BBQ Events: Hudson Valley Ribfest - The Results

Well folks, it's time to reveal our standings at the end of the Hudson Valley Ribfest.

Drum roll please.......

In the NEBS sanctioned grilling contest - we came in 24th. Ugh.

In the KCBS sanctioned barbecue contest, we did it! We came in first! Forty-first actually. Not exactly what I was hoping for, but not exactly bad. I'm looking at the pictures of our turn in boxes and nothing looks outstanding. I think we finished where we belonged.

For a group of guys who have never cooked with each other before, we did damn good. We submitted all of our meat in every category, on time. Ask anyone who's competed; that's not a small accomplishment.

But as a team we were very disorganized. As of Friday afternoon, we were still debating recipes. Hell we didn't even have our fish or chicken purchased. As a matter of fact, our fish and chicken were purchased after the meat inspection on Saturday morning. Don't worry, they were all inspected before we cooked them. Hey, we follow the rules.

As a team, we have a lot to learn; about each other, about how to cook together, how to criticize each other's cooking, how to accept criticism, how to communicate with each other both in words and in action and how to perform that special dance that will win a contest. In up coming posts I'll talk about what we cooked, how we cooked it and why, but not tonight.

It would be a lie to say that I'm not a bit disappointed by our results, but the important thing is that we had a great time cooking together. Mike, Mike and John are some of the greatest people on earth and I wouldn't have missed this chance to get to know them better for anything. As Spanky once sang, "maybe we'll do it again someday."