I'm gonna preach for a minute.
Go For it! Don't go to win, it will just stress you out, but go to learn, do your best, stick with what you know and if you win, thats gravy on the potatos.
Before i started to compete last year. I knew how to cook. I did NOT however know how to compete. That will only come if u get out there under a tent and start competing. Who cares if its the East Gibip BBQ Hoedown or the American Royal. Go to a competition and do as you would in your yard. Relax, breath, stay focused. Make your ribs, your chicken, your brisket and butt. That will be easy. You have done it a boatload of times for family and friends. Now its just unknown guests. What you have NOT done is timed your best A-game product to come out of the beast in a 10 minute window, 20 minutes apart. That is your challenge. The art of competing. Getting a 12 hour brisket or 10 hour butt so its done, but not dry, and just enuf cooler time. Being able to find 6 perfect thighs out of 24, trimmed, glazed and formed, and to the presentation artist just short of the 10 minute window. Moving from ribs to butt and pulling, glazing and seasoning then having enuf time to slice a brisket. All of this is preceded by timed intervals of marinading, brining, rubbing....... drinking
Thats what competing is all about. Its all timing. We can all produce good BBQ at our leisure..... but no matter how good you can cook, at a competition it aint no good if its a minute late, or undercooked when that 10 minute window opens up.
So go to the AR. Any one person can win a competition on any given day. If you can manage to get 6 judges 4 times that love your Q, your a GC and the subjectiveness under the judging tent can be in your favor that day. You may or may not walk away with a trophy, thats a crapshoot, but its a guarentee that you WILL walk away with experience that you can use your next time out.
Go forth and conquer. 8)