For $1,800 one lucky person could be the new owner of the iconic Vandalance that is currently owned by former members of Delta Chi fraternity.
The price is negotiable and the vehicle is already detailed in Vandal colors. The Vandalance was an old ambulance that has since been transformed into a black, silver and gold vehicle with Vandalance written on the side in the iconic Vandal lettering that is also on the university’s logo.
Philip Vukelich | Argonaut
The Vandalance, owned by former Delta Chi fraternity members, serves as a tailgate vehicle. It currently sits in the parking lot behind Patty’s Kitchen off Sixth Street.
Former Delta Chi members Cody Earl, Bret Lytle and Marshall Breish said the Vandalance is a University of Idaho tailgating machine that was purchased with aspirations of turning it into one of the coolest vehicles in the UI parking lot during tailgates.
“Our freshman year in Delta Chi a couple older members bought it in Grangeville and brought it up to Delta Chi to have it as a tailgating vehicle, and they put money into it to do the detailing and design and stuff like that and they didn’t have enough money to keep the renovations going,” Earl said.
Lytle said he has some fond memories of tailgating in the vehicle and the older members who owned it during his freshman year.
“Our second or third home game my freshman year I remember going out and seeing older members hanging out and blasting music by the Vandalance,” Lytle said. “I went over and hung out with them. It was a pretty good time.”
Earl said the Vandalance has a lot of potential and another fraternity or lone buyer could buy it and complete the transformation of the old ambulance into the tailgating machine it could be. He said it would be nice to see it traveling the roads of Moscow and at tailgating once again.
“It had potential to be something that Delta Chi was known for and I think that anyone who bought it right now could make it a trademark of their fraternity. They would carry on the UI tradition of tailgating before Vandal football games,” Earl said.
Earl said the owners had envisioned turning the vehicle into a portable bar that they could bring to tailgates and they wanted to decorate the inside with UI decorations. He said they also planned to use it as a portable storage unit for all of Delta Chi’s tailgating gear like tables, chairs and a barbeque.
Earl said they wanted the Vandalance to be a vehicle that everyone could gather around at, have a good time and create valuable college memories.
For anyone who is interested in seeing the vehicle, it is currently parked in the parking lot behind Patty’s Kitchen, and is easy to spot. Just look for the big UI-themed painted ambulance.
John Fish can be reached [email protected]