Not to derail your post, but it you are just getting into competition, I would hold off on the class. Buy a few books, Serious BBQ by APL and Wicked Good BBQ, are two of my favorites, spend some time here and on youtube, and practice. Come up with a plan and cook your plan. See how you do. After finding your own groove, then try taking a class to see what else is out there. I think too many people go to competitions and cook someone else's recipe, and don't have the ability to adjust when they need to. For full disclosure, I suck at competitions, so take everything I say with a boulder of salt.