Tailgating is a time honored tradition that likely dates back to the earliest days of sporting events, though football usually comes to mind first for most people. Nothing amps up the anticipation of an impending matchup between fans favorite teams like hours of tailgating partying before the actual sporting event even takes place. It is food, family, friends, fun and socializing on a scale that is utterly incomprehensible to anyone who is not familiar with or a fan of outdoor sporting events.
So how did tailgating become such a huge tradition? Well, if you examine the some of the earliest documented historical events, you may find that although modern tailgating most likely has its roots in college football, it may date back to the mid 1800s think Civil War. You probably would not think that a war would be anyplace to throw a party, but it appears that is exactly what happened at the Battle of Run in 1861. Supporters of the Union showed up with baskets of food and enthusiastically cheered the soldiers on by shouting, Go, Big Blue! This may be a bit disconcerting, but apparently it is a documented historical event.
If you are looking for a more upbeat history of modern tailgating, then another event that comes to mind is the football game between Rutgers and Princeton that took place in 1869. Here was tailgating at its finest lots of people, food, fun, and friendly rivalry all based out of vehicles of the time, which is how tailgating (wagon tailgate) most likely got its name.
Returning to the present time, tailgating has exploded in growth and has become an integral part of Saturday afternoon and evening college football games. Fans begin to gather in the early morning hours for games that are not set for kickoff until later in the evening. College football game days are an all day event for avid tailgaters. At some schools, tailgating is in a league of its own with many hosting themed tailgating events.
Though a great many people tend to think of college football when they think of tailgating, other major sporting events boast tailgating crowds as well. Professional auto racing, football and baseball sporting events also draw large numbers of these social revelers, as do high school football and soccer events.
So what makes for good tailgating? Well, you only need to ask a few of the participants to get the answer lots of food, beer, and socializing. Though many tend to stick to normal grilling fare - such as hamburgers, hotdogs, sausages, and chips some go all out sponsoring catered tailgating events featuring high end cuisine, such as lobster and prime rib. Some of these tailgaters never even enter the stadium, preferring instead to watch the game via satellite television from their comfortable folding sport chairs beneath their tents in the midst of one large tailgating party.
No matter what tailgating event you visit, you will find an array of tents pitched, coolers stocked with soft drinks and beer, comfortable folding chairs, grills of all sizes, lots of food, and families and friends coming together to just forget about the rest of the world and live in the moment. It is no wonder that tailgating has become a tradition that refuses to die.
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