BBQ Pitmasters = Bigger Competitions?

[ique]

Matt,

Difference is having to add a stick or two every 30-45 minutes and the skill involved to maintain chamber temp. If you add to soon, temp goes up. If you add to late, temp stays too low for a period.

Do you have to do this fire and temp maintenance every 30-45 minutes with a UDS or WSM?

With a stick burner its not just a temp thing. There is also the challenge of burning a CLEAN fire. This is very easy when using charcoal or pellets compared to logs.

 

[RubMeTender]

I'm a stick burner running an 84 Lang Deluxe who believes that stick burning is TRUE competition bbqing, and I'm having trouble seeing what any of this has to do with the show. I'm starting stick burners vs. set-it and forget-its post and let the games begin.

Only time will tell whether or not the show will equal bigger draws from crowds and competitors. I think next years numbers will tell the story for sure.
The Lakeland KCBS turnout may be a good barometer for this post.

 

[TN_BBQ]

With a stick burner its not just a temp thing. There is also the challenge of burning a CLEAN fire. This is very easy when using charcoal or pellets compared to logs.

In jest :-D High five to you! :mrgreen:

Even Tiger Woods moved to a graphite shaft a couple years into his career.

Those stick burners require too much work for me and I sleep well at night (figuratively and literally) with my insulated smoker and guru.

There's room for everybody and the more folks we got, the better things will be.

Can't we all just get along? R.King

 

[Ford]

With a stick burner its not just a temp thing. There is also the challenge of burning a CLEAN fire. This is very easy when using charcoal or pellets compared to logs.

You're kidding right? Maybe for the first 3 or 4 practice sessions it takes practice and experimenting but after that what's so hard about maintaining a clean fire. Check your wood, make sure it's stored right and properly aged and that's 90%. Then make sure when you setup the pit that the firebox is correctly positioned for any breezes and off you go. A decent made offset (MIN OF 1/4 INCH STEEL) should perform about the same from cook to cook.

And I don't actually know many folks today that use only logs and no charcoal. Most of the teams use charcoal to start it then go to logs once they have that coal base setup. Then add lighted charcoal along with more logs as needed. When I had the smaller mobile Klose I didn't sue charcoal but once I got the big boy I saw the light. It creates a much better, longer lasting coal base.

 

[Smoky River BBQ]

I believe it is all in how well you know your cooker. I started with (and still use occasionally) a homemade 350 gallon oil drum smoker with a welded on firebox on the side. After I knew how to get the air flow how I wanted it and how much of a fire in the box, I could (can) go 2 hours in between adding logs. I'm not saying that made my Q any better or any worse, just that I could keep an even temp with a homemade unit that looked like something from Junkyard Wars...

 

[ique]

You're kidding right? Maybe for the first 3 or 4 practice sessions it takes practice and experimenting.

No I am not kidding. I didn't say it was rocket science, but there is certainly more skill required to put out championship bbq on an off-set than setting the thermostat on your FE. I see white smoke billowing out of off-sets all the time at contests, apparently burning a clean fire is not as easy you state.

 

[JWBernt]

BBQ Pitmasters

Ive been wanting to learn about this sport, thanks to Pitmasters, I was able to learn on what I need to do and what type of smoker that I want to build. Im not sure if there are any tourneys near us, but it would be fun to try.

 

[Ford]

No I am not kidding. I didn't say it was rocket science, but there is certainly more skill required to put out championship bbq on an off-set than setting the thermostat on your FE. I see white smoke billowing out of off-sets all the time at contests, apparently burning a clean fire is not as easy you state.

I agree Chris that there are lots of people cooking at comps that have billowing white smoke. Personally I think they should take the time to learn to control a fire before wasting all that money to enter a contest and like PP in the Pitmasters finishing with less than expected results.

I also agree it's hard work to keep a clean fire going and requires a sober individual. So stick burners should try to stay sober and pay attention to their pits and not let them go out, spike, etc. When I had stick burners and helpers we had a cook log and pit temp, air temp and wind direction and estimated velocity were recorded. I got 4-5 hours sleep but the person tending the fire knew the penalty for not updating that log every 30 minutes. Also updated it when we added a log, size, how much open fire door vent, how long vent adjusted and temp when vent closed back to original spot.

But it's not rocket science, it's keeping a fire under control. Let's face it our ancestors and I mean cave man and not those Geico guys could do it.

