He Created the Only Magazine Dedicated to Tailgating — Here's What He's Learned | Craig Renfro

19 years ago, Craig Renfro and his wife sat down and brainstormed what they liked to do. The answers: drink beer, cook on a grill, watch sports. They searched for any media covering it and found nothing. So they started Tailgater Magazine — the only tailgating magazine that exists — out of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and have been publishing it ever since.

Craig joins Luke to talk about over a thousand college and professional events attended in his lifetime, what it takes to build a media brand in the tailgating space, how COVID nearly shut everything down but didn't, why LSU fans are the best and worst simultaneously, and what the world would look like if it operated the way a parking lot does before a game.

What we cover: 19 years of Tailgater Magazine — how it started and how it survived · The search for tailgating media that didn't exist · Attending 1000+ sports events: Rangers, NASCAR, NFL, college · The LSU tailgate experience — the best food and the funniest crowd shift · How COVID hit the magazine and how they recovered · Why 13 years of Tailgating Challenge and 19 of Tailgater Magazine are more similar than different · What the world would look like if it operated like a tailgate parking lot

Transcript

Copy

Intro

Luke 0:00

Welcome back to the Tailgate Connect podcast. I'm your host, Luke Lord, with Tailgating Challenge. I love Tailgating, and I love our next guest because he is one of the people that got me inspired over 13 years ago to take my tailgating journey to the next level. You're gonna listen to Craig Renfro, who's had 19 plus years putting out the only tailgating magazine that there is. Stay tuned. Got a story to tell. If you're watching this on YouTube or when you hear his voice, Mr. Craig Renferrow, the owner, operator, creator of Tailgator magazine, Tailgator Monthly out there, something I've been reading since far, far in the past before I ever started my tailgating journey. Craig, how you doing, sir?

Craig appreciates the relationship with Luke

Craig 1:26

Luke, I appreciate you having me on board here. Um, I've always enjoyed the relationship you and I have had uh working together kind of hand in hand in the past. And of course, my cell phone goes off right when I try to do this. Good gosh. That was embarrassing.

Cell phone goes off — "tailgate's calling"

Luke 1:41

Tailgate's calling, probably, right?

Craig 1:42

Yeah, yeah. Someone's calling, hey, we need more ice.

"We need more ice"

Luke 1:46

Yeah, no doubt. No doubt. Well, well, Craig, again, I mean, really, like, you know, first off, it's always like I've known you for years now. I think it's an honor to have you as one of our first shows as we're recording this and getting this Tailgate Connect podcast out there. Because, like, to me, I've been doing like, you know, the Tailgate and Challenge stuff, right? Which is why I was brought on to be a host for this show for it'll be 13 years in October. And so that's amazing. I mean, that's that's a long time, but like I know you got some even more time on me when it comes to your tailgating journey. So tell us, when did your tailgating journey start?

NASCAR, NFL, CFB — been to it all

Craig 2:18

Well, so I went to my first professional sporting event when I was in first grade. Um, the Texas Rangers had moved here from uh Washington, D.C., the old Washington Senators team. And I didn't go to the very first game that they had is the in the ballpark in Arrington. But uh within the first month, my parents had taken me to a game and I was hooked from there. Obviously, at seven years old, I wasn't drinking beer yet or having a grill uh in front of me yet. But uh, you know, the the that we had to wait a few years for that. But uh, you know, over the course of my lifetime, Luke, I I've been to over a thousand college or professional sports events in my life. Now, most of those have been Texas Ranger baseball games because living here in the Dallas Fort Worth area, you know, they play 80 games a year, so obviously have ample opportunity to go out and check them out. But college football, NFL football, NASCAR racing, you name it, I've been to a Telgate at all of these venues, and uh to me there's nothing like it. It's the uh the camaraderie of just gathering with friends and family around food and drink and watching a common interest, i.e., the team that you're there to watch. And I've met so many friends in the parking lot over the years that, you know, hey, we're coming here. Oh, wow, we we ran out of ice. Can we borrow some ice from you guys? Oh, wait a second, gosh, we didn't bring enough hot dog buns. You guys got some extra buns. And it's just the relationship. I tell you, look, if if the world worked like it does in the parking lot at a sports event, we'd all get along great.

"If the world worked like a parking lot, we'd all get along"

Luke 3:55

It'd be a great place, right? That's why, you know, I have that that motto. I say, don't hate just tailgate, because really there's not a lot of hating at the tailgates. Right before the game, it's like it doesn't matter if you're what colors you're wearing, like everybody's friends, everybody's happy, everybody's having a good time connecting with each other on a personal level. Absolutely. Absolutely.

LSU tailgate story — Cajun food, great people, until the game starts

Craig 4:12

And I'll tell you a story. There was uh, I've been to LSU for uh a number of games, and uh the cuisine at LSU, I mean, you're talking true Cajun. I'm talking Jean Valat, Etifei, Gumbo, Budan, you know, everything that they have that makes that culture so great. And the fans at LSU are wonderful. Until the game starts. Once the game starts, they don't know you if you're not wearing uh the uh the LSU colors. And I've been there enough times and hung out with them before that uh, you know, it's great. You're having a lot of fun. And then you try to go back there after the game, especially if your team happened to beat them. Um, yeah, they they don't know you then. But all kidding aside, they are LSU the swamp is one of the greatest uh tailgame places in the world. And I I think I'm actually part Cajun. I don't I don't, you know, done some you know genealogy looking back into it. I can't find too much, you know, French in there, but uh I have to be somewhere along the lines.

