Great read
Really enjoyed reading your review Mark.
Thanks for sharing.

A few things:
1)I've never been to West Virginia, but I have been to State. I stopped going to games there years ago. I have only read about West Virginia fans, but they can't be any worse than the State fans are in Raleigh.
2)There are more than 1 million people that live in Wake County (the county in which Raleigh is in). There are many, many great places all over the Triangle Area (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill).
3) It's not unusual to find lots of Dook students all over Chapel Hill. If you are in Durham to visit the Devils you might as well drive the 8 miles from the Dook campus to Chapel Hill (17 stoplights).
4)If you are in Raleigh, Chapel Hill is only 27 miles from Carter-Finley

(08-11-2015 07:25 PM)Kaplony Wrote:  Honestly, from my experience it wouldn't be that hard to surpass NC State as a road trip destination. I've been to Carter-Finley three times and each has been in my top ten worst experiences at a visiting stadium.

For all the crap Maryland used to catch about douchebag fans NC State surpassed what I experienced at Byrd in spades, and what makes it so bad is all three times I was there my impression wasn't clouded by a loss as we won every game there I attended. The only places I have experienced more obnoxious drunks congregated in one place were in Columbia, SC and Athens, GA. After getting a vehicle vandalized in the parking lot the first two times we made certain to sanitize the vehicle of anything Clemson the third time, and even then we ended up with trash piled on our vehicle probably because we couldn't hide the SC tags. Between the drunk dbag fans and the gestapo security Carter-Finley joins Sanford as stadiums I'll never visit again.

I have to agree with Mark for once....the concessions there are mediocre at best, and the stadium itself is a dump. It's a perfectly mediocre venue for a perfectly mediocre fanbase of a perfectly mediocre football program.

I don't know why you guys are all dumping on State. I went to football games there for years (though not as a visitor) and I can only recall a single time that a visiting fan was shot dead by a drunk in the parking lot.

For Wake, I would rank our road trips this year like this.

1. Norte Dame - Storied venue that is still a novel trip for us
2. UNC - Century old rival that we don't play enough anymore
3. West Point- A game we should win in a beautiful setting.
4. Clemson - This trip is more fun when our team is better
5. Boston College - Best rivalry that we've formed from the former Big East teams (minus VT)
6. Syracuse- Winnable game on the road.

(08-11-2015 08:54 PM)WakeForestRanger Wrote:  For Wake, I would rank our road trips this year like this.

1. Norte Dame - Storied venue that is still a novel trip for us
2. UNC - Century old rival that we don't play enough anymore
3. West Point- A game we should win in a beautiful setting.
4. Clemson - This trip is more fun when our team is better
5. Boston College - Best rivalry that we've formed from the former Big East teams (minus VT)
6. Syracuse- Winnable game on the road.

You guys have some great road venues this Fall too! If you haven't gone to Army...do it. Going by your Board Name...I think you might be in or was in the Army?

(08-11-2015 05:35 PM)TexanMark Wrote:  Marge...nice inputs. On the day off I like visiting something unique...like at FSU I would go to Wakulla...or the beaches. Next would be to go to a famous restaurant or bar district...I'll check out Gaines St this Oct

I have a small group of 20...where do you recommend we set up? Everyone in the group is healthy to walk.

Set up as in where to put your group's tailgate? Or just where to park and then go wandering around near the stadium pre-game?

And let me correct myself. The shuttle is $5 but I don't know if that is all inclusive for parking and the shuttle or if parking is extra.

For further information, contact Transportation and Parking Services at (850) 644-5278 or taps-dpp@fsu.edu.
https://transportation.fsu.edu/event-par...l-game-day

If bringing your own tailgating supplies, I'd personally just park at "Burnett Park" by the civic center and set up my stuff there on either the eastern or western side streets. There's place off the road to set your stuff up there. Then just walk down Gaines to the stadium come game time.

If you aren't bringing tailgating supplies, you could just park on Gaines itself (also free). You can get to within ~2 blocks of the stadium, but obviously you'd need to get there fairly early to get that close. If you get there later and end up parking a ways away it doesn't change things much. Just do the Burnett Park thing.

As I said, there are a few coffee shops, bars, breweries and eateries along the corridor. But I wouldn't really call it a "district" yet. It's still very much being developed.

I don't think I'd describe any Tally restaurant as "famous", but a unique option may be The Edison if it's open by then.

(08-11-2015 10:00 PM)TexanMark Wrote:  

(08-11-2015 08:54 PM)WakeForestRanger Wrote:  For Wake, I would rank our road trips this year like this.

