Saturday, November 10, 2007, Watauga County... TOUCHDOWN! I'd been looking forward to this day for a long time; my very first tailgate party, ever. The panoramic views as we drove up the mountain from Wilkesboro to Boone caused Fred's words "we live in a beautiful state from the coast to the mountains" to echo in my ear. The autumnal reds, gold, orange, yellow and evergreen gave me permission not to work on the RV but rather enjoy the mountainside beauty. When we arrived in Boone friends introduced Fred at a fundraising brunch. While he stayed with Jim Hastings, we went on with David Blust to set-up at "The Duck Pond" at Appalachian State University. The Kappa Alpha fraternity, to which Fred was associated during his college days, hosted him at their tailgate party. The campaign brought along BBQ sandwiches to share with the students and they invited us to dig into their Boston butts hot off the grill. Fred talked to students and parents, met some people he knows and everyone we spoke with graciously accepted Fred Smith for Governor stickers to wear. Susan Mills took him to meet the Appalachian Ambassadors. Quite a set-up complete with RV, surrounding tailgaters, toile tablecloths, silver service and a tuxedoed butler (businessman from Winston-Salem). They won the day's Bank of America award for "Best Tailgate" and invited Fred to be in their media photo. Fred met Chancellor Ken Peacock who extended the invitation to the game and the two went down on the field after the first quarter. Fred, football enthusiast that he remains, stood outside as the temperature dropped and winds increased. When David brought him to the BBQ, he looked like an ice cube and I saw this expression in his eyes, "Glad there was a 6:30 BBQ." His shirt, tie and sports coat weren't much protection from the cold. He joked with the guests that it would take him a week to thaw out and then they listened intently to his every word, applauding with support for his plan throughout. The evening generated lots of photos and excitement with additional guests from Caldwell, McDowell and Henderson. Late sports news revealed that ASU tromped WNC with scores that sounded like a basketball game. A radio report I heard revealed that Joe and DeVan would be happy campers (sorry, Judge). NC State squeaked by Carolina in this year's rivalry. Fred headed to Lexington and we drove to Charlotte with a day of mountain sweet memories. Thanks, Watauga!