Something in the DNA near Baton Rouge

Luke 5:14

There's something you feel in your DNA when you get close to uh Baton Rouge and you get uh some of that crawfish bullets and all that good stuff going on over there. You can feel it within your soul, right? Absolutely, absolutely. Well, awesome. Well, hey, so we we learned a little bit. So obviously tailgating started at an early age for you. So now I want to fast forward a little bit. So when when did you found Tailgator magazine? Like when did that first publication

Found nothing else covering tailgating — started the magazine

Luke 5:39

come out?

Craig 5:39

Okay, so this is actually our 19th year of being in business, okay? Very nice. And um, we started, our first issue came out in the fall of 2007. Um, you know, my wife and I had both been in the culprit world for about 20 years. Uh, her company went bankrupt, my company sold, and we'd both just turned 40. And we're like, well, you know, we have some money, uh, but not enough money to keep on living the lifestyle that we lead uh for the next 30, 40 years. And so we're like, dang it, we've we're gonna have to keep working. And so we just kind of sit there and brainstorm like, you know, what do we like to do? Uh well, first of all, we like to drink beer. Um, we like to cook on a grill, and we love watching sports events. And so I was sitting there thinking, gosh, I wish I could get paid to do those three things. And lo and behold, we just started to do some research and saying, gosh, is there anything out there in the realm of tailgating? Any magazine or any website or anything, a newsletter, whatever the case may be. And in all of our research, we could we couldn't find anything out there. So, you know, we kind of bit the bullet and uh decided, hey, let's let's go for it. And uh, you know, we had some money that uh, you know, had invested to uh you know to put towards it. Um took a little bit more than what we anticipated because it always does, doesn't it? Right, right. Yeah, you think the tickets are gonna cost $300, but they're actually gonna cost $600. But but in our case, I my p background had always been in publishing and advertising, so I knew a fair amount about it. But what I didn't know was the um the acquisition cost of acquiring a consumer subscriber. And it was a little bit higher than what uh what I'd uh forecast or anticipated. But all that to get to this, you know, the first couple of years, you know, we put a bunch of money into it, and we were sitting there thinking, oh gosh, I hope someone like, you know, ESPN or Sports Illustrated come along and say, hey, who are these guys here in Texas trying to impose on our impose on our territory? And they you know, slap us off the uh off the map. Uh, but then it got to be, you know, we got to be year four or five, six into it, and we're like, oh, well, you know, maybe uh ESPN or Sports Illustrated or some other media company will will want to come uh you know take a look at uh and acquiring us. And uh we're still, you know, we do we do get offers every once in a while, and I say once in a while, probably once every two or three months for someone to want to uh you know take a look at us. But we're we're having fun right now, and uh there's nothing that uh if I retired, I don't know what I would do, Luke. Um I'm afraid I would uh spend too much time uh uh drinking beer. So probably better than I do something uh during the day to uh to keep me occupied from uh from that. But uh I will say this, you know, COVID was uh was not a fun year for tailgating. Um as you can imagine, and I know you probably experienced it to a to a level as well, that uh, you know, we had a good number of our advertisers that uh you know had committed to you know annual agreements with us, which has been the standard case for for most of our existence. And once COVID hit, literally all of them came to us, you know, hey Craig, I hate to do this to you, but uh we there's no tailgating going on, and uh we we need to cancel these agreements. So COVID was a kick in the gut, but uh you know, that was five years ago, and we've kind of recovered since then and pretty much got back to the level that we were beforehand, or close enough to it at least. And so it's a lifestyle that uh you know affords us a lot of flexibility. Um, being a you know a business owner, you know that, oh yes, these uh tickets to the uh, you know, the Texas Ranger game or to the World Series or to the Super Bowl or whatever the case may be, those are all business expenses and and and legitimate business expenses. And so to be able to utilize that and incorporate that into our lifestyle and have fun with the things that we love doing, um, you couldn't ask for a better deal.

Biggest lesson — not everyone wants to reach the tailgating audience

Luke 9:25

No doubt, no doubt. So I guess one of the things that's on my mind too is like, so when you dropped your first issue to you're gonna have your your big college football issue coming out here soon. Like, do you look back at your first issue and be like, wow, I don't know, I don't know how we made it, or like we learned so much. Like, what would you say is like your biggest like learning from year one to now going into year 19 with running an effective TLG magazine?

