Page 18 - NOV2019 Digital Barbecue News Magazine

Dana “big papa” Hillis
BBQ From Florida
lighthousepointe@ hotmail.com
Every month for 14 years, I sit down and write some BBQ stories. I love sharing some pretty good tales. I have been blessed to have been involved when BBQ was taking off and met some genuinely great folks who bring back some fantastic memories.
My first contest ever and I thought I knew a little bit about cook- ing. I rolled into Sebring Florida with an old Brinkman offset and an old propane tank grill. I was up all night trying to keep a steady fire. During the night, I watched a guy across from me cooking on 2 Fast Eddy's and all he was doing was sitting in his chair, smok- ing cigarettes, and drinking diet coke. He went to bed early, got up late, and only got out of his chair a couple times. This fella wound up winning Grand Champion. Before heading back home, I intro- duced myself, asked him for more details about his cookers. I
Photos Courtesy of Dana Hillis ended up ordering one the next week!
I met a cook team called the Wolfe Brothers and was amazed that a couple of experienced cook guys would be so friendly and help- ful to a new guy. They invited me into their trailer and gave me a lot of tips and told me a secret or two about chicken. After a cou- ple of contests, I stumbled into getting a few chicken calls and they told me I could never step in their trailer again!
Janet watched all these teams working so hard and started feeling bad that some were staying up late and not getting any sleep (possibly having too many adult beverages). She also noticed that many of these cooks were not eating very much at the events. So she started
cooking break-
fast for every-
one. This
tradition went
on for 10 years
until a few
teams decided
the only reason
we ever won
was that Janet
cooked for the
judges. A cou-
ple other teams
decided they
would try and
win over the
judges too, but
a cold egg Mc-
Muffin did not
do the trick.
Eggs, bacon,
sausage, fresh
biscuits, and
homemade
gravy was the secret. Thank you to all the volunteers that came and helped her because it was a lot of work and it was delicious!
I met this team called Kick the Tire and Light the Fire. Mike Byrd, Maddawg, Daryl, and a few others made up a team of funloving awesome people. I thought it was the coolest name for a BBQ team ever, and it's still my favorite name. I would get a phone call
BBQ MEMORIES
BarbecueNews.com - 18
NOVEMBER 2019