1. How long has the tailgate group been organized? We’ve been doing this for five years as a group.
2. How many people attend and where are they from? There are approximately 40 to 60 people who attend and they come from many towns around Alabama and the Gulf Coast including Birmingham, Tuscaloosa, Gadsden, Fairhope, Baton Rouge, Mobile, Pensacola and Foley.
3. Where is the party located? We setup across the street from an area on the Alabama campus called the Quad. The location is also near several food vendors.
4. What types of gear and setup are involved with the tailgate party? The Bama Quad Squad purchased a used utility trailer on eBay. The trailer was customized with a small attached grill, a custom built 52" rear projection satellite TV system and a sound system which allows Karaoke. The following year custom paint and graphics were added to the trailer and the website was created. Other additions include a larger grill, back-lit bar and a blower/mister fan. Future additions will include upgrades to tents, and a new 16 foot flag pole.
5. What is the name of the tailgate group? The Bama Quad Squad
6. Describe a typical tailgate day from setup until take down.
Pre-staging begins on Friday evening when the spot is secured. We’ve been known to begin tailgating as early as Friday too. Gameday begins very early with the setting up of tents, satellite dish and grill. Watching the early games and ESPN are the norm. Many fans without tickets choose to watch the Bama game from our spot. On some occassions we fire up the Karaoke machine. Of course, karaoke can’t be planned, it just has to happen. We are often one of the last groups to finish packing up and we leave well into the night.
7. What is the craziest story from the tailgate party? What game was it and what happened? The Iron Bowl 2008 became a 24-hour effort. The party was great since it was a measurable victory then we packed up in a terrible rainstorm.
8. What is a typical menu for the tailgate party? How is the food prepared?
At first, we served the traditional games burgers, buckets of chicken and sandwiches. We quickly progressed to ribs, tenderloin and wings. It’s now a tradition to boil shrimp for one game such as LSU and have a chef cook ribs for one big game like Auburn. Wings are a specialty of one of our cooks and they are frequently requested. We even cook omelets to order on the grill for early kickoffs.
9. What beverages are served at the tailgate party? We serve a traditional punch called “Yellowhammers”, along with beer and soft drinks.
10. What is the “mission” of the tailgate party? The goal of the Bama Quad Squad is to provide a fun, safe place to share our passion with friends.