Advertisers and the tailgate market

Craig 9:50

Well, the biggest thing I've learned is that um not everyone is quite as interested in reaching our audience as I am for them to do so. Um, and as you know, from reaching out to companies trying to get them to spend money with you, um, the first few years were hard because we weren't, you know, a recognized, you know, national brand like a Sports Illustrated or an ESPN or something like that. Um but more recently, the you know, the biggest obstacle that you have going now is is going up against Facebook and Google. Um they just offer such everything from an advertisement standpoint is considered on a cost per thousand basis. And when I say cost per thousand, like I can reach a million people for this amount of money. So it works out to a cost per thousand basis. For us to be profitable, we have to have it at a level that's um, well, makes it profitable for us. Unfortunately, Google and Facebook uh offer levels that are far, far uh more affordable, less expensive, however you want to call it. And so I know we're not the only group that's basically, I mean, you the LA Times, the Dallas Morning News, the Washington Post, the New York, all publishers, large or small, are running up against the same thing. So I have to convince these advertisers to say, okay, great, you can do this on these social media platforms, but are they a loyal audience that's been subscribing to them for years and years and years? And are they paying money to get the content from them? Or is it just free and yeah, they have that interest level and you like it? So the advertisers that have partnered with us and remained true with us over the years, they know what we bring to the table and they know it's a loyal, dedicated, and consistent audience that buys their product.

Transition to digital — older generation loves print

Luke 11:33

For sure, for sure. I I think you kind of alluded to one of my other questions was like, you know, as we've transitioned more into this digital, digital age, like some people don't have that tangible item anymore. And so you spoke to that a little bit, but I also like you have a digital copy of the magazine in addition to a print, right? Sure, sure.

Anyone over 50 prefers print

Craig 11:52

Yeah, because I I think, you know, the older generation, like myself, and I think anyone above the age of 50, you know, you we spend so much time on our phone or our computer or desktop, whatever, that I actually like holding a hard copy magazine in my hands just to give my eyes a break from staring at a small screen for uh all day. And so I think that separates us from the the digital crowd, if you will, but with the younger audience, because you know, we're you know, we're we're coming out dated, if you will. So these you know, these younger kids, they they are used to reading things on their phone. They are used to reading things on their computer, and so that they don't want to carry a magazine or newspaper around with them. And so, yes, the the overwhelming majority of our subscribers are indeed the digital variety. So we serve them uh that way, but for the older people who actually want to pay and you know get the uh the hard copy subscription, we're more than happy to send it to you. And I'd send it to you for free if my printer and post office didn't charge me to uh to send

Still love getting magazines in the mail

Craig 12:54

it.

Luke 12:54

Sure, sure. No, I I get it. And again, I still love getting them in the mail. I I don't know. Like I know I'm starting to get older, but uh there's still something about having a physical copy of I could take it on planes when I'm traveling. I could read it and cut my you know blue lights off, like you know, with the phone and everything before I go to bed and just like flip through an actual tangible copy of something. So I I still love that there's people that are still pushing this and they haven't just all gone like, you know what, we're just gonna go straight digital and just ditch the printing. So I definitely appreciate you for that. And I'm sure there's others out there that appreciate that as well, too. Well, go ahead, Zach.

About 15,000 paid print subscribers

Craig 13:31

We do have about 15,000 people that uh that pay to receive the print publications. So for them, I'm very thankful for that. And uh registered, uh, anyone else who wants to subscribe, all you have to do is go to our website, click on print uh digital or print magazine, and uh, and sign up for it. We'll be happy to send it to you as well.

How to subscribe — tailgatermagazine.com, print magazine icon

Luke 13:50

So I guess for those that are listening right now and they're like, oh snap, I didn't know there was a tailgate magazine. Like, go ahead, shout out. Where can they where can they sign up? Tailgator magazine.com. And if once they get on there, like what does that look like for an annual? Because I'm assuming is it's all is it done annual? Do you do it?

Annual subscription, click and enjoy

Craig 14:09

It's an annual subscription. So you so you click on uh just at the on the top uh icon bar, just click on print magazine, then just fill out your contact information, your credit card information, and boom, we automatically send, you know, because the magazine just comes out four times a year now. Um we used to be published uh every other month, you know, six times a year, but COVID kind of forced us to go quarterly. But uh four times a year now. But as soon as you signed up, we'll send you the most recent issue right off the bat. So you don't have to wait for three months, you know, to get your uh you know, your first issue of the magazine. We send you the first issue right off the bat, and then we will still send you four full issues that you paid for through the year. So you actually get five for the price of four.

Mid-August recording — tailgate season approaching

Luke 14:52

Perfect, perfect. I know like as we're recording this episode, we are in middle August right now, and like I I believe my my favorite copy of your magazine is about to come out, right? Where you really taught college football and you rank, you personally rank the top tailgates in the country. You don't have to give any spoilers to us right now, but I'm going somewhere with that too, because I know each year we see some similar team names and they jockey around with spots depending on stuff. But I'm gonna ask you personally, with your wealth of knowledge with going to tailgates for years and years and years, what are your top three tailgating destinations? If somebody's trying to make a tailgate bucket list, what are the three that you would recommend for

Craig's tailgate bucket list — LSU is a must

Luke 15:36

them?

