Page 37 - July 2020 Barbecue News Magazine

majority of the teams knew some of the other teams they were paired with on their virtual team. However, a quarter of the teams did not know any of the teams on their virtual squad when they embarked on this adventure. Sev- enty-five percent of the teams re- ported they enjoyed being paired with other teams, while the idea grew on the remaining quarter of the teams.
What did you like best about
doing this virtual competition?
The majority of the teams re-
ported they were happy to have a
competition to focus on, get a
chance to practice their skills,
and to be able to interact with
BBQ friends. Many teams also
said they enjoyed getting a
chance to bounce ideas off each
other - an opportunity that doesn’t always happen at real- life competitions. Kyle Kuhn of Hot Daddy’s BBQ pointed out another big advantage of the virtual competition for- mat which was “No time line pressure, we were able to make everything look the way we wanted and double/triple check it.” Nick Palmer of Q 12 Barbecue said “Even my kids had a hand on our final touches and turn [in] pictures. It was fun to have them be able to see what we do first hand.” What an awesome way to grow the next generation of pit- masters!
What did you find most challenging about doing a vir- tual competition vs. regular competition?
Photos, photos, photos, and more photos! Getting the lighting, the angle, the arrangement, and the focus just right was a challenge for all the teams. “I wish I was a food stylist”, said Brady Bergey of Bergey Boys Blazing BBQ.
Tory and Paula Ketelsen of T Daddy's BBQ shared “In a normal comp, ap- pearance is just a fraction of the score and your presentation can be manip- ulated to hide flaws”. All of the teams took on a new appreciation for the detail and appearance of their entries.
Is there anything you learned dur- ing this competition that you will use in regular competitions?
Most teams reported they learned to pay more attention to their trimming and attention to detail in building their boxes. Teams also benefited from seeing turn-in boxes from other teams, which doesn’t happen during normal comp. It provided a great op- portunity to gain some tips from what other teams are doing. And of course there’s always one team in the NO Shiggin’ Zone who reported, “Yes, but I can't give away secrets!”
What was one bit of wisdom shared by the national winners that you really liked?
For the winners that met with Boomerang BBQ, Matt Walker shared that to win big, you
should really focus on your meat quality and selection. Sounds like great advice... but now, where to find meat with the current shortages?
Judges Perspective (Names withheld to protect the in- nocent) :
This was the first virtual competition for all the Border Bat- tle judges. And 100% said they
would judge another virtual contest. My read, it sounded like it wasn’t too terrible staring at all the delicious food you couldn’t actually eat.
Nick Palmer
JULY 2020
BarbecueNews.com - 37
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