Oinktoberfest 2013, KCBS Competition

Last weekend, we wrapped up the New York portion of our competition schedule by competing in Oinktoberfest in Clarence, NY.  As always, this was a great event and good fun was had by all.  Unfortunately, Saturday was a challenge.  We received three inches of rain, starting at 5:30 am and ending, ironically enough, right after the award ceremony at 5:30 pm.  After that, the place turned into a bit of a quagmire.  But there is nothing you can do about that.  I felt sorry for some of the teams that had their team sites right up against a barn.  The downspouts drained into their sites adding another layer of discomfort to an already miserable weather day.  Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Illicit BBQ dealings concerning top secret brisket rub...

Cooks meeting.  It is tough to cram 71 teams in a garage...

Guest of honor...

Niagara Falls, at least a smaller version.  I wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel...

Our good friends from Locked and Loaded BBQ trying to keep dry...

When you don't have a regular umbrella, a beach umbrella will do.  One of the guys from Buckner Brothers BBQ with a moment of lucid ingenuity...

Lets review our scores.

I am happy to report that the upward trend has continued and we couldn't be happier.

The chicken scored a 167.4400, good for 10 out of 71

Our ribs continue to kill our overall scores.  The ribs scored a 145.6456, good for 49 out of 71.  Our taste and tenderness are off.  I suppose we have to do more time in the foil and take some of the spice out of the rub.  I have some ideas for our last competition this year.

Our pork scored a 161.1200, good for 25 out of 71.  Frankly, I am surprised it did that well.  It was a bit on the dry side, but we'll take it and say thank you.

Our brisket was the shock of the weekend.  It has always given us trouble.  But, we changed a few things in the injection and made sure to cook a bit longer.  When we were tasting, we knew it was the best we had ever made.  But, it doesn't matter what we think.  How did we do?  172.5828 and 5th out of 71.  We didn't even win our table!  I just hope we can keep the brisket quality this good.

Overall, we came in 17th out of 71.  That was a point total of 646.7884 again improving over our last competition in Hudson Valley.  Full contest results can be found here.

For the year, Three Dogs finished 34th in the Empire State BBQ Championship.  Hopefully we can keep improving next year.

Congrats to Smokin' Hoggz BBQ, our Grand Champion.  I'll say it again, they have been on a tear since winning the 2011 Jack.  Keep up the good work.  Congratulations are in order for Fatty MacBarbeque, our Reserve Grand Champion.  You have been on a bit of a tear since winning Boston Hills.  Keep it up!

Also, we would like to thank the contest organizer, George Booth, for putting together a great contest at a great venue.  How about we skip the rain next year?

Thanks for stopping by,

Bill