Competition Questions from a Noob


 
B

Bryan B

TVWBB Fan
Hello all,

After having a WSM for about 3 years now, I feel like I'm ready to take the next step and try a competition.

I picked one out in 3 months that is close to me and looks like a good choice.

I have a couple newbie questions that I haven't seen addressed in either the contest materials or other threads here:

1) Does every member of your team have to be a member of the KCBS or does only the team leader need a membership?

I recently got my membership, but I don't really have any bbq people to go with me as teammates. I will basically be picking a family or friend to go with me each contest to help out as directed, but these people wouldn't have a KCBS membership.

2) How is the "Anything Butt" portion of a comp usually handled? I see it on the schedule for Friday night at 6:30, right after the cook's meeting at 5:00. Is the "Anything Butt" usually a contest where you do turn-in boxes, or is it just simply for fun to serve to people, etc?

3) Can you bring pre-prepared items to the event? Such as your rubs, sauces, marinades, brines, etc.? Wasn't sure if you had to bring only the spices and ingredients separately and THEN mix them together at the event OR if you could bring the rubs and sauces already mixed up.

Thanks,

Bryan
 
Becareful. Once bitten you are hooked. But it is a lot if fun.

Comp bbq is nothing like what we serve to friends an family that we get rave reviews on. Once that is understood it can be fun and rewarding. Otherwise many findit frustrating and don't do well. I suggest you get involved with some "backyard" contest. Many of them are tied to sanctioned events and use kcbs judges so you get that perspective to what is expected

To answer your questions
1. I don't believe any need to be members but know for sure not all of the team
2. Peoples choice is serving the public. Anything Butt is usually a turn in for judges
3. Sauces, rub, etc can all be prepared in advance. Don't let Bbq Pitmasters on tv lead you believe otherwise. That is tv and what they show being mixed up probably isn't what they are using. Only your meat cannot be prepared in advance except for trimming. No marinades or such.

Good luck. It is fun to get involved with
 
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Definitely do it! It's lots of fun, as long as you're entering with the appropriate expectations; and that you're in it just to have some fun and meet some interesting people, that's precisely what will happen :)

Not much to add to Jeff's post, as it's spot on. Membership isn't needed at all most places to enter. That's for people who do lots of the comps to have their points counted toward season cumulative totals, etc. If you have a job and/or a life, you won't have to worry about competing in these, anyway. Some of these teams do 30 or more events a year...lol. For these teams they often have businesses that are tied to the BBQ biz in some fashion, so they have sponsors, products to promote, etc, so it's in their interest to attend as many events as possible. If you're just doing it for fun, think nothing more of it and hone your recipes, get your cook times down, etc, and get ready to have some great fun and a day or two of sleep deprivation...lol. It's totally worth it, and you'll enjoy the experience.
 
Great answers to your questions above. I would add a couple of things while we are talking about competitions. I found it very useful to have a time schedule written in advance. Obviously things can come up and cook times can change but what ends up happening is you get very busy doing multiple things and lose track of time. If you have a general, or very specific, time table written out, it can keep you from missing a step. Like, for instance, forgetting to put some rub in with your pulled pork before you turn it in. :mad:

I would also start making a list now of what you want to take with you. I think you can probably do a google search and find examples of packing lists for competitions. This really helps as you are getting ready to go because you are running around like a chicken and you dont want to forget the meat. :mad:

P.S. dont ask how I came up with those examples. :eek:
 
Bryan B said:
Just to clarify, you mean the meat cannot be marinated before inspection, right?

I could have a marinade mixed up in a glass bottle or tupperware dish, right?
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Yes, you can prepare your marinade/injection/sauce well in advance. This is true for rubs also. You are not allowed to to apply them prior to meat inspection; however, as soon as they inspect you meat, you can start. Also, you can trim your meat in advance. This is especially helpful for chicken. I hate trimming chicken onsite (did it once and never again).
 
Daryl - D.B. said:
Great answers to your questions above. I would add a couple of things while we are talking about competitions. I found it very useful to have a time schedule written in advance. Obviously things can come up and cook times can change but what ends up happening is you get very busy doing multiple things and lose track of time. If you have a general, or very specific, time table written out, it can keep you from missing a step. Like, for instance, forgetting to put some rub in with your pulled pork before you turn it in. :mad:

I would also start making a list now of what you want to take with you. I think you can probably do a google search and find examples of packing lists for competitions. This really helps as you are getting ready to go because you are running around like a chicken and you dont want to forget the meat. :mad:

P.S. dont ask how I came up with those examples. :eek:
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Outstanding advice, and if I might add on to the end of that, a great way to practice and plan is to make note of your turn-in times and work backwards from that, and get programmed to think of the time in that format. For instance, 8am isn't 8am, it's four hours to chicken and 5 hours to ribs. Literally everything you plan, do, etc, is with those as a reference. So, always work backwards.

I make an Excel spreadsheet where I have timelines established for general aspects, tasks, etc, as well as for prep/cook times of each entry. I have the entire 36-ish hours up to the end of the trip planned to within about 15-20 minutes. I share this with my help, and make sure they understand it. I find that by doing this, they can not only stay on top of things, but to help me to do so as well.

