Need Brethren suggestions

I would find out what the prizes are and then decide if it's worth your time to compete while paying the extra $100 to compete. If you're just doing it for fun, then you need to decide if it's worth the extra money to have fun. Un sanctioned comps are a total crap shoot when it comes to judging, so take that into consideration as well.

Yeah, ya have to watch these folks. I was looking at a local comp. Not much to it but its only about three miles from the house and what the heck. They have advertised on the tv, radio, and papers. So I called last week and they say that they are going to supply chickens if the local chicken processing plant will donate them but its not worked out yet. So they want me to cook "12 to 15 chickens and appetizers for 6 to 8 hundred". I said not NO but H&¥¥ NO. Oh, and it was going to cost me $35. For $35 I'll just cook a brisket for my family.

I'm definitely not saying all are not legit. Jus saying the one I was looking at felt that they had found a way to get their cooking done and have the cook pay them. I mean seriously, what kind of a comp asks for appetizers for 800?

Many of these local "contests" are nothing more than a fundraiser for a local organization and not really much of a contest at all. I personally steer clear of any that ask me to cook and feed the public samples, especially if I'm expected to supply the meat.

If you have a local vending/caterer/restaurant business then it may pay off in terms of drawing in new business. I think for a new team wanting to try and start competing they're not really a good idea. I think you are better off starting out at a sanctioned event.

The only times we've been asked to supply samples to the public, the organizer has provided the meat.

If it were me I would just buy the meat myself and ask for the other 50.00 back. Last time we cooked in a comp where they provided the meat - the meat sucked. We won first in wings because the wings we brought to cook for ourselves looked ten times better than what they gave us to cook.

Pole D said:

The only times we've been asked to supply samples to the public, the organizer has provided the meat.

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We actually had a contest this year that expected you to supply the meat, there was an additional entry fee into the PC portion and it took place during the KCBS turn ins. We politely declined to enter that one.

I wouldn't let someone else supply meat that I'm competing with. I look for certain things and they're just going to get a box of whatever and hand it out. In the last competition I was in, competitors bought their own meat, but were also given an extra pork butt to cook for the people's choice competition. That seemed fair to me.

So in short, if its your entry, you're better off buying your meat. If its for them to hand out to their attendees or to give to their charity, it should come from them.

Decide if you think the CAUSE is worth supporting. $100 will buy plenty of meat for you to win.

Im doing a small local charity event next weekend.50$ to enter, they provide the ribs and loins for the competition. They asked that we cook extra loins for the meal they serve that night.

In this case Im quite willing to to do it, they are an organization that takes handicapped kids from all over out hunting deer and turkey, great bunch of people who put a lot of time and energy into what they do with a lot of people donating thier time, thier farmland, and thier money to get these kids out.Even if we do well in the judging we will just donate the prize back to thier charity.

Ive seen other ones with public tastings that I wasnt as crazy about, they are usually set up just to sell tickets and draw the public in, theres prize money for the public tastings but in some cases it seemed like it wasnt about the food, it was who could get the most friends there to vote.