The Ironman competition in Greencastle, PA has always sort of been the “unofficial open to barbecue season” in the Mid-Atlantic.  Recently some other comps have moved in and held their event earlier in March, but to me, Eric Forrester from Mason Dixon BBQ Supply gets our season started with the most unique contest in some of the most “unique” weather!  As many know, the Ironman rules dictate you can’t use any electronics to control your pits and the meat you can bring to cook is limited to seven pieces of chicken, one rack of ribs, one pork butt, and one brisket.  The weather was again something teams had to battle, but if you’ve cooked this contest before, you know to be prepared for any conditions from sunshine, rain, wind, all the way to snow!  This year would be no different…Friday was rainy early and chilly late.  Saturday was improved but still a bit chilly!

Friday night at the cook’s meeting teams were hosted to a pizza party and boat drink affair by Eric and his awesome crew.  The pizza was good and drinks were cold and set the tone for the night.  Soon after this soiree was a paella contest with a handful of teams trying their luck at cooking this special rice based Spanish dish!  Congratulations to Terry West of 270 Smokers for winning the paella challenge again!

Once the festivities concluded, the night settled in and teams started to focus on the cook.  Overnight conditions were cold, but the wind and rain held off for the most part and the night was relatively uneventful for most part with exception of a lack of sleep for some who rely on electronics for their pits to stay stable.

Saturday brought with it some warmer temps and reenergized the teams as the Mason Dixon Open House crowds started to roll in and partake in the day’s events including a People’s Choice event that had each team cooking a generous portion of 10lbs of chicken wings.

The winners on this day would be Drilling & Grilling winning grand champion and The BBQ Guru for taking reserve.  Here are the individual meat winners and link to the full listing of results.

Chicken – 4:20 Q
Ribs – 3 Eyz BBQ
Pork – Dr. Pearls Medicinal Smoke BBQ Team
Brisket – Hellbent BBQ

Grand Champions – Drilling & Grilling
Reserve – The BBQ Guru

Full results here