Tailgate/Bus Group Thank You | The Boneyard

Tailgate/Bus Group Thank You

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Everyone-
Many of you have already gotten my email but for those that didn't, thanks for your support on the tailgate and CFB Travel's first official event. It was great meeting you all and putting names to faces. I hope everyone had an enjoyable experience- make sure you sign up on our mailing list to be notified of future trips, tailgates, hotels and tickets to UConn or other games (http://www.cfbtravel.com/#!mailinglist/cxqn).

I want to address some of the concerns people had: Overall, everything went very well- people had a great time, got to meet a lot of fellow Husky fans and get a bite to eat of the excellent food that Chumley's provided. Of course, not everything went exactly to plan- the parking lot company put the caterers behind the 8-ball more than a bit when they didn't open the gates up until almost 10:15. They were supposed to be open at 9 so that a ton of food could be ready to be served at 11:30 for the initial wave; once the back-up started, the line didn't die down until almost 2pm. This delay also caused their setup to be smaller than they anticipated since certain cars had already arrived/parked by the time the caterers were setup and for the setup to be in the same spot I planned to put the check-in table but ultimately we ended up handing out all 552 wristbands so I'm glad everyone found us.

Unfortunately, I also have a feeling that some people were in line that shouldn't have been- the caterers have done this for over 20 years and believe they served closer to 650-700 people (amazingly, without running out of food), meaning that others migrated into our lot and got through the line without the proper wristbands. Caterers started checking wristbands, but by then I think it was already too late. This means that future events will be completely restricted- no one will be allowed into any of my future event areas without a CFB Travel wristband. I do this very reluctantly since I don't want to turn away UConn people from joining us if they're just hanging out, but I cannot let this happen again to those who paid well in advance for their food- one Boneyarder commented he wouldn't pay $23 for a plate of food again and I can't blame him one bit.

Finally, I've learned that I need to set a deadline to pick up wristbands by- I had a group show up at 1:45 that wanted their money back since they didn't want to wait in line.

Hopefully everyone understands these issues- I'm simply a fan who started this business to fill a need since tailgating at Yankee Stadium is nearly impossible, especially if you're coming on Metro North, and frankly, I trusted people would be a bit more honest than it sounds like they were and it's unfairly impacting people's perceptions of my business and whatever future events we do.

Thanks to all of the great UConn fans who thanked me and had a wonderful time despite the minor issues we ran into- you are exactly why I love doing this. Next tailgate will be more than 100% better- I still have people praise the tailgates we did at Notre Dame, Michigan (over 350 people) and Maryland (over 450 people) but this was the first time we used an outside group to do the catering so I now know to manage the next group much closer. As you can imagine, I spent too much of my time last week sourcing four buses to bring my 171 people on once Premier bailed on me at 4:15pm on Tuesday and did not focus as much as I otherwise could have in managing the day-of logistics.

Be sure you say hello to me at any UConn event you see me at- I always love meeting new Husky fans to talk with and say hello to. I met a ton of you on Saturday so I may not exactly remember your name so please introduce yourself- I'm sure we're at more events together than we know. See everyone on a future trip or at a future tailgate!
-Ryan
 

Dooley

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Was a great time Ryan! Thanks for putting this together!!
 
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Ryan,

As many have said you did a great job.

Look forward to the next road trip.

See you at the Rent !!!!!
 
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