April 13--If you're in need of medical assistance before a Fire game at Toyota Park, don't visit the ambulance parked in the North lot. It's not an actual working ambulance, in case that wasn't already clear from the beer bong hanging on the backdoor.
"I found it on Craigslist in Minnesota," said Raul Jimenez, owner of the vehicle and a chef at Ferrara Candy Company in Forest Park. "I drove five hours to get it. ... My son is a big Fire fan, so I wanted to do something special for him. ... At first it was a regular ambulance. He said, 'What do you want an ambulance for?' I said 'You wait and see. I'm going to do something for you.'"
Jimenez -- who was born in Mexico and now resides in West Chicago -- turned the ambulance into the ultimate Fire tailgating vehicle while sticking with the paramedic theme. The sides of the vehicle feature the Fire logo with "Chicago Fire First Response" around it. Under that: "Tailgate Response Unit." The infamous beer bong is labeled "Fire Medi-Bong."
"That was a big hit," Jimenez said. "...I see a lot of people like to drink in here. I thought it would be something fun."
The vehicle features a kegerator that Jimenez installed himself and a flat screen television. The floor is decorated with turf and the walls feature soccer scarves and framed Fire jerseys (Fire owner Andrew Hauptman donated the Sean Johnson jersey, according to Jimenez). And yes, the sirens still work. Jimenez turns them on in the parking lot after Fire victories.
Not everyone loves the ambulance. Jimenez said Columbus Crew fans threw beer bottles at it when he drove it into the Mapfre Stadium parking lot in Columbus. But other than that, it's been a hit.
"First time I brought it," Jimenez said, "I felt like a celebrity (walking) into this place."
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