Have the Roker Smokers ever won a BBQ competition?

Seems like every time I see ol'Al Q'in on FoodTV he never even places.

--
JaKe, Seattle
"People never understood, that the drum is a musical instrument."
Elvin Jones

JaKe wrote:

> Have the Roker Smokers ever won a BBQ competition?
>
> Seems like every time I see ol'Al Q'in on FoodTV he never even places.

Who would expect a first-time team to place at the Memphis in May
contest? AFAIK, they never even won a contest prior to entering one of
the biggest BBQ contests in the world.

--
Aloha,

Nathan Lau
San Jose, CA

#include <std.disclaimer>

"JaKe" > wrote in message
...
> Have the Roker Smokers ever won a BBQ competition?
>
> Seems like every time I see ol'Al Q'in on FoodTV he never even places.
>
> -
He got invited to Memphis in May, so doesn't that mean he at least won at a
qualfier?

I watched the Memphis in May show he had on Food TV. The scary thing was
that I would have done everything the way he did, and they came in something
like 82nd. And he had a lot more money to spend on equipment....


--
Greg Leman
Carolina Sauce Company, Inc.
http://www.carolinasauce.com
A wide variety of sauces and specialty foods over the web.

"Greg Leman" > wrote in message .com>...
> "JaKe" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Have the Roker Smokers ever won a BBQ competition?
> >
> > Seems like every time I see ol'Al Q'in on FoodTV he never even places.
> >
> > -
> He got invited to Memphis in May, so doesn't that mean he at least won at a
> qualfier?
>
> I watched the Memphis in May show he had on Food TV. The scary thing was
> that I would have done everything the way he did, and they came in something
> like 82nd. And he had a lot more money to spend on equipment....


not that i'm a great q'er or anything, but you could tell he didn't
have full knowledge of rib preparation becasue there was a segment
that showed a judge giving al the third degree about his team's
cooking process. he told the judge he kept the rubbed and preped
ribs(membrane off) REFRIGERATED until just before puting them in the
smoker. i guess he thought he was showing the judge he was being safe
with the meat before starting to smoke them.

gotta bring the meat up to room temeperature first, al

> I watched the Memphis in May show he had on Food TV. The scary thing was
> that I would have done everything the way he did, and they came in
something
> like 82nd. And he had a lot more money to spend on equipment....

We were just 5 or so booths north of him.

But to give you all a heads up. The Fri night the park was closed and all
sleep over team members were kicked out. It was a tornado and they didn't
want any scenery decapitating anyone.

The Rib competition is about 125 + or - teams. There are probably 40 teams
that compete in at least 5 contests a year. Unfortunately www.adribbers.com
only does MIM. This year we got a few 8's because of tenderness. That kept
us in the top 50% of teams.

It's a tough competition and the quality of the judges, well they need so
many. It's hard to find talent when your fishing for bodies.

So Al had $, and he bought the best in equipment. He had good technique and
it showed in his show. He got into the middle of the pack.

It's a tough contest. Is your sauce or your rub too spicy for wimps? Do
you have hard core judges who want more than just smoke? Are they looking
for the pink ring inside your meat? Is it all in the tear? what makes
them stop giving a 10?

Stephen Russell wrote:
> It's a tough contest. Is your sauce or your rub too spicy for wimps?
> Do you have hard core judges who want more than just smoke? Are they
> looking for the pink ring inside your meat? Is it all in the tear?
> what makes them stop giving a 10?

This weekend I made what was probably my best spareribs batch yet but would
probably never pass muster at a competition. A little garlic salt and a lot
of course ground pepper cooked slow with oak. Smoky but not too much, tender
and toothy, tasted like pork still, this is one of the few batches I've had
absolutely no urge to use sauce on. (Grew up accustomed to wet ribs). From
what I read it would probably score in the bottom 5%. And yes, I leave the
membrane on, it seems to keep the juices in.

That whole competition thing seems to be more about the event than the food.
Not that the food made is necessarily bad, just the focus seems to be more
on the process and the event is all I mean to say.
Not that I wouldnt join a team for a weekend just for the fun of it.

D
--

"Stephen Russell" > wrote in message
...
> > I watched the Memphis in May show he had on Food TV. The scary thing was
> > that I would have done everything the way he did, and they came in
> something
> > like 82nd. And he had a lot more money to spend on equipment....
>
> We were just 5 or so booths north of him.

Ricky will probably weigh in on this soon but I have to say cook-off criteria
has nothing to do with good barbecue in a sense.

IMO they only thing they should be judged on is how the food tastes. Who gives a
shit how cool the booth looks?