1. Norte Dame - Storied venue that is still a novel trip for us
2. UNC - Century old rival that we don't play enough anymore
3. West Point- A game we should win in a beautiful setting.
4. Clemson - This trip is more fun when our team is better
5. Boston College - Best rivalry that we've formed from the former Big East teams (minus VT)
6. Syracuse- Winnable game on the road.

You guys have some great road venues this Fall too! If you haven't gone to Army...do it. Going by your Board Name...I think you might be in or was in the Army?

National Park Service

(08-11-2015 10:09 PM)Marge Schott Wrote:  

(08-11-2015 05:35 PM)TexanMark Wrote:  Marge...nice inputs. On the day off I like visiting something unique...like at FSU I would go to Wakulla...or the beaches. Next would be to go to a famous restaurant or bar district...I'll check out Gaines St this Oct

I have a small group of 20...where do you recommend we set up? Everyone in the group is healthy to walk.

Set up as in where to put your group's tailgate? Or just where to park and then go wandering around near the stadium pre-game?

And let me correct myself. The shuttle is $5 but I don't know if that is all inclusive for parking and the shuttle or if parking is extra.

For further information, contact Transportation and Parking Services at (850) 644-5278 or taps-dpp@fsu.edu.
https://transportation.fsu.edu/event-par...l-game-day

If bringing your own tailgating supplies, I'd personally just park at "Burnett Park" by the civic center and set up my stuff there on either the eastern or western side streets. There's place off the road to set your stuff up there. Then just walk down Gaines to the stadium come game time.

If you aren't bringing tailgating supplies, you could just park on Gaines itself (also free). You can get to within ~2 blocks of the stadium, but obviously you'd need to get there fairly early to get that close. If you get there later and end up parking a ways away it doesn't change things much. Just do the Burnett Park thing.

As I said, there are a few coffee shops, bars, breweries and eateries along the corridor. But I wouldn't really call it a "district" yet. It's still very much being developed.

I don't think I'd describe any Tally restaurant as "famous", but a unique option may be The Edison if it's open by then.

Nice call...thanks. That looks like a winner. And yes we'll bring some tailgate stuff...a fairly light package: canopy, weight plates, chairs, one grill and 2-3 coolers.

I always say, act like a jerk at another school's place & you'll be treated the same. So when I roadtrip for games, I wear my colors, but keep it tame & do not smacktalk or make an ass of myself. And at every venue except Maryland, I have been treated very well as a visitor. I've been to Byrd twice - once in Wake gear & once in State gear. Both times I was heckled and had beer thrown on me as I walked through the parking lot on the way into the stadium. I do not miss those classless thugs a bit.

I seriously do not see what is so great about Kenan. The stadium is a dump, there is no leg room in the bleachers (unless you are a child or an adult under 5'5"), and there is no place to tailgate. I've been to one game there & won't be back.

(08-13-2015 11:13 AM)Lucy Wrote:  I always say, act like a jerk at another school's place & you'll be treated the same. So when I roadtrip for games, I wear my colors, but keep it tame & do not smacktalk or make an ass of myself. And at every venue except Maryland, I have been treated very well as a visitor. I've been to Byrd twice - once in Wake gear & once in State gear. Both times I was heckled and had beer thrown on me as I walked through the parking lot on the way into the stadium. I do not miss those classless thugs a bit.

I seriously do not see what is so great about Kenan. The stadium is a dump, there is no leg room in the bleachers (unless you are a child or an adult under 5'5"), and there is no place to tailgate. I've been to one game there & won't be back.

Unless you are a Big Ram with a parking spot very close to the stadium, forget tailgating. Season ticket holders with a parking pass for the Smith Center lot sometimes tailgate, but a crowded paved parking lot lacks the ambiance you'd like with your wine and cheese.

If you're just visiting, you don't want to tailgate in a smelly parking deck, so you may as well forget about that part of the game day experience entirely. There's not just a lack of leg room in the bleachers. There's not much room for your butt either. I believe one year they increased the seating capacity at the stadium by painting the seat numbers on the bench seats closer together.

Not very visitor friendly. But you probably won't be assaulted, because the home crowd just isn't that passionate.

I agree with Lucy. I went to Commonwealth Stadium for a UK vs Miss St game a few years back. I wore some Cardinals gear but didn't over due it. Other than a few wise cracks, in fun, from the concession workers I didn't have a problem. It was an enjoyable time, especially since the Cats lost.