Recently repaired Vikings ship vandalizedAugust 11, 2005
A vandal or vandals spray-painted a newly refurbished replica of a Viking ship at the Minnesota Vikings headquarters in Eden Prairie, apparently as an ode to former player Randy Moss.
The side of the ship at Winter Park read, "Moss is boss" and also was sprayed with the number 81, said Chad Christians, operations manager for Christians Inc., which did carpentry work on the ship two weeks ago.
"We were out there for a week straight in 90-degree temperatures, and for somebody to do that is frustrating," he said. "Of course, Randy Moss' number was 84, so I don't know if these were the most intelligent people."
Repairing the aging and splintering ship was a top priority for Vikings owner Zygi Wilf when he arrived at Winter Park in June.
"The first thing we're going to do is fix the air conditioning," he had said then, "and then we're going to take care of that ship."
Christians said the ship appeared to have been vandalized overnight.
"We're disappointed that someone would express themselves through defacing private property," said Steven Poppen, Vikings vice president of finance and coordinator of the ship project. "But one of the things we're doing at Winter Park is installing security cameras to help monitor these types of situations."
Christians said Vikings staff members painted over the graffiti Wednesday, adding that the ship did not sustain any structural damage.
Moss now plays for the Oakland Raiders. His number? 18.
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