A sanctioned barbecue contest is a long weekend, a lot of work and a lot of fun. You cook the same meats the best teams cook, a few feet from them, and judges who have never heard of you score what you made without knowing whose it is. Here is how the weekend goes, what it costs, what to bring and the rules that catch most first-timers.
Start small and close to home
Pick a contest within a few hours’ drive with a small field, so a mistake costs little. Many first-timers begin in a Backyard class: the KCBS Backyard Series is chicken and ribs, so there are two turn-ins instead of four. The BBQOps schedule lists the contests coming up near you, by state and date.
How the weekend goes
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Friday | Arrive, find your space and set up. Meat inspection is at the time the organizer sets, and not earlier than the day before judging. Cooking cannot begin until your meat has been inspected. |
| Friday evening or Saturday morning | The cooks’ meeting: the schedule, anything particular to this contest, and who to ask. |
| Friday night | If you cook low and slow, the first meat goes on overnight. Quiet time at KCBS contests runs from 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM unless the event says otherwise. |
| Saturday | Cook, build your boxes and walk them to the turn-in table. The usual KCBS order is chicken at noon, ribs at 12:30, pork at 1:00 and brisket at 1:30. |
| Saturday afternoon | Judging is blind: each box carries only a number, and a table of judges scores it. Awards follow. |
What it costs
Each contest sets its own entry fee, and for many sanctioned contests it is a couple of hundred dollars. Add meat, fuel, ice, supplies, gas and a night or two of lodging, and a modest weekend commonly comes to somewhere between five hundred and a thousand dollars. A long drive or a big contest costs more. Meat and travel are usually the biggest parts. These are rough figures from cooks’ reports, not a quote.
What to bring
- A cooker you know how to run, and more fuel than you think you need
- A 10 by 10 canopy with weights and side walls, tables and chairs
- Coolers and plenty of ice: one for the meat, one for drinks
- Your meat, in the cooler at 40°F or below
- Rubs, sauces and injections, mixed ahead
- Foil, pans, butcher paper, gloves, towels and trash bags
- An instant-read thermometer, a probe thermometer, knives and cutting boards
- Extension cords, a light, a clock and a notebook
- Water for washing hands, soap, sanitizer and paper towels
- A fire extinguisher and a first-aid kit
- Sunscreen, rain gear and warm clothes
The rules that catch first-timers
- Meat is inspected before you do anything to it. At KCBS it must be raw. Do not trim, season or inject before inspection.
- Turn-in times are exact. At KCBS a box is accepted from five minutes before to five minutes after its time, with no tolerance, and a late box is not accepted and scores a zero. Be in line early.
- The box is the organizer’s numbered container. Never mark it. Only the meat and legal garnish go in.
- Keep meat at 40°F or below until it is cooked, and hot at 140°F or above after.
- Quiet time is real, and excessive noise in it can get a team disqualified.
Be a good neighbor
Cooks are generous. Introduce yourself to the teams on either side, ask before you borrow, and give back when you can. Everyone remembers their first contest, and most of them will tell you where they buy their meat.
Make your first plan
The Comp Day Timeline works backward from every turn-in to the minute the meat goes on, and forward from inspection to the trim. Put in your own turn-in times and it builds the whole weekend.
- KCBS rules and contestsKansas City Barbeque Society
- IBCA rules and contestsInternational Barbeque Cookers Association
- MBN rules and contestsMemphis Barbecue Network