 

[BigJimsBBQ]

Ive been wanting to learn about this sport, thanks to Pitmasters, I was able to learn on what I need to do and what type of smoker that I want to build. Im not sure if there are any tourneys near us, but it would be fun to try.

JW, Go to the top of our webpage and click on the KCBS link. You can see all of the contest and locations for Kansas City BBQ Sociaty. You can also read the current rule for competing.

Good Luck

 

[dhuffjr]

Ford I don't know about you but I don't mind seeing teams with billowing white smoke all night long :-D

 

[KC_Bobby]

My BWS looks like it's billowing white smoke all night when the temp drops enough after the sun goes down.

 

[ique]

My BWS looks like it's billowing white smoke all night when the temp drops enough after the sun goes down.

In the BWS that might be steam

 

[tony76248]

BTW - The seperate judging would be at a table (blind to the judges) level. This would ensure that the judges score higher or lower due to cooker multiplier.

Been reading your posts....

Not sure whether you are joking or serious.....

That said, the rules say wood and wood byproducts. You are in the minority my friend in that too many folks out there cook with pellet cookers and gravity feed type cookers. If you made the changes you propose, you would ruin the competition. This is all about COMPETITION and bragging rights and different types of cookers, that is what makes this thing work. If you took a vote on what you propose, it would perform a huge belly flop right in the middle of your burn a half cord of wood per comp lang. :wink:


Actually somewhere this thread went way off topic.

 

[tony76248]

On topic....

Those JAMBO pits are second to none when it comes to a competition stickburner. Not good for catering though, they really have no capacity. My wife said I could get one but she wont give up her garage space. Time to start considering my options.

Does anyone know what JAMBO has going with the folks at TLC? There appears to be some tie-in. The credits roll and it shows all of the normal competitiors plus Jamie Geer. I did hear that he was going to work with the American Chopper folks and build a customized pit/ride...

 

[Podge]

Even though I'd love to have a Jambo Pit, it certainly doesn't take one to be half-way successful in bbq competitions. i'm glad to see that they are showing a team that uses just WSM's. At least that gives some hope for a new guy to want to compete, and that it doesn't take tens of thousands of dollars to compete !.. I have to say I really love that show and I hope its on again next season !!

Even if BBQ one day becomes like NASCAR, there are still dirt track races at the county fairgrounds. BBQ will still be a competition to where everyone can still aford to do it, as long as their is interest, just might look different. So when people say they don't want to see BBQ be huge because it won't make it a viable hobby for us little guys, we will still have organizers that will want to put on these small contests. It takes the desire of people to cook and compete, and as long as that's there, competitive BBQ for all pockets will not die.

 

[Divemaster]

On topic....

Those JAMBO pits are second to none when it comes to a competition stickburner. Not good for catering though, they really have no capacity. My wife said I could get one but she wont give up her garage space. Time to start considering my options.

Does anyone know what JAMBO has going with the folks at TLC? There appears to be some tie-in. The credits roll and it shows all of the normal competitiors plus Jamie Geer. I did hear that he was going to work with the American Chopper folks and build a customized pit/ride...

If I recall, both of the Jambo's have been owned for a while (not purchased for the show)... Johnny had his at the class I took in spring and we competed against Tuffy's early last summer...

 

[tony76248]

It's not a fan sport and it will never become as big as NASCAR.

 

[tony76248]

If I recall, both of the Jambo's have been owned for a while (not purchased for the show)... Johnny had his at the class I took in spring and we competed against Tuffy's early last summer...

Johnny's is old design Tuffy's is the new design. I see them all the time here in the DFW Metroplex. Extremely high quality start to finish. They run about $7500 with the custom paint.

 

[BigJimsBBQ]

It's not a fan sport and it will never become as big as NASCAR.

I have been reading your post and not sure if you are kidding or not.

That said, I have truely believe that BBQ Contest could be as big as Nascar. I believe if all competing Cities get behind the event like a few do, this could surpass Nascar. What makes the fan in Nascar is the competition and winners, with great support from each of the event cities, sponsors and TV networks. That is the needed combination to become fan based.

 

[bruskee]

Johnny's is old design Tuffy's is the new design. I see them all the time here in the DFW Metroplex. Extremely high quality start to finish. They run about $7500 with the custom paint.

The trailer comes in 2 sizes, Jonny has the larger, (wider) with the chicken cooker on the passenger side of the trailer, and has alot of extra enclosed storage, Tuffy's is the smaller trailer only wide enough for the pit much more compact..... Jamie has always made both sizes ..

Scot