Communication and clear direction are key. Don't get me wrong, it's all in fun, but losing sux...lol. Especially when it's due to a simple silly oversight or time mismanagement. You'll be competing against teams of all calibers, however, in KCBS there are always an ample number of teams that are well oiled and used to working together like clockwork.
 
I just thought of another newbie question...

Does the contest provide the materials (lettuce, parsley) for the garnish, or does each team have to bring that?
 
Bryan B said:
I just thought of another newbie question...

Does the contest provide the materials (lettuce, parsley) for the garnish, or does each team have to bring that?
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No, you have to provide your own garnish since it is not mandatory to include garnish. Remember, no red leaf lettuce or kale. Keep it simple with curly parsley and/or romaine lettuce or green leaf lettuce.
 
Steve Aguilar said:
No, you have to provide your own garnish since it is not mandatory to include garnish. Remember, no red leaf lettuce or kale. Keep it simple with curly parsley and/or romaine lettuce or green leaf lettuce.
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In your experience, is there much of an advantage for using a garnish vs. without? From watching BBQ Pitmasters, I thought you HAD to include garnish because everyone does; however, I found this website called bbqcritic that shows judges reactions to various boxes, and they gave some favorable reviews to a few boxes that had no garnish.
 
Another question, this contest I am trying to enter says they reserve the right to deny any application. I'm sure that's just standard legal procedure and all contests say that. I guess what I"m wondering is do some contests deny your application if you don't have enough experience?

It seems like a good contest to enter to me. I'm submitting my application 3 months ahead of time so hopefully that increases the chance I get in.
 
Bryan B said:
In your experience, is there much of an advantage for using a garnish vs. without? From watching BBQ Pitmasters, I thought you HAD to include garnish because everyone does; however, I found this website called bbqcritic that shows judges reactions to various boxes, and they gave some favorable reviews to a few boxes that had no garnish.
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I could not say if there is any disadvantage to using garnish. Remember, only KCBS allows garnish at all. IBCA does not allow garnish (not sure about MBN turn-in boxes). Every team I know uses garnish. I see a lot of negative reaction to poorly placed or asymmetrically placed garnish on the Turn-in Boxes FB page which drives me nuts because you are NOT suppose to judge garnish, meat only. However, it is what it is. Garnish does allow you hide any pooling of juices at the bottom of boxes(pooling of juices is not allowed), but they can't DQ you if they can't see it (and they can't go digging through the garnish with the intent to find it either). It's a tough call, but I'd use garnish because it has more advantages than disadvantages that I can see. Just don't go too heavy on it. The look of the meat is what is most important:

• Is it appealing to the eye?
• Does it APPEAR to be cooked well (doesn't matter if is at this point...judging appearance only so far)?
• Does that meat make you want to take a bite just from looking at it?
• Is the color of the meat appealing...does it look like the meat it's supposed to be (chicken looks like chicken, etc.)?

These are some of the questions the CBJs should be asking themselves as they score your appearance. Some will judge the garnish (and I believe that they know they shouldn't, but do it anyways....can't prove it, but I feel that way), some will judge the amount of pieces or different cuts of pieces you provide (heck, they'll mark you down for no money muscle or burnt ends when they shouldn't...again, no proof, but I feel that way), but it's all about the look of the meat you put in the box.
 
Bryan B said:
Another question, this contest I am trying to enter says they reserve the right to deny any application. I'm sure that's just standard legal procedure and all contests say that. I guess what I"m wondering is do some contests deny your application if you don't have enough experience?

It seems like a good contest to enter to me. I'm submitting my application 3 months ahead of time so hopefully that increases the chance I get in.
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That's just standard legal jargon they use in case they have to DQ you because you were too loud after curfew, etc. Interestingly, I know a team who had their application to a contest declined by a promoter because of reasons unrelated to competition BBQ that remain undisclosed (and I don't really care to know either).

It's not a big deal. Trust me, they want your entry fee. LOL
 
Also, in some backyard contest they will state that also because they don't want entries that have won in sanctioned events or referred to as Pro events
 
As long as all teams continue to use the optional garnish, I feel it is hard to make as appetizing looking box without. When it come to rules in anything I believe you should define the guidelines. Making something "optional" allows the norm to become the standard.

Think if it this way. If you had two beautiful photographs and one was framed in a color coordinating frame and one was not, which one would you be drawn too?
 
Do contestants spend the night, a contest I am thinking about entering has turn in times of:
CHICKEN NOON
PORK RIBS 12:30 pm
PORK 1:00 pm
BEEF BRISKET 1:30 pm

I assume they spend the night but do they take campers, tents, or just sleep in a chair?

Thanks
 
Mike Drewery said:
I assume they spend the night but do they take campers, tents, or just sleep in a chair?

Thanks
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Yes, all of the above. Meat inspection and cooks meeting would be on Friday, and cooking will start on Friday night. You could see everything from chairs under canopys to 100K motorhomes.
 
and don't worry about the "Anything Butt" category, it is not mandatory and does not affect your score for the meat categories. In fact, if this is your first comp, don't even do it. Concentrate on your 4 meats.
 
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