we have parked in the same spot for 10 years straight -- every game 8am for a 11 am for a 4 and we park in the same spot -- is it our spot no -- but you do feel at home when you get there lol
If you get there that early, you'll continue to have the same spot. I know guys that get there at 7AM and don't even pay to park, because no one's attending the booths yet! Pretty funny. I love tailgating, but getting up at the crack of dawn is a little over the top.
used to be 5 hours early you don't pay but we were getting charged last year -- this year it don't matter since we already paid lol
I used to be one of those guys who got there early and didn't have to pay. They realized they were losing money and started bringing people in earlier the last couple of years. On the tickets this year they state the gates are opening at 7 hours before kickoff (meaning that's when the tickets booths are staffed), so if you don't have a parking pass you can probably get there before 6:00am and park in the main lots... hmy:
I suppose that you could also get there at 6AM the first day and stay parked for the remainder of the season.
can someone to explain to me what exactly is the deal with tailgating, parking, etc. this year? im not a seasonticket holder but i usually get tickets to at least 3 or 4 games a year.. so i just want to know what to expect. i tried reading through the thread but i still dont know exactly whats going on. apparently you need parking passes now, but ive heard only season ticket holders can get these and i dont know if thats true or where to even get them. also, im going to the preseason game this friday, and do these new rules apply to preseason ?? its a 7pm game so i plan on being there around 2pm.. but i wanna know what to expect. if someone could just fill me in id really appreciate it... thanks
I've been tailgating for Jets games for about the last 12 years. I've been buying my seats through someone else, so I didn't get a parking pass this year (I'm pretty close on the waiting list, though, so I'll probably have my own tickets by the time the new stadium is done). This year, I'm planning on just taking a train to Secaucus or Rutherford and figuring it out from there. I think there are a couple bars in Rutherford which offer shuttles to the stadium (I assume only if you're a customer). Also, I've heard rumors of a free shuttle bus from the Secaucus train station. Does anyone know of any specific bars in Rutherford offering shuttles? Or if the free shuttle from Secaucus is really happening? I called njtransit and coach usa, and neither knew anything about this shuttle bus. Thanks, and go Jets!
free shuttle buses? Completely unlikely. People who don`t have parking passes will be directed to satellite lots in Lyndhurst where it will cost them $25.00 to park and the shuttle buses are part of that cost. I doubt the train transfer will have free shuttles. Maybe for a small fee they will be free? :lol: As for any bars in the area? There really aren`t any bars withing 2 miles of that stadium except for Charlie Browns and The Grasshopper Also(?). I don`t think any bars in Rutherford have the parking spaces to accomodate shuttling fans to the stadium while other patrons who will not be going to the game having to park elsewhere. Doesn`t make sense to shut out those people who want to watch the game in the bar and spend money there. Well to answer a few questions about the parking passes. Just because you have one DOES NOT GAURANTEE a spot. It should, but it doesn`t unfortunately. People who do have the passes will only waste the $15.00 they paid for the pass if they arrive earlier than the gate attendants. People WITHOUT passes should arrive before those gate attendants do. This will gaurantee someone with a pass to NOT get a spot. I`m pretty sure they will be handing out some sort of sticker or placard that will need to be visible on the windshields otherwise those who don`t will probably be ticketed or towed away at owners expense. It will certainly be a very interesting thing this parking stuff. It`s going to a cluster f*** for the next 2-3 years.
Thanks for the information. I did a little more poking yesterday. Still no word on a shuttle from Secaucus train. NJTransit said Coach USA usually runs buses like that for events like Live Earth, and they say nothing like that has been setup yet for Jets/Giants. So that doesn't look too promising. I did find an NJTransit bus which looks to get you in walking distance of the stadium. So, my two non-driving options appear to be take the train into Rutherford, hang out at one of the bars in the area (Blarney Station pub looks good), then hop that nj transit bus to the stadium before kick-off. Or, I could take a bus to the port authority then get to the game on the njtransit 351. It seems ridiculous to me to go into NY only to come right back out (I live in NJ), but I think this will actually be a little quicker than my train-train-bus route. One more note - google for Manny's in Moonachie as an example of a bar which offers a free shuttle to the stadium. It's like 1.5-2 miles north of the stadium. They apparently offer a "special brunch" and free shuttle on game days. Long story short - I'm skipping the tailgating this year and possibly until the new stadium. I'll just sleep a little later on Sundays, eat a hearty breakfast, then head out on mass transit. I love tailgating, but this will have some positives, too (no packing, loading/unloading, Saturday night shopping, traffic, driving after a few beers, etc, etc). I may take a practice run tomorrow afternoon to see how safe those areas look in Rutherford, though I don't plan on hanging around for the full game.
And make sure that you actually show up when you invite others to your tailgate, especially one guy whose wife spent a few hours that morning cooking 2 trays of Penne ala Vodka for your fat ass to enjoy.... oooooooooooooooooooooooh burn!
Yeah, I wouldn't either, especially late at night. Those E. Rutherford swamps are a high-crime area. You never know who may be lurking behind the next reed as you wade through the water and all those punks (literal and figurative) that are always a pain in the ass to deal with as you make your way to the opposite shore. Serously man, abandon the two "non-driving" options and just get yourself a prepaid parking stub on eBay or somwhere else if you never got them with your tickets.
Really? It looks like the bus stop is literally 3 blocks from the train, and that the bus stops at the Meadowlands Sports Complex. I tried posting a link but I can't since my post count is too low, but use google maps or the like if interested. So I don't think you'd need to wade through any swamps. But again, this actually would take a little longer for me than just getting to the Port Authority and taking the bus from there, which is an even safer route since you don't even have to walk those 3 blocks outside. You don't have to go outside into the cruel world at all. But I'm definitely not parking in a satellite lot and am definitely not paying above face value for a parking pass from ebay/craigslist/etc. I'll try the Pats game and if it's too annoying of a commute, I'll start selling my tickets until the parking passes become close to free on eBay/etc. And if they don't become close to free, I'll just watch at a bar or something this year. Meanwhile, Go Jets! It all begins today, and I'm psyched!
I used to show up at about 8:30/9am for 1pm starts, and use to basically get pick of the litter at that time. Only the hardcore drunks were out earlier. Last couple years, I started getting there closer to 10. I got there as late as about 10:30 last year a couple times, and had problems getting into 13A from Turnpike. This year, with the constricted parking and everyone trying to get there early to compensate, if I were driving I'd shoot for 9 the latest the first week. But that's just me. And I'm train/busing it, so take my comments with a grain of salt.
