Columnist Ron Kantowski: Tailgating a dirty deed for Rebels fans

Friday, Aug. 29, 2003 | 9:36 a.m.

Ron Kantowski is a Las Vegas Sun sports writer. Reach him at ron@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4088.

Sorry, Rebels fans, this isn't going to be the year.

I'm not talking about UNLV's chances to win the Mountain West Conference and qualify for the Liberty Bowl. As tightly bunched as the MWC appears from top to bottom, I suppose anything is possible, at least on the field.

But it's a lock that this won't be the year the dirt parking lots at Sam Boyd Stadium finally get paved.

I spoke to a longtime Rebels fan this week who said he did not renew his season tickets this year, and one of the reasons he gave is that he's tired of cleaning the dust off his bratwurst during pregame tailgating.

Tailgating, of course, is one of college football's most enduring and endearing traditions. Were it not for tailgating, would there be any reason to buy a ticket to a Vanderbilt game?

UNLV isn't exactly the tailgating capital of the world, probably because most people drive cars and SUVs to the game, rather than ride camels. When the wind kicks up at the stadium, it can turn tailgating into something resembling the Paris to Dakar Rally.

But it's not that stadium officials aren't aware of or sympathetic to the problem.

"The last two years, we've been working with the county on the dust abatement issue. It's always a tough topic," said Daren Libonati, director of Sam Boyd Stadium and the Thomas & Mack Center and the Rebels' field-goal kicker in 1986 and '87.

Libonati said the stadium has put $50,000 toward a county project to erect a fence around the entire Sam Boyd lot, and a plan to build a grassy "free flowing park" that would shield the parking areas from the elements is still being considered.

As for paving the general parking areas, there are between 3 million and 5 million reasons why that's probably not going to happen anytime soon. Libonati said that's roughly what it would cost -- $3 million-5 million -- to lay the blacktop and make Sam Boyd dust-free.

"At an institution like ours, I don't know where we could find another $3 million right now," Libonati said.

But there is an option for fans who don't want to get their sneakers dirty.

Remember that Bermuda grass practice field the Las Vegas Posse put in during the summer of 1994 for its one and only Canadian Football League season? The one on which Ron Meyer and the other Posse coaches would run around half-naked to work on their suntans?

Well, it's still there. And it has been added to, giving Sam Boyd about 10 acres of prime, grassy tailgating area on the north side of the stadium.

Next year, the lawn will be stretched all the way to Tropicana Avenue, which flanks the west side of Sam Boyd. Star Nursery will be a partner in the project, which will add lights and make the area suitable for other uses, such as concerts and festivals.

But there is a catch. For football tailgating, you'll have to pay to drive into the grassy commons. A reserved 60'x 30' space, which comfortably accommodates 6 cars, is available for $60. Roughly 200 single-car spaces, available on a first-come, first-served basis, are just $5.

Anybody wishing to reserve a tailgate area for future games -- spaces for the Hawaii, Utah and BYU games are going fast -- can call 739-FANS and ask for tailgating.

While some fans probably won't be keen on paying for something that is free on campusus where you don't need a sprinkler system to grow grass, all of the tailgating revenue goes directly to Kids Corner, a favorite UNLV charity.

As for tonight's tailgating forecast, what was it Darrell Royal, the old Texas wishbone coach, said about the forward pass? That when you pass, there are three things that can happen, and two of them are bad?

Well, today's forecast calls for slight winds. One good thing. As well as numerous storms and 100-degree temperatures at kickoff. Two bad things.

So you might just want to take a page out of the old Texas playbook and run an option -- or make an end run to the border. There's always that Taco Bell on the corner of Russell Road and Boulder Highway.