About Us

Traditions

The Falcons Roost was started in 1996 by Trace Mashburn. That same year, Dodi and I were given some tickets by a Falcons employee in Section 113. That is where we had the pleasure of meeting Lee Fitzgerald (MONKEEE) and his wonderful father Bruce (we can't forget his lovely wife Paula). In 1997, we all hooked up for our first tailgate. At that time, many of us were posting on the old Usenet newsgroup (Trace included). As we started to tailgate together more, the "Roost" became our home. As time went by, a great friend, Mike Sherrane, pointed out how few traditions the Falcons have and how the NFL is BUILT on tradition. It was at that point that we decided to incorporate a few more traditions to our tailgate group as well as the sections we sit in. Whether you are a first-time visitor to our tailgate parties or have been showing up for years and wondered "WHAT in the world are they doing?", here is the list of traditions that we have honored since 1997.

1. Beer Bitch - Ahhhhhhh.....the dreaded Beer Bitch label (see attractive photo above). I have no idea how this tradition started but it is one of our favorites. That is, until one of us is actually the Beer Bitch! This tradition has only 3 participants (losers) Trace, MONKEEE, and Dave Ingram. Whoever (or if you are from Kentucky, "Everwho") is the last to arrive at the game's tailgate, is designated as the Beer Bitch. What does the Beer Bitch do? He opens every beverage at anyone's request. It makes our guests feel welcome at a tailgate and pretty much ensures the Beer Bitch a very busy afternoon! In fact, the Beer Bitch now has to wear a sticker that says, "Hello...my name is Beer Bitch". It usually looks very nice on Trace every Sunday... :) So if you are at one of our tailgates and need a beverage opened, just look for the Beer Bitch. Byron Webb gets a free pass on this one since he and Meggles usually drive from Augusta, GA. It was also decided a long time ago that none of the administrators on this site has the guts to call Meggles the "B" word. We like our teeth just fine, thank you very much.

2. Pucker - Before we walk into the Dome at EVERY home game, we must consume a bottle of Pucker. At the urging of Dodi Ingram, the tradition was further changed in late 2003 to make the flavor of Pucker one of the opposing team's colors (For example: Minnesota Vikings - we drink Grape Pucker). As the tailgates have grown, we have had to purchase more bottles of Pucker. We usually down 2 or 3 before heading into the Dome. Another great "Roost Tradition" !

3. Chef MONKEEE - This is the longest running tradition for the Roost: MONKEEE's culinary skills. His All-Time classic? Cooking his famous "Falcon Burgers". He makes hamburgers (and buns) in the shape of the Falcons Logo. Not only pleasing to the eye but to the stomach as well. In fact, while doing a remote interview in "The Gulch" during 2002, Arthur Blank was presented with one of MONKEEE's "Falcon Burgers" and was blown away. In 2004, Stephanie Blank (Mr. Blank's wife) and Susan Bass (Vice President of Communications and Community Relations) both gave MONKEEE all kinds of accolades and gifts as they made his "Falcon Burgers" their award winner for the day. MONKEEE isn't a "one-trick pony" either. He's made ribs, chicken, hot dogs, brats, gumbo, Brunswick stew, chicken wangs, breakfast, chili (Ass-O-Fire and "extra wussy" for Ingram), and just about any other food that anyone has ever requested. Needless to say, he is usually the tailgate MVP week after week. He does a lot of extra stuff to make everyone's experience one they always remember.

1. "Roll Those Chains" - Probably the all-time number one game tradition for the "Black Army" in Section 107. Originally, we gave credit to David Brown & Kevin McGloughlin; yet, they held someone else had actually started the tradition at Fulton County Stadium. We will continue our props for David & Kevin since none of us ever heard of this until we sat with them. They were the leaders in Section 107 and are sorely missed by all who sit there.

Basically what "Roll Those Chains" entails involves the Falcons offense making a FIRST DOWN. Once they do, you stand up and make a rolling motion with your arm from one side of your body to the other side over your head. You also must face whichever way the Falcons are moving the ball. This has become quite a tradition in Section 107 and surrounding sections. Whenever there is a first down by penalty or less than 2:00 minutes to go in the half, we DON'T "Roll Those Chains". The team may be running a hurry-up offense and we don't want to hurt any audible situations at the line of scrimmage by making more crowd noise. This is the time for QUIET!

2. The "YOU SUCK" Chant - Boy, we've had A LOT o' FUN with this one. We like to pick out one player from the opposing team and every time they get in our endzone we get in our endzone, give it to him good! For example, if we are playing the Eagles and they get pinned at our 5 yard line, we are immediately on Donovan McNabb. Our chant would be: "Donovan...Donovan...Donovan - YOU SUCK !". There will be a slight pause followed by..."One more time!" and we would say it again. It has been VERY effective in rattling some of the other team's players. WE LOVE THIS CHANT!!!

3. Penalties - Whenever the opposing team has a penalty and the referee announces the infraction and the player's number, we like to follow it up immediately with the following: "It's all your fault, It's all your fault, It's all your fault". Nothing like rubbing a mistake in our opponent's face!