Tag Archive: barbecue

  1. MABA T-Shirts Pre-Order Sale until February 12th, 2018!

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    MABA has come up with a couple of stellar t shirt designs for 2018!  All proceeds from the t shirt sales will be donated to Operation BBQ Relief in February!

    Pre-Order your MABA T-Shirts but clicking HERE.

    Sales run until February 12th, 2018!

    Shirts will print and ship to you in the weeks after the pre-order sale closes. Don’t miss out!

    Order yours today!

  2. So, You Want to Find Some Sponsorship for Your Competition BBQ Team?

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    By Mark Gibbs, Pitmaster of Checkered Flag 500 BBQ  and Brian Walrath, Pitmaster of Brown Liquor BBQ

    The 2017 barbecue season is done, the points have all been earned, and the coals put out.  Winter in the Mid-Atlantic is a good time to do some competition practice and start preparing for the 2018 season.  But this is also a good time of year to think about reaching out to potential sponsors.  They too are likely not super busy and evaluating their sales for 2017 and putting together their marketing plans for 2018.  One of the items on their list is likely, which teams to sponsor next barbecue season.  Mark and I thought this would be a good time to share some of our experiences and tips for deciding who and how to approach sponsors for help for your barbecue team.  We even reached out to a few of our sponsors and others for comment and incorporated their thoughts into our tips below:

    Mark Gibbs:

    We reached out to some of the companies that we see sponsoring teams on the competition BBQ circuit to get some thoughts on what it takes to obtain sponsorship for your BBQ team.   We got a few responses and wanted to share some thoughts with our members that may help in your search.

    The main things that sponsors told me are they want teams that are be positive first.  Really, not winners first?  Yep they want teams that will shine a positive light on their products first and foremost.  You could be the winningest team in BBQ, but if you are not respected by your fellow competitors and BBQ fans you do not bring much value to the table.   The other factor was they like to sponsor teams that keep their product visible.  Hang a banner, wear a shirt at awards.  Return on investment (ROI) is what keeps sponsors in your stable from year to year.

    1. Be Specific!

    The first sponsor that I ever had for my team was 3 Eyz BBQ.   I did a class with them that set the tone for my entire competition BBQ team going forward.  I had a 3 Eyz “experience” class where I got to watch the team in action at Pork in the Park in 2012.  It was a blast!   My team ended up earning the MABA Rookie of the Year in 2012.   When Dan congratulated me at the MABA awards banquet, I said “hey you should sponsor me”.  He said, “ok will you use 3 Eyz in social media and on a banner?”  Of course I jumped in and said yes!  Dan handed me two pounds of 3 Eyz rub and said you are sponsored.  He laughed and said,”I have just taught you your first lesson in BBQ sponsorship…….be specific in what you ask for!” Dan supplied us with all of that great 3 Eyz rub we needed going forward, but the lesson was certainly learned.

    1. Does the product really work with your BBQ team program?
    Display your sponsor’s logo prominently. Here’s a good example of Pitmaster Neil Pappalardo of Grand Slam BBQ displaying his beer sponsor on a nice banner in their cook site.

    Just because the ABC Sauce Company of Walla Walla, Washington is going to give you a couple of cases of sauce for sponsorship doesn’t mean it is a great thing for your team.  Be willing to promote the product that you are getting sponsorship for.   If you believe in the product that you are getting sponsorship for it benefits both you and the sponsor.

    1. Don’t have competing sponsors!

    In my experience, most if not all of the sponsorships I have had have been done with a handshake and a thank you for both sides.  So you struck a deal to have the Joe Chunk Charcoal Company to throw you a pallet of charcoal in 2018!  That’s great!  In May, you switch smokers and get sponsored by Big Red Charcoal because they have great lump charcoal.  Joe Chunk Charcoal is probably not going to be happy to see that Big Red Charcoal on the back of your trailer.

    Sponsorships are two-way commitments.  Sponsors expect a return on their investment and having teams that have committed to them competing products is probably the biggest no-no!  If you have changed up your program and are no longer using the products that you have been given, offer to return the unused product and let the sponsor know the situation.  Most are very understanding about the changing landscape of competition BBQ and you never know when your paths may cross again.  Keep doors open on both sides.