Craig 15:36

Well, as I mentioned previously, uh LSU is is is a must-do. You you absolutely have to go to a game at LSU. It's a culture and uh cuisine that is unlike any other in in the US. You you will not find anything like the swamp in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. So that's my number one. Um I would be remiss in my uh duties as uh tailgating uh expert if I didn't include the the Grove at Ole Miss. Um that is that is a cultural phenomenon in and of itself. Um a little bit more um um upscale perhaps. Um you will see all the you will see all the uh you know the the frat boys in uh ties and jackets and the uh the sorority girls and uh nice and dry look like they're going out for a dance as opposed to uh to a tailgate. But uh the grove is ten acres of heaven. Um there's just there's no ifs, ands or buts about it. And uh if you consider yourself a true uh connoisseur of tailgating, if you've not been to Ole Miss and been to the grove, you owe it to yourself to to go there. Um third on the list, man, that's a tough one because I'm biased um because I went to Texas AM and game day and college station, there's it's it's its own unique cultural phenomenon. We don't have you the cage of food. We're not gonna be dressed up in jackets and ties, but if you're looking for uh for brisket and ribs and barbecue and and all day partying out in the parking lot, station, Texas is uh is a great place to be. Now, unfortunately, our football team usually doesn't live up to the hype of the tailgates. In fact, you can use the pencil baggies in for four losses a year and and you'd you know be pretty much par on course for that. But there are so many other virus that I mean, Ohio State is a great environment, Michigan is a great environment, Notre Dame is a great environment. And if I didn't include, uh I know for a fact that uh, you know, uh a South Carolina alum like you, if you've never been cockaboose tailgating, um, that is a um a phenomenon and a unique experience all on its own as well. And so, you know, we get a lot of grief for people that uh in fact we get more letters and comments, or not letters, emails and comments for people that's like, oh, how could you rank such and such ahead of us? And how come they made the top 25 and we didn't make the top 25? And how come, you know, we you always put us lower than them? And you know, it at the end of the day, it's we we I try to tell people, you know, it's not really a scientific uh, you know, study that we do on doing it, but a lot of it is um, you know, a relevance to um a conference championship or a national championship. And then if you're competing for conference or national championships and have a good tailgate environment, you're probably gonna make our list, okay? And there were years that, of course, it was as easy to do when Alabama and Georgia were on such a roll that uh we picked them a number of times over the year, and then they actually won out and won the national championship. A couple of years ago, we picked Michigan as our number one tailgate school, and that just happened to be the year they won the national championship. So this year, well, I'm like, I can't say who we are picking, but I will say they are um up there at the top of the uh AP poll that uh that just came out. So I think I might know then. We'll we'll we'll we'll see um if that comes to uh fruition for uh for for them or not. But at the end of the day, we we could probably do a top 100 list because so many schools, so many good tailgating environments, but at the end of the day, like I said, you you just got to limit it, kind of like the football polls, to the top 25. Um now, if if AP expands it to the top 50, then we may expand ours to a top 50.

What goes into writing about tailgates?

Luke 20:05

No, that that that makes sense to me because I I think you got to my next question. It's like, well, what goes into the criteria for picking the schools, knowing like, you know, the tailgate environment might be similar-ish. Now, again, there could be some updates, different parking lots, different stuff that goes on there. So the other other piece of it is like how relevant the team is going to be on the field, too, which will then probably draw more people coming to the tailgate.

Fans support even through rough years

Craig 20:29

And and I'll use a perfect example, and you know, they had a a couple of seasons ago where they actually were relevant. Indiana is a great tailgating environment. The University of Indiana. Great tailgating environment. But for the most part of the last 25 years, their football team has been irrelevant. Now, I do know, you know, a couple of years ago they did actually have a good season, and and they I I can't recall if they made it to the Big Ten Championship game, but I know they were in in the running for it. And so the next year we you know, we put them in there. And you would not believe the number of letters I got from Indiana fans that were like, hey, thank you for finally recognizing. It's about time, right? Right. And I was like, well, all you guys gotta do is just you know win some more and you'll be there all the time.

Does Craig respond to all emails? Yes — even the asinine ones

Luke 21:17

So so whenever you get these like like emails or thinking old school letters, do you do you respond to all of them? Or there's some of you just like this person's so outlandish, I can't even dignify a response to them.

Treat every person as a potential advertiser

Craig 21:28

No, no, I I I will always respond to even if it's the most asinine question that I've ever heard. Oh, just because you took the time. Well, first of all, you thank you for being a subscriber. And you took the time out of your busy day to sit there and voice your concern or opinion. So to not address it would make me like, oh, well, I'm above that. And no, I'm not. I I'm I'm every man. I I am everyman. I'm just like my audience, I'm just like my subscribers. I I'm out there in the parking lot, you know, drinking beers at eight o'clock in the morning. Morning, got the grill going, sweating by you know, so I have to bring a change of clothes because you know you've been out there cooking in the parking lot caught station at September, it's 105 degrees. Uh yeah, you you got to be ready with the with the extra set of clothes. So I've been there, I've felt your pain. I I know what it's like and involved in doing that, and I know all the preparation and detail that go into it. And and I always tell people, people are like, well, what's the number one thing about uh you know that I need to know about tailgating? Number one thing is have a list of everything that you're gonna do or everything that you're gonna need and get as much work done before the event as you possibly can. Like, for instance, if you're gonna be making burgers, don't wait till you get to the parking lot to form the patties. Form them at home the night before, okay? And then store them safely where they can, you know, all you got to do is put them on the grill. Don't wait till you get to the parking lot to slice the onions, tomatoes, and chop up the lettuce. Do all that stuff the night before and just have that ready to go so that when you fire up the grill, you're putting food on there and you got hungry masters that are sitting there, hey, is it how long before it's ready? Oh, it's just gonna be just a minute. Whereas if you just sit there and start to perform it all, you just add 30 minutes extra to the tailgate and uh and a waste of time. So preparation is key, keeping a checklist of items and an advance is key. And two things that people what is the you know, people ask, what is the number one thing that most people forget to bring to a tailgate? And it's actually two things one is trash bags. People for whatever reason forget to like where'd you think you're gonna put all this stuff? Yep, you think your mom's gonna come by later and clean all this up after you? No, bring trash bags and clean up after yourself. Second thing people forget to bring, and I don't care what how much you have, ice, you can never have enough ice. You always run out of ice. So ice, trash bags, prep lists, checklists, get everything done the night before so that you're not sitting there doing a bunch of busy work, but instead you're sitting there having fun with your friends and family.

