Death and taxes are considered to be among life’s shortlist of guarantees, and it seems Trevor Prosser’s tailgate gang on game days is almost as automatic.

McMahon Stadium mainstays for the better part of a decade-and-a-half, Prosser — along with his friends and family — has set the gold standard for tailgate festivities prior to Stampeders home games.

“Sometime around the time Doug Flutie was born,” Prosser said with a figurative wink as he recalled when his group’s tailgate gatherings first began. “We’ve been tailgating here since around 2000, so for 15 or 16 years. Our tailgate usually averages out to about 20 to 40 people. It’s a nice chance to catch up with friends you don’t see every day. These are a bunch of people in a very diverse group that all come together to enjoy a good football game, a good crowd, great conversation and good food.”

With a setup that includes pickup trucks, fold-up lawn chairs and a king-sized grill, the delicacies of the day differ from week-to-week depending upon who is in charge of the menu.

“The food really varies,” explained Prosser prior to uncovering Sunday’s pre-game grub and witnessing the Stamps defeat the Ticats. “What we do is everybody takes a turn during the season to come up with a different food item. So we’ve had everything from just burgers and hot dogs to pulled pork. We’ve had turducken (and) we’ve had pancakes on Labour Day as a tradition here. We’ve had crab. We’ve done a little bit of everything.”

One of Prosser’s most-anticipated dates on the schedule is the Labour Day Classic featuring an all-Alberta battle between the Stampeders and Eskimos. And with the annual encounter right around the corner, his countdown to Monday morning is surely in full-swing.

“Everything is amazing about Labour Day,” professed Prosser, who regularly stakes out front-row real estate near the southeast entrance to McMahon. “Usually we get some good weather and we get good food. We’re usually out here at about eight o’clock in the morning. We’re here all day getting all fired up and ready to cheer on our Stamps. We send a few scouts out to secure the spot and make sure everything is set up. By the time the pancakes are ready, most of the crowd is going to come rolling in.”

Before the Toronto Argos moved to BMO Field this season, the Red and White were the only CFL team offering tailgating to their most devoted fans and football enthusiasts, an activity that is commonplace around the perimeter of both NFL and NCAA venues.

“It is incredibly cool to have Calgary give the opportunity to fans to come out and tailgate,” declared Prosser, who has cheered on the Stampeders to a 34-6 home record since the start of the 2012 campaign. “A lot of other cities don’t have that opportunity and they’re missing out. It really brings the fans and the team closer and makes it a real game-day experience.”

As for whether he’ll be heading north for the Sept. 10 rematch with the Eskimos, Prosser just can’t seem to justify the trip.

“They don’t have tailgating in Edmonton,” noted Prosser, “so you can go (there) and go to the game and come home, but where’s the fun in that?”