First Backyard Comp in the Books


 
P

Phil Warren

New member
This past weekend I participated in my first BBQ comp. It was a small event in Derby, KS and although there were about 20 pro teams only 3 backyard teams participated. Thanks to this great site I kind of knew what I was getting into and the day went rather smoothly despite several downpours of rain and pea sized hail.

[img=http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/7927/dscn1388cp.th.jpg]

My Setup

I cooked spares and chicken thighs for this comp with recipes that I had been working on for a couple months. I was happy with my meat and ended up taking second place overall or second to last depending how you want to look at it.

[img=http://img710.imageshack.us/img710/5498/dscn1389i.th.jpg]

[img=http://img850.imageshack.us/img850/2489/dscn1390.th.jpg]


I had a good experience and learned quite a bit. I know there is plenty of room for improvement, but for someone who has only been smoking in the WSM for less than a year I was happy. I was also happy to find out that besides the trophy and banner, I won a decent amount of cash for my efforts. Thanks to all the great members of this site for their help and insight!

[img=http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/5937/dscn1393gn.th.jpg]
 
Phil, congrats on your comp. You certainly look at home under your canopy. What was the sanctioning body?
Good luck in your future on the comp trail!

Mark
 
Looked good, always hard to get the first comp under your belt. Any thoughts for future comps? I'm doing the When Pigs Fly next July in McPherson KS next year.
 
Thanks for the all compliments!

Brad, I would like to do some more comps in the future, eventually stepping up to a KCBS event. I don't know if I will be ready for When Pigs Fly next year, but if you need any help with the comp let me know. Its just short drive up the highway for me.
 
Hey Phil,

Congrats on the first time out! Really good looking product too.

Not a critique, just a couple of tips (take or leave as you see fit):

- For your chicken, try to make the box look balanced. For the one in the picture I would have added one more piece to make it rows of 3-2-3. Even add two more and make it 3 rows of 3. Be sure to turn each piece so they all are oriented the same way.
- For the ribs, be sure to wipe the knife off if it gets goopy. That helps keep the sides of the rib meat nice and clean.
- On the ribs, you've got some nice pullback on the bones, I would show it off. Put the bone ends right up front. Besides, it gives the judges something to grab. Maybe even put a rib under the front end of your 'show' ribs to prop them up to show off the pullback even more.
- Just an overall comment. Get a small (0.5") paint brush and a cup of water. After you get the product in the box, be sure to leave time before turn-in to wet-brush down the sides of the box to get rid of smears and little bits. It just helps with general appearance.

Again, not bashing just trying to give you some ideas to maybe help the scores.

Russ
 
Originally posted by Phil Warren:
Thanks for the all compliments!

Brad, I would like to do some more comps in the future, eventually stepping up to a KCBS event. I don't know if I will be ready for When Pigs Fly next year, but if you need any help with the comp let me know. Its just short drive up the highway for me.
Click to expand...

Will keep you in mind. I tend to comp by myself though my wife helps out on more local contest. Any help I would have would be friends (I'm originally from McPherson) but nobody with any comp experience. I'll bring the homebrew also
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