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What If I Don’t Have A Satellite?

October 31, 2011 in Tailgating Ideas

January 1st, 2011 was a pretty important day in this tailgater’s life.  It was the day that I accomplished 2 different feats in one day.  Not only was it the 1st day that I was able to say that I tailgated with my wife, we were married the November before, but also the 1st time I had live television at my tailgate.  We were  in Raleigh for a Carolina Hurricanes game, and the plan was to watch the NHL Winter Classic during the tailgate.  When I prepped for that tailgate I was surprised to learn that there was a bit of a void of information on watching TV at tailgate when I looked for ideas here.

Allow me to clarify for just a second.  We have plenty of info on how to have AC power at a tailgate, as well as products for receiving a satellite signal in my parking space.  The problem with the idea of satellite TV is that you need a satellite subscription for it to work.  Since I’m a cable subscriber this wasn’t a practical solution.  I knew that I could use an antenna to pick up the game, but with all the confusion surrounding the DTV switch in 2009, I was pretty stumped on where to begin.  My trials and tribulations were the inspiration for this article.

Let’s begin with a quick review of the DTV conversion and what it meant for over the air TV via antenna. The switch to DTV, or digital television, was made official 6/12/09.  On that date stations no longer sent out analog signals. Analog signals were the ones that gave you those static filled broadcasts that left you constantly readjusting the rabbit ears, or at least making your least favorite friend hold them just right so you got some semblance of a picture.  The arrival of DTV basically meant you got all or nothing. While that seems like a bad trade off, DTV made up for it in superior picture and sound quality, as well as expanded programming.  It meant the arrival of FREE HD!

Now not all DTV is in HD, but most of your network broadcasts are.  The networks I’m referring to are local ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX stations.  Not only do most of those offer news and the popular sitcoms, they also give us sports. I’m talking sports like NFL, NCAA, MLB, NHL, NASCAR and for you golf fiends out there PGA. Again, most of those in high definition. Even those that aren’t in HD are still going to look better than your run of the mill analog signal. Not a bad deal for being free is it? I’ll do you one better.  I mentioned that most DTV stations offer expanded programming.  What I was referring to is the capability of one station’s signal to carry a few channels.  That is another benefit to the technology.

Whatever you think of the federal government is your own thing, but I will give them credit for providing some pretty useful information on the DTV conversion and its impact to you.  If everyone will click this link, http://transition.fcc.gov/mb/engineering/maps/, and enter the address information of their favorite tailgating locale you’ll see a listing of what channels are available in that area.  For example a search for the RBC center in Raleigh gave me 10 stations with strong signal strength. Remember that those 10 stations may have 2 or 3 channels each, so we’ve actually got a lot of TV available.  If you are among the unlucky few who got nothing, try it again, and if it’s still nothing then you’re excused if you want to be.  Alas, it’s not a perfect system for everyone.

If you’re still here, let’s assume you’ve found a few viable stations for your viewing pleasure.  All you need now is a DTV-ready TV, a power source, and an antenna.

But Brandon, how do I know if I have a DTV ready TV?  The quick answer is if you bought it after March 2007 you probably do.  If you’re not positive you can look up your TV online and see if it is equipped with an ATSC tuner. If its got one, your set is good to go.  If not you can buy a converter box, but just remember that a converter box isn’t going to make your TV show HD pictures unless it is an HDTV.  Also remember that a converter box is another thing that will need to be plugged in.

Coincidentally I didn’t use a conventional TV for my tailgate.  I instead bought a TV tuner for my laptop computer.  This is a device which basically turns your PC into a TV.  Again just make sure that there is an ATSC tuner built into the TV tuner you purchase if that’s the route you want to go.

Because it’s obvious that we’d need some sort of power source for any of this to function, I won’t go into too much detail.  Just search our site for generators and you can go from there.  Instead I’ll focus more on the antenna.