    1. Social Media Presence
    Showcase your sponsors on your social media. Pretty easy to tell two of this team’s sponsors just by glancing at their Facebook cover page!

    Almost every team and team member has a social media presence.  Facebook, Twitter, Websites and Instagram just to mention a few.  Commit to promoting your sponsors with POSITIVE social media posts.  Always recognize them when you are talking about your BBQ team.   Just his past season there were a couple of stories where sponsors pulled their sponsorship from some teams and some big events because of some unpopular social media threads.  One tournament director said, “Sponsors have a lot of options where to spend their dollars.  Sponsors monitor social media and make marketing decisions based on some of the negative things they read on social media.”

    Give you sponsors positive media with great pictures and stories about how their product and support help your team compete each week.

    1. Sometimes the answer is No!

    Not every sponsor has deep enough pockets to sponsor every team that comes to them looking for sponsorship help.  You may be having a wildly successful year and you send a letter or email to the Joe Chunk Charcoal Company.  They may or may not respond or they may respond with a form letter thanking you, but after careful consideration……yadda yadda….you get the rest.  But don’t take that as a slap in the face to your team’s success.  Send them a letter thanking them for their consideration and let them know you are still excited about their product and you will reach out again in the future.  It took me three years to get my charcoal sponsorship.

    1. I love email, but sometimes a letter with a stamp on it is much more personal

    Send a letter.  Yes the one in an envelope with a stamp and a real piece of paper in it.  I talked to a technical recruiter a while back and he said that letters get noticed.  They stay on a desk and are visible.  Sometimes emails get lost in the Inbox.  It happens to all of us.

    1. Last but certainly not least……don’t take sponsorship for granted.
    Wear their gear! If sponsors outfit you with hats, tee shirts, and other swag…use it. Don’t just use it, take pictures with it on and post it to your social media!

    Never assume…..we all know what happens when you assume…..that the sponsors you had in 2017 are still going to be with you in 2018.   And hopefully, they don’t assume the same.  Good communication is key here.  This week I am writing letters to my sponsors thanking them for helping us out in 2017 and asking for their continuing support in 2018.   Try to include a picture with their banner, shirt or hat and all the nice bling that you won using their products this past year.

    Budgets change, situations change for both the team and sponsor and perhaps they are ending their sponsorship program or you are no longer using Super Brand Sauce in your program.  Communicate, so you both know what is happening in the New Year!

    Hopefully, you were able to get some tips on how to look for and obtain sponsorship for your BBQ team in 2018!

    Brian Walrath:

    My Take on Sponsorship and Communicating with Sponsors

    Let’s face it, competition barbecue is expensive.  It’s even more expensive if you’re a one man or one family team and fitting the bill out of one household account.  Costs for a typical contest are at least $500-700 on the cheap and typically over $1K after you factor in everything purchased for the weekend.  The best way to offset these costs besides taking on a partner to split costs is in the form of sponsorship help.  Very few sponsors are offering actual money to help with expenses or registration fees, but what they will often help with is their product.  And every little bit helps!

    When thinking about approaching sponsors, I always took a step back and tried to approach my targets with a realistic point of view.  As an up and coming team that continues to get better each year (ok, ignore 2017), Brown Liquor BBQ, in recent years I’ve felt our team was finally in a position to start talking to companies about sponsorships/partnerships.  I think you don’t have to be the best team on the block and have a long list of wins, top 10s, calls, etc…but you do have to have some…SOME results you can present.  The other thing is, what products do you really want, or more importantly, need!  Let’s face it, unless you’re Myron Mixon or Tuffy Stone, you’re not calling up a smoker builder, well known meat supplier, or overpriced (sorry, my cynical side) cooler company and getting free stuff.  Think about the stuff you use every competition…products that you know well, trust to perform, and can get behind.

    Taking your post competition award photos are a great opportunity to feature your sponsors logos or products in the picture…this is a great way to thank them for your success!

    Keep in mind also that writing or contacting sponsors is also a numbers game.  You have to send many letters and emails before you get a reply…if you even get a reply.  If you’re ever at an event where representatives from the company, or even better, the owner is present, take that opportunity to approach them and ask if they will give you five minutes to talk about their product.  Also, this may not be the best time to come out and ask outright for a sponsorship.  Maybe take a softer approach and say something like, “Are you currently sponsoring any new teams, and if so, what do you look for in a partnership.”

