Heritage Home | Family Genealogy | Recipes Home | cHow   cHow We Do It   Tailgating Check List   Introduction: We're BIG NASCAR fans and our tailgating doesn't start a few hours before the race; it starts nearly 12 hours earlier. Well yeah, you gotta get to the track early for a night race. Your tent becomes you're make-shift homestead and there's a few things you can do to make it comfortable.   With our spring and fall season tickets, we've learned a few things about tailgating in the heat, the cold, the rain and the sun shine.   If you're prepared, you can be ready for anything you might face at your tailgating event. Our check list covers: Picnic Bag Food & Stuff Coolers Food Box Grillin' Stuff Pack Your Truck/car Event Backpack Other Preparations What you Need for Children's Safety Before you leave the house Additional Information   Back to Tailgating 101.     Check List: Picnic Bag: Find a bag you can use to keep picnic supplies in for tailgating and all those family adventures. It really does come in handy for more than just tailgating. We purchased a camping table from Grander Mtn that came in a handy carrying bag. The table folds up on it's own so I never understood the purpose of the bag. We decided to use it for our picnic bag. It's soft, with a double zipper that opens all the way around to the bottom. Easy to get into and leave open while we're tailgating. Whatever you choose, stuff it with: A deck of Uno and regular playing cards Sharp Knife Salt & Pepper Matches Grill Lighter A tube of After Bite Itch Eraser for Insect Bites Safety pins, various sizes (in a small ziplock snack or sandwich bag) Band-aids, various sizes & First-Aid disinfectant (in a small ziplock sandwich bag)       (slide all the above into a gallon size ziplock bag to help keep your picnic bag organized)   Cold and Hot Cups (might include lids with the hot cups) Pot holder(s), to use with your grill Flat box of kleenex Roll of Paper Towels Can of cooking spray (Pam spray) Car Power Inverter Extension Cord Duct tape Fan Flags Hooks to hang your fan flags Small can of bug repellent Paper Plates (slide them into a gallon size ziplock bag) Plastic Forks, Spoons, Knives        (slide them into a gallon size ziplock bag. Boxes never last.) Large outdoor trash bag (pack 2 if you're going to a race weekend) Extra batteries (all sizes) (we keep them in a gallon size ziplock bag)   Food & Stuff: · The Coolers: First of all you're going to need 3. Yep, at a minimum 3. 1. For fresh ice. This is what you'll use for your drinking cups. This is the "clean ice". 2. For drinks. Don't just pack beer!    You will need water, Gator-aid, & sodas for those that don't drink. 3. For your perishable food (chicken, dogs, meats whatever).   Second pack your perishables the morning you'll be using them. Otherwise keep the perishables in the fridge. You'd be amazed how easy it is to get food poisoning from night before packing.   And lastly, plan an extra 15 minutes after you leave your house to stop and pick up ice. And DON'T wait to pick up when you get to the stadium or track. You'll never find any. The closer you get to the event, the more 'sold out' signs you'll see. Pick up your ice NEAR your home! · Cooler 1: Clean Ice · Cooler 2: Your favorite beer 1 gal. bottled water 6 pack of your favorite flavored Gator-aid Soda / Tea · Cooler 3: Mayo Ketchup Mustard BBQ Sauce Cheese Perishables (hot dogs, chicken, meats) Make sure they're packed in tightly sealed containers! Tomato & Lettuce if it goes with your grillin' food   If you're going for breakfast: Bacon and/or Sausage Eggs (we like 'em scrambled. This year we prepared the eggs at home and put them in         a plastic water bottle that we could throw away after use.)   · The Food Box We usually pack the food in paper or plastic bags. But the last tailgating event I thought it would be better if we had a box. Mostly because we kept crushing the chips. Nothing big, just an office box would do. Dessert(s) Coffee & Hot Chocolate Sugar & Coffee Mate        (if you're going extra early for breakfast) Your favorite Chips. Make sure you take at least 3 different varieties. Buns - Hamburger, HotDog, Hoggie - whatever you're going to need. If you're taking children, make sure you have toys. Give them something to do        while you party and relax. We also take along the LeapFrog hand held game pack,        Gameboy and books.   Grillin Stuff: The manly dude prefers a coal grill. But if you don't have a preference, take a gas grill. It requires less packing! Camping Coffee Pot A camping pot for beans & chili and/or hot water for your hot chocolate Grilling utensils The Grill         If you have a gas grill, make sure your gas canister is full and ready to go.         