Amazing what you learn while getting your ass kicked, isn't it?
Believe me, Tim and I understand completely!
Ice, it ain't who you know - it really is blind judging. You gotta pay your dues and learn what is expected at THAT contest. Regional preferences, local que, etc. all come into play. With this many teams you had a lot of judges - what one table scored has no connection with the next table.
But hey, if this was easy EVERYONE would be doing it!
Kick, you sound like Tim and me when we talk about the FBA!!
We haven't figured it out - but we're much more at peace than we were last year. We've competed against a good number of the teams you saw. They do the FL circuit during the winter!
We've been consistent but unfortunately our consistent is middle of the pack overall.
We're thinking about doing Dillard, GA, a KCBS contest, in August. It'll be way up in north GA, so the Carolina style of doing 'que will come into play. We'll be learning to cook in a another new area.
Kevin, HomeBBQ, went up and took GC last year and he's planning to defend - he'll have Clara with him this year so things should go pretty smooth. Tim and I are debating but will probably go if we can get the $$$ together.
This stuff is frustrating but like the Maryland Lottery used to say "You gotta play to win!"
Hang tough. Do a post mortem over the next few days. Try and be real objective - and that will be hard to do. Pony up the $$$ and try it again.