A Tour Of The Ultimate Tailgate Vehicle: 'The Beast'

There's a frenzy in Pioneer Square this afternoon. A free concert with Pharrell Williams and Sound Garden will be staged before the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks kick off their season at Century Link Field against the Green Bay Packers at 5:30.

And as the Seahawks open the NFL season tonight, self-described superfan Gary Buchanan and some friends are having a debut of their own.

Earlier this year, soon after the Seahawks won the Super Bowl, Buchanan and his friends bought a double decker bus from London. For the past five months, they've had crews working nearly day and night turning it into the ultimate tailgate vehicle.

This morning, Gary Buchanan gave KUOW producer Posey Gruener a tour.

“The Beast,” as it has been named, features a mural of the Kingdome as well as four chairs from the dearly departed stadium.

“We've got the 1976 fans that were part of the 12th Man in the beginning. I kind of get choked up about it because I was there, original season ticket holder with my grandfather, so it means a lot to us,” Buchanan said.

The bus has a refreshment area, a “kegerator” for those who want to indulge in a bit of beer – “We don’t let things get out of hand, though” – as well as a bunch of TVs. There are five flat screens on The Beast, including one on the upper deck under a nice canopy, and 48 speakers throughout.

But The Beast isn’t just about a good Seahawks time. “It's a labor of love, we don't profit one dime from this, we support charities,” Buchanan said. Autism is one that he said is close to the group.

“It's more than a party for us: It's the history, it's doing something good for the community,” he said.