MINNEAPOLIS - The Minnesota Vikings' miraculous playoff win against the New Orleans Saints is giving hope to a group of women who have spent the past 19 years as the faces of Vikings fans' despair.
Heidi Owens, Kindra Spencer and Jennifer Huffman are three of the four women who came to be known as the "weeping blondes" following the Vikings' heartbreaking NFC Championship game loss in 1999.
The three friends were crying in the stands when photographer Brian Peterson took their photo, and the Star Tribune used the image for its front page story about the game.
"We were speechless," said Spencer, who found herself in the center of a photo that eventually made its way into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. "Obviously I had no clue anybody was taking a photo of me. This photo, I cannot escape this photo."
Owens was also featured prominently, with tears streaming down her face.
"I got some acid wash going on," Owens said with a laugh. "Along with my platform Sketchers."
Huffman was largely blocked in the original photo by another friend, Melissa Morissette, who has now moved to Massachusetts.
"When I saw the picture I was like, 'Oh there's my hair. There's my hair in the photo,'" Huffman said.
"(Morissette) decided to give me a head massage," Spencer said with a laugh.
The friends have come to embrace the photo over the years, even though it captures such a heartbreaking moment. They even recreated the photo for the Star Tribune prior to the 10-year anniversary of the game.
"It's been fun," Owens said.
Yet, nearly 20 years later, none of the women will forget what they felt like in that moment.
"That feels immediate. Don't you guys think?" Owens said.
"Especially with the game we just saw a few days ago," Spencer said.
Speaking of that game, the women were all watching the game at home, but you'll have a hard time finding any reaction photos.
"No cameras," Huffman said. "No cameras were allowed."
"A few seconds prior to (the winning catch) I had kiddingly taken a selfie of myself making that face that I made in '98." Spencer said. "BUt I erased it right away and I said, 'OK guys, this is the play... touchdown.' And that's what we got."
Whether you consider it a purple premonition or the Minneapolis Miracle, the blondes say they now believe.
"I think the curse is lifted," Owens said. "It is done, don't you think?"
"I don't think we should talk too much about it," Spencer said with a big laugh.
The women say they'll wait before recreating their famous photo until the season is over.
"We'll be happy crying," Huffman said. "Weeping with joy."
Owens, who is the lead singer of the band Hitchville, says the "weeping blondes" photo helped give a boost to her singing career, and she says the Super Bowl could come full circle. Hitchville is scheduled to sing during the Super Bowl Live festivities in Minneapolis on Jan. 26.