Magic City Classic Tailgating Grows From Van Club Gathering To Weeklong Holiday

By Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Ralph Lewis takes credit for the practice of tailgating at Birmingham’s annual Magic City Classic.

The 72-year-old from Fairfield’s Glen Oaks neighborhood was a founder of the Vanguard Van Club. Decades ago, members drove their custom vans in the parade on the morning of the game and then made their way to “their spot” in the Legion Field parking lot to enjoy the day.

But what the Vanguard Van Club and their succeeding Van Club started has mushroomed into something far bigger, with many tailgaters claiming their spots as early as Monday before the 2:30 p.m. Saturday kickoff of the football game between Alabama A&M and Alabama State.“During that time, we had 10 to 12 vans,” Lewis said. “We would set up every year, but the crowd started getting bigger and bigger with the mobile homes and vans and stuff like that. They used to didn’t do that. It was just the Alabama fans who had the mobile homes.”

Please visit Alabama News Center for the Full Article

Tags: ANC

Category: ALL POSTS, Partner News Stories