In doing research for the upcoming visit to Baltimore by the hated Colts, I stumbled across a wonderful little article about health code violations at Lucas Oil Stadium.
From WSBT2 in Indiana:
Ed Culver of the Marion County Health Department said inspections at the stadium resulted in 42 citations and $3,900 in fines. Health inspectors found mice droppings in storage rooms, in kitchens and in an oven. Inspectors also found dead mice and numerous live ones in a kitchen area.
If this doesn't further support my love of tailgating, nothing will. I know where my food came from, I know who handled it and how it was cooked. No amount of beer is going to get rid of the delicious taste of mouse turd. I gotta say, I'd love to be 9-0 but at least Raven's fan aren't eating poop nachos.
I recently got my hands of a pair of Bushnell’s 10x50 Spectator Binoculars to see how they fare for games and other outdoor activities. The first thing you will notice, since these are made for stadium viewing, is that there is no focus. They have what Bushnell calls Permafocus so you can easily keep track of fast moving action without constantly adjusting the lenses. There is a small adjustment you can make initially but once set, it keeps the action in focus.
A buddy of mine called asking if I wanted to go to his son’s football game so of course this gave me a chance to test them out. I was really impressed that I could follow the plays (what few there were that actually went the right direction) without constantly tuning the dials like on my regular pair.
Then I wanted a little more open setting to see how they responded so I took them out on the Chesapeake Bay (my office is in a marina so wasn’t a long trip). I was able to lock in on boats in the distance and follow them across the field of view with absolutely no adjustments. This is an area I can really see helping, especially in the summertime when there is some great scenery draped across the front of these boats. Who wants to put their beer down as they are checking out sun bathers?? I can’t tell how many times we’ve been on our family beach when someone says “hey quick check this out” and hand you the binoculars. Problem is, by the time you get them focused, boat is gone and everyone loses.
So overall at this point I love these binoculars. The next step is to try them out at a Ravens game so I’ll update as soon as I get a chance to use them.
Every tailgater wants to put their own unique spin on their gear. I tracked down a few great links to get you started.
As the proud new owner of a Margaritaville Tailgating Grill, my first thought was "how can I turn this beast into a Ravens Tailgate Grill?" Turns out that it's a pretty simple process but for those of you who want in-depth instruction, Dave from Tailgatingideas.com has a video walking you through step by step:
Next is the propane tank. White = boring. Another article from Tailgatingideas.com shows how you can pimp out your tank. While I don't agree with the team choice, the grill and tank look pretty sweet.
If you want to be seen, you'll need a banner. I recently made a Tailgate365 banner with Vistaprint and was very happy. Signing up for their mailing list will get you a handful of emails every week but they have great (sometimes free) specials on most items. You are going to pay full shipping so adding other free products (car magnets, t-shirts, etc) can help bring your cost average down. While basic products are deeply discounted, customization can quickly become costly.
Now to the food. What better way to personalize a fat porterhouse on game day than with a branding iron! Gifts4Grilling carries a large selection of college branding irons for around $30 each. If you don't plan on having steak, brand an opposing fan. Much more fun and better on your arteries (I'm kidding-please do not attack opposing fans-seriously).
Finally the games. Why go out and blow a ton of cash on a cornhole set when you can build it yourself. Well, I guess if you have no idea what circular saw is, please proceed to your favorite sporting goods store to purchase a set. Anyway, we have instructions on building your own set here. Since a plain board is no fun to look at, here is a site that sells stencils that let you customize the wood to one of many different teams.
With everyone being addicted to fantasy sports these days, being at a tailgate lot on gameday always brings a problem...how to stay on top of all the action around the league. This seems to have been solved for those with DirecTV and the Superfan application. The new Supercast Mobile allows the same access that you would receive sitting in your recliner with a plate of wings.
I spend many Sunday's with friends who have the DirecTV so I can attest to how nice it is to be able to see any game and follow stats for all of your favorite players. Now you never have to miss a second with the games in your pocket. The app works on the iPhone, Palm Pre and certain Windows Mobile and Blackberry's. For those of us without DirecTV, we'll just stand there with that jealous look on our faces. Pass the wings.
It was announced last month that Auburn would be partnering with a private company to manage paid access to a company run tailgate party. Obviously this caused an uproar among the students who feel that all areas should be open to free tailgating on campus. The main concern is that if this is successful, it could spread and totally remove free tailgating. While I don't see a university doing this, I guess the argument could be made that money talks.
From what I can find, the pricing for the Auburn deal ranges from $222 up to $535 per game (based on individual games vs season package). "Fans are provided tents, tables and chairs and can purchase full catering plans that include food, drinks and ice" says Jeremy Roberts, Auburn's director of operational support services.
I don't know about anyone else but that seems just a little high to me. When you factor in ever increasing ticket prices, contributions to alumni associations and other fees, paying to tailgate seems like another way to make a dime for the school at a time when people are struggling.