Now the antenna is really the key to making this all work.  Remember when I said that DTV was basically all or nothing?  Well if we have a poor antenna we will end up with more “nothing” than  “all.”  Naturally you can go drop serious cash on a so called “HD” antenna, but the truth is that there are more affordable, i.e. do it yourself, options that will do the same thing  just as well.  To save some time I’ll refer to our good friend Google for this.  Search for “DIY DTV antenna” and you’ll probably get everything you ever wanted.  To show some love for the other bloggers out there I’ll give this guy a link:

http://gritzmacher.net/2009/05/dtv-antenna-project/

The video embedded in the middle of that post is for a homemade DB4 style antenna and should suit most of you who have a lot of UHF broadcasts in your area. It may not be the prettiest thing out there, but it’s the style I built for my tailgate, and it worked like a charm. Who cares how it looks anyway? Tailgating wouldn’t be the same without some blue collar ingenuity.

Before anyone starts flaming me for not mentioning it, DTV signals come in 2 flavors, UHF and VHF.  All of the DTV antenna stuff gets a little more complicated when we start talking UHF and VHF antennas but I’m willing to bet that the design in the link above would work for the lion’s share of you. 

So if you’re like me and want a “free” option for TV at your tailgate consider keeping it simple and just going with an antenna and TV.  I know this method has worked, and continues to work, for me and my tailgates so I would say it’s worth a shot.  Of course there is more to be learned about the subject, but my aim was to give my fellow tailgaters a good jumping off point.  Whatever route you go, I hope that it makes your tailgate stand out as much as it should.

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Tailgating Product Review: The MyTopOff Bottle Opener

October 21, 2011 in Featured, Tailgating Gear

Bottle openers are one of those things we tailgaters never think of until we need one.  Being a tailgater who often drinks from bottles with pry off tops, it is even more important to have one handy.

I used to carry one on my key chain but after breaking several of them, which I’m convinced was due to poor quality metal, I stopped spending money on them. I do have a pair of really nice openers that I keep in my kitchen drawer, but I’m so fond of them I don’t want to risk losing them by taking them tailgating.  Thankfully we were approached by the folks who make the MyTopOff bottle opener.



Oddly enough, the MyTopOff is unlike any of the other bottle openers I’ve seen. First of all, it is cylindrical in shape and instead of using it to pry a cap off, you just push it down, then pull it up, and the cap should come off.  It’s available in both a black plastic and also a stainless steel version.  While both are interesting, I have to admit, that the stainless version is pretty eye catching with it’s brushed metal look.

Disclaimer: We received samples of the MyTopOff openers for free. The fact this sample was provided to us in no way influenced our opinion of the product nor did it impact our ability to test and review the product fairly and objectively.

As I mentioned before, the MyTopOff is a bottle opener, so naturally the main test for this product is opening bottles.  The company claims that it will open not only pry-off type caps, but the twist-off variety as well. For the test I had several different beers in typical long necked bottles (pry-off), some Mike’s brand beverages (twist-off), and some Red Stripe (pry-off).  The Red Stripe, in it’s “short ugly bottle” (their words not mine), was to check the effectiveness of the MyTopOff on unusual bottle shapes.  During the tests, I tried both the standard plastic and stainless steel models of the MyTopOff.

What I found is that the screw-off caps opened with no difficulty with either opener.  The long necked brews also opened just fine.  The Red Stripes were a little temperamental at times. I learned that a little turn and an additional down/up with the MyTopOff seemed to be the fix.  Another nice thing is the magnet built onto the rim of the MyTopOff.  While I didn’t get the cap to stick every time, I did enjoy not having to bend over to pick up all of my caps.

Also included with my samples were the MyTopOff bottle koozie and drink sling. Since we all have experience with neoprene bottle koozies I’m not going to do dedicated testing.  I did like the bright green color of the koozie as it would help with drink identification.  The drink sling basically turns your bottle into a necklace.  This is done by slipping a rubbery retainer over the opening of the bottle, and below the flared out section.  While I don’t see myself using it personally, it may be useful for freeing up your hands for a few minutes if you don’t have a place to set your beer down at your tailgate.

