MN Meat Mafia, Ribapalooza 2011 Sauk Rapids MN

[IrishChef]

Well, I finally got my first comp out of the way. Overalll a great experience. Met a bunch of really great people, learned a few things along the way, and had a great time doing it. Erain and his wife even showed up, and had a barley pop and a snack. Wish the weather wasn't quite so "interesting" and my scores not so low. Anyhow, heres the rundown. Not proud, but it is what it is:
Overall: 620.57 22/26
chicken: 166.28 7/26
ribs: 153.14 23/26
pork: 161.14 14/26
brisket 139.99 25/26

When I feel awake, I will post some pics.

[erain]

one thing about judges, like you say right or wrong, good or bad, judges decision is final and what ultimatly counts...

attended my first BBQ comp tody, tasted some samples from a few different outfits, one did have a brisket to die for but everything else was not impressed at all. like i told wife, i can do better than this...

was good to put a face to the name IC and really liked what you did with the maple syrup and your ribs. thanks for the beer and good meeting you.

[gmotoman]

Looks like you kicked ass in Chicken(top 10). First comp and you weren't last is fine by me. Take the experience and apply it to the next comp. I say good job sir!

[Richtee]

Hey, congrats there IC... You have full results?

Those comps ain't easy- especially the first. Be proud you finished- seriously!

[wutang]

I have been wanting to do a comp and haven't yet so you get serious props from me. It might suck not hitting the scores you were hoping for but like you said..at least you learned something to take to the next one.

[IrishChef]

Well, heres a few pics, with turn ins, and scores to follow:

Setup on Friday:


Some smoked spam, which the guy setup next to us had never had before. He loved it:


A little pork prep, just before the storm moved in(note: if you have never tried Jack Daniels Honey, you should):


The storm, dropped about 2" of rain in 2 hours and hit about 1 am. Wanted to take a few more photos, but was all about damage control and mitigation at that point:


Ribs prepped:


More to follow.......

[Fishawn]

Congrats IC for getting into it & some good scores in a couple areas ..... I too would someday like to try a comp, just have not gotten the sack or right timing yet..... Good Job & next time top 10

[Squirrel]

Man! Great job on the chicken and pork! I can't wait to hear/see some of that. I think the first comp is getting a feel for how things roll. I bet the next one will be a little easier. Congrats!

[IrishChef]

Turn ins and scores:

Chicken:

998, 889, 988, 888, 878, 989.
I was the most worried about cooking the chicken, and it turned out to be my best meat. Spoke with a judge afterwards, who remembered judging it, and the only negative was that the skin was a bit tough on a few pieces.

Ribs:

777, 787, 876, 788, 766, 999(yeah, wtf?)
Overcooked. No excuse. Was afraid they would fall apart as I put them in the box. Heard that was a problem with many teams.

Pork:

798, 778, 898, 787, 889, 878.
I thought it turned out OK, but should have worked a bit more on injection, some of it was kinda bland. I know I got docked on presentation because the meat was touching the top of the box when we closed it up.

Brisket:

777, 879, 776, 766, 767, 877.
I was disappointed by the scores on this one, but in hindsight, should have chunked up some of the point and included that as well. I also forgot to add my secret comp injection juice to the aus jus that we dipped the slices in prior to going in the box.

[SmokinLee]

Great first time out IC. Big congrats to you and there is always something to learn from these.

[Mark R]

A top ten in chicken on your first try is just whistling Dixie! Well done I C!
And now yo know what you need to do.

[rbranstner]

You may not have done as well has you hoped but you got through it, learned a bunch and had a top 10 finish in chicken so props to you. Nothing to hang your head about. If it were easy everyone would do it. You'll nail it on the next go around I'm sure.

[IrishChef]

Complete results here.

[GOT14U]

Very cool, now you got one under your belt....and your score on chicken....you rocked it....that is one thing that keeps me from thinking of competing is the chicken...just don;t smoke enough of it to feel confident

[Critterhunter]

Good on ya.