What is up?! I don’t know about you, but I am sure as hell excited to be part of the first blogs here on the Midnight Riders site. Since this is the first installment of Craig’s Corner, let me inform you of the path that I plan on taking for most of the season. Please don’t be frightened, we don’t throw streamers or insults from this corner.

I will be writing about what some would say is the most important part of a match day, the tailgate.

Thats right, the tailgate. Not the ball, not the players, not the hype of the match or the rivalry created between two clubs (or in some cases supporters clubs). I will be talking about the beer, the food, the games, the atmosphere, the people to know (or in some cases, not to know), the happenings, and whatever else I can fit into this piece. Oh, and definitely photos.

Most of the posts will be following similar guidelines with some twists and turns along the way. I might do a personal diary of match day, just to give you all a taste of what I do for each game. I might give you some recipes from the greatest chefs the Riders tailgate has to offer. I will give you some great games to play while awaiting kickoff. I will tell you of the most popular brews along with the most tasteful. So much, so be sure to visit each week.

We will start easy this first week; music. The soul of every tailgate. You got your car in position, and the first thing most people do is start unpacking the grill and cooler. Ah, but in complete silence? Of course not! You have your 6-disc CD player, your cassette deck, your radio, your ipod, or your classic boombox with batteries. I just bought a 2007 Scion tC before the season started, so I have a choice between a cd, or my ipod which connects to an auxiliary port inside my center console. To do this I use a more complicated version of this http://www.hdaccessory.com/catalog/35mm6_thumb.jpg. But hey, if you still only have that cassette deck, there’s still hope. Go grab a cassette adapter, its only about $10 and they’re available almost anywhere where audio accessories are sold. http://www.broadbandbuyer.co.uk/images/products/iPodCassetteAdapter.jpg

Generally I choose the iPod simply because of the larger amount and variety of tunes, along with the ability to find a song much quicker than on a cd (especially those mix discs where nothing is labeled so you don’t know what the hell is on there!).

I usually will choose my soccer mix, which include everything soccer related like the FIFA anthem, songs from EA Sports FIFA games, and Clint Dempsey’s “Don’t Tread”. If I am in an all-out party mode, mainstream artists Kanye West, Linkin Park, T.I., Foo Fighters, Ludacris, U2, and some lesser known artists like Jurassic 5 and Flobots will take center stage.

And all this even before the food is cooked.

Go Revs!