_________
ht_redneck

Tyler Hopper wrote:
> "Stephen Russell" > wrote
> in message ...
>>> I watched the Memphis in May show he had on Food TV. The scary
>>> thing was that I would have done everything the way he did, and
>>> they came in
>> something
>>> like 82nd. And he had a lot more money to spend on equipment....
>>
>> We were just 5 or so booths north of him.
>
> Ricky will probably weigh in on this soon but I have to say cook-off
> criteria has nothing to do with good barbecue in a sense.
>
> IMO they only thing they should be judged on is how the food tastes.
> Who gives a shit how cool the booth looks?
>
> _________
> ht_redneck

Ditto to that Tyler, but Q contests really aren't about Q taste, they're a
show, an extravaganza. And who's to say what a judge will like? Sticky
sweet ribs or dry rubbed? Tomato sauce smothered brisket? I know what *I*
like and I could care less about what some judge might prefer on any given
day.
But for those who like to compete, go for it...have a good time.

Jack Curry
-dry rubbed ribs for me-

"Tyler Hopper" > wrote in message
>
> Ricky will probably weigh in on this soon but I have to say cook-off
criteria
> has nothing to do with good barbecue in a sense.
>
> IMO they only thing they should be judged on is how the food tastes. Who
gives a
> shit how cool the booth looks?

IMO, appearance is a factor, but a very small one. Only certain types of
greens allowed? Do away with the greens and just use the meat. Maybe 5% of
the score should be appearance.

I agree that contests and real barbecue have nothing in common. Cooking to
what you think a bunch of judges will like is different than cooking what
you think is proper food and putting it up against other contestants.
Present rules try to homogenize flavor rather than encourage individuality.

I've been to contests, spent time with the entrants, tasted their food. The
gathering is a fine social event where a lot of food is cooked. I've
enjoyed being there amongst like minded friends. The winners, however, do
not always make the "best" of anything according to my tastes. Enjoy the
contest, enjoy competing, but if you don't win a trophy, maybe it is because
your cooking is better than the others.
Ed

http://pages.cthome.net/edhome

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
> "Tyler Hopper" > wrote in message
>>
>> Ricky will probably weigh in on this soon but I have to say cook-off criteria
>> has nothing to do with good barbecue in a sense.
>>
>> IMO they only thing they should be judged on is how the food tastes. Who
>> gives a shit how cool the booth looks?
>
> IMO, appearance is a factor, but a very small one. Only certain types of
> greens allowed? Do away with the greens and just use the meat. Maybe 5% of
> the score should be appearance.

As I understand it, the FlaBBQ Association does not allow garnishes with the
entries.
http://www.flbbq.org/fba_rules.htm

13. DISQUALIFICATION – An entry can be disqualified by the FBA Representative
only. An entry can be disqualified for any of the following reasons:
b. There is anything in the box besides the meat.

BOB
agreeing completely with this

"Duwop" > wrote in message
...
> Stephen Russell wrote:
> That whole competition thing seems to be more about the event than the
food.
> Not that the food made is necessarily bad, just the focus seems to be more
> on the process and the event is all I mean to say.
> Not that I wouldnt join a team for a weekend just for the fun of it.

Tell that to blind judging. That is where we loose instead of win.

It's all about the food first and when a judge comes to visit your booth
that is just too easy to not get 9's.

"Jack Curry" <Jack-Curry deletethis @cfl.rr.com> wrote in message
news:zoGCc.146261
> Ditto to that Tyler, but Q contests really aren't about Q taste, they're a
> show, an extravaganza. And who's to say what a judge will like? Sticky
> sweet ribs or dry rubbed? Tomato sauce smothered brisket? I know what
*I*
> like and I could care less about what some judge might prefer on any given
> day.
> But for those who like to compete, go for it...have a good time.


You are so far off the mark with this remark. Sorry but it's the blind
judging that makes or breaks you.

If you had a 4 or 5 ft trophy from any contest it would make you feel beter.
Getting the purse with the "wood" well that just makes it more fun......

__Stephen

__Stephen

"Edwin Pawlowski" > wrote in message
m...
> IMO, appearance is a factor, but a very small one. Only certain types of
> greens allowed? Do away with the greens and just use the meat. Maybe 5%
of
> the score should be appearance.

Judging rule #1 toss the garnish before the meat hits the table.


> I agree that contests and real barbecue have nothing in common. Cooking
to
> what you think a bunch of judges will like is different than cooking what
> you think is proper food and putting it up against other contestants.
> Present rules try to homogenize flavor rather than encourage
individuality.

The joy of a contest. What do they want compared to what I want. I can
show you a bunch of missdle of the road trophys for what we like.
http://www.adribbers.com/html/winning_record.html for just what we have
gotten wood for.

> I've been to contests, spent time with the entrants, tasted their food.
The
> gathering is a fine social event where a lot of food is cooked. I've
> enjoyed being there amongst like minded friends. The winners, however, do
> not always make the "best" of anything according to my tastes. Enjoy the
> contest, enjoy competing, but if you don't win a trophy, maybe it is
because
> your cooking is better than the others.
> Ed

Can I get an AMEN!

_Stephen