    When you’re writing a potential sponsor, I like to include very specific information.  Take the mental approach of, “what’s in it for THEM,” not you.  Sure, you want to introduce yourself and talk briefly about your team history and accomplishments.  But, what you want to concentrate on is how you can help them.  Maybe it’s helping them break into a new or untapped market.  When we approached Tub O’Towels, they sponsored a lot of race car companies and folks in the automotive industry.  But I knew that the outdoor living market was one they had very little exposure with on their website and I made it clear I could give them that exposure, especially on the east coast in the Mid-Atlantic market that is heavily populated.  Also, you want to build your social media footprint online.  Sponsors look at your number of followers and fans and how often you post, and what you post about.  Make it very clear that you will post about their products across all of your social media as much as possible and if they have any special sales or events, you’ll be happy to promote them.  Finally, be very clear in your ask about what you’d be willing to do for them if they agreed a partnerships was a good fit.  Be up front and tell them that you’d like product in exchange for things like social media posts, hanging a banner at your site, etc…

    Swag is an awesome way to showcase your sponsor, especially when it’s in the form of a useful item like an apron!

    Sponsors don’t always want the best teams…sometimes they want popular teams that have a big social presence that can influence other teams.  Talk about your competition experience.  We come right out and say, we’re a very social team and have folks over to our tent to talk about our products and equipment.  We welcome the public in our site and often engage with them.  At the end of the day a sponsor is in it for the exposure and sales.  If you can help them do that, you’re worth something to them and they’ll invest in your team with product.

    Finally, I’ll leave you with a quote from one of my current sponsors that I think reaffirms what Mark and have shared in this article:

    “We look at how many competitions a year that teams attend, how they place in the competitions, and most importantly how active and well engaged they are on social media. It also helps if we see that they have posted kindly about other sponsors. We expect teams to display our large stickers (about 12″x14″) or our 2’x3′ banner and to occasionally tag us on social media posts.”

    Good luck with acquiring new partners to work with in 2018, we hope these tips help!

  3. FAQue – Get to Know Team JD’s Smokin Misfits

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    By Amy Overbey, MABA Board Member, the Princess of Poultry, and Co-Pitmaster of Team Meat Coma


    WHO IS ON THE TEAM AND WHERE ARE YOU FROM?

    My team consists of myself, my father Jerry Dyer, my mother Mary Dyer and my boyfriend Duane Underwood.

    HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN COMPETING?

    As a team, we have been competing over 15 years.  However, I only took over as pitmaster at the beginning of the 2017 season.

    My father and some of his friends cooked in a couple of the first few Memphis in May contests back when MIM first started.  My father was a US Marine, and the contest was hurting for teams back then and asked the Marines to put together a team and participate.  We didn’t do anything for years after that, then there was a contest in Fredericksburg over 15 years ago.  Dad remembered how much fun he had when he had done the MIM contests so he wanted to try to do it again.  We’ve been doing it ever since.

    HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH YOUR TEAM NAME/LOGO?

    Dad is a retired Marine, and one of his favorite Marines in history was MAJ “Pappy” Boyington who commanded the Black Sheep Squadron, who were also known as the ‘Flying Misfits’.  So we are the Smokin’ Misfits.  ????


    WHAT SMOKER(S) DO YOU COOK ON?

    We use a WSM for chicken and a Southern Q for everything else

    IF YOU COULD ADD A 5TH CATEGORY, AND IT CAN BE ANYTHING, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY?

    I would make desserts an official category.  I’ve always been good at those.  Doing them on the smokers could be a challenge, though…

    WHERE IS YOUR FAVORITE PLACE TO COOK (CAN BE A FAVORITE COMP, BUT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE, CAN BE ANYWHERE)?

    My favorite comp is the Covington Cork & Pork in Covington, VA.  It’s a bit of a drive, but they treat the teams better than any other contest I’ve cooked recently.

    WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE BEVERAGE AT A COMPETITION?

    Absolute favorite ‘go-to’ mixed drink has to be an Orange Crush.  Sometimes that’s too much trouble, though, so I always make sure I’ve got some Peach or Grape ‘Lime-a-rita’ drinks in the cooler.  And of course, I would never survive Saturdays without my Monster Rehabs.