Probably the most meaningful part of my testing was the inclusion of my wife, Katie.  Katie has Rheumatoid Arthritis, so anything that helps her do basic tasks more easily is ideal.  I’m pleased to say that using the MyTopOff was easy for her and gave her some independence with opening her own drinks.  I have to believe that she’s not the only tailgater that could benefit from this sort of thing.

I going to say the MyTopOff is “Tailgate Approved” for multiple reasons.  First of all, it has conversational value, especially the stainless model, which in my opinion is huge at a tailgate party.  Secondly, it means you don’t have to worry about cutting your hand on a bottle cap or having to open a bottle with your teeth.  Third, it is affordable enough to keep with your tailgate gear all year.

Speaking of affordability, the current price of the MyTopOff is $9.95 plus $4.95 shipping and handling.  This is for the plastic opener, bottle koozie, and drink sling.  You can double that order for an additional $4.95.  The stainless steel version of the MyTopOff isn’t much more than that.  Of course you can check out all the pricing, quantity options and free items at mytopoff.com.  While you’re there, be sure to check out the MyTopOff girl as well!

Wait! There’s more!  The folks over at MyTopOff.com sent us an additional opener, koozie, and drink sling that we’d like to pass along to our readers in the form of a giveaway.  There are two ways to enter:

1) Facebook – All you need to do is scroll to the bottom of this post and hit the Facebook share button and post this review to your wall on Facebook. Feel free to make mention of how badly you would like to win or whatever else you can think of. After you have posted this review to your Facebook wall, click over to the Tailgating Ideas Facebook Page. There you will see a wall post promoting this review and giveaway. Just comment “I want to take my top off!” on that post confirming you posted this to your wall so that we can validate your entry. After you have done that, you are now entered into the random drawing via Facebook.

2) Twitter – Simply cut and paste the following piece of text into a Tweet.

@TailgatingIdeas wants to see your top off! RT this #giveaway & be entered to win a #MyTopOff bottle opener! http://t.co/goqMhlHv

Each time you tweet that exact piece of text will earn you another entry. Keep in mind only one tweet per day will gain you an additional entry. You don’t want to annoy all of your followers by tweeting that same thing over and over to increase your chances of winning.

The deadline to post to your Facebook wall or via Twitter is 11:59 pm pacific time, Monday October 24, 2011. A winner will be chosen at random from all entries and will be notified privately via Facebook or Twitter to provide their address. We will announce the winner publicly on Facebook and Twitter once the winner has confirmed their address and the MyTopOff is in the mail. And the best part is if you win, we will even pay for the postage to get it to you. Good luck.

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Product Review: The Best of Times Bar

October 6, 2011 in Featured, Tailgating Ideas

I tend to place tailgaters and their parties in different levels.  On one level we have the “trunk”-gaters that usually have a grill, table, cooler, and a couple of chairs.  The next would be the folks who set up the tent, and have the TV going.  This trend continues all the way up to the RV or converted bus crew.  Personally, I usually fall somewhere smack dab in the middle.  I don’t drive an RV to the game, but it’s pretty rare that I just take the bare essentials.  Sure I keep it simple every now and then, but occasionally I follow the other saying of  “Go Big or Go Home.”  The hard part is finding things to take it to that next level.  Well it seems that luck was on my side because not more than a week after I first saw it, we were asked to review the Best of Times Bar.

While this isn’t the first portable bar system that we’ve reviewed, it is the first that I have personally tested.  Among those things that I wanted to test were portability, ease of set-up, functionality and overall response.  Naturally I’ll also begin things off with a quick overview of construction, and quality.  Since I will be referencing them in the review I am going to put the pictures up before, so that you can see what I’m talking about.

