Not that we needed another reason to love tailgating, but this grumpy old writer has found another one for you. I’ll give you a hint in two words…SIT DOWN!!
Maybe it was because I was recovering from a Saturday evening of too many drinks, but this past Sunday I reached my wit’s end with the people in my section at the Linc. Throughout the game it’s a continuous series of:
– Get up for that person, sit back down, get up for another person, sit back down, have the fans in the rows in front of me get up, have my vision blocked, stand back up so the first person can get back to their seat, sit back down, get back up when the next person returns, sit back down, have the people in front of me again get up, ETC…
Come on people, there is a game going on!
And more importantly an NFL football game is going on! The game where every play counts. The game where you don’t want to miss a single run, pass or bone crunching hit. Oh yeah and the prices that fans are paying, they shouldn’t be missing any of the game action. Save the interruptions for a nine inning baseball game or a basketball game where only the final quarter really matters.
Sadly this isn’t the case this season for me (and I can’t be the only one!). It seems as if people attending games have become more concerned with trying all the different concessions or blowing their savings on rounds of beer. How about instead you make a vendor’s day and just buy the beer and snacks from them. They are working on commission, so fill their pockets with your cash (they deserve it!).
All this rambling brings me back to my tailgating point. If more fans would take part in the pre-game tailgating, the interruptions would surely be minimized inside the stadium.
The hours leading up to kick-off would be filled with stuffing your face and stomach with the best fatty foods and getting the perfect buzz going. Once the tailgater gets into the stadium they can grab 1 or 2 additional beers to keep the buzz going. By the end of the game you are sobering up, your pockets are still filled with your hard-earned cash, and you are ready for a post-game tailgate while others suffer through traffic jams.
So for the happiness and sanity of the fans around you, I encourage everyone to engage in some pre-game tailgating. Get your butts out of bed a few hours early, avoid the game day traffic, and set-up for some grilling and drinking outside the stadium. Then inside the stadium…enjoy WATCHING the game!