Tennessee Titans: Tailgating "First Class"

If owning and operating a tailgating vehicle is the equivalent of running a company, then The First Class Tailgaters, a tailgating group backing the Tennessee Titans, are the equivalent of a conglomerate. They aren’t just equipped with a simple tailgating van. They operate a tailgating van, trailer, mobile bar, rolling gadgets, and a container kitchen. Yes, they converted an old ocean-shipping container into a complete commercial kitchen.

Tailgate Trailer

Let’s start things off where they started things off. A friend gave Wayne Vandevort, one of the founders of First Class Tailgaters, a grill that was made from a fuel tank of a semi truck. His idea was to get a trailer with tandem axles that were at least 16 feet in length, and mount that monster grill for their tailgates. Once he was able to locate a trailer suitable for such a task, he took it to TenMet Trailer Repair, where they painted the trailer blue. In addition to painting, they installed white aluminum panels on the outside, and a translucent roof.

Once the trailer was back home, they ran all of the electrical wiring and pre-wired the six speakers for the stereo. They then installed stainless steel walls in the front area of the trailer, and white plastic panels on the rest of the walls. To secure the trailer while unattended, they designed the top to collapse and set on top of the walls, leaving no room for entry.

The group bought an enclosed stainless steel counter top that they converted into a cold side to store the beer keg and tap, and the other side was made into a hot side to hold the food. After four years of revamping the trailer, they now have converted the hot side to hold a 220 amp electric grill, a gas stove with 3 gas burners, and a microwave oven. With the addition of their newest grill, which has over 966 sq. inches of grill space, and 2 burners on the side, they have made this trailer a tough act to follow. In fact, this trailer is now equipped to handle up to 3 cooks at one time!

Titan Mobile

A little after, Wayne came across a shuttle bus, which was converted it into the Flame Mobile. The Flame Mobile was an eye catcher everywhere it went, but being a ‘95 model with a gas engine, they never traveled very far. So in 2007, he came across a 2004 airport shuttle bus with a diesel engine. They gutted the inside out, and started converting it into the Titan Mobile. The Titan Mobile has limo type seating, a 32” Flat Screen TV, Direct TV tracking satellite system, and a bar. To understand the true beauty of this vehicle, you have to take a look at the pictures

The Mobile Bar

The small bar in the Titans Mobile was not equipped to handle the volume of fans that attend their legendary tailgate parties. So to solve that problem, they bought a small trailer and converted it into a mobile bar. Why not?

Rolling Gadgets

Anyone who has ever tailgated knows how much work is involved in prepping for the game, setting up, cooking, and finally, cleaning up. One thing implemented to aid in the process is the simple notion of having everything on wheels. They have designed portable steam tables (that they call their First Class Buffet Line), a condiments station, and a gas deep fryer all on wheels. They also built a full entertainment system on wheels equipped with a TV, Stereo, DVD and CD player. Talk about being mobile.

Container Kitchen

This is the piece in their arsenal that puts The First Class Tailgaters over the top when it comes to tailgating. Serving 80 - 100 people takes a lot of preparation, so they converted an old ocean-shipping container into a complete commercial kitchen. It includes everything from refrigerators, freezers, ice marker, meat slicer, three-bin sink dish station, dry storage, and prep counter top space. Their kitchen, with running water and heat/air, has taken their tailgating experience to a new level, which quite frankly is hard to top.

Fore more information on this dedicated group, check out http://www.firstclasstailgaters.com/