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tailgating at University of North Caro- lina at Chapel Hill football games to the University of North Carolina at Pem- broke. UNCP is a college football new- bie; the school resuscitated its football program after 50 years without one. Baskett's son, Taylor, is the kicker for the Braves football team, and the entire family drives down from Fayetteville to join friends for pre-game tailgates outside UNCP's Grace P. Johnson Sta- dium. The school's tailgate might not be as elaborate as the bigger schools in the state, but David Baskett thinks UNCP holds it own. "They've done a great job of creat- ing a really nice environment," he said. "There's a good crowd that comes out. It’s a good atmosphere for fans, for stu- dents, and I think it helps with recruits to the program.“ UNCP holds a tailgating advantage that his alma mater doesn't have — space. When it comes to tailgating, park- ing lots are prime real estate in Chapel Hill, and the closer to Kenan Stadium the better. "It can be a good atmosphere up at Carolina," David Baskett said. "You have 'Tar Heel Town' and the 'Old Well walk' where the players walk through campus with the band playing and all. "But because of the parking situation Above | Eric Rivenbark, a Fayetteville banker, gets ready to cheer on the Pirates at East Carolina University. meat smokers, tricked-out campers and televisions equipped with satellite feeds in stadium parking lots before kickoff. "It's like an arms race," said Eric Rivenbark, a Fayetteville banker who tailgates with his family at East Carolina home football games. "There's a little bit of people trying to outdo each other." That's especially the case at football hotbeds deeper in the Southeast, Riven- bark said. He's traveled to the University of South Carolina, Auburn University and the University of Alabama to see the Pirates play, and he said those fans take tailgating to a new level. "Their fans get it," Rivenbark said. "It's kind of like 'Pimp My Ride' with some of 56 | Food & Wine • 2008 the things you see with the campers and stuff. You see big-screen TVs and the big grills attached to the hitches.” Things are a tad less serious for fans of North Carolina's football teams. But local fans definitely try to enjoy some of the finer comforts of tailgating. "It's a progression," said Rivenbark, who marks his family's tailgate outside East Carolina's Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium with a raised Pirate flag. "Over time you try to add a better grill, more com- fortable seating. You add things that enhance your tailgate. We don't do any- thing too crazy." Neither does David Baskett, a veteran tailgater who is bringing skills learned it can be difficult to have the kind of at- mosphere that you have at other places. You can wind up parking two miles away from the stadium." While the tailgate might be a big deal for fans, most would agree that it doesn't take precedence over the actual games. But for some fans, the tailgate serves as a salve for the hurt suffered by support- ing a bad football team. "In years that we weren't very good when John Thompson was coach and we won three games in two years, tailgating helped make things easier," Rivenbark said. "I go into every game thinking that we can win. But those years were a reality check for us. But you still looked forward to the tailgate." Godwin agreed that the games will always be the focus for tailgaters. "You start the day with your friends and family, and then you get to enjoy the game," Godwin said. "Tailgating is fun, but I look forward to the games." CV I t b

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