Pregame activities used to be simple: You’d either show up in time to grab a dog and a beer or, if you were feeling particularly saucy, you’d bring a hibachi grill with some charcoal, burgers and brats for a quick nosh in the parking lot. You might’ve also tossed a frisbee around.
These are still completely acceptable ways of taking yourself out to the ballgame, but more people are opting to spend extra time, energy and cash on tailgating, turning the pregame into a full-blown parking lot party.
Luke Lorick knows just how fanatical folks can get. Lorick celebrated 20 years working for State Farm Insurance in June, but catch him outside the office, and he’s most likely tossing a cornhole bag or grilling up something delectable.
Lorick, who lives in Loveland, enjoys tailgating so much that he created his own website, tailgating-challenge.com, where he posts product reviews, tailgating tips and basically anything else related to his favorite pastime. His viral tailgating videos have garnered thousands of views on YouTube and even more on Instagram, and he’s known for founding National Tailgating Day, a holiday that is celebrated annually on the first Saturday of September.
“I continued to hear of all the national days, from National Flip Flop Day to Talk Like a Pirate Day,” Lorick says. “I knew that there had to be a tailgating day and was shocked when there was not. I knew I had to take it upon myself to right this wrong.”
This year, National Tailgating Day falls on Sept. 7, which coincides with Colorado State University’s Nutrien Ag Day BBQ and Ram Walk Tailgate on the intramural fields before the Rams face the University of Northern Colorado at Canvas Stadium that evening.
Photos by Jordan Secher.
Tailgating trends
Lorick spends days every football season scouring the internet and cruising around stadium parking lots for the latest, coolest thing to help make any tailgate a rousing success. Picture motorized coolers, cups doubling as noisemakers and tailgating grills that hook up to a hitch and ride on the back of your vehicle.
“You remember those vuvuzelas they were using at the soccer matches (during the World Cup in South Africa in 2010)?” Lorick asks, holding up a drink. “This tailgating cup can do that as well.”
One game on Lorick’s Top Yard Games 2024 list is Beer Pong Toss, a creative take on beer pong that can be played both indoors and outdoors. The cupholder mounts to a wall or vehicle, then players swing a ping-pong ball on a string and attempt to land it in, of course, a red Solo cup.
Also on the list is a game made only for those who aren’t faint of heart (or liver): ChuggerKnights. A board is set up (and should probably be clamped down to a table), then two players put carbonated beverages in plastic holders with holes in them, leaving parts of the cans vulnerable. Each “knight” is then given a spear and shield and must try to punch a hole in the other player’s can. When one is punctured, the losing knight must open and chug from the spewing can.
Flingball, meanwhile, puts a bit of a bounce in cornhole. Balls with streamers that resemble comets more than beanbags are thrown at a mini trampoline, bouncing up into a net or a few different holes, providing a number of ways to score. Another take on cornhole, called Fishbowl, uses standard beanbags and a mini trampoline, but all players toss their bags at the same time to create a bit of chaos.
Lorick also collects items that enhance the enjoyment of traditional tailgating. For instance, there’s the Bumpboxx Bumpboard, a cornhole board that has Bluetooth speakers built into the legs. If the sun is setting on your tailgate, Bag Brightz glow-in-the-dark cornhole bags contain a red, white or blue light, allowing you to play well into the night.
DIY? Why?
In a world where nearly everything is available at our fingertips, a service now exists to give tailgaters a chance to show up, party and leave. Gunnar Gustafson does this for CSU fans.
Gustafson is the general manager for REVELxp (formerly Tailgate Guys), a full-service tailgating company that has partnered with CSU since 2018. The organization has also provided tailgating setups for UNC events in Greeley.
Tailgate Guys started 15 years ago in Auburn, Ala., and has grown across the nation to provide additional hospitality services. On the tailgating front, however, the REVELxp crew will set everything up (including food and drinks) and leave a staffer there to help during the event, then clean up and tear it all down when it’s over.
“We used to be strictly tailgating until about three years ago, but after COVID, we started doing more of the various event rentals,” Gustafson says.
Regardless of whether you choose to get your own setup or have one provided for you, one thing Lorick will tell you is that while the toys, gadgets and games are essential for a successful tailgate, the most important thing you can bring is a desire to have fun.
“I know someone is doing it right when I see them with enough food to not only feed their tailgate but share with others that come by, too,” he says. “That, and seeing people get to the game eight hours before kickoff to tailgate and have everything set up long before some have even left the house.”
After all, where else would you rather be on gameday?
There’s a Day for That
Tailgating trio allows year-round celebrations
The first Saturday of September, which is usually opening weekend for college football, is officially National Tailgating Day. All it took for that to happen was one overzealous enjoyer of fun.
Local tailgating expert Luke Lorick has been all about the tailgating scene for most of his life, so he decided to create a day for it. Of course, we won’t be getting a paid day off work for National Tailgating Day anytime soon, but Lorick did go through the process to make it official in 2016.
“I worked with National Day Calendar, an entity that allows you to submit applications for new national days,” he says. “They ask you questions to see why this should be considered and why you are the person who should be the one to submit it.”
Obviously, it worked. In fact, it worked so well that he did it again, this time with “homegating.”
“Homegating is bringing the sport of tailgating to your home,” Lorick says. “This is celebrated on Super Bowl Sunday each year, as that is the day many people have been homegating for years. Maybe they just didn’t know what it was called.”
National Homegating Day was approved in 2019. One year later, inspiration struck again, and Lorick added his third holiday: National Yard Games Day. Celebrated every year on the first day of summer, the holiday is an excuse for Lorick to get out the yard games he loves that are a big part of the tailgating experience.
“It’s another reason to go outside, disconnect from electronics and have some fun with the plethora of yard games that continue to explode into the market,” he says.
