Page 30 - DEC2021 Digial Issue: Barbecue News Magazine

THE BEGINNING
After moving back to Minnesota from a stint in Austin, Texas, our barbecue senses were piqued and nothing could compare. My husband does what I like to call “rabbit-hol- ing” and researched all things barbecue and started smok- ing his own meat. One smoker led to another, and more research, and more smokers. I believe we’re at seven, now.
After watching one too many bbq shows, we decided it might be time to give competing a shot. My husband, Mike, started researching, and then practicing. The KCBS Back- yard Series seemed like the place to start. One of the hand- ful of competitions in Minnesota was Minnesota in May, which was somewhat close to us. After talking with a cou- ple members of the MN BBQ Society, we decided to go for it.
Author: Natalie Olson from YardPigs BBQ Team
We showed up with our 1984 camper trying not to look like rookies. We were lucky to be in a site next to another new- comer, and a veteran team containing a trained chef. The bbq community contains teams who are highly trained, who just like to fire up their smokers, who make it a family thing, who make it a guys weekend, and some just try it on a whim! After a 6th place overall finish and meeting some great people, we decided to commit to the season.
Starting with backyard competitions (chicken and ribs) ended up being a great decision for our first year. We man- aged to do eight KCBS competitions all within three hours of our home. Four of those competitions had 30+ teams and none had less than 15. Don’t let the name “backyard” fool you, there are some very good teams competing today. For
BarbecueNews.com - 30
DECEMBER 2021