Comp cooking with gas?

I don't compete, but I am curious. Does anyone really think people can put out a better product with a gas smoker? I can't imagine people being able to stay competitive?
 
QN said:
For the upcoming KCBS board meeting;
Proposed rule - Fires shall be of wood, wood pellets, charcoal or propane/LP gas.
Interesting....
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Doesn't this go directly against the KCBS charter definition of what BBQ is?

""Barbecued meats, such as product labeled 'Beef Barbecue' or 'Barbecued Pork' shall be cooked by the direct action of dry heat resulting from the burning of hard wood or the hot coals therefrom for a sufficient period to assume the usual characteristics of a barbecued article, which include the formation of a brown crust on the surface and the rendering of surface fat. The product may be basted with a sauce during the cooking process. The weight of barbecued meat shall not exceed 70 percent of the weight of the fresh uncooked meat." "
 
When I drag raced on the street we called it Run what U brung. Cook on anything you want let the judges decide.
 
Slamdunkpro said:
Doesn't this go directly against the KCBS charter definition of what BBQ is?

""Barbecued meats, such as product labeled 'Beef Barbecue' or 'Barbecued Pork' shall be cooked by the direct action of dry heat resulting from the burning of hard wood or the hot coals therefrom for a sufficient period to assume the usual characteristics of a barbecued article, which include the formation of a brown crust on the surface and the rendering of surface fat. The product may be basted with a sauce during the cooking process. The weight of barbecued meat shall not exceed 70 percent of the weight of the fresh uncooked meat." "
Click to expand...

I'm glad you posted this. This should be all that needs to be said of the issue...

Its actually codified under Title 9 Part 319 as Federal Law.
 
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Its going to bring in more people to the sport. Why does it matter when they already allow pellet grills and stokers? There is no advantage for gas smokers or electric smokers when they already allow computers to control the pits. When they allow pellet grills and stokers they should allow gas and electric smokers as well. Otherwise ban the stokers and the pellet grills. Make fire management skills part of the game. If you allow stokers and pellet grills why not allow gas?
There is no competive advantage for someone using a gas smoker. I think it will allow some teams starting out to get their feet wet and because wood and charcoal has a better flavor anyways. They will switch over once they are hooked. It is a good thing to allow gas as more teams will form because it will.be cheaper to get started.
 
My first smoker was one of those Masterbuilt propane smokers that had a wood chip box above the flame. It made decent BBQ but nothing like a Jambo or Gateway, etc.

Honestly, though... it was harder to keep that thing at a consistent temp on a windy day than my first pellet smoker (Traeger).

As someone mentioned previously, if we allow plug and play electric smokers (like pellet smokers) and temp gurus, I don't see the big difference in allowing propane.

But I would love to have people cooking against me on propane... the flavor will never be as good.
 
Slamdunkpro said:
Doesn't this go directly against the KCBS charter definition of what BBQ is?

""Barbecued meats, such as product labeled 'Beef Barbecue' or 'Barbecued Pork' shall be cooked by the direct action of dry heat resulting from the burning of hard wood or the hot coals therefrom for a sufficient period to assume the usual characteristics of a barbecued article, which include the formation of a brown crust on the surface and the rendering of surface fat. The product may be basted with a sauce during the cooking process. The weight of barbecued meat shall not exceed 70 percent of the weight of the fresh uncooked meat." "
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Would you expect anything less from KCBS? They also have this written on their Sanctioning Information page:

"To sanction or not to sanction?
The benefits of having a sanctioned BBQ contest are numerous. The Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) is the world's largest organization of barbeque and grilling enthusiasts. KCBS sanctions over 400 contests across the U.S. annually.
A sanctioned contest offers the organizer:
(1) Integrity,
(2) Experience,
(3) A built in base of cookers and judges, and
(4) A support system of other organizers and members.

For the teams, it offers the assurance that a contest will be conducted in a professional manner, the prize monies will be awarded as advertised, and that the rules will be followed. Some events start off non-sanctioned and work toward sanction. Generally, if you start off as a KCBS sanctioned event your contest will run smoother, have more trust from the teams, and have a higher success rate. A non-sanctioned event is not highly regarded, nor supported by teams if they are not aligned with a proven entity. However sanctioning alone cannot guaranty the number of teams competing or the success of your event."

I'm still waiting for KCBS to assure me that the prize money I and several others won at a KCBS sanctioned competition in Peoria, AZ last November will be awarded as advertised...
 
There'll be a sanctioning body that steps up and supplies the meats and says you can ONLY cook on stick burners and charcoal burners with no electronic controls, and "garnish" will get you disqualified...

Their comps will fill UP!!!
 
I've read the proposal and my concerns are with the inspection of the safety devices. Who is going to do that, the organizer or the KCBS Rep? Is there a way to test whether a safety device is defective other than to wait for an explosion to happen? Is there an annual inspection process as there is for fire extinguishers? Will there be a maximum size of gas canister allowed for each team?
As some of you may recall, there was a tragic accident in CO a few years back when a tank exploded. It resulted in the death of an individual from their burns. Knowing explosions can occur and faulty safety devices can also be unknowingly installed, I hope some consideration will be given to stage those teams using gas away from the others. And I pity the person who checks and certifies that the safety devices are in working order if an accident does happen.
 
