
D.H.: I think it’s fantastic for Robbie. In this day and age, in this country, people should be able to live however they want and be free and open about it and not be persecuted for their beliefs or how they live their lives. I was a little indifferent to that lifestyle, and as matter of fact, I actually attended a same-sex marriage last night. It was the first one I’ve ever been to and it really opened my eyes. The two young ladies had their families and friends there at the wedding and there was so much love and everybody was so happy for them. It really opened my eyes. I think I respect that even more now than I did before.
J.B.: One last thing: the 2013 point-in-time count of homelessness in Portland and Multnomah County found that nearly 3,000 people were homeless, either sleeping in an emergency shelter or completely unsheltered. That’s a lot of people. Would you like to comment on what you think would be the best, most humane path forward on homelessness in Portland?
D.H.: I just want people to keep an open mind about it. I see so many people who just ignore the people on the street. Be polite to them. They are still people.