How to improve my scores

[BBBQ 28]

Hows it going everyone. I've been competing for a couple years now with about 8 comps under my belt. I'm finding that I am consistently in the lower half and lately been on the bottom of the score cards. I'm looking for any advice on how to help improve my scores. Thanks everyone

[eggzlot]

Practice is important. But to really cut the learning curve take a class hosted by a team that does well in your area. Some say judging is slightly regionalized so best to learn from a team who cooks in your area

I say slightly regionalized because the good teams usually do well regardless where they cook

[JS-TX]

Are you getting comment cards? Cooking to the right tenderness and texture is important, flavors can vary but an overall balanced flavor will do well.

[BBBQ 28]

Thanks. I am in San Diego, ca. There aren't too many classes this way. I've heard about the regional thing, just trying to figure out what it is

[BBBQ 28]

JS-TX I got comment cards yesterday in vista, but the judges were brutal all around. I spoke to a couple buddies that recieved some as well and the consensus is that the judges this time were A holes. Past comps I havent been getting cards

[bam]

Practice,take good notes take a class or two. Repeat the process.

[DUBBAGA]

c'mon Christopher ... a musician doesn't blame his instrument

What did the comment cards say? This might help determining what you need to focus on. Your boxes all look fine, but the scores indicate taste/tenderness concerns.

[B'Mackin]

I sent you a PM - I cooked Vista yesterday too and would be happy to chat with you.

[Burnt at Both Endz]

Take a couple classes from top pitmasters. may seem expensive, but much cheaper than trying to figure it out on the fly.

[ModelMaker]

Considerably less expensive, and in my opinion a better choice is take the judges class and judge 5 or 10 contests. All your answers are right in front of you.
What it should look like, what taste and tenderness is a winner.
Yes it will take a while but nothing ever will just fall in lap.
Ed

[fwdiii]

Yes, take a judge class, get certified, judge a few competitions and you will see what taste, tenderness is being turned in.
Other than that, sign up for a class taught by a bbq team in your area, and practice!!

Best of luck!!!

[5am]

A class by a winning team is the way to go. If you're worried about the cost, take one contest you're planning to do, cancel your plans, and go take a class instead. The class might even be cheaper and you're probably going to learn more. At that point you have the flavors and techniques that work, you just have to learn to apply them correctly. Both classes I've taken have paid for themselves.

[Right on Q]

One thing I did when I started was to wear out the search function on this forum. I searched for hours on what sauces/rubs were commonly used, how to hit the right tenderness, etc. This really helped until I could take my first class.

Also, how have your tenderness scores been? That's where I usually look first.

[Pedro7]

We are in no way an "elite" team with our first couple calls this year, but the biggest thing that changed our scores for the better was that we stopped overthinking it. We practiced cooking the same cuts, trimmed the same way, using the same rubs/injections, at the same temps all the time.

It's so easy to look at all the other teams while you are there and see their sauce, their rubs, their pits, their temps, their times, their presentation, etc. It made us constantly question what we were doing. Cook YOUR food and try to keep the taste as neutral as possible. As I'm sure you know, don't make it too spicy, don't make it too sweet, etc. Experiment with different sauces/rubs. I researched a ton on here and found some good "go-tos" that have helped us place a lot higher.

Don't be afraid to talk to the winning teams and try to get some insights if you haven't already. Follow them on social media. We follow a bunch on instagram and always love seeing their pics of their boxes. The winners usually have been doing this awhile and know how to cook their brand of BBQ very well and try to do the same thing every single time. But, you may get a hint in to what are the go-to sauces/rubs in the area. What works here in the northeast could be totally different than what your judges want in CA. Once you have that, it's cook practice time.

[Ron_L]

What are your scores? Do some analysis to see where you need the most work, and focus on that. In most cases if you nail tenderness, the rest will improve.

Also, Big Brother Smoke (Simply marvelous) has done some classes in the LA area. It doesn't look like he has one scheduled now, but it is worth watching.

http://simplymarvelousbbq.com/classes