The cost of getting started

Crap! Thanks a lot for that! :lol: I seem to have been getting a bit testy in that thread!

SORRY DAVE!!!
 
G$ said:
"Bump"
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G,

Thanks for the bump. Reading this has helped me asI get ready for my first comp. My has been somewhat expensive since I had to buy a trailer, well I guess that I didn't have to but the better half said I could! We have a small car with no way of holding my chargriller and kettle. However, alot of the utensils,rubbermaids, and smaller items we already had. We've also had to buy a cooler (100 qt) and one table and will probably add another one of each of those. Gonna have to look at a turkey fryer though if my coleman stove doesn't work well for heating up the water. Also, I am going to take one of the cooking classes thru KCBS the end of the month not so much for the cooking itself, but I have a lot of questions about some of the other things like food prep,sanitation, and the like.

I think that the key is what others have said about what "works for you".

g
 
My Stuff (on the cheap)



I have spent a total of maybe $1000 on everything, what you donot see is the tables, canopies, etc... In another truck. Ongoing expenses have come down, I just learn to deal with what I have, and dream of what I cannot afford.

Yes I have to mow all of that crap....... Just under 1 acre

p.s. aint my Bandera trailer cute?????
 

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Major point here... buying "a" cooler won't work. I have found you can never have too much cooler space. Heck, you'll need a great big one just to keep your seasoned meat on ice til time to put on the fire. You will need another for drinks/beer and another for food, juices for sprays, etc. Then you'll need a cooler just for garnish. We carry no less than 5-6 coolers with us. We have a 100 quart cooler we use sometimes. Most times, it's too damned heavy to lift!

Second suggestion: Get a coleman Hot Water On Demand!! Fark turkey fryers! I was going through $25 in propane per contest using turkey fryers to light coals and boil water. Now I use a $2 propane canister (1 pound) for the Coleman and a $2.39 package of weber charcoal lighter cubes. Saving myself about $20 per contest this way. $20 x 12 = chitload!
 
It adds upfor sure. I spend a good chunk on stuff only to toss it and buy better for the next run.
 
Welcome to the world of competition BBQ..... :) Its a beutifull financial drain that you will love! You wont need 1/3 of the stuff on your list, just be sure to sit back and drink some brews and give yourself some alone time to cook through the whole contest in your head. A lot of cooks advocate a trial run but this can be accomplished in one well thought out mental cook. As long as you have your essentials everything else is just a "bling" factor. That is until your second contest, when you realize how much bling is really needed. :)
 
The_Kapn said:
Just read somewhere that the ROYAL (I assume both Open and Invitational) does not supply clean-up water :twisted:
Amazing.
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The AR has a water wagon traveling the grounds regularly--but not at nite! On top of all that is in the 6x12 featherlite now there is a 65gal watertank in the backof the F150--can't have too much water
 
seth711 said:
Welcome to the world of competition BBQ..... :) Its a beutifull financial drain that you will love! You wont need 1/3 of the stuff on your list, just be sure to sit back and drink some brews and give yourself some alone time to cook through the whole contest in your head. A lot of cooks advocate a trial run but this can be accomplished in one well thought out mental cook. As long as you have your essentials everything else is just a "bling" factor. That is until your second contest, when you realize how much bling is really needed. :)
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The only thing that is saving me right now is that I am leaving another hobby that will give me most of the money that I need to buy that "bling" :wink:

g
 
Tim and I have gotten our stuff trimmed down to the point we can do an event with either his van or my Explorer...pulling the Kingfisher. However, we still tend to carry an extra table or two and plenty of coolers.

I always have the propane bottle since I preheat the cooker while the charcoal is getting started so the turkey fryer is no real burden. We used an electric hotplate at Rucker with my aluminum fish fry pot and it worked fine except for the time - the fryer heats things up in a hurry. That being said, I sure wouldn't mind a Coleman "on-demand" hot water heater.
 
seth711 said:
Welcome to the world of competition BBQ..... :) Its a beutifull financial drain that you will love! You wont need 1/3 of the stuff on your list, just be sure to sit back and drink some brews and give yourself some alone time to cook through the whole contest in your head. A lot of cooks advocate a trial run but this can be accomplished in one well thought out mental cook. As long as you have your essentials everything else is just a "bling" factor. That is until your second contest, when you realize how much bling is really needed. :)
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How about your 4th or 5th, when you realize you didn't tough 1/3 of what you brought with you, after loading, unloading, not using, then loading and unloading again at home!
 
I agree Curt, we have certainly slimmed the stuff we have. If we have not touched it in 2 contests...it's gone. WE have everything packed and ready to go in rubbermaids. We though it on the trailer and off we go...if only we did not need a fleet of coolers
 
Can never have enough tables and coolers in my opinion. We started out in cots under the canopy, and after many years of refining..... have ended up in a toy hauler with the smoker in the back, and all our gear loaded. Only thing we bring in and out are coolers (for the most part).

Cooked the Kansas City APWA event this year with the truck, canopy and cooker..... and it was a hoot. Proved to myself I could still go minimalist

This is a great thread for the new folk.... enjoy! I vaguely remember gas at $2.55..... Diesel is $3.24 right now..... so I blow through $110 with no problem just filling the tank to go to a contest!!!
 
voodoobbqIL said:
I agree Curt, we have certainly slimmed the stuff we have. If we have not touched it in 2 contests...it's gone. WE have everything packed and ready to go in rubbermaids. We though it on the trailer and off we go...if only we did not need a fleet of coolers
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Kevin, I should have grabbed a lesson is paring down equipment from you in Grand Rapids! I am the world's WORST at taking ONLY the essentials! I'm into creature comforts... big coffee pots, window unit A/Cs for the van, every gadget I find "cool", etc. I take about three sets of clothes more than I'll ever change into. It just goes on and on! And God forbid we take the "Friday Night Parties" box of chit too! :roll:
 
Jeff, believe me I understand and there still are things I bring to make me comfortable, but I treat it like I do any other event I travel for. I bring my Craftsmen tool bag and my Ipod for the long night but other than that it is all BBQ stuff. As for the clothes I bring a change of threads but I triple up on socks, and underwear. And the thing that I never leave home without (not my AMEX) but the Gold Bond powder...
 
Kevin, man oh man did you hit on it there! I have learned the hard way that GBP is priceless in the heat and humidity! And I learned in Carmel this year to take at least a couple extra team shirts... I had to go to awards with a tan shirt with charcoal all over it... Fortunately for me, our food was loathed, and we were in NO danger of taking any walks!
 
chad said:
Kevin, HomeBBQ.com, pulls a Lang 84 with his full sized van. He uses the one cooker and everything in the van comes out (canopy, tables, water heater, shelves for his spices, etc. and he sleeps (usually) on an air matress in the van or the lawn chair under the canopy. A lot depends on whether Clara is with him. If she's not there he stays with the lawn chair.
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My my how things change. Kevin has upgraded slightly since this was first published.
 
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