Powered by Scotsmen

The caravan of vehicles weaved, dodged and snaked through traffic on 490 West, headed toward Rhino Stadium in Rochester last Thursday afternoon. Leading the pack of mini-vans, pick up trucks, SUVs, RVs and sedans was a lumbering white bus with maroon lettering across its side: “The 12th Man Scotsmen Pride 2009” and the moniker “Grease Job and Oil Can Express” above the windshield.
 

The bus, the brainchild of two Dundee football dads, Steve Brace (Grease Job) and Tom Pratt Jr. (Oil Can), is the centerpiece for tailgating Dundee style before and after Dundee Scots football games this year.
 

Brace and Pratt don’t take credit for starting the latest tradition in Dundee football. They say Brace’s sister and brother-in-law Shelley and Bob Moore  launched the tailgate custom two years ago with their Harley Davidson bus.
 

But these two guys and their pals weren’t going to be satisfied with just carrying things on status quo. They had to take things a step further.
 

They bought the bus, previously the 1994 Symphonic Steel Drum equipment bus, earlier this year from the Dundee school district, installed more comfortable seating and made space to carry grills, coolers, tables, garbage cans and totes full of supplies to Dundee Scots football games at home and away.
 

Then they added some panels to the exterior and completed the custom paint and decal job. Decals boasting, “Powered by Scotsmen” decorate both sides of the bus’s engine cover and others around the bus make it clear the vehicle is integral to the small town spirit that follows the football team wherever they go.
 

Last Thursday, the bus led the parade of vehicles that also included two large RVs to Rhino Stadium for pre-game warm-up before the Scots Section V Class D Championship game against Batavia Notre Dame.
 

After cheering the team bus on its way out of town, the caravan of supporters left Dundee a little before 2 p.m. and rolled into the Clubhouse parking lot at the stadium with plenty of time to get pumped up for the big game, set to start at 5:30 p.m.
 

Within minutes of parking, Brace, Pratt, Moore and a crew of several other guys furiously set up tables, grills, stovetops, coolers and all the accessories needed for a major league tailgate. Soon the hotdogs and hamburgers were grilling and the homemade soup and goulash were nicely warming.
 

As the afternoon wore on, more cars from Dundee pulled in and the crowd around the little white bus grew in size and spirit, and more homemade dishes filled the tables.
 

As she sampled some of the homemade macaroni and cheese, Patsy Ballard, mother of senior running back Ryan Ballard, talked with Susie Pratt, mother of quarterback Tom Pratt III about their own game day rituals. Nearby, Patsy’s mother-in-law, Louise Ballard, enjoyed the company and reminisced about going to every game that Ryan has played in since his junior football days.
Patsy says as far as she can recall, the tailgating tradition really began a couple of years ago when an opponent wasn’t able to play Dundee one weekend.
 

The football families didn’t know what else to do on an autumn Saturday afternoon, so they all got together anyway.
 

A custom was born. Each week the intergenerational crowd grows a little more, and everyone with a Dundee connection is expected to come and enjoy a bite to eat and a little pep talk before the game.
 

Willie Fultz, often seen on the sideline as part of the Dundee “chain gang” says the first thing he does when he arrives for a game is look for the bus and the enthusiastic crowd around it.
 

Everyone pitches in a little bit with a dish to pass or supplies, and after each game, the bus pulls into Tom Pratt  Automotive parking lot, across the street from Dundee School, to throw a tailgating event to include the team. This year, every post game tailgate has been a victory celebration.
 

As the clock ticks closer to the start of the big game, the crew works quickly to pack up the grills, tables, totes and coolers. Folks pull out an extra jacket and maybe even a blanket or two to carry to the bleachers.
 

Some of the moms and kids gather up the banners that will decorate the Dundee side of the field: “Scotsmen Pride” and “Small Town Big Spirit” greet the team as they take the field.
The pride and small town spirit that comes rolling along with the 12th Man bus might just be a small part of what makes the Dundee Scots team click. 
 

And as long as they keep clicking and scoring, that bus will keep rolling — back to Rochester this week, and hopefully again next week, and on to Syracuse after that, but always back home to Dundee for tailgating with the whole team.