Grilling and drinking

Tailgaiting fans ignore cold to revel at Vikings game

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Posted: Sunday January 10, 1999 06:45 PM

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Bruce Ellenson wanted everything to be just right for his pregame tailgate party.

So he shelled out $270 to lease a recreational vehicle, invited 14 friends, and arrived at a Metrodome satellite parking lot at 7:30 a.m. -- almost eight hours before kickoff of the Vikings-Cardinals playoff game.

Ellenson, 51, wasn't letting the minus 2-degree temperatures ruin his party. "This is reminiscent of the old days at Met Stadium," he said, shortly after finishing off a lunch of fried shrimp and hot dogs.

Despite the bitterly cold temperatures, parking lots along Washington Avenue around the Metrodome were jammed with partying Vikings fans. Revelers tossed footballs back and forth, grilled and consumed lots of beer, while turning parking lots into frozen versions of their living rooms.

"There was no way we'd miss this," said Brant Meink, who was grilling burgers outside his minivan. "And we thought we'd do it in style."

Bill Korb and John Palm drove from Chippewa Falls, Wis., for the game with a remedy for cold weather: a prefabricated wooden shelter that they spent all last week building and assembled in 45 minutes when they got to Minneapolis.

Watching his prime rib cook on a small charcoal grill, Korb expressed concern about the game.

"I think it's going to be a closer game than most people are thinking," he said. "[Arizona quarterback] Jake the Snake is a variable."

Few Vikings fans seemed to share Korb's concern. "Vikes by four scores," said Tom Stremski.

"We think there's actually no challenge today," said Bob Freitag, who decided to warm up in his pickup truck with his friends after the fire in the grill they used to cook their steaks went out.

It was difficult to find a fan who wasn't thrilled to be awaiting kickoff, but at least one person was unhappy. Jon Brovold, who was selling souvenirs at JB Enterprises on Washington Avenue, was disappointed with business.

Brovold attributed poor sales to the cold weather. "I think because it was so cold, people already brought their cold weather gear, their gloves and hats," he said.

Inside the Metrodome, where it was near 70 degrees at kickoff, Kurtis Urban was attracting attention from his fellow fans.

Wearing a purple helmet with a Vikings flag on top, two Vikings Christmas ornaments hanging from the sides, several Vikings decals and an old Illinois license plate that read 'MNSOTA1' in front and clad in shorts and a Randall Cunningham jersey, Urban was only too happy to point out the intricacies of his unusual headgear.

"I got these license plates when I lived in Chicago after the Twins won their first World Series," he said, adding that he was a bit disappointed that he wouldn't get the chance to display his hat on TV because he had won a contest to sit in an enclosed luxury suite instead of his usual seats.

 

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