    ANY COMPETITION SUPERSTITIONS OR SOMETHING YOU CANNOT DO WITHOUT AT A COMPETITION?

    We really only have one superstition, and that has to do with the way we cook our chicken.  It’s a secret, though.  ????

    Last year I had to be injured for us to do well at a comp (broken bones, car accident, walked face first into the RV slide), and Dad threatened to injure me at every comp just to be sure (I’m fairly certain he was kidding).  Thankfully we moved on from that this year (although our scores were bad enough at the beginning of the season that I was starting to fear for my safety  ????)

    WHAT IS YOUR GO TO FOOD AFTER A COMPETITION?

    Anything but BBQ!!  Seriously, if the vendors have any good fair-type food I’ll get some of that, but really anything that isn’t BBQ and that I didn’t have to cook.

    IF YOU WEREN’T COMPETING ALL WEEKEND, WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING INSTEAD?

    Probably reading and spending time with my animals.  I’ve got 4 cats and 2 big dogs that miss me when I’m gone.

  4. PITS – Featuring Pavone Brothers BBQ

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    In this month’s edition of PITS, Amy Overbey and the Team Meat Coma crew feature Pavone Brothers BBQ with Pitmaster Dave Pavone and see their set up!

  5. Shenandoah Valley BBQ Fest Woodstock, VA

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    By Mark Gibbs, Pitmaster of Checkered Flag 500 BBQ

    Autumnfest is in the books for 2017!  This contest, which is a staple in the MABA schedule kicked it up another notch this year with the addition of harness racing for the weekend.  The team in Woodstock, VA also added in some serious craft beer and craft whiskey tastings to the vending line up this year.  The weather was perfect and it was a great weekend for BBQ!

    Thirty teams came together to compete for a nice prize fund and bragging rights.  Past Autumnfest champion Jay Reeder of 4:20Q brought home top honors in Chicken.  2016 Champion, 3Eyz BBQ with Dan Hixon came across the finish line with a top call in Ribs.  Aporkalypse Now took home top Pork honors and Smack That Butt BBQ won the brisket category.

    Rockin’ Robyn’s BBQ took home the GC this year with 3Eyz BBQ doing a great job defending their title from last year with the RGC.  Pig Pen BBQ earned top honors in the People’s Choice competition for the millionth time at Autumnfest!  Once again they showed some great sportsmanship by donating the proceeds from their win back to the community to feed folks on Thanksgiving!  These guys help make BBQ great for sure.

    We are all looking forward to the 2018 installment of this great competition!

    Full KCBS results here.

  6. Currituck Heritage Festival, Powells Point, NC

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    by Luke Darnell, MABA President and Pitmaster for Old Virginia Smoke

    Ride Em Bronco!  BBQ and Bulls in Currituck a BLAST  

    Instead of a hurricane, 25 teams descended onto the Outer Banks for Currituck Heritage Bulls and BBQ Contest in Currituck, NC.

    The sites were fantastic, with water and power at every site, and the organizers took care of dinner on Friday and breakfast on Saturday morning.

    The competition was fierce as well, with Checkered Flag 500 taking Grand Champion, followed by Buttman and Rubbin finishing as Reserve Grand Champion.

    But the greatest winner of the day was MABBQA..  MABA gained George DiMartz from Twisted Pair out of Raleigh, NC as a member!  George is a fantastic human, who showed up at 9:30 on Friday night to be the 25th team.  George was rewarded with his first ever 1st place in a category in pork.

    George also gave us this fantastic video from later in the evening at the Rodeo.  (He may have been tricked by the MABBQA President.)

    Results:
    Chicken –Checkered Flag 500 BBQ
    Ribs – KIRBBQ
    Pork – Twisted Pair BBQ
    Brisket –Buttman & Rubbin

    RGC – Buttman & Rubbin
    GC –Checkered Flag 500 BBQ

    Full KCBS results here.

     

  7. Smithfield BBQ Classic, Smithfield, VA

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    by Brian Walrath, MABA Board Member and Pitmaster for Brown Liquor BBQ

    When Arlie Bragg promotes an event and gets Sterling “Big Poppa” Ball and Tuffy Stone involved to be hosts, it’s a pretty big deal event.  Now put that event in the hometown of hog, the parish of pig, the city of swine…Smithfield, VA, and you’ve got something special!  In fact, Smithfield’s presence was huge, being the title sponsor and contributing meat to the competition teams.  Texas may know a little something about beef but when it comes to pork, Virginia is where it’s at!  To sweeten a nice purse of $10,600, Sterling Ball kicked in a spot to this year’s King of the Smokers (KOS) event in California later this year.  Not only did this bring out the big guns of the Mid-Atlantic, it also attracted marquee teams from all over the country.

