[MilitantSquatter]

The majority of teams are not cooking 10-20 events/year and don't have sponsors. Not sure what the avg. # is but I know it is much lower than 10-20 which makes the total cost a lot more palatable to most teams.

Some of the well known teams that consistently compete/win have some form of sponsorship and are dedicated to the activity. The degree of sponsorship varies. I'm sure some of these teams are also fortunate enough to finance their hobby independently & partially through their winnings. There are costs to pursuing any hobby. Each person must decide whats financially feasible, how hard they are willing to work to seek out sponsorship and what that will involve providing in return. It's not always as simple as just hanging a banner on their canopy.

I'm sure there are many that can finance 10-20+ contests a year but don't, just because they don't have a desire to compete that frequently as it does take up a substantial amount of weekends in a year.

I don't think it's fair to single out Dr. BBQ here either as for him, those books are part of his occupation to earn his income. That's no different than a writer who writes mystery books or a tradesman who also enjoys competing.