Yeah, we've done it both ways too. We used to cook on a CTO which has an electric thermostatically controlled fan. By the current rules (as Ron_L said) the thing that's the same is that the heat and fuel sources have to come from FIRE, be it from wood pellets burning, charcoal burning or a coal bed and burning wood logs. Current rules do allow electronic maintenance of that fire and corresponding cooker temperatures, but the fuel and heat still must ultimately come from the fire itself, not another fuel like electric elements or burning gas or propane.
It's all relative really.
So if you take electronic assistance away, then can a guy use a bellows and pump air manually into the coal bed of a Backwoods? What if he rigged up some kind of fan with a counterweight and springs or a crank that would drive itself without electronics? THEN is that OK? In the end, all he's doing is putting oxygen to the (still same) fuel source.
Stick burners keep getting more and more efficient (Sniper, Jambo, Peoria are a few examples of high performing stick burners). Is it "fair" for one guy to be able to use a Jambo that can cook at 300 for 6 hours on as many pieces of wood vs a homemade monster that requires a rick of wood to get through a comp? It's not about "fair". It's about what a cook is willing to spend on the tools he prefers to get the job done, using the currently allowed fuel source as best as he can within the rules.
BBQ is and always will be what it always been.....food cooked at relatively lower temps over fire and smoke. COMPETITION BBQ has and will continue to evolve.