    The setting in Smithfield was a nice flat open park and shortly after teams got settled in, it was time for an early cook’s meeting.  Another feature making this a truly unique event was that each team got a cooler with their competition meats.  Snake River Farms provided the brisket, Springer Mountain Farms the chicken, and all the pork was Smithfield!  And just like that, teams swiftly moved back to their sites to start trimming and preparing their meats for the competition cook.

    Now, word around the water cooler is that there was to be a pretty kick ass pot luck dinner featuring some entrees being prepared by Tuffy and Big Poppa themselves.  But on this weekend I had the honor and privilege of helping out pitmaster Mark Gibbs of Checkered Flag 500 BBQ.  We discovered a local gem called Captain Chuck-A-Muck’s Sandbar and Grill.  More than just a hokey name, this waterfront treasure had great cocktails and killer seafood!

    Fast foward to day two.  When the dust settled and the winner declared, it was Pavone Brothers BBQ who bested the competition on this day and took home the big check and perhaps more important…an invitation to compete in California at KOS!!!

    Results:
    Chicken – Bub-B-Q
    Ribs – 3 Eyz BBQ
    Pork – Smoke-aholics
    Brisket – Burnt Bean Co.

    RGC – Wolf’s Revenge BBQ
    GC –Pavone Brothers BBQ

    Full KCBS results here.

  8. 13th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship, Richmond, VA

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    Submitted by “The Chairman of the Board”

    The Lucky #13 edition of the McShin Foundation RecoveryFest is in the books for 2017.  Each year this organization rolls out the red carpet for our BBQ brethern with a big dose of southern hospitality and a contest that runs like clockwork.  Honesty Liller and her staff do a great job mixing competition bbq and the great work that they do at McShin.  Speakers from all around Virginia stopped by and shared stories of recovery success and brought news on what is happening to help those that need it the most.  Thank you McShin for what you do for our friends and family that struggle with addiction.

    The BBQ contest weekend was perfect from a weather standpoint.  It was cool all weekend and we had no rain!  The smokers were lit and 35 teams were cooking.  Those whacky kids from Easton, Maryland…Sauce This BBQ brought home the Gold with a GC while Rockin’ Robyn’s BBQ out of Forest Hill, MD scored the RGC.   Wolf’s  Revenge, Checkered Flag 500 BBQ and Simply Q rounded out the top 5 overall.

    Top Chicken honors were brought home by E.O.D. WreckinQ with the GC’s close in at second.  Sauce This BBQ took home the big trophy in Ribs and most folks knew the run was on!  Rockin’ Robyn’s BBQ won the Pork category and Checkered Flag 500 BBQ took home top Brisket honors.

    This competition is a a staple on the Mid-Atlantic circuit and we thank McShin for their continued support of the sport that we love.  I recommend getting this contest on the schedule if you have not been there in the past!

    Results:
    Chicken – E.O.D. WreckinQ
    Ribs –Sauce This
    Pork –Rockin Robyns BBQ
    Brisket – Checkered Flag 500 BBQ

    RGC – Rockin Robyns BBQ
    GC – Sauce This

    Full KCBS results here.

  9. Maryland State BBQ Bash Bel Air, MD

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    Submitted by “The Nutty BBQ Professor”

    The Maryland State BBQ Bash once again proved to be a great contest.  Organizers were not sure what year we were in.  Guesses varied from 11th year to 14th year, so we will just say that the annual event lived up to its expectations with big crowds, great BBQ and 47 teams vying for the Grand Championship and one Maryland team looking to grab the MABA Maryland State Cup title.

    The Grand Champion was New Jersey’s own Ercole Chila of Uncle Pig’s BBQ Pit.  El Presidente’ and The Lil’ General (Luke and Kim Darnell) from Old Virginia Smoke brought home RGC honors.  Pavone Brothers, Aporkalypse Now and Drilling and Grilling rounded out the top 5 Overall.  Great job teams!