Maximize the fun — don't make it a job

Luke 24:09

Oh, for sure. I'm all about like have maximize the fun. Don't make it if it feels like a job, you're not gonna enjoy the tailgate nearly as much as you could the other way. And Craig, I will double down. Uh, we've had a few guests on the show and they've said that ice, ice, ice baby, I guess is gonna be how we're gonna phrase that right there. It's like if you if you bring just one thing to a tail, just bring a bag of ice, even if you're going to somebody else's tailgate, just like, and they say, oh, don't worry about bringing it, bring a bag of ice, and you will be

Most needed and forgotten item — ice

Luke 24:37

a hero.

Craig 24:37

Yes, absolutely. The the most needed and most forgotten item out there, besides trash bags.

What venue wouldn't you go back to?

Luke 24:44

Besides trash bags. All right. So uh I don't know if this is a good transition. Speaking, speaking of trash, tell me what's the worst? This is this doesn't feel as positive. What's the worst tailgate you've ever been to? Man. And why?

Has Craig been to a bad tailgate? Territorial fanbases

Craig 25:00

You know, I look, I don't know that I've ever been to a bad tailgate. I mean, so what venue you wouldn't go back to, maybe? Is there a is there a venue? Is there a fan base? Is there I I would not go to a um we're switching levels here, but I would not go to a Philadelphia Eagles tailgate uh and hang out very long wearing a Dallas Cowboys jersey like I did one time. Um never that's just being honest and smart, right? To avoid bodily injury. Yes. Um like I said, I've been to over a thousand sports events in my life, and the only time that I actually felt that I might have to fight somebody was in Philadelphia. I bet you I've been to so many different venues, so many different cities, pro and college, and the one and only time, and nothing against the city of Philadelphia. I'm sure the city of Philadelphia is great. I'm sure most of Philadelphia's fans are good, but uh the situation that I was in was not as pleasant as others that I've been in, and I will leave it at that.

Some fanbases are territorial — can respect that

Luke 26:05

And again, I I unfortunately have heard that from a variety of different people for it. So again, we're definitely not lumping or stereotyping all Philadelphia fans as being that way, but there's definitely enough that multiple people in different uh sporting things at the Philadelphia Eagles are nervous to go back to the game. And I but I believe, and I may be totally wrong, but the fans that do some of that stuff, I think they almost, it's like a badge of honor. It's like, all right, we kept the cowboys out of here. We did our job. Let's

They're territorial — respect it but it's not Craig's vibe

Luke 26:33

go.

Craig 26:33

Yeah, yeah. I I I think they uh they're they're they're pretty territorial, which I can respect. I can respect that. But I guarantee you, if you go to a Dallas Cowboy game, well, Dallas Cowboy fans are so b bandwagonish anyway, and it's they've had 30 years to not hop on it. But uh, you know, cowboy fans are probably so oblivious of what's going on around them. They they're all corporate tickets and they could care less anyway. But uh it's uh yeah, that was the only what I would say maybe positive or negative experience that uh that I've had. But but everything else, no, wouldn't trade it for the world.

Are the Cowboys still America's team?

Luke 27:07

Fair, fair. So Randall, are the Cowboys still America's team?

Jerry Jones thinks so — 30 years without a Super Bowl

Craig 27:14

Well, I I know Jerry Jones thinks that they are, but uh after uh you know 30 years of not uh making it to a Super Bowl or even a conference championship game, uh they've got to be losing some of that uh some of that charm. But uh he's he's still raking in the millions and billions. So uh as long as people keep buying it, he'll keep doing it. And uh what's the definition of insanity is you know doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results? That's Jerry Jones, owner and general manager.

Luke is a 49ers fan

Luke 27:43

Fair enough. I won't say anything negative about the Cowboys. Again, I'm a 49ers fan for those that don't know me over there. So, but again, I I feel like you know, we're we're both kind of in the same boat right now where it's like we're we're good enough to be relevant at times, but not quite good enough to uh get our 90s or 80s glory back, um, you know, to push that. But you never know. New season coming up. New season comes up. New season coming up. We'll we'll see. All right, Craig. Now let's get to I promised you we talk a little bit about like some of the actual like beer and some of the stuff there. So tell me, you're at a tailgate. This ain't this National Tailgating Day, it's 100 degrees outside. You pull up at the tailgate. What kind of beer is in your hand?

