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Volume 7, Issue 10, November 2008

Hey Tailgaters!

As I sat down to write this month I was going to talk about the excitement over the upcoming football season.  But my enthusiasm has been muted when I heard that the Chicago Bears are restricting tailgating during Bears games.  As the Cubbies are making a serious run at baseball’s title, Chicago fans were hit out of nowhere when the Bears announced a new policy that starts with the team’s first exhibition game against the Kansas City Chiefs -- fans will no longer be able to remain in the parking lots during the games. Once the game starts, fans will have to cease tailgating.

For years, countless fans have tailgated in the parking lot of Soldier Field during the games, watching the games on television and enjoying delectable delicacies from the grill.  But in an e-mail sent to season ticket holders, the Bears said the move is part of a crackdown on unruly behavior and will no longer allow it.

This is simply not right.  Tailgating is as important to going to the game as the game itself!  And if you are not one of the lucky ones who have tickets to the game but enjoy tailgating and celebrating your team in the parking lot, you are now out of luck!

This said, we at The Tailgater have written a letter to Bears President and Chief Executive Officer Ted Phillips imploring him to reverse this decision.  As the representative organization of Tailgate Nation, we can not take this lying down.  If we let this happen without protest, it’s a slippery slope for other teams to follow suit.  All in the name of cracking down on drunks.  We’ve heard that one before.  A few unruly fans ruin it for the majority.  At press time we have not heard back from Mr. Phillips.  If you are a Bears fan, season ticket holder or not, or just a football fan in general, we encourage you to write to him at 1000 Football Drive, Lake Forest, IL 60045.

* * * * * *

That aside, we are truly excited that football is back!  Elsewhere in this month’s issue we give you some late summer tailgating fun.  See our Tip O Da Month and Joe Drozda’s column that both look at getting ready for the fall season.  We also asked some of our friends out in the field what their tailgating teams were doing to prepare for the fall season.  Check out what they told us in our Tailgate Club Round-up.  Columnist Bobby Hurte looks at his favorite beer and we spotlight a racing tailgater who spends ten months a year out on the tailgating road.  He’s the other Jimmy Johnson and he’s one of our favorites!  And of course our Recipes and Gizmos and all the rest!

Happy Tailgating!

Mark Dau
Editor
TheTailgater.com

E-Mail:  Mark@TheTailgater.com

"When tailgating, we're all on the same team!"

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