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Sunday, March 05, 2006

BBQ Contest Alternatives

I have an idea for a bbq contest where the competitors cook meat that is provided by the contest organizer instead of bringing their own. The price of the meat would be included in the registration fee for the contest. Buying the meat from wholesalers would help keep costs low for the competitors and would also help to level the playing field for the competitors.

If everyone were using the same type and quality of meat (whether high or low quality), it would offer a more balanced approach to the competition. The contest results would be focused more upon who the good cook's really are versus who has a better source for meat and who is willing or able to spend a lot of extra money for the best chicken, beef, and pork.

In this manner all competitors would come to the event with empty coolers. This would allow the bbq contest organizers to do a more thorough job of inspecting the coolers and would thwart attempts to circumvent the rules. Under the current system, all of the coolers in a cook team's contest site are not always inspected and there is opportunity for the unscrupulous to bring "extra" meat that might not comply with the spirit of the rules.

Competitors would draw #'s for their meat and it could be distributed at the cook team's meeting. Meat preparation would be conducted in plain view and not behind closed doors of an RV, camper or cook team trailer. In this manner, the meat preparation would take place following the cook's meeting and the contests reps ability to police the preparation would improve. This would also add an extra element of intrigue for spectators. Since the meat preparation would be happening concurrently, spectators would be better able to see what's going on.

Another idea for consideration....

Put the competitors in a centralized area with a controlled entry and exit point. Bring the competitors and cooking equipment into the centralized cooking area and any coolers, cookers, boxes, etc. coming in or out of the area would be subject to inspection.

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