NO CURE FOR THE MADNESS
In the beginning, there was food, followed quickly by sports. Exactly when the two came together is debated. Yale claims to be the site of the first prefootball tailgate in 1904, when fans arriving by train for a game brought picnics. However, Princeton and Rutgers make competing claims, saying that at their first football game in 1869, fans carried in food by carriage.
No matter who started the whole thing, tailgating has spread across our land like smoke from sizzling ribs. At the University of Washington in Seattle, fans sail right up to the stadium and tailgate in boats on Lake Washington, then go inside and enjoy one of the most gorgeous views from any football arena. The tailgate for the Georgia-Florida game in Jacksonville has grown so big that it has its own name: The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.
Fans of other sports like to eat, too. They can tailgate all night at the Midnight Sun, a baseball game played on the summer solstice each year in Fairbanks, Alaska. The game starts at 10:30 p.m. and goes on, without the need for artificial lighting, until around 2:00 a.m. Rowing regattas on the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts, and polo matches in West Palm Beach, Florida, have their own tailgating styles. And NASCAR fans are a whole ’nother breed.
Don’t forget those who bring the tailgate home, with lavish Super Bowl viewing parties, get-togethers for fight nights, or Kentucky Derby soirees. Some fans try to combine the best of the on-location and at-home worlds, as does one University of Tennessee supporter who hangs a sheet on the side of his house, sets up a projection TV, and brings the action and food home for dozens of friends.
After more than 100 years of tailgating, it still all comes down to three things: fans, food, and fun.