If you have a coal grill, you'll need the following additional stuff. Coal Fire Starter Your favorite smoking wood (hickory or mesquite). Large Spray Bottle for water to wash your hands, or to put out a fire *   Pack the Truck/Car: Picnic Bag Camping chairs for everyone 1 Outdoor lounge chair ** A fold out table (for serving food) A smaller camping table (for eating on) Portable camping fan (for those really hot days) Portable battery powered misting fan Rope (lots of rope) *** A cheap 10' x 10' rug **** Tent Screen/Shade Cover Ladder Toss Game   Event Backpack: Most events allow you to take items into the stadium or track. This is helpful as it keeps your hands free and allows you to take a few things into the event that you might need once you find your seats. There's nothing worse than getting to your place and realizing you need an aspirin. You can either walk back to your homestead, or pay $10 for 2 aspirin. So here's an idea of what you might want to take in with you. A clear see through backpack. If you can't see through it, you won't be allowed to take it in. A small bottle of aspirin A small bottle of antacid A small bottle/tube of sunscreen Camera Extra camera batteries Child's leash and collar Child's Dog Tags Pack your tickets! Ticket/Creditentials Holder Rain poncho Warmup/Hoodie Lap blanket   Other Preparations: · Your Child's Safety! If you are taking children, especially young children; you need to make some special arrangements. It is very easy for kids to get lost in a crowd of people who are rushing to their seats, or worse, back to their cars.We have learned from experience how to keep our 6 year old safe. So here are a few things you can do for peace of mind and their safety. · Go online and order a set of dog tags for your child. Make sure you have their name, address and contact phone numbers on those tags. Especially your cell phone! · Make sure your kid wears their tags. From the moment you reach the tailgating site put the tags around their neck and leave them on until you're back home safe and sound. · Find a cop and introduce your child to the officer. Make sure your child knows what they look like and explain to them if they get lost, they need to find a cop and show them their dog tags. · Use a leash and collar (around their wrist) to help hold on to your kid. Purchase a leash and small cat collar with a buckle connector. Don't get one with the plastic fastener, they can come loose very easily. When you leave your homestead to go shopping or go to your seats, put the collar around your child's wrist and slip the leash loop over your wrist. This really helps when you're walking through a large crowd of people. Don't count on being able to old your child's hand in a crowd. People don't look where they're going after an event and they often run through you and/or your child breaking your grip. A leash really helps with this. You can put these in your backpack once you get to your seats, but try not to go anywhere without putting it back on.   · Before You Leave The House If you have pets, make sure you make arrangements for them while you're gone If you take a daily medicine, make sure you take it with you, or take it before you go! Turn off the coffee pot!   Additional Tips: · Take your check list with you to your event. You'll inevitably find something you forgot and you can add it to your list for next time. · Tailgating Games There are many tailgating games that are easy to pack and play. Golf toss is one of the popular ones. But another popular game is called Corn Hole Yard Toss with bean bags. There's tons of places online to acquire these games and find the rules. Some are expensive and some are fairly cheap, so shop around. · * Spray Bottle Go to your local home improvement store and look for a large insect/garden spray bottle with a pressure pump handle. Set this bottle aside to use ONLY for your tailgating events. On tailgating day, fill it with water and use it as a hand washer out in the lot. · ** Lounge Chair / Camping Cot If you're going to an all day event, you'll need some kind of full body lounge chair or camping cot. Naps always happen and it's not easy sleeping on the hard ground, or  in a camping chair. · *** Rope in various lengths It's amazing what you'll find to tie down or wrap up. We use a 30ft rope to string along the inside and outside of the screen and fan flags. This helps to keep them from blowing on you and knocking things over inside your homestead. · **** Cheap Area Rug If you're tailgating in a field, the worst thing you can do is spend the day in mud. Pack a cheap area rug (at least 10x10), to cover your area. It also comes in handy if your space is on gravel.   Created: 04.29.2009       Updated: 10.23.2009

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