(Disclaimer: We did receive a sample Best of Times Bar for free.  The fact this sample was provided to us in no way influenced our opinion of the product nor did it impact our ability to test and review the product fairly and objectively.)

After playing with it for a while I can say with certainty that the Best of Times Bar seems to be quite well built. The frame is made of steel which, while adding weight, does make the product feel very sturdy.  The shelving is made of molded plastic and feels very similar to some folding tables I have seen at various tailgates.  The fabrics used for the wraps is much heavier than I expected, and feels to be very durable, yet not “tarp” like.  The folding bar-stools, while only rated for 200lbs, did not feel like they would buckle with more than that weight placed on them. I would be remiss if I didn’t clearly state that exceeding the weight limit is not advised, and doing so is at your own risk.  Lastly the included cooler bag has a good quality feel to it, and seems like a very durable component of the Best of Time Bar.  Since we’re talking about build quality it seems appropriate to say that the Best of Times Bar boasts a 10 year warranty which, to me at least, says something about the quality the manufacturer expects.

As I mentioned before, the first test looked at was portability.  By looking at the pictures you can probably infer that the Best of Times Bar is not some tiny little thing that you just throw in the car, and you’d be right in that assessment.  For starters it does have some legitimate heft to it.  Now I don’t have the most precise scale but I found the Best of Times Bar to weigh about 63lbs.  This may not seem like too much to start with, but when you are getting ready to tear your party down after a long day, any weight is going to be exaggerated.  The upside is that the whole thing collapses down and fits into a nicely constructed wheeled storage bag that is included with the bar.  The frame has hinges so you just fold it up, and because of the hinges (unlike a map) you can’t really mess it up.  The shelves take up the most volume, but if you stack them on the frame in the bag, and put the velcro strap over them, it should zip up easily.  You can see what I’m talking about in the pictures above.  Once in the bag you can roll it around to where you want it, and in case you had any doubts, they rolled on grassy ground just fine.  The stools have a bag of their own (the smaller of the 2 in the pictures), but that is much lighter and easily managed.  I would have liked to see a bag for the umbrella, but storing it in the box doesn’t seem like too much of a trade off.  Altogether it seems like the typical tailgater would be able to handle the Best of Times Bar with little difficulty.

For the the second test I wanted to look at how easy the Best of Times Bar is to set up.  As we all know, more set-up and tear down time means less tailgating time.  A quick description of the assembly of the Best of Times Bar would go:

  • Open up the frame
  • Put the 6 shelves in
  • Insert the cooler into the cooler shelf
  • Place the wrap around the bar
  • Slide the umbrella in and open it (if you took the cover off you’ll want to put it back on before opening)
  • Open up/cover the stools
  • Enjoy.

My first attempt at it all was pretty slow, however my subsequent assemblies became much faster.  In fact, I was able to get everything downstairs, set it all up, take pictures, drink a beer (it is a bar after all), pack it up, carry it back upstairs, and set it up again in less than 40 minutes.  I feel confident that if I started the timer with everything in my set-up location that I could assemble the Best of Times Bar in less than 10 minutes.  Truthfully, for what you end up with, it’s incredibly easy and quick to do.

When I think of a bar I don’t think of a table with some liquor on it.  Thankfully the Best of Times Bar is a whole lot more than a folding table with a fancy cover.  The overall counter height is comfortable enough for either standing or sitting .  With ample shelf space, and the drop in cooler you could do a lot with this set up.  Speaking of that drop in cooler, it has a cover that closed with a zipper so you can fill it up at home and transport it full.  I can see myself filling that thing up with plenty of ice and brew to make for a wonderful tailgate.  The middle shelves have enough clearance for the typical grocery store mixer bottles, and your typical 750ml bottles.  What doesn’t fit there will certainly go on the bottom shelves with room to spare.  Short of a sink I don’t really know where you would make improvements.

