Elk and Venison HELP!!

I've tried to smoke venison ribs twice. Both times were disappointing. Maybe if they came from a really big-a$$ deer they would have been better.

If not, I suggest you boil them down for soup or chili stock instead.

Cut the ribs, freeze them and give them to the dogs. Best use for them. Just put a deer in the freezer that had 1/4 inch of fat on it. The ribs on it was not even worth messing with.

The roast..... much different if it came off the ham or off the loin. More info please.

Take the ribs and grind them into burger with the rest of the scraps.

As for the roast wrap in bacon and cook to 140° to 145° and rest

RE: venison ribs They CAN be great eats... Be sure to trim as much fat off as you can, many people (myself included) can't stand the feel of it in their mouth. It's pasty and nasty. But look at the size of the racks... decide for yourself whether they're worth cooking, often there's not much meat at all.

If you want some smoke, by all means throw them on the smoker for a couple hours at 250. (after rubbing them). Then lay them, meat side down, in a large aluminum pan with some beef broth. Cover with foil and cook for another 2-3 hours until the meat is pulled waaaay back from the bones and is tender. You can sauce if you like and put them back on the grill for a few minutes. They are deee-licious.
I butchered a young mule deer buck (didn't see the spikes through the bush,) this weekend and just cooked the ribs in the oven. They got a generous coating of Plowboys Jerk rub, then into the oven at 400 for an hour before I did the foil pan treatment described above. When they were done I just pulled all the meat and put it into a bowl. It's been great this week for sandwiches, and I tossed some of it in some coconut rice too.

Re: elk roast
I've BBQ'd a hundred deer / moose / elk roasts and most of them get the same treatment... A commercial beef rub, or basic salt/pepper/garlic. Smoked low for a period for flavour, then grilled hot & fast (basic reverse sear methodology here) to get some crust / bark on there. Rest for 20 minutes and dig in!

I don't think bacon will do anything for you other than add bacon flavour (no argument about that!).
The main thing is to make sure you don't overcook it! Leave it pink in the middle (doesn't have to be red), cook to about 140 or 145 internal. If you cook it well done you will dry it out and the texture will toughen up considerably.