Contest Announcment The NEW 12th Annual Official Ohio Smoked Meat and Barbecue Festival, Nelsonville, Ohio - October 17 - 18, 2008 ***Updated***

B

beardjp

Knows what a fatty is.
Joined
Aug 29, 2008
Messages
139
Reaction score
15
Points
0
Location
Nelsonville, Ohio
Finally the 12th Annual Official Ohio Smoked Meat and Barbecue Festival - State Championship is scheduled for October 17 - 18, 2008, at Hocking College in Nelsonville, Ohio.

The entry fee is $200 with the following categories;
Chicken
Ribs
Pork (Shoulder/Butt)
Brisket
Dessert
For further information you can contact Carl Franz (franz_c@hocking.edu)or Tom Lambrecht (lambrecht_t@hocking.edu)
(740) 753-3531

I can also email you an electronic version of the entry form, if you Email me at (beardjp@yahoo.com).

It would be great to have a big turnout for this event even with short notice. Maybe this year we can convince the organizers that early notification is the key.
 
Glad to see you made it over!
Hopefully we can get some interest in this comp! :biggrin:
 
beardjp said:
Maybe this year we can convince the organizers that early notification is the key.
Click to expand...

I don't know what it's going to take to convince them of that. A couple of us drilled that into them last year and I know of several people who have been trying since March of this year to get some kind of reaction out of them but it has all seemingly fallen on deaf ears. I personally offered to do what I could to help promote this contest and never got the benefit of a reply.

To add insult to injury, the RGC from last year never received as much as a ribbon for his efforts. KCBS rules state that a contest must pay Grand, Reserve and five places in each category. In addition to snubbing the RGC team, one of the 1st place category winners is still waiting to receive his trophy which couldn't be presented during the awards because it had been damaged in handling.

Nelsonville was my very first contest in 2002 and I have cooked it every year since but I doubt that I will be there this year. I've met a lot of great people there and had a lot of good (and not so good) memories and I always looked forward to ending the season with this contest.

I would love to hear this contest being brought back to life but you can't help those that do not want to be helped and all I'm hearing right now is the sound of taps being played.
 
I used to do this contest every year. then things didn't go so good and a closer one showed up on that weekend. It's also a nice contest. So for me to head back now there needs to be a big reason. Lets start with seeing a list of 25 teams that have paid being posted. Without that I just don't think I'll be there. And posted prize money because all I see on this notice is how much it costs us.

Remember this contest succeeded because it was an automatic to the Jack. last year it wasn't a qualifier. It takes hard work and lots of promoting to be successful. It's not like "if you build it they will come" at least not anymore.
 
it's the same weekend as the eggtoberfest at the big green egg mothership in atlanta.
 
Ford said:
Remember this contest succeeded because it was an automatic to the Jack. last year it wasn't a qualifier. It takes hard work and lots of promoting to be successful. It's not like "if you build it they will come" at least not anymore.
Click to expand...

You're absolutely right Ford! Nelsonville was the only game in Ohio for 10 years running so it was easy to fill the field with big name teams looking for an automatic to the Jack. And by being the only game in the state, they only needed 15 teams instead of 25 but then Kettering came along in 2007 and since Nelsonville only had 24 teams in October of 2006, they were disqualified for the 2007 Jack drawing which made Kettering 2007 an automatic.

Like I said earlier, Nelsonville was my first contest and I always looked forward to going there for an end of season door closer. I know it's a beautiful place and a nice time of year with the autumn foliage but if they don't have 25 teams, I can have a better time in Gatlinburg.
 
They can really take lessons in how to do a contest, and make is a success....from your notebook. What you have done in Kettering has inspired me with what we are proposing with the Cleveland Cup. Besides the monies raised going to Operation BBQ For Our Troops, which in itself should be a great reason for the sponsors that I have lined up, throwing in the extra prize monies for the team that competes in atleast 2 other contests for the extra prize money on top. Everything will be just about finalized, and since the Nelsonville folks have kinda fallen short, was probably going to gear the Cleveland comp for the same timeframe. Will keep all posted, and yes, I will be sending lots of e-mails your way for advice and insights.....
 
I have offered several times to help but have not been taken up on the offer.
 
It's said to see this contest fold but I will not waste my time or money with a contest where the cooks are treated as shabbily as they were last year at Nelsonville and where the organizers refuse to accept good help when it is offered. Unfortunately its time to play taps over the corpse of this contest.

I'd ask that for those that only have the funds for one more Ohio contest this year to please support the Jim Dandy's contest. That one has a good chance of being a qualifier with a little help.

I hope someone sends the orgainizers a link to this site and the discussion on Barbecue Central. People are outraged over this contest because they care. It takes passion and feelings to care. I'd gladly support this contest if I thought the organizers cared one tenth of that of the cooks but when they won't return phone calls or emails it shows how arrogant they are that they think that the cooks will blindly sign up at a moments notice.

They are sadly mistaken this time!
 
Looking forward to Jim Dandy's.....and damn, we know for sure that we will be back in Kettering next year, hell, Jim, go ahead and get together a package for reduced, guranteed rate on a 5 year block, and betting that you would fill up in no time flat. I learned a hell of a lot watching how you did things in Kettering, not only how much work you put into it, but, how everyone was treated, and the set of volunteers that you had in place made it almost like we were the only team there with their personal attention. It sucks, because I never got the chance to compete in Nelsonville, and from the looks of it, I will not....it sounds like there were a lot of great memories by the teams....which all pitched in and made the contest what it was......but, enough of the soft and mellow........