Out there for 3-4 hours — need to stay light

Craig 28:21

Well, uh, me personally, I can't have anything too heavy because I'm gonna be out there for three, four or more hours. And as much as I enjoy uh some uh heavier alcohol by volume beers with a bit more flavor, I will typically tend more towards the uh the the lighter versions. Um one of my favorites, and it happens to be a local beer here, it's called uh Dallas Blonde, and it's brewed by Deep Electric.

First beer at the game — Dallas Blonde

Luke 28:51

I've I every time I come, I get I get that. The first beer I get is what a Dallas Blonde.

Local legend, can sit and drink it for hours

Craig 28:56

Yeah, it's uh it's a it's a it's a local legend, uh a local staple, if you will. And it's one that you can sit there and uh and sip on uh all pre-game and post-game and not feel too heavy or too bloated. Have a nice little you know, football buzz going out there, but not getting too crazy obliterated by like some of these you know eight or nine percent alcohol by volume bills that they're that are available for uh for tailgating purposes, should you so uh care to imbibe on them.

Is the Dallas Blonde a favorite style?

Luke 29:26

What would what would you say because because a Dallas is a blonde, is that is that your favorite like style of tailgating beer, or are you just like just lighter in general for for

Lighter is better

Luke 29:35

tailgating?

Craig 29:35

Well, lighter in general. Um, although I will candidly say I've would never drink another bud light, but that's for completely different reasons. But uh yeah, I I prefer the uh the the lighter ones just because I I I will candly admit as I've gotten older, um, I seems to uh you know get a little uh more full, uh easier than perhaps I did in my 20s, 30s, and even 40s. So uh it's it's all about maintaining a delicate balance. And that reminds me of one other thing that people oftentimes forget to bring, because I mentioned, you know, trash and ice bags, water. You have got to stay hydrated out there. And I've looked, I've been to so many tailgate parties that you know you look in their cooler, there's nothing but alcohol is like not a single bottle of water. And it's 105 degrees, and you're sitting there sweating, slamming down the beers, and I'm like, oh buddy, you better, uh you better find you some water quick because the rate you're going, you're not even gonna make it into the stadium, much less uh throughout the course of the game. So yeah, water and hydration require, especially in the south uh early September games.

In younger days — non-alcoholic was not an option

Luke 30:43

For sure. I will, again, I have been that guy in my younger days that there was not an ounce, if anything, non-alcoholic in the cooler, but I've grown wiser as I've gotten older. So I will uh endorse that tailgating tip as well, too. Oh, good stuff. All right, so you got your uh your Dallas blonde in your hand, and then what's gonna be on your plate? If you can have, you don't have to worry about cooking it or price or anything. What would be your favorite tailgating food that someone will put on your plate? Oh, uh fajitas.

Favorite tailgate food — skirt steak fajitas

Craig 31:11

Yeah, fajitas, yeah, skirt sake fajitas. Um, they're real quick, real easy to make. Uh they're handheld foods. Um, you know, you just wrap it up in a tortilla and it's easy to go to. Um, hamburgers and hot dogs are almost as equally simple, but to me, they don't have quite the same flavor profile that uh the fajitas bring to the table. Because I found this excellent marinade sauce X number of years ago that I've been using. And so every time I cook those and bring them to a game and at party, you know, people over like, oh my gosh, what what did you marinate this in? Is this like a spice or a rub or something? And it's like, no, it's called Claude's, and it's called Claude's fajita marinade, and it is the bomb.

Fajitas are quick, easy, handheld

Luke 31:52

And so yeah. I haven't I haven't tried that, but now you're making, I haven't had dinner yet at the time of this episode. Now I'm really hungry for fajitas. I need to look up Claws and check it out. Well, you need to marinate them overnight, so you can have them for dinner tomorrow night. Okay, fair, fair. I'm probably not gonna do that tonight, but again, it does sound really, really tasty over there. Like fajitas, I ask every guest, and no one has said fajitas yet. You're the first person to call out fajitas if you wanted to know that fact. Well, I'm from Texas, so you know what can I say? The last Texas guys we had on here, brisket. Well, not surprising. I mean, brisket's really good, so I'm like, that's not surprising

Brisket is great but takes too long for a tailgate

Luke 32:29

at all.

Craig 32:29

Brisket is good, but you can't cook a brisket at a tailgate. Um they take too long.

Cook brisket night before

Luke 32:35

Yeah.

Craig 32:35

Yeah, putting that way in advance.

Luke 32:37

Bring it out and ready

Stay up all night, serve it the next morning

Luke 32:38

to go.

Craig 32:38

Right. You you cook the brisket the night before, and at which one you stayed up all night getting it ready, and then you can bring it to the towel, or make it a day or two before, and then throw it on the grill to uh to reheat it. But yeah, you're you're not gonna make a brisket in the parking lot. There's not enough time. And and likewise ribs. There's unless you're there, like if I know every stadium is different. And some stadiums only let you in like three or four hours before kickoff, where others will let you in, like in LSU. You can go in the night before in most places, and you'll be out there all night camping or whatever. So it depends on how much time you have. But as you know, look, you know, cooking ribs, that takes a solid three or four hours right there. So you you don't have time to cook those unless you cook them in advance. Like same with brisket, same with pulled pork. So it's easier items like hot dogs, hamburgers, uh chicken wings, perhaps, or like I said, in my case, uh fajitas is a go-to.

