In the United States, a tailgate party is a social event held on and around the open tailgate of a vehicle. Tailgating often involves consuming beverages and grilling food. Tailgate parties usually occur in the parking lots at stadiums and arenas before, and occasionally after or during, sporting events and rock concerts. People attending such a party are said to be tailgating. Many people participate even if their vehicles do not have tailgates.
Tailgate parties have become popular in the United States as social gatherings events that take place in stadium parking lots before football games. The use of the tailgate party has spread to the pre-game festivities at sporting events of all kinds (e.g. football, basketball and baseball) and is also used at non-sporting events such as weddings and other non-sports-related barbecue gatherings.
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Tailgating in media
The previously underground subculture is now a part of the mainstream sports media. In 1993, ESPN's pre-game college football show College GameDay took on a tailgate-party atmosphere by placing the hosts on a portable stage set at the campus of the school hosting the week's marquee rivalry matchup with fans gathering around it to celebrate. The Fox network's NASCAR on Fox and Fox NFL Sunday have also used similar setups. Veteran broadcaster John Madden has brought attention (and cameras) into the tailgating lots for years. Madden is the author of a book entitled John Madden's Ultimate Tailgating, released in 1998.[3] For twelve years, Joe Cahn has been traveling the country from stadium to stadium, as the self-declared Commissioner of Tailgating.[4] He has tailgated and tasted with fans of both college and NFL teams, and to many is the face and the voice of the tailgater. He calls the tailgating lot "the last American neighborhood" and refers to tailgate parties as "the new American community".[4] In 2007, the NFL angered many football fans by banning tailgating at Super Bowl XLI in Miami.[5] The NFL cited security risks, though many suspected it had more to do with corporate sponsored events than any real threat.[6] In 2008, an online petition[7] began circulating to encourage the NFL to lift the no tailgating at the Super Bowl policy. Members of the sports media[8] also questioned the validity of the NFL's claim that security concerns was the real reason for the ban. In the Simpsons episode "Any Given Sundance" (episode 19, season 18, aired on March 4, 2008), Homer takes his family to a tailgate party. He makes them get up early in order to be at the stadium hours before the football game, and states that "the game is nothing", the tailgate party being the only reason for their venue. The concept of "tailgating" originated in 1960 in the team parking lot at Yankee Stadium (Bronx, New York), by Angela Pisani, wife of Dr. Anthony Pisani, team doctor for the New York Football Giants. Mrs. Pisani set up her station wagon "tailgate" with sandwiches, other lunch items and drinks for her children, friends, and sports writers. A reporter inquired about her "car picnic" and she said that it's actually more of a "tailgate" party.
Traditional tailgate fare
Traditionally tailgating involves the consumption of alcoholic beverages such as beer or mixed drinks and the grilling of various meat products. Popular tailgate party foods include picnic staples such as hamburgers, hot dogs, baked beans, and cold salads like coleslaw or potato salad. Various tailgating games include beer pong, ladder toss, cornhole, washer pitching and flipcup.[9] It is also common for fans to bring out TV equipment to tailgate parties to watch games from the parking lot.
A community of tailgaters often goes by the collective title of Tailgation.
Tailgating among Deadheads
In the Deadhead community, and other like-minded musical scenes, tailgating has evolved in a somewhat different manner. More than just a party for fans, it is a way for the faithful to sell wares which in turn fund their tickets and gas to the next concert in order to spend weeks, months, or even entire tours on the road. This often occurs in an area of the parking lot known as Shakedown Street. Along with the more traditional fare, there is a large selection of vegetarian food such as egg rolls, burritos, pizza, and falafel. Certain illicit foods like hash brownies and "ganja gooballs" are also often found among the foods in the parking lots. Other products available for the tailgaters include handmade jewelry, bumper stickers, t-shirts, or drug paraphernalia.
Gallery
 New York Jets Tailgate Lot 5A |
 Dave Matthews Band Tailgate, 2009 |
See also
- The Boulevard, a tailgate party before American football games at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
- Vandyville, a "pre-game pigskin party" before Vanderbilt Commodore football games in Nashville, Tennessee.
- Deadhead
References
- ^ Opening Night 2007 at the Santa Fe Opera on YouTube
- ^ Ritter, Kara (08 2006). "Ex-Steeler looks to sway support of Eagles' fans (abstract)". Philadelphia Inquirer. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_kmtpi/is_200608/ai_n16967992. Retrieved 2008-05-29.
- ^ ESPN. "John Madden Bio". ESPN. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/madden/story?page=bio.
- ^ a b Joe Cahn. "Who is Joe Cahn". Tailgating.com. http://www.tailgating.com/Commissioner.htm.
- ^ CBS 4 Miami. "Tailgating Forbidden On Super Bowl Sunday". cbs4.com. http://cbs4.com/sports/local_story_025154548.html.
- ^ Michael David Smith. "No Real Fans Allowed: Tailgating Banned at Super Bowl". America Online. http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/category/super-bowl/2007/01/26/no-real-fans-allowed-tailgating-banned-at-super-bowl/.
- ^ "Allow Tailgating at the Super Bowl Petition". Tailgating Ideas. http://www.tailgatingideas.com/2008/01/09/super-bowl-tailgating/.
- ^ Ben Smith. "NFL's grill ban burns tailgaters". Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. http://www.journalgazette.net/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080125/SPORTS0203/801250322/1018.
- ^ Tailgating Ideas. "Tailgating Games to Play". Tailgatingideas.com. http://www.tailgatingideas.com/2007/08/13/tailgating-games-to-play/.
External links
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