No TailGating! It's a Sacrilege!

AURORA, Ill. (Aurora Beacon News)  -- For perhaps the first time during this euphoric post-season, Bears fans have been slapped with bad news -- straight from South Beach.

But it will only affect those with plans on partying at the stadium in Miami for the big game on Feb. 4.

"There is no tailgating allowed in the Dolphin Stadium parking lots," Sue Jaquez, a member of the Super Bowl XLI Host Committee, confirmed on Tuesday.

It gets worse ...

"And there is no tailgating anywhere within a one-mile radius of the stadium."

And worse ...

"And there are no RVs allowed."

Sacrilege!

Bears fans not permitted to tailgate? That's like taking a group of preschoolers to Dairy Queen and forbidding them to order ice cream.

"It's football! It's what we do!" said Mike Baum, an Aurora property manager, Bears season-ticket-holder, and one of the most dedicated tailgaters at Soldier Field, where he parks his custom-made, blue-and-orange school bus along the lakefront.

"What are they going to do next -- play with a baseball instead of a football?" Baum complained. "It would be just terrible to drive 30 hours and discover you can't tailgate. Talk about a cold shower."

"What am I supposed to do -- park in front of somebody's house and walk down the sidewalk with a tray of sandwiches?"

Because tailgating is permitted during regular- and post-season games for Dolphins fans, a team official on Tuesday said it would indeed be allowed at the Super Bowl. According to Jaquez, however, the official has been seriously misinformed.

The Dolphins do not organize and oversee the Super Bowl, Jaquez pointed out. Instead, those duties are left up to NFL officials. And, per security reasons, no pre-game partying on (or very near) the premises will take place. Fans spotted tailgating could face charges, Jaquez said.

"This is part of the NFL, not the Dolphins," Jaquez said. "If the Dolphins are saying there's tailgating -- or think it's going to be allowed -- then they need to contact the NFL."

Detective Nelda Fonticella of the Miami-Dade Police confirmed the Super Bowl rules.

If caught grilling or consuming alcohol within that one-mile radius of Dolphins Stadium, fans initially "will be warned and asked to pick up their things and leave," Fonticella said. "We're trying to make this a pleasant experience for everyone, and there will be plenty to do in the week leading up to the game."

Brandon Weis, an owner of the Aurora Sign Co., last year began organizing an early-February fishing trip with a group of buddies to the Florida Keys area. When October rolled around, Weis thought: "You know what? The Bears are going to the Super Bowl -- let's lock this thing in."

But, as of Tuesday -- and given the news of no tailgating at the stadium -- Weis and his group were in limbo.

Weis' plan was to rent an SUV, bring his DirecTV receiver, purchase a flatscreen TV in Miami, then spend half the money he'd normally pay on an overpriced game ticket to buy top-of-the-line tailgating fare -- prime rib, lobster, jumbo shrimp, beer -- and watch the game from the back of the SUV.

"We figured we'd all just go crazy, but this is unfortunate," Weis said. "Now we're in limbo, but we're looking for places. It's like getting a beer and hotdog at a baseball game -- tailgating is what you do for football."