GBC drops KCBS sanctioning

That's too bad. Looked like they had a BIG crowd in the "Pro" division of the contest last year.

Are you willing to discuss the particulars as to why they made that decision?

Why?

I am very sorry to hear this news. I attended the 2007 event in the pro division, and was planning on attending again this year. Thanks for the heads-up....

Did they happen to provide any financial information on this to show their analysis? I'd be curious to see the costs side of it. Also, did they factor in any donated food received from the pro teams and how long the food was able to serve them?

I don;t have a problem at all with the non sanctioned aspect of it. I hope they ad chicken and brisket to join the ribs, pp, sauce and stew. My team tries to cook Backyard when we can, as we are really backyard cookers that enjoy comps and as most comps only do a partial backyard we end up in pro sometimes. The lower costs associated with the backyard may bring more teams. We comp in Newnan GA teh last few years, and compete in backyard, as it is a full 4 meats comp. The backyard side of it has grown in the past three years from 5 teams to twenty something while the number of pro teams is shrinking. I think the lower costs, flexibility of cookers ( many backyard guys use gas or electric) and, for the visitors to the comp, the backyard teams seem a little more real, versus the pros that cook in comp rigs, and using the larger gravity fed and pellet cookers that most people will never have.

If they charge at the gate for people to attend, i think the backyard comp may bring more people to see what its about. THen again, just my .02 worth.