    3N1Q and Que Talkin’ to Me swapped top spot and second place in both the Chicken and Rib categories.  Pavone Brothers continued their hot streak with a win in the Pork category while Quegasm took home the barrel for 1st Place Brisket.

    The win in the Pork category helped garner Dave Pavone and Pavone Brothers the MABA Maryland State Cup.  I heard that Dave will be attending the BBQ Gives Back contest in Urbanna, VA in 2018 to go up against the other state cup winners to see who is named the king of the mountain in for MABA.

    Congrats to everyone that was called and thanks to Craig Ward and his staff that keep bringing this quality contest back each year.

    Results:
    Chicken – 3N1 Que
    Ribs – Que Talkin’ To Me
    Pork – Pavone Brothers BBQ
    Brisket – Quegasm

    RGC – Old Virginia Smoke
    GC – Uncle Pig’s Barbecue Pit

    Full KCBS results here.

  10. Interview With the Champs – Brant Williams of Piggin’ Whiskey

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    by Brian Walrath, MABA Board Member and Pitmaster for Brown Liquor BBQ


    Back when my wife was in elementary school, she was the only female redhead in her class.  Also in her class was the only red haired boy.  All of their classmates thought it was meant to be that they’d be boyfriend/girlfriend based on this one big thing they had in common…as if it was destiny.  At this point, you’re probably wondering where the hell I’m going with this and what does this have to do with Piggin’ Whiskey or even barbecue at all for that matter.  Ok, ok, here’s the deal.  When Piggin’ Whiskey burst onto the scene last year, folks took note.  And when I met Brant and Josh in Fredericksburg this year, it was as if we were those redheads that shared a similar trait and were meant to forge a friendship!

    Now, a lot of friendships are made while passing bottles of mysterious dark liquids aged in charred oak barrels.  During the afternoon of Day one in Fredericksburg, it was as if a reunion was taking place.  Sure, the comp season was underway, but it seemed just about everyone was finally together in Fredericksburg…and Friday the whiskey was being passed around liberally!  This is where I sort of, officially, kind of met Josh and Brant.  Finally Brown Liquor and Piggin’ Whiskey were united!  We weren’t alone in our consumption of brown liquor and clear liquor coming out of mason jars (Yes, I’m looking at you Chris, Luke, Don, Mike, Chiles, Randy, etc…).

    I’m sure Brant and I would like to blame our Day one results on this particular consumption, but Don Wallace of Life is Good But BBQ is Better was right there with us and turned out a fine finish on day one.  I did learn one thing that night about doing a double competition for the first time…it’s REALLY, REAAAAALLLLLLLY quiet the night after the first competition leading to day two!  My teammate and I walked around that night and not a light was on or anyone up except one, and only one team…that’s right Piggin’ Whiskey!  Our friendship was cemented that night as we sat and drank and shared tales from day one for the next couple of hours.

    Well, I hooked up again with the Piggin’ Whiskey boys at the Sam’s Club Harrisburg local qualifier in early June.  And wouldn’t you know, they hit it big for their first grand championship.  So I asked Brant Williams if he’d spend some time and answer some questions so we could get to know the team better and he obliged!

    Question:
    Congrats on winning the Sam’s Regional event in Harrisburg, PA.  Describe winning your first contest?

    Brant Williams, Piggin’ Whiskey:
    Thanks! It was very surreal, we were adding up who was going to win GC in our heads, like most folks do, and we were looking at each other saying, “Nah, there’s no way.” They called RGC and Josh says to me, “Wow, our pork must have been REALLY bad for us to not even make the top ten.”  Before they called GC, they paused the awards for pictures of all the teams, and someone said to us, “Congrats on GC.” That’s the point we realized we might win, and I started getting really nervous. It was such a blur after that and it didn’t really hit us until the drive home. Honestly, we are still in shock.

    Q:
    Did you feel like you had an especially good cook worthy of winning?

    BW, PW:
    NO!  Haha, for 20 minutes after turn-ins we weren’t speaking to each other… I was disappointed because I didn’t feel like it was a top 6 cook and I really wanted to move on so we could have a chance to compete in Arkansas, all my friends and family are there. But as far as our cook, our chicken was under, ribs were ok, our money muscle shredded when we tried to slice it so we only entered pulled, and I thought our burnt ends were dry not to mention forgetting the finishing rub. We almost missed two turn-ins. Not a great example of how we normally cook. But of course the best, most flawless, cook we ever had was round 1 in Fredericksburg and that landed us 40th overall, so what do I know.

