WATERLOO - A few autographs and handshakes after it began, the Cyclone Tailgate Tour wandered out of the cafeteria at Covenant Medical Center Tuesday afternoon.

Minutes later, you couldn't see much evidence that Iowa State's athletes, coaches and cheerleaders had been there at all. Then again, Merlin Wrage knew better.

"It was awesome," said the 55-year-old Wrage, a patient at Covenant. "I never had the opportunity in my life, and I'll never forget it."

To people like ISU Director of Athletics Jamie Pollard, Wrage's reaction was perfect. It also echoed what Pollard has been experiencing across the state during the inaugural Cyclone Tailgate Tour.

"This is our sixth stop," said Pollard. "The first five were awesome, and I have no reason to believe this one would be any different."

Following the appearance at Covenant, all of the Cyclones jumped on a bus and drove to the National Cattle Congress grounds for a longer stay. Under a large tent, fans mingled with Pollard, new head football coach Gene Chizik, men's head man Greg McDermott, women's leader Bill Fennelly, Cael Sanderson from the wrestling team and others.

Football players Milan Moses and Travis Ferguson, a pair of Waterloo East graduates, received a warm welcome in their home town. A short distance away from the tent, Rahshon Clark gave a little girl a ride on a small 3-wheeler.

It was a vastly different atmosphere than the traditional, golf and banquet format that had been used here and other cities when Iowa State's athletics department toured the state.

"I noticed last year that when I'd go to one of these stops, I'd go to a gas station and just ask, 'Do you know anything about the Cyclone outing?"' said Pollard. "They'd just look at me cross-eyed. Unless they were at the country club, they didn't know we were there. This is another opportunity for us today."

Pollard had also been hearing rumblings from his staff. The golf outings, ISU's athletics director was told, had gone stale. Pollard also knew that Wisconsin, where he had worked before coming to Iowa State, adopted a tailgate format for its outings.

So ISU's marketing and development people went to work. They wanted to attract families and kids. So inflatable toys became part of the package. More Cyclone athletes made trips with the coaches. And the Tailgate Tour would be free. Period.

"It was born out of this idea we could do more with a tailgate tour pep rally than a typical golf and chicken dinner banquet," said Pollard.

He added, "Certainly, change is challenging. We had to explain a lot and hold a lot of hands because there are some communities where we're not making stops in the traditional format. But, when you really explain it to people, it was hard not to agree that this is a chance to really grow our outreach effort."

The Northeast Iowa Cyclone Club golf outing will continue without any appearances from Iowa State personnel. A fund raiser for the Barney Simmons Memorial Scholarship fund, it's set for June 25.

Dave Adams, the president of the locally based Cyclone Club, said ISU fans needed reminders that golf would remain a part of the schedule. Still, Adams liked the tailgate concept.

"It really focuses on interaction between the fans and coaches and athletes, and that's what it's all about," said Adams. "In the past, you used to thirst for that, but that's the focus of this."

One of Iowa State's coaches also embraced the tailgating.

"I think the turnouts have been much better than the golf outings and banquets," said McDermott. "In large part, it's because people are able to bring their families. It's good to see a lot of kids out wearing Cyclone gear. I just think that's what we're after - trying to get young people in the state excited about the Cyclones."

Many of the people at Covenant and the Cattle Congress also got to see the new football coach for the first time. While Chizik made his maiden voyage to the Cedar Valley, some of the questions never change, veteran leader or rookie head man.

"The first thing people say is, of course, 'How are we going to beat Iowa?"' said Chizik with a smile. "That's the first question. The next one is, 'What kind of offense are we going to run?"

Contact Jim Sullivan at (319) 291-1434 or jim.sullivan@wcfcourier.com