Favorite tailgate game — cornhole

Luke 33:33

Excellent. Excellent. All right. So now you got your beer, you got your fajitas, and now you're ready to get a little competitive. What's your favorite tailgating game that you're gonna play?

Cornhole is iconic — played it for years

Craig 33:44

Well, I I'm old school, man, and uh at cornhole. Cornhole is it. Uh it's iconic. We we uh we have uh um a company years ago made us some tailgator magazine cornhole boards. In fact, they made us several sets, uh, which we gave some in our giveaways that uh that we do on a regular basis, but uh I I did keep a uh a pair for myself. And uh I'm not gonna say I'm gonna set a world record, you know, long distance cornhole throw, like I know someone that I'm talking to uh recently did. But uh I I deem myself a fairly decent player, and uh uh it seems like kind of like bowling. The more beers I have, the better I get. I it's crazy. I don't I don't know what the the correlation is, but uh yeah, I'll be right back. There is one.

Bell curve of performance — relax first, then peak, then decline

Luke 34:30

Well, well, there right there it's a bell curve. I tell people it's like you get better, you you kind of relax, you stop overthinking, but you hit a top, and if you keep going on, you're gonna go down and your days

Golf fits the same bell curve

Luke 34:42

are gonna get worse.

Craig 34:42

You gotta find a sweet spot. It it's it's I I put golf in that same uh boat as well. Um first few holes of golf, not too good. After three or four bears, a little bit better, but after too many, not as good again. So yeah, um it's um keep it, keep it in line, keep control, and uh, you know, don't overdo anything.

Craig is parking lot average Joe good at cornhole

Luke 35:06

Yeah, no, I made the joke. I know you uh you toss out the world record stuff. I've done uh three different, like just very different, like backwards, blindfolded, slingshot cornhole stuff. And so people like invite me to, oh, you want to come be on the cornhole tournament and play. I I quickly learned that like I am not actually good at normal cornhole, right? Because I don't really like play or practice it like all that, all that often. And like I just went to the ACL World Championships in Rock Hill, South Carolina, like, and I was like, these people are like, they can do stuff with a bag. Like I I need like I need a lot more training, I I guess for that too. It's like it's become a super huge, like legitimate sport. And I was on ESPN like all the time.

There are levels to everything

Craig 35:50

It's crazy. Yeah, yeah. When I say I'm pretty good, I'm talking about like parking lot average Joe good. Um there's levels to it, right? Not competing in the ACL good. Just like I can say, you know, I used to be able to throw a football about 60 yards. Okay, but I'm not saying it's gonna be, you know, the volume and accuracy that uh, you know that a professor quarterback is gonna have.

What's your most essential tailgate product?

Luke 36:15

For sure. Yeah. There's levels. There's levels to everything in life. Even tailgating, right? So right? All right, so tell me, speaking of levels, at the top of the level, what's the one piece of tailgating gear that you say you just gotta have it? We know ice is up there for you, but when you're talking a piece of tail, where there's a cooler, a is there something specific that you have and you're like, man, this thing, I keep using it year after year after year. It's just so helpful and awesome for tailgating. What would

Generator — including portable power packs like Jackery

Luke 36:42

that be?

Craig 36:42

Well, a generator. You you've got to have it. Well, and when I say generator, I'm also including, you know, some of these power bank sources in a well that are like quite the noise that the I love I love the power stations personally because they're just clean, no gas, no noise. No, no, no, no emissions, anything, but you you you've you you've got to have power. Um, because in my opinion, to have you've got to have a TV. Okay. Um, I actually have a portable pellet grill that I like bringing out there, so you've got to have power for that. Um, heaven forbid you actually want to make some margaritas to go with your fajitas. You gotta have a blender for that. And so um yeah, yeah, it's uh a generator is key. And and that's you know, they're like you said, you know, there's different levels of everything, and there's different levels of tailgating. And not saying anyone is right, wrong, or indifferent, but you know, if you're at a level like I'm bringing out a grill and a cooler, that's great. You are 100% tailgating. You're 100% tailgating, you absolutely are. Bring out a grill and a cooler. Oh, he brought some music. Music is always good, you know, as long as it's not annoying your next door neighbor. You know, don't be the guy that's you know, you can hear it from you know 10 tailgates over. No one wants to be that guy. Oh, well, gosh, we have a grill, a cooler, music. Oh, now we've got a TV. Now you've kind of upped the game a little bit. And then of course you start throwing in, you know, games, canopies, chairs. Um, an item that I think is really important for the South is bring there's several brands that have these uh some people call them swamp coolers, but I call them evaporative coolers. And some of them are portable enough that you need power for those, obviously, but they can cool the ambient temperature down to your tailgate by 15 or 20 degrees. And I'm telling you, when it's 105, if you can cool it down to say 85 or 90, that's important. And so at that level, then, you know, if you got the grill, the cooler, the chairs, the can be, the games, the music, the TV, and the swamp cooler, then you're high-level tailgating.

Boxes delivered before recording — new tailgate chair

Luke 38:50

100%. And like I'm already, it's funny, like right before we recorded this, I had a couple boxes delivered, and they were the new Ryobi Mr. Fans, right? So again, like kind of more portable, like swamp. And I'm like oddly excited. Like, I'm like, I've never had I've never had one in a tailgate before with all my goodies. I've never had one. So I'm like, this is going to be the next level, right? Of being comfortable the first month of the

The Mr. Fan and the women it attracts — the lesson

Luke 39:12

season.

