Page 28 - NOV2019 Digital Barbecue News Magazine

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SCA World Championships
By: SC Angus
WOW! If you attended the World Championship, you’ll understand why I started this article with “WOW!” There’s just no other way to begin what can only be described as a triumph for Ken’s and Brett’s team. If you couldn’t make it then you need to make plans to be there the first weekend of Oc- tober 2020. Ken and Brett receive all the credit for putting this together and rightfully so, but they would be the first to tell you, they couldn’t have done it without such a remarkable team as well as the competitors.
It’s fitting that this article about the world champi- onships is in the Thanksgiving edition of the Na- tional BBQ News because there are a ton of “Thank You’s” to go around. There are so many people who make up the Championship Team it may be impos- sible to name every single one, but we will name many. Just know we are Thankful to everyone who had a hand in the success.
Venue
When offering up thanks where shall we begin other than the beginning and this is the venue it- self. What a remarkable place the Will Rogers Me- morial Auditorium is. Jackie and her team were very accommodating from the beginning of the planning process to the very end of the event. Her team seemed to be everywhere yet went unnoticed as they carried out their duties which made this venue so great. Gone was standing outside for the cooks’ meetings but rather we heard our instructions in the air-conditioned auditorium as we got to sit in comfy theater seats. This theater setting was befit-
ting a World Championship awards show and a show it was, complete balls being shot into the crowd where the lucky person could win a prize. With walk up music, slide shows depicting the awards and an all-around great time, no one left the Will Rogers Auditorium feeling like they’ve lost.
We mustn’t forget the Red-Carpet Welcome Recep- tion and Awards at the River Ranch in Ft. Worth Thursday night. Every time I visit the River Ranch, I’m always impressed with how versatile the facili- ties are. From a full-service kitchen where Mark Lambert and his Operation BBQ Relief team pre- pared a great meal to the outside stage where the band was entertaining at the after party. The squir- rel whisperer himself, Joe Wilson, kept the night entertaining as the crowd watched introductions of the international teams (and there were several) all the way through the awards as we crowned Matt Ouverson 2019 SCA Ace Hardware Points World Champion. Thank you to all who made these ven- ues such great places for our ceremonies.
Load in Team
For many who have put on events you know this part can be a logistical nightmare, The “make it easy” side of you wants to just say, “Park anywhere you can find space,” but the realistic side knows there needs to be a lot of planning to get everyone in the area. The team of Danny Kennedy and Saf- fron Hodgson did just that. This team arrived ear- lier in the week to do final walk throughs, mapping and measuring to make sure everyone had adequate space to cook and even entertain friends in the
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NOVEMBER 2019