Funtimebbq said:
I've read the proposal and my concerns are with the inspection of the safety devices. Who is going to do that, the organizer or the KCBS Rep? Is there a way to test whether a safety device is defective other than to wait for an explosion to happen? Is there an annual inspection process as there is for fire extinguishers? Will there be a maximum size of gas canister allowed for each team?
As some of you may recall, there was a tragic accident in CO a few years back when a tank exploded. It resulted in the death of an individual from their burns. Knowing explosions can occur and faulty safety devices can also be unknowingly installed, I hope some consideration will be given to stage those teams using gas away from the others. And I pity the person who checks and certifies that the safety devices are in working order if an accident does happen.
Click to expand...

I posted this thread to the Canadian BBQ societies chat fb page and one of our longtime event organizers posted a couple things about fire departments needing to see bigger fire extinguishers if propane is on site and about how your propane tanks need to be chained down to an immovable object. So there's considerations that might make it harder on organizers.

So could a organizer disallow a kcbs rule if it was to burdensome on them?
 
Funtimebbq said:
I've read the proposal and my concerns are with the inspection of the safety devices. Who is going to do that, the organizer or the KCBS Rep? Is there a way to test whether a safety device is defective other than to wait for an explosion to happen? Is there an annual inspection process as there is for fire extinguishers? Will there be a maximum size of gas canister allowed for each team?
As some of you may recall, there was a tragic accident in CO a few years back when a tank exploded. It resulted in the death of an individual from their burns. Knowing explosions can occur and faulty safety devices can also be unknowingly installed, I hope some consideration will be given to stage those teams using gas away from the others. And I pity the person who checks and certifies that the safety devices are in working order if an accident does happen.
Click to expand...

There is nothing in the rules that prohibit having propane on a KCBS cook site today. You see tanks in use all of the time to heat water, sauce, light charcoal, etc, so these same safety concerns exist whether gas is allow for cooking or not. We were at a comp where one of the small tanks used for camp stoves exploded because it was placed too close to a charcoal chimney that was being lit. The concerns are legit, but the same checks should be in place today.
 
Funtimebbq said:
I've read the proposal and my concerns are with the inspection of the safety devices. Who is going to do that, the organizer or the KCBS Rep? Is there a way to test whether a safety device is defective other than to wait for an explosion to happen? Is there an annual inspection process as there is for fire extinguishers? Will there be a maximum size of gas canister allowed for each team?
As some of you may recall, there was a tragic accident in CO a few years back when a tank exploded. It resulted in the death of an individual from their burns. Knowing explosions can occur and faulty safety devices can also be unknowingly installed, I hope some consideration will be given to stage those teams using gas away from the others. And I pity the person who checks and certifies that the safety devices are in working order if an accident does happen.
Click to expand...
How many accidents occur per year? How many people die or are injured by gas grills and smokers? People already use weed burners to light their fires. Do they need a larger fire extinguisher now? How about inspections? Maybe they should ban weed burners as accidents can happen just as easily with a weed burner.
Propane tanks already get inspected and certified. They get recertified or replaced after 10 years.

I think if they were so dangerous we would hear about tragic deaths every day.

If kcbs bans gas then they should ban stokers and pellet grills as well.

I think what it really comes down to is most of the people that want to continue banning gas are afraid gas smokers will have an unfair advantage with easier temp control when they get started at a lower cost.

Its really people are mad they spent all this money on a better quality pit and now if joe blow wants to they can come in with a gas smoker with better temp control and not spend anywhere near as much money.

I doubt very much its a safety concern. Like my wife said its a status symbol and an exclusitivity thing. If gas is allowed it wont really be all that exclusive anymore or cost prohibitive.
 
Rusty Kettle said:
How many accidents occur per year? How many people die or are injured by gas grills and smokers? People already use weed burners to light their fires. Do they need a larger fire extinguisher now? How about inspections? Maybe they should ban weed burners as accidents can happen just as easily with a weed burner.
Propane tanks already get inspected and certified. They get recertified or replaced after 10 years.

I think if they were so dangerous we would hear about tragic deaths every day.

If kcbs bans gas then they should ban stokers and pellet grills as well.

I think what it really comes down to is most of the people that want to continue banning gas are afraid gas smokers will have an unfair advantage with easier temp control when they get started at a lower cost.

Its really people are mad they spent all this money on a better quality pit and now if joe blow wants to they can come in with a gas smoker with better temp control and not spend anywhere near as much money.

I doubt very much its a safety concern. Like my wife said its a status symbol and an exclusitivity thing. If gas is allowed it wont really be all that exclusive anymore or cost prohibitive.
Click to expand...

I disagree, if I am at a comp with a Jambo and someone comes in next to me and does well with a UDS I don't get mad...Why would pit quality matter
 
4ever3 said:
There'll be a sanctioning body that steps up and supplies the meats and says you can ONLY cook on stick burners and charcoal burners with no electronic controls, and "garnish" will get you disqualified...

Their comps will fill UP!!!
Click to expand...

Sounds like the King of the Smoker comp if I'm not mistaken
 
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