I look at this from my experiences tailgating at Ravens games. I can't recall ever spending anywhere close to this amount and we have pretty nice parties. I can only assume that when you add catering to these prices, they get much steeper. We have a system where everyone brings great homemade food and the beverages of their choice. It works well and people can economically plan how they are going to eat and drink. it also gives you the flexibility to change the menu on a weekly basis based on everyone's tastes, something I would imagine you can't do under this type of program.
While this program may work well for some, I don't see it being a great deal for most. What do you think, would you pay to tailgate?
Lee and I were having a discussion today and thought we could talk about it with you fine people. Ladies, feel free to chime in but this is primarily geared towards the fellas.
Would you make out with another guy for 2 minutes, tongue and all for...
2 nights with Megan Fox, and a free pass to do what you like
Normally I would be writing about some gadget or piece of equipment used for tailgating but this was way too good to pass up. With football season just a few short months away, many people are already prepping their homes for the upcoming season. I personally try to make sure my "man cave" has all of the important equipment and supplies to make every Sunday perfect. Unfortunately, not everyone has the space to have all of the necessities in one place (who wants to keep running upstairs??) but this problem has apparently been solved by the folks at Hybrid Space Furniture. I give you....The Man Wall
With this beauty, I can't ever see a reason to go outside again. According to the website, it comes with:
52″ Vizio Flat Panel LCD HDTV
2 – 26″ Vizio Flat Panel LCD HDTVs
1200 watt Panasonic 5.1 Home Theater System
DVD player with 5-CD changer
iPod docking station
2 – Wireless surround sound speakers
Live 7-foot sports ticker with built-in computer
1 year free service for sport’s ticker
Full-size built-in beer refrigerated beer keg with tap
1000 watt microwave oven
2 cigar humidors (holds 25 cigars each) complete with gauges
32-bottle wine rack
I could gush over this thing for another 5 paragraphs but I think you get the idea from the list above that it has pretty much everything. If for some reason this isn't enough, you can add a fireplace or more TV's. It retails for $14,900 but considering you never have to move again, seems like a good deal to me.
Normally I am all for preserving the rights of tailgaters but this story needs a little bit of reality injected for my FedEx partying brethren. The Washington Post has an article about changes the Redskins are making in their tailgating policies.
"The most significant new procedure will have parking attendants directing fans who wish to tailgate in more than one space to the back of lots, where they will be allowed to occupy two spaces until required for additional vehicles," the team said. "Fans who wish to only park, or tailgate within their single parking spot, will be directed to the front of lots, filling the lot from front to back."
This caused immediate outrage among the Redskins tailgating community on message boards and local websites. Before Redskins Nation loses its mind, I think they need to realize a few very important things.
#1 Football is a business and those parking spaces are a commodity. As a regular Baltimore Ravens tailgater who has attended more than a few Skins games, I can honestly say that they have had it better than most NFL fans do at their stadiums. At M&T Bank stadium, parking spaces are next to impossible to obtain and when you are lucky enough, you are confined to that spot for all of your tailgating needs. You really should not be surprised that ole Danny Boy wants to take full advantage of his parking revenue.
#2 I work for a company with a luxury box at FedEx Field so I parked in the Purple Lot in front of the stadium. I have to say that I've never seen a bigger cluster f%ck in my life. One family can literally park their vehicle in one spot, put up a tent in another, chairs in another and games/grills in another. They also can spread out as much as possible so when you are driving through to find a spot, you get nothing but dirty looks because they have to move their grill from the middle of the road.
#3 People are paying good money to get decent parking but can't because of the chaos this system creates. This has forces a situation where even those who aren't tailgating have to arrive 4-5 hours before the game if they simply want to park. The guy showing up 30 minutes before a game can't park in his lot because you have taken 15 spots.
Others see it a little differently. "It's ridiculous," said Ted Abela, who arrives at the stadium around 5:30 a.m. and hosts dozens of tailgaters a few yards from the stadium entrance. "People that arrive there first and get there early are being reprimanded and moved to the back of the parking lot. And some guy that's not even a fan, that gets there 30 minutes before the game, gets to park right in the front of the lot? It's absurd. We pay [hundreds of dollars] to park at basically eight games, and we can't choose our own spot, we can't park by our friends?"
The key here is "we can't choose our own spot, we can't park by our friends?" According to what I read, you still get two spaces towards the back of the lot or can tailgate up front if you just plan to use your single spot. This is still better than most stadiums, sorry if you have to walk a little bit friend. If you can't have a decent tailgate in two spots, something is definitely wrong with that. Come up to Baltimore if you want to see how the rest of the world lives. An article in SI.com took fan feedback in ranking stadium experiences across the league. The list has the Ravens tailgate at #7 (with tight parking restrictions) and the Skins at #18. As good as DC thinks they had it, you can see the majority of the fans did not feel that way.
In a follow up article , the team clarifies the procedures. If you look at the bottom, you will see many fans who agree with the new policies because the current "multiple space" tailgaters have made the experience miserable for everyone else. Bottom line is that people will get accustomed to their new way of partying and make new friends to party with. It's going to be ok everyone-the brats will still be hot and the beer cold.
