Best Place To Tailgate

[firefly]

What stadium is the best place to tailgate in the MLS and why?

[ojsgillt]

Not Naperville
Not Dragon Stadiuim
Not Victoria Street

[AvidSinger]

And since the powers that be have decided to open up the parking lot only two hours before kickoff, I'd have to say NOT Gillette Stadium, either.

[BenC1357]

Originally posted by AvidSinger
And since the powers that be have decided to open up the parking lot only two hours before kickoff, I'd have to say NOT Gillette Stadium, either.

Our tailgates are usually pretty good. But anywhere that you can set up a 55 gallon drum as a grill and bring a cooler of beer is great!

[The Magpie]

Gilette Stadium because of the quality of food and generosity of supporters, but the new parking policy that reduces tailgating to two hours really puts a damper on things.

The Magpie

[AvidSinger]

Originally posted by The Magpie
Gilette Stadium because of the quality of food and generosity of supportersWhen the official spupporters' club homepage contains a section devoted to tailgating recipes, you just KNOW you're in for a treat!

[eric d]

Originally posted by firefly
What stadium is the best place to tailgate in the MLS and why?

Reason #4567 why some MLS fans don't get it.

Shouldn't this be moved to the Sam's Army forum?

[AvidSinger]

Originally posted by eric d
Reason #4567 why some MLS fans don't get it.What the hell are you talking about?

[Beerking]

Ignore eric, he's just bitter about the "no alcohol, no BBQ" rule at the toolbox. Spartan Stadium kicks ass for pre-game partying.

[Bonji]

Colorado, plain and simple. Invesco Field does not have any no laws. You can BBQ, drink and be merry. There is even a large sidewalk type thing you can back your car up to and set up on. Perfect for grills, etc.

[gettysburg32]

First off eric, Sam's Army hasn't been mentioned once in any of these posts. Secondly, not all MLS fans are a part of Sam's Army, and not all Sam's Army afficianados are big MLS fans. With nearly 5000 posts I'd think you'd realize both of these things.

Gettysburg32, in Suffolk, VA - USA 3, Brazil 2 (in OT)

[Wizardscharter]

Originally posted by Bonji
Colorado, plain and simple. Invesco Field does not have any no laws. You can BBQ, drink and be merry. There is even a large sidewalk type thing you can back your car up to and set up on. Perfect for grills, etc. KC has the same lack of restrictions. Did I mention they they provide a grill for the supporters? On local TV during football season there are no less than 3 weekly segments on 3 stations that devote airtime specificly to the creativity of grilling and tailgating. Recipies, unique aspects of it, gormet griling, etc. The gates to the lot open up pretty much whenever you want to start setting up your stuff.

Only a pool and A/C would make it any better.

[AvidSinger]

I was actually on Swedish television a couple of years ago during a tailgate. They had, apparently, never seen one before.

I had thought, at first, that it was a local station covering the game because their cameras had nothing more than an unassuming "4" on them. So they came up to me and told me they were with a Swedish sports channel and were covering football in the US. They interviewed me briefly while filming me flip over some chicken breasts I was grilling...

[nyrmetros]

Lot 16-A Giants Stadium - ESC and Sams-Army :)

[astabooty]

Originally posted by BenC1357
Our tailgates are usually pretty good. But anywhere that you can set up a 55 gallon drum as a grill and bring a cooler of beer is great!

i was about to ask how the wizards' ones are because i have heard the chiefs' tailgate parties are good.

[Wizardscharter]

Originally posted by astabo0t
...i was about to ask how the wWizards' ones are because i have heard the chiefs' tailgate parties are good. Two things that might be unique to the Truman Sports Complex are the availablity of space and the people. TSC is surrounded by grassy areas that lend themselves to comfortable set-ups. The people start with Hunt Sports who put out grills on game days for both MLS and NFL. It ends with many people who bring way too much food just in case someone unannounced shows up. Not everyone is ready to feed you gratis, but if you ask enough people someone might. At the very least you'll be welcome to be social.

I think it's generally recognized (due to Monday Night Football broadcaster opinions) that Green Bay and KC are the two best. Just the smell of the TSC lot on a game day is a unique thing. This will not do it justice, but it's like being downwind from a BBQ contest...only the whole lot has the scent. Also among in the lot are everything form gormet grills to hottubs to whatever vaguely portable things that might be of use or interest. Really, the only people that don't tailgate are anti-social types with no friends, lazy people that consider tailgating too much of an effort, and some designer-label rich folks that consider it beneath them to tailgate. The other 50,000 seem to have a pretty good time.

Certain Royals' games (like playoffs or home openers) will have those features about it also.

The word has not gotten out widely about the tailgate opportunity being better at Wizards' games. Consequently, the rediculous all-out effort is scaled back somewhat. It's hard to understand as the weather is better during the summer. Still, you see flagpoles and grills out in number. People are figuring it out slowly and more and more grills show up week to week. I think you could put Wizards' tailgates at about 5% of Chiefs' games. Maybe a bigger number for a Saturday home game if it's been a few weeks.

It doesn't sound like much, but it's still remarkable if you have an understanding of the sheer vastness of the tailgate at Chiefs' games. Check back in a few years, it'll grow.

[BenC1357]

Originally posted by astabo0t
i was about to ask how the wizards' ones are because i have heard the chiefs' tailgate parties are good.

My family has had season tickets to the Chiefs for over 20 years. I started going to the games when I was 10, meaning I've been to about every Chiefs game for 13 seasons. There is one picture I have seen that sums up Arrowhead on a Monday Night game during the '90s. Its right as the sun as setting behind the stadium, and the smoke from grilling has created a haze over the entire complex.

Not to mention the vast amounts of great food that can be found at an Arrowhead tailgate, but the friendliness you'll see is amazing. That is, unless you are wearing Raiders black. On more than one occasion I've had people who were grilling near us come over to see what we were cooking up. Often you'll end up trading foor and eating just as much of their food as your own. Then, stomach full, you make your way into the stadium with the other 80,000 fans. The experience of a day at Arrowhead is something every person should experience at least once. I can only hope that someday the Wizards games can be the same.

[TommyMack]

Us LA fans are getting shafted MAJORLY by AEG. Technically, we can;t tailgate and grill... but during the Dave Matthews concert at the HDC, there were grills aplenty and the SAME security gave them no problem.

Do they think 20,000 soccer fans are gonna be more wreckless than 35,000 concert goers?

Of course, it WAS Dave Matthews band...


tm

[firefly]

Maybe this belongs with the stadium threads but given that the MLS is starting to build new stadiums, what can be done to facilitate tailgating in these new stadiums?

People love the social aspect of tailgating, and it has to be relatively cheap to do a few simple things to encourage it.

Some ideas suggested are more grills available, shade trees, etc. Other things that come to mind are some marked grassy areas for pick up matches (dare I say with goals?), could they sell beer in the parking lot (e.g. vendor beer booths), perhaps they can do something to encourage similar groups to congregate (e.g. "family area', singles area, supporters groups area, etc.).

The amount of money to do a few of these relatively simple things to enhance the match day experience including tailgating, has to be relatively small. Who doesn't like to eat and drink with new and old friends? Wouldn't it make sense for the MLS in its new stadiums that encourage this kind of comraderie?

MLS are you listening? It's about the whole match day experience.