Next I wanted to gauge what people thought of the Best of Times Bar.  In fact one of the things I like to do with all my product reviews is just show people pictures and ask them what they think.  And since I’m approaching this product as a way to up your game, so to speak, this is a very important test.

First I showed the Best of Times website to a couple of my coworkers, and I would say that the reception was very positive.  From there I sent pictures of the actual sample I received to my friends, both those that I tailgate with and those that I don’t.  This time I was met with a lot of “Yeahs!”  Finally I posted a picture of the sample product to my personal Facebook page. Among the things posted there was an “Oh my goodness”, “I will own this…”, a “Like”, and “Oh. I’m interested.”  Needless to say I think that you would meet a similar reception if this were to show up at your tailgate.

I am a huge fan of getting the most bang for your buck, and the ability to change the appearance with different wraps increases the range of the Best of Times Bar even more.  As you can see from the pictures mine was dressed in Buffalo Bills colors, but they have a ton of different wraps available.  In fact, on Friday night you could have a home luau with the tiki wrap, on Saturday you can dress it up in your school’s colors, and then on Sunday you could have it sport your NFL team’s logo.  Since the wraps are super easy to change, the ability to change the look of the Best of Times Bar is probably one of it’s biggest selling points.  If you’re curious to see what designs they offer, they have a have a great tool on their website to check them out.

My final impression of the Best of Times Bar is that given the right circumstances, it is most definitely Tailgate Approved.  For the small scale family that goes to a game a couple of times a year, it may be overkill.  On the other hand if you’re a die hard every weekend tailgater you would love this.  But mostly I would say that if you’re in a bit of a tailgating rut, the Best of Times Bar may be just what you need to break out.

The Best of Times Bar starts at $399 and is available at bestoftimesbar.com.

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Tailgating Product Review: Flowzie

September 22, 2011 in Featured, Tailgating Gear

How to shotgun a beer is one of those things that you learned in college, but was never on the final despite the countless hours you spent studying the craft. As many college alums and tailgaters can tell you, shotgunning a brew is a pretty fun way to get the party started.  If you’re unfamiliar with how to shotgun a beer, it’s pretty simple.

You take a can of beer, hold it just past horizontal so the bubble in the can is just above the part where the base and sides of the can meet.  From there you pierce the can with something, put the hole to your mouth, and in one motion pop the top and throw your head back.  If you did it correctly you’ll down all 12 ounces in less than 8 seconds.  While it sounds fun, it’s not without its perils.

Flowzie Shotgun Koozie

First and foremost it can be messy.  Beer is obviously carbonated, which leads to foaming.  Slinging beer around, and drinking it as fast as you can only exaggerates that foaming. However, dribbling some suds on your clothes pales in comparison to the next danger.  As I said before you have to make another hole in the can, otherwise it doesn’t work.  Piercing the can usually involves some sort of sharp/pointed implement.  Since you are holding the can in your hand, stabbing it with a knife/screwdriver/ice pick/awl can lead to disaster.  While it seems safe enough when you’re coherent, after you’ve downed 2 or 3 beers in under an hour it gets much more dangerous.  I won’t be too graphic, but stabbing a knife towards your hand, which is protected by an aluminum can,  doesn’t lead to good things.  I think you can figure out why.

There are many products available that are designed to make shotgunning easier and safer.  One of these products is the Flowzie.  What separates it from other products is that it also doubles as a beer koozie.  When the folks that make the Flowzie contacted us and asked us to take a look at their product and pass along the findings to you all, we were happy to oblige.


Disclaimer: We were compensated for this review however that in no way affected my objectivity to fairly evaluate the product’s effectiveness and practicality in a real tailgating environment.

2nd disclaimer: I think that when done responsibly shotgunning beer can be a very fun thing to do.  Just remember that when you choose to do it, you are going to be drinking much faster than if you were to spend 10 minutes on that same drink.  Please know your limits so that you, and everyone around you, can have an enjoyable time.