Looking forward to seeing everyone down in Sharonville, and hell, who knows, we can still make Ohio a great place to visit, compete in, and maybe, just maybe we can surpass Hawaii on the BBQ circut as a destination some day.......
 
U2CANQUE said:
I learned a hell of a lot watching how you did things in Kettering, not only how much work you put into it, but, how everyone was treated, and the set of volunteers that you had in place made it almost like we were the only team there with their personal attention. It sucks, because I never got the chance to compete in Nelsonville, and from the looks of it, I will not....it sounds like there were a lot of great memories by the teams....which all pitched in and made the contest what it was......but, enough of the soft and mellow.......
Click to expand...

Thanks for the comments Rob. If all the teams at Kettering felt as if they was the only team there, then we did our job.

Nelsonville used to be a great time and by being the only Ohio contest, it attracted the who's who of barbecue but the times have changed and it requires more effort than what I am seeing put forth.
 
Rolling Smoke said:
Thanks for the comments Rob. If all the teams at Kettering felt as if they was the only team there, then we did our job.

Nelsonville used to be a great time and by being the only Ohio contest, it attracted the who's who of barbecue but the times have changed and it requires more effort than what I am seeing put forth.
Click to expand...

I know we sure did Jim! We will defintley be back next year.

Last year we thought about doing Nelsonville, contacted the organizer who didn't seem to have a single answer to my questions and told me he would get back in touch with me, which he never did of course....even tried e-mailing him a few weeks later and still no response. Like Ford said "It takes hard work and lots of promoting to be successful. It's not like "if you build it they will come" at least not anymore."

To many good one's to choose from and unfortunatley from the sound of things, this isn't one of them.
 
Wow, I guess I was blinded last year when we won a couple of categories and did not realize some of the other things that went on. I can't blame anyone for being mad at the event.

Carl Franz and Tom Lambrecht are the ones incharge this year. Mainly Carl Franz from the Hotel. I have been trying since january to get someone moving, and I must agree it is disheartening.

Maybe like someone said in an earlier post, "This event will need to fail before it gets big". I can assure you that the local community away from the college will support this event. As a matter of fact I am going to contact the chamber of commerce and fill them in on some of the information. I beleive I wil also contact the one sponsor, Rocky Boots and let them know. I don't know what I can do for this year, but maybe I can get things rolling towards something in 2009. Damm all this stuff makes me mad!!!
 
This is actually the first person that has anything to do with the contest that has posted anything, or, as far as I know, really taken the time to respond. The contest meant a lot to people from all over, and, as you can tell, folks are frustrated more than anything. When you read folks words it appears as if the feelings of frustration and sense of entitlement won out over folks dedication and fond memories of the event. To me, it seemed like the perfect setting, and having it associated with a school that is so well known for the culinary program was great for all who participated. Hopefully things can get fixed, now that you can see, and read what folks frustration was/is. Again, ANY help that you would like, need, please feel free to ask....though it may be a dead one this year, there are things that can bring back the contest to what was once....as I heard it referred to as....."the yankee stadium of bbq" for a team....being where they got the hook sunk into their psyche and smoke into their blood.
 
I wish had something to do with the organization of the event. I am just another BBQ competitor, who happens to live in Nelsonville. I organize other events in the area and it makes me angry to see and hear how this event has degraded. I just finished a long Email to the Nelsonville and Athens Chambers of Commerce, trying to make them aware of the problems. I don't know if it will do any good this year but we can start on next year.

Maybe there needs to be a take over of the event and get the organization away from the Inn and College. I will keep everyone posted.
 
thanks for your help with it.......maybe having someone down there, who is from there, and interested in the value of the contest to the community would help out a lot. Again, let us know if there is anything that comes out of it.

Rob
 
Can you get Jack instead of Beam though? That was a shock on my system at 9:22 in the morning. At least I am used to the Jack at that time... :roll:
 
I received the following reply from Tom Lambrecht of The Inn At Hocking College regarding prize money.

"The prize money is at least $400 first prize each catergory or more
depending upon the total # of entrants. Sorry we can't be more specific at this point but the winner is the Ohio state champion making them eligible for K.C. I believe. "

That is all the information he sent.
 
Rolling Smoke said:
Thanks for the comments Rob. If all the teams at Kettering felt as if they was the only team there, then we did our job.

Nelsonville used to be a great time and by being the only Ohio contest, it attracted the who's who of barbecue but the times have changed and it requires more effort than what I am seeing put forth.
Click to expand...

Jim, I for one would like to say that I am glad I listened to you and made Kettering my 1st and if I do only a couple each year Kettering will be the top priority for me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

E
Roll Call. Inside 30 days. KCBS - Ohio Smoked Meat & BBQ Festival - Nelsonville, OH - Oct 18 & 19 , 2019
Replies
1
Views
323
elw
E
E
Contest Announcment KCBS - Ohio Smoked Meat & BBQ Festival - Nelsonville, OH - Oct 18 & 19 , 2019
Replies
2
Views
775
elw
E
B
Contest Results 2013 Ohio Smoked Meat & BBQ Festival 10/18-19, Nelsonville, Ohio
Replies
4
Views
772
EZQ2
E
B
Roll Call. Inside 30 days. Ohio Smoked Meat and BBQ Festival, October 18 - 19, Nelsonville, Ohio
Replies
5
Views
442
dhuffjr
D
B
Contest Announcment 2013 Ohio Smoked Meat and BBQ Festival, October 18th and 19th, Nelsonville, Ohio
Replies
0
Views
356
beardjp
B
Back
Top