    Q:
    Let’s talk about Piggin’ Whiskey…tell us where you’re from, about your team name, your team, and your competition set up.

    BW, PW:
    – I’m originally from Arkansas, I grew up in what I call the Crossroads of BBQ, Kansas City to the north, Memphis to the east, and Texas to the south. I competed some before moving to Philly but nothing serious.

    -Josh is originally from South Dakota, but he lived in Kansas City for some years. Living there exposed him to competitive BBQ, but like me he never got that serious about it.

    -The night we met basically turned into one big pissing match about which of us could cook better BBQ (Me! Haha!). I mentioned to him that I’d like to get a competitive team together and it was all down hill from there.

    – Our team name: When I lived in Arkansas we had a Razorback football tailgating team called the Whiskey Pigs, that team name was taken, so we decided on Piggin’ Whiskey which seems to fit us a little better.

    – Our Setup:  A Backwoods G2 Fatboy named “Tim”, a tent and a 12’ trailer.

    Q:
    How long have you been competing?

    BW, PW:
    We have competed in a few random contests over the past couple years, but this is our first full year to compete.

    Q
    What’s the best part about competition barbecue?

    BW, PW:
    The camaraderie.

    Q:
    What’s the worst part about competition barbecue?

    BW, PW:
    Moonshine hangovers.

    Q:
    You seem to be competing a lot more this year…is that true?

    BW, PW:
    Yes. Our first comp it was cold and rained the whole time and we placed middle of the pack, it was a miserable experience for no payout, we almost gave up after that. Our second comp was a backyard and we took home first in ribs, and the next couple we did pretty good with a 1st in Chicken and a Top 10 overall. So we decided to really ramp it up this year and see just how good we could do in a full season.

    Q:
    Ok, I always ask our winning pitmasters this…what’s the one tip you have for those teams to help them break through and win their first GC or up their game in competition BBQ?

    BW, PW:
    Not that I think I’m in any position to give advice, but I have a mantra that helps me.

    Don’t over-cook

    Don’t over-smoke

    Don’t over-sauce

    And most importantly, don’t over-think.

    Q:
    What’s in store for the rest of the year for Piggin’ Whiskey…the Royal, etc…?


    BW, PW:
    We decided that in case our first GC was dumb luck, we had better take advantage and go to the Royal. We’ll be there so come by and see us! We also have our fingers crossed for the Jack. And of course we are hoping to make it to the Sam’s finals in Arkansas.

    Q:
    Speed round, one word answers only:

    Favorite brown beverage? I’m a little disappointed you have to ask.

    Friday night comp favorite dinner? Steak

    Favorite contest to cook? Boo B Que

    Boxers or briefs? Boxers

    Low and slow or hot and fast? Low and Slow

    MSG is…  Delicious!

    If I weren’t competing, I’d probably be _working on my honey-do list_most weekends.

    Favorite species of tree? Pecan

    If you could have one super power, it would be? Mind control, that way I could get folks to scrape our chicken skins.

    Favorite mason jar flavor? Apple pie

    Q:
    Anything else to add before we sign off?

    BW, PW:
    One last thing, I’d like to thank all the generous folks that we have met on the circuit, without their support and encouragement we wouldn’t be here. Specifically I’d like to thank a few teams that have helped us tremendously… Lo-N-Slo, Big Ugly’s BBQ, Finn’s Finest, Smokin’ Tex, and Philly Blind Pig. (And also, thanks to Brown Liquor BBQ for keeping us sober by drinking all our whiskey.) And finally, thanks to our sponsors: Stone BBQ Supply www.stonebbqsupply.com and Threadzone Custom Screen Printing www.threadzone.com


    We love keeping in touch with everyone so feel free to follow us on Facebook and hit us up if not just to chat www.facebook.com/pigginwhiskey

    Bonus question…

    Where exactly is South Dakanada?

    BW, PW:
    Haha! Not sure, somewhere north of the Mason-Dixon, but I do know it’s the home state of the best damn pitmaster I know!