Packers Tailgate Tour blog: What’s more Wisconsin than brats and tractors?
The morning of the 20th annual Packers Tailgate Tour dawned foggy and chilly, typical for mid-April in Wisconsin. The previous night, severe thunderstorms and heavy rain moved through the area, causing some travel delays for the players and alumni on this year’s tour. But it didn’t dampen the spirits of the former teammates who were reuniting and the current players who were enjoying their first Tailgate Tour. Joining the tour this year were current players Edgerrin Cooper and Evan Williams along with alumni James Jones, Randall Cobb, Desmond Bishop and Brandon Jackson. All of the alumni are veterans of the Tailgate Tour, with each of them attending during their playing careers and now returning as alumni.
Along with Packers President and CEO Ed Policy, who was embarking on his first-ever Tailgate Tour, they began a five-day journey across Wisconsin and beyond.
The bus traveled down I-43 to the tour’s first stop at the Johnsonville Global Headquarters, where Johnsonville employs between 700-800 staff members on-site.
They began with a quick shopping trip at the Johnsonville Marketplace, a store open to the public seven days a week. The group marveled over a Johnsonville sausage grill (molded to the shape of the sausage, no flipping required), discussed the 75 flavors of Johnsonville sausage, and were tempted by a variety of Johnsonville-themed apparel and goodies.
Next, they headed over to a production facility, where they quite literally got to see where the sausage was made. It smelled like the Lambeau Field parking lot on a gameday, with brats smoking in a massive oven before being chilled for packaging.
The guys got to view the production floor from the mezzanine, where they saw employees – members, as Johnsonville calls them – sorting, packing and quality-checking thousands of brats.
A good-natured argument ensued amongst the alumni as to whether or not an (already cooked) brat is fine to eat right out of the packaging, or if it needs to be grilled prior to consumption. The jury is still out.
Following the production tour, the group was welcomed by hundreds of Johnsonville members to the Big Taste Grill, which was grilling up several different flavors of Johnsonville’s finest. It felt like a classic tailgate, complete with cornhole, pictures with the Johnsonville Racing Sausages, music and of course, Johnsonville brats on Sheboygan hard rolls.
Brandon Koehler, director of operations at Johnsonville, said the event was a perfect example of how Johnsonville treats its employees.
“We really like to give back, take care of our team and our members,” said Koehler. “Food brings people together. Just like the Packers on Sunday. They bring people together.”
Next, the group journeyed further south to Port Washington High School, home of the Pirates. The group entered the auditorium to a welcome that rivaled Lambeau Field on a gameday, with raucous cheers and high-fives. The guys took their place on the stage and spoke about overcoming adversity and the importance of being a good teammate.
Jackson led a “Go Pack Go” chant and kicked off the discussion, and Cobb offered some wisdom to the students, reminding them that learning and leadership starts with whom you follow. “You’ll discover that there’s people that you should follow and people that maybe you shouldn’t. It’s about being able to figure that out,” Cobb said. “Who is going to help you in that path to get to who you’re going to become?”
After tossing some footballs and shirts into the crowd and presenting the athletic director with a $2,500 check for the Pirates’ athletic program, the tour headed to lunch, just around the corner at Fork & Tap restaurant.