Annual Vista BBQ Competition

Lots of great BBQ teams competing today, come down and enjoy the amazing food.
Stop by When Pigs Fly and thank the organizer Dale for his hard work

Street Fair — BBQ Competition
August 2013 — 5^th Annual
There are so many ways to evaluate this event that it will be difficult to try, so I shall try via pieces.
STREET FAIR
Along with the competition, there were plenty of vendors selling their wares, bands, a stage for little ones to perform and a motorcycle competition. Shaved ice, lemonade, etc. appeared to be busy, some of the bands were decent, but nothing to get excited over. The motorcycle show had a decent turnout, but the couple of times that I walked by, nobody seemed interested. I would probably stop at 3 stars on this piece.
BBQ COMPETITION
Competitors showed up mid-​day Friday to begin preparation to cook all night, or at least most of it. There was about 40 competition teams, each with different equipment, meats, etc, believing that their formula was the best of the best. For a novice, such as myself, I was able to discuss their process and procedures with ease, none appeared to hold back information for fear that I would steal their secrets. I also spent 45 minutes with a master judge who shared information regarding how things are judged and the variety of criteria. After the competition meats were turned in, the public could buy tickets to try some of the teams efforts — not all teams were participating in this though. I did not buy tickets, but was able to try some of the meats that my new found friends gave me. Everything cooked perfectly, moist and tender. It however was a bit sweeter than I would like on my dinner table. I was told that is what the judges want, so that is what they prepare.
BBQ EDUCATION
The public was invited to attend on Friday from 5−8pm and again Saturday from 12 – 4. IF you have a desire to improve your own BBQ preparation, here is a good place to come. Do not bother to attend on the first day — the teams are busy leveling trailers, finding where the cold beer is and possibly playing cards. There is also a meeting for the teams to go over the rules and next days events, which you will not attend. Most teams put their brisket on at about 2am. My greatest period of learning came between 6am and 11 am on the second day. Teams had time to talk and were a bit more relaxed. From 12 – 2, the teams are preparing their boxes for judging and do not have time to talk. After 2, some teams cleanup and others offer samples. In regards to samples, I noticed that several teams do not give out samples of things that went to the judges, some gave away pig candy & meatballs.
RESULTS
I did not stick around to see the results. But you could find them here, along with other BBQ competition information:
The most common smoker was the 22″ Weber Smokey Mountain with a Stoker controller on it.
The second most popular was
or
Third most popular setup was by a local welder
As of this competition, «Left Coast Q» is in first place and they had a smoker from
Another notable smoker would be
Briquettes, wood & pellets were all being used. No common wood, or combination of woods used. Most of the meats did not come from your local Ralph’s, but came from a butcher or was specially purchased Wagyu. Competitors spent anywhere from $ 500 to $ 1500 in materials for the competition.