The 3rd Annual Guinea Pig (GP III) has been over for more than 36 hours, but here I am waking up at 2:30 am still smiling about how wonderful the event was.
Thank you, yet again, to the man responsible for the event - Sterling "Big Poppa" Ball. Hopefully you were as happy as the teams were, with the outcome and execution this year. Things were run impeccably, and the service to the teams was without equal. Much of this is a credit to your devoted team at Ernie Ball Music - Jessie, Jody and James "The Flame" Perez (plus others who I sadly don't remember the names of), but ultimately that is due to the leadership and example which is set for them.
Having the participation of Arlie Bragg, Kelly and Kathleen McIntosh, Ian Schmidt and Julie Poe ensured that everything played smoothly like a James Valentine Signature Guitar :thumb:.
The host facility, Shadow Hills RV Resort, is so fantastic - lush grass, real restrooms (with hot water, and showers !!!!), and a community that welcomes the bbq teams and judges with open arms. The owner even came around on Friday night to personally greet us, and ensure that we were each invited to a gathering with the other residents around a roaring fire.
Since I don't use Facebook or Instagram, my thanks to the additional sponsors will be presented in the following format: #snakeriverfarms #SRF #IheartWieners (hmm, maybe this one should have been excluded) #SmithfieldFoods #smokinwithsmithfield. How crazy is it that a $450 entry fee, that includes all meats, provided a brisket which individually is valued at $169. This was my first time handling such a beautiful piece of meat, all I kept repeating to myself is don't screw it up. In addition to the briskets, SRF also provided Waygu hot dogs for the Friday night weenie roast and dessert potluck. Them be some awesome tube steaks. And the desserts, wow! Hopefully people enjoyed my pig candy pecan toffee. This was my first time cooking with Smithfield pork, and it definitely won't be my last. The ribs and butts were from their Extra Tender line - look for them at your local Walmart (and other stores, I'm sure). In particular, I really loved the ribs - they didn't need any injecting to stay moist, and really plumped up during cooking. Thank you Annella and Shane from SRF, and to whomever at Smithfield that believes in the value of the Guinea Pig competition model, and the leadership of BPS.
Congratulations to Lady of Q (Sylvie) on GC, Hickory and Spice (Rick Mysse) on RGC, and all of the others who heard their names called. It was so much fun in the awards, as this event pays 10 deep in each category plus overall, and all teams get called up. This really spreads the love, and results an a lot of happy faces.
Personally, I was cheering the loudest for my comp neighbor (and fellow judge) B'Mackin (Brett). Not only did he receive a call in ribs, but his daughter "Tiny Bre'Mackin" won the Kids Que burger competition for 6-10 year olds, and had the highest score, even over the older kids.
It was an honor to sit behind KCBS powerhouses Shake 'N Bake, Gettin' Basted, Grills Gone Wild Iowa and Pigskin BBQ. Just check out the KCBS ToY results page for 2015, and you will see the street cred that each of these teams have. They are each humble, funny, personable, and true bbq ambassadors - thank you all for coming back to California, and hope it won't be the last time, either.
As always, I'm looking forward to Jim's pictures, as he has such a unique talent of capturing the special moments which convey the feeling of an event.
Thank you again Big Poppa...
turns out 40 isn't my lucky number
#ICP in the house
don't screw it up, don't screw it up, don't screw it up...
Night shot of the marbling
Great pork...
I could go through 10 packs of ribs at the store, and never find 3 racks with bones these straight
Ice was included (and delivered), and not tiny 10 lb bags either
It's 2016, and kale is legal :clap2:. For anyone considering it, here are my appearance scores. My actual results are due to taste and tenderness, as a minimum of 2 judges in each gave me 7's in those areas. Kale didn't hurt my appearance, and was too damn easy to build nice boxes quickly. Bought 6 bunches before the contest, but only needed to use 4 of them.
Chicken - 8, 9, 9, 8, 9, 9
Ribs - 8, 9, 9, 8, 8, 8
Pork - 9, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9
Brisket - 8, 9, 9, 9, 9, 9
