Are You Ready to Tailgate?
Goin' to the Game
Things to Bring
Other Things to Consider
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Things to Bring
 But let’s continue with "things to bring." A checklist never hurt anyone… unless they got a paper cut. A few items you might want to include are simple things that are easy to overlook when concentrating on the main items- you may remember to bring your grill, but a match would have been a good idea. Paper towels and napkins, plastic cups (so you don’t get hassled by the rent-a-cops for enjoying your bottled Sam Adams), plastic utensils, cooking implements (spatulas, tongs, etc.), plastic bags for trash, folding chairs, matches or lighters, and charcoal or an extra propane tank.
Forgot the matches anyway? Every car made since they invented cigarettes has a lighter in it. Forgot a bottle opener? There are something like 20 different places in and around your vehicle to open up a bottlecap… the doorjam and the seatbelt are just two.
Something you should also consider bringing is a gallon or two of water to douse your hot coals when you are finished and to cool down your grill before you put it back in your truck. Melted ice water from the cooler will also do the trick. Remember, if you forget something everyone at the park is doing the same thing so don’t be afraid to ask the other tailgaters. They are usually more than willing to help out if they can. Everyone has forgotten something at one time or another and what goes around comes around or one good turn deserves another… I’m sure there is a cliché that fits. Just don’t borrow whole chickens or the like… I don’t know if there is a cliché for that one.
Another thing to consider if you are going to barbecue at your tailgate party is the size of the grill. No matter what anyone says… size matters. If there are more than 4 to 6 people in your party those small grills might become an exercise in patience as someone will have to be tending the fire for a long time to crank out the food. A grill that can cook 2 to 4 burgers at a time is just purely a waste of your money (and downright embarrassing, you sissy).
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