My initial impression upon receipt of the Flowzie is that it is not unlike a lot of foam koozies I’ve used in my life, with the exception of a plastic plunger type device attached to the side.  Pushing this button/plunger causes a spike inside the Flowzie to move inward, towards where the can would be. The button will spring back out one you stop pushing. Around the button is a plastic frame with air holes to allow air to enter the can through the new hole.  Since the Flowzie is obviously designed for shotgunning a beer that is one of the things I’ll test.  The 2nd thing I will test is how effective the Flowzie is at keeping a beer cold for longer.

The first thing you have to realize about the Flowzie is that when you shotgun from it, you are in essence doing it upside down.  Since the can is in the Flowzie, and the hole you punch with the button is concealed within, you have to pop the top and drink from there.  The technique I decided to use was to, pop the top, put the can to my mouth (as I would if I were drinking normally), and in one motion start drinking and press the button on the Flowzie.  The very first time I did this I had some difficulty puncturing the can with the button/plunger.  I don’t know if it was just me being a pansy and not pushing hard enough, or if I had an usually strong can, but I managed to get it with two hands pushing on it.  In all the subsequent attempts after that I did not have any trouble.  After doing 3 or 4 “good” ones, I developed a pretty good rhythm for punching the can and drinking.  I’m not entirely sure if I was chugging faster, slower, or the same speed as a traditional shotgun but it was still pretty darn quick.

The second test, which was focused around the claims of keeping your beer cold, was pretty straightforward.  I took 2 of the same brews out of the fridge, put one in the Flowzie, and left them on the counter for 15 minutes.  While there wasn’t much difference the beer in the Flowzie was a few degrees colder. The next test was to hold them both in my hands for 5 minutes and see what happened.  It should come as no surprise that the insulated beer in the Flowzie came out victorious in this trial as well.  Even though my dial thermometer was difficult to get a precise reading I could easily see a difference. If you were wondering if a Flowzie, or any koozie for that matter, was beneficial this test confirmed it.

Among my incidental findings is that I did have some dripping from inside the Flowzie after shotgunning a beer.  A little spillage here or there is not uncommon with shotgunning, but I do feel that having your beer in a koozie may give one a false sense of security.  My main reason for bringing it up was to make sure that anyone who decides to purchase one knows you may need to rinse it out after use.  Another thing I noticed is that it seemed to work a little better with the taller/skinnier cans like those that used for Coors Light and Keystone Light. That is not to say that it doesn’t work with the more conventionally shaped cans, it absolutely does, I just think it worked better on the others.

In conclusion I would say that the Flowzie is fun. One application I can see myself using it for is finishing up, or slamming, that last beer before I head into the game. Because of this I will am  deeming the Flowzie “Tailgating Approved.”

A quick glance at the Flowzie website shows that they sell them for a very reasonable price of $7.99, or a special price of $15 for 2. Combined with the variety of colors available, it shows that is a good deal for a product that is sure to get people participating in your tailgating shenanigans.

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Tailgating Product Review: The Lapper

September 9, 2011 in Featured, Tailgating Gear

For a guy like me with average sized hands carrying a beer, a plate of food, a napkin, and everything else you need can be trying when navigating through everyone at a tailgate.  And don’t even get me started on how many times I’ve sat there balancing a plate on my lap trying not to drop food all over my shirt, pants, or on the ground.   It might seem easy to say “just eat at a table,” but at smaller parties, table space is very limited.  Sure I’ve tried using a tray to carry my meal but even that wasn’t without its faults.  Dishes would slide around, and food/drink would get all over the tray, or even fall over the edge.  Thankfully there is a solution out there that greatly reduces the potential for these sorts of mishaps.  Its name is The Lapper.