Craig 39:12

It makes a huge difference. I'll never forget we were at the uh uh Texas AM Arkansas game that they always play. Well, I don't think they do anymore, but they played it at Jerry World, you know, the home of the Cowboys for for years and years. And it's always in early to mid-September, so it's always hot. And uh I went by uh there's this group of uh Arkansas sorority girls, um, very attractive looking. And um, I just happened to be pulling along this fan because I was demoing for a company that had you know paid us to do so there. And I said, here, let me uh cool you ladies off. And uh I think I immediately gained like 10 girlfriends right off the bat. Now, my wife was probably not as appreciative of that, but I certainly was.

Married guys be careful, single guys this is your key

Luke 39:56

So, what you're saying is uh married guys, be careful with the Mr. Fans, single guys, this could be your key to an even better TLG season. Exactly. You can make good friends real quick. Good stuff, good stuff. All right. Well, Craig, it's been awesome chatting this evening with you. Like, tell people like one more time. Like, if they're on the fence now, like, why should they come to your website and subscribe to either your digital or print edition magazine? What are they what are they gonna get? Why is it worth their time to

5,000+ pages of content: food, drink recipes, gear, products

Luke 40:29

do it?

Craig 40:29

Well, sure. Well, if you go on our website, Luke, we have over 5,000 pages of content: food, drink recipes, gear, products, sports stories, tips, ideas, expert advice, anything to make your tailgate. Or if you're not tailgating, you're home gating, having people over for your house, you're cooking on the grill and watching the game on TV at home, you're you're home gating. Anything to make that experience better, we have some tip or some insight or some food or drink recipe or some bit of advice that's going to uh make you go, wow, I'm glad I found that out. So we're there as a resource, and we are all things tailgating and home gating.

Luke has been reading since before Tailgating Challenge

Luke 41:11

And again, I can vouch for this. Like even before tailgating challenge was a brand 13 plus years ago, I was reading uh your magazine, trying to get inspiration and creativity, and you're still doing it. So I don't know if the godfather of tailgating, I'm not sure if that's the proper term to call you uh for, but anybody that's been doing this longer than me and still doing it at a high level, like there's a lot of respect. And I just know that like it helps shape my journey to get me started with that. And so now it's like fast forward and we're like having an interview together and like doing more stuff. So it's been been awesome to get to know you, both on a professional and personal level recently. And I would encourage everyone, like, please like go check out. Like, if you love tailgating, like this should be a magazine that you get. Like, period. If you if you listen this far into the show, you love tailgating, right? Absolutely. Go get to the website, go check it out. Uh Craig, shout out your social media channels that you're on too, if they want to give you a follow on

Find on Facebook, X/Twitter, and YouTube

Luke 42:06

social.

Craig 42:06

Okay, well, well, we're on, I guess, the the three major ones, um, Facebook, uh, X slash Twitter, and then uh, of course, Instagram. So we're we're we're tailgator mag on all three of those. And uh, you know, check us out there. But uh our our website is gonna have far, far more information than than our social media pages. Uh like I said, we over 5,000 pages of content on the website. So we got everything searchable in there. So if you sit there thinking, oh, I want a you know chicken wing with lemon recipe, type that in, boom, you're gonna find it. Oh, I need tailgating tips for cold weather. Type that in, boom, you're gonna find it. Any situation you could think of, um, we've got our website geared and rigged up to it's gonna give you an answer. Um, in fact, sometimes it will give you over 300 results.

Can Luke look up the fajita recipe after the show? Yes

Luke 42:58

Now, Craig, can I get online after the show and uh look up that fajita recipe? Is that gonna be on there for us? Yes, it will. Oh, nice. Nice. Well, what's what's the name? Does it have is it Craig's like famous fajitas or what do you call it? Well, yeah, guys, now you put me on the spot there. I can't remember what we call it.

Key ingredient — Claude's marinade

Craig 43:14

Fajitas. I'm just hungry. I'm sorry. I'm hungry, maybe. But but but the key ingredient is is Claude's marinade. Claude's marinade. That's the key. Excellent. Excellent.

Outro

Luke 43:26

All right. Well, Craig, thank you so much for being a part of the show tonight for everybody that's still listening. Tailgate Connect is also your easy button tailgating solution to go get tickets. Stay tailgate. Like again, if you're like, oh my gosh, Craig, you mentioned all of these levels and all the stuff I have to get. I don't have it or I'm traveling, I can't do it. Tailgate Connect can help cover that. We got hosts across the country. All you do is buy a ticket. They already got the levels taken care of. All inclusive food, drink, all the gear. You just show up and have a good time. Easy button tailguty right there. So again, I'm Luke, your host of this show. This was Craig. With Tailgator magazine. We appreciate you tuning into this episode. Check out Craig on social and his website. Check out Tailgate Connect for all of those easy button tailgatey needs. And remember our motto, don't hate just tailgate, and we hope to see you at a tailgate soon. Thanks for tuning in. Thanks for having me, Luke. Tailgate Connect. It's all here for you. Food drinking friends under sky soul blue.