I'm way late on a response, but did want to say it was nice to see you and your wife at the game! Appreciate the Asheville restaurant recommendation - Cúrate was excellent.
Trip to Winston Salem was easy. Made it in under 7 hours.
Tailgating at the fairgrounds was very reminiscent of the Rubber Bowl lot. Plenty of room. Unfortunately not many people used it. I'm sure for this week's Miami game it'll be a lot fuller.
Once we left the lot and walked to the stadium, the paved lots along the way were full. They seems to be "hopping," but not a crazy tailgate environment by any stretch.
We stopped by the UA Alumni tent, which was very nice. I think they bought food for 500 people, and maybe 60 showed up? It was nice to have the tent only a couple hundred feet from the entrance.
Stadium was definitely on the level of InfoCision. The fans were good people.
The Winston Salem band at halftime was a highlight! Awesome performance.
Football in the south can be much more of a "formal" event. Enjoyed the college girls in their summer dresses and cowboy boots.
Wish the game were more competitive. My wife was beat by the heat, so we left with about 7 minutes to go. Missed both TDs. Got to hear them via Skozen and Dunn on iHeart as we walked back to the car.
Good time. Good people. Wish the game were more competitive, but it went as well as we could reasonably expect.