The Lapper is, for all intents and purposes, a TV/serving tray.  What separates The Lapper from more common trays is the use of silicone pads that grip your plate/drink to keep them from slip-sliding around.  The manufacturer claims that the tray can be tilted approximately 65 degrees before things start to slide around, provided they are on one of the pads. Among their other claims are that the mats can be used as hot pads, which is something I have found need for on occasion.  Of course we’ll test those claims as well as the products overall applicability to tailgating.

 

(Disclaimer: We were compensated for this review however that in no way affected my objectivity to fairly evaluate the product’s effectiveness and practicality in a real tailgating environment.)

 

Upon receiving the product I wanted to get some initial impressions. After cutting the plastic open, I pulled The Lapper out.  I felt it to possess a good ratio of weight vs. sturdiness.  In addition to this the handles seemed quite functional, as well as comfortable.   With those evaluations made I set out to do some actual testing.

My first test was to try some different dishes on the larger center pad.  This pad rests in a depression that is 7.5″ wide and about 3/8″ deep.  What I found was that some plates that were wider than the recess did not rest squarely on the pad.  These were mostly larger plates that did not have a defined base.  However when I set the plate a little off center I was able to get the edge to rest down on the pad thus eliminating a lot of excessive sliding.  When I tried a moderately heavy ceramic bowl, which you might use for chili, the Lapper worked like a charm.  The results on the smaller pad were very similar.

As you can see in the picture (let me state that this picture was taken in my kitchen and has no trick photography) I placed a bowl and plastic cup, both filled with water, on the pads and elevated the tray with some cork trivets. I was able to lift one edge of the tray about as high as a beer car is tall.  I think I could have probably gotten it higher but I was satisfied with its performance at this amount of tilt.  Much more and the items would have toppled over from being top heavy, or the water would have spilled out.  Neither would have been the fault of the product.

The second test was to test maneuverability with items on The Lapper.  At your more populated parties you may find a need to navigate other people and some obstacles.  I wanted to test how well The Lapper would do in these situations.  For a control I used another, more simplified, serving tray and placed some assorted items on it.  I then made some laps around my home, at a good walking pace, to see how much the items slid around.  As I would have imagined the items moved around quite a bit and some of the taller more vertically oriented items, specifically a beer can, actually fell over.  If the items had food or if the containers were open I surely would have had a mess. With The Lapper I was able to do the same without excessive sliding. I did have some of the same items tip over, although I do not think it was a failure of The Lapper.  The Lapper is going to prohibit the lateral movement of your stuff.  It does not assist, nor does it claim to, with items bouncing around.

For my last test I wanted to try the silicone pad as a hot pad, specifically the logo side of the larger pad.  While I doubt I would only use the pads for this purpose, I have found myself in need of a place to set hot objects. For the test I boiled a pot of water and then quickly transferred the pot to the pad, straight from the burner.  I then left the pot there to see if the logo would peel up or deform.  After about a minute I lifted the pot to see the logo staring right back at me unscathed.  The pad overall seemed to be in the same condition as it was before the test.  This would be a handy resource for those of you who do more involved cooking at your parties.

For you college fans out there, The Lapper is available in 13 collegiate designs: UNC (which is what I tested), Ole Miss, Florida, Florida State, Clemson, South Carolina, Arkansas, Auburn, GA Tech, Alabama, LSU, Georgia, and Tennessee.  Also available are 5 other designs such as Camo, Zebra, Floral, Trellis, and Circles.  All of the Lapper designs nest together and stack making for easy storage. The Lapper, both the tray and pads, is also dishwasher safe.

I would definitely recommend The Lapper tray to anyone looking for a more efficient and practical way to carry their food around the parking lot.   The collegiate designs would fit in perfectly at the game, and the functionality speaks for itself.  For those reasons I am deeming The Lapper to be Tailgate Approved. If you’d like to buy some for yourself you can go to http://www.masterbuilt.com/lappertrays.html where a set of 2 Lapper trays is going for 29.99 plus S&H.

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