Wow, what a weekend. We got our mini camper out at the cooksite on Wed the 13th, cooker out on the evening of Thurs the 14th and arrived for the cook @ about 1500 on the afternoon of Fri the 15th. Lots of people, both cook teams and spectators.
Checked in at registration table and they inspected our cooking meat, also had random walk around inspections to make sure everything was being kept clean and @ proper temps till we got it on the cooker.
Got our canopy set up and cooked some home made ranch style beans (very spicy), brawts and venison cajun hot links for supper, had a few cocktails. It was great with all the spectators and competetors alike roaming the area, trying each others food. Lots of great and really inventive cooks out there.
Fired up the DPP and got the 10 briskets for Childrens Advocacy Center on the cookeraround 1800 or so, (only taking them to rare and then wrapping them and freezing them to be finished in a MES on the 26th) and the ham for St Benedicts homeless kitchen on Tues the 19th.
We got our comp briskets rubbed and on at about 2300 on a nice even 225*, 5 of them. (3 briskets pre sold @ $7.50 a lb and also a rack of spares @ $ 15.00) We put all briskets on so we could choose from the best for our turn in. All briskets rubbed with simple Sea Salt and CGBP rub, one slathered in mustard first.
Weather was nice, high 60's, light breeze, nowhere in sight was the 60% chance of rain the weatherman had predicted. Our night shift officer got off work around 0200 and lives in Buffalo Springs so he came by and had some beans and sausage and we started noticing some lightning north and west of the canyon we were in, but usually when it gets so late in the evening there just isn't enough heat left to fire off anything big so no worries. Pulled the briskets @ 140* internal, line of sauce on top, wrapped and back on smoker till morning.
I offered to take first watch on smoker duty and night officer went home and partner went to pickup to catch first hour of sleep at about 0330.
I had my alarm set for 0400 and digital remote thermo alarm set to sound if temp dropped below 215* so I dozed a little only to be awaken by a huge flash of light and deafening crack of thunder.........and then the rain. Not to much at first, just light. Then my temp alarm went off, grate temp below 215*. Thats ok, a little rain, a little more wood= keeps temps up........Then the sky opened up and the rain came down, and down, and down. I still am thinking more wood, more heat = everything will be ok. Temp alarm goes off again. Grated temps drop to 168* and I call my partner to wake him up, I am soaked all the way through and now so is he from the 30 foot run from his pickup to the canopy. We finally decide we have got to get the smoker under the canopy to keep the firebox and cook chamber dry and heat back up........
Now remember back to where I stated that we were in a canyon, water usually runs down hill to collect in the lake situated in the bottom of said canyon. Moving a huge smoker, even on wheels on uneven, muddy ground is not an easy task but we finally got the huge smoker under the canopy but new problem, no room for us.
Temps back up to around 225* and we head to sit in tiny camper with remote temp alarm. Temps hold for about 30 min and then start to drop, my partner says he will go out and add wood. He was go for about 10 min and when he returns tothe camper he told me that the wood I had put on top of the fire box to try to dry out had caught fire and we almost had as good of a fire on the firebox as we did inside, underneath the canopy but nothing was damaged he got the top fire out.
Finally after about 1 hour of solid hard rain the sky started to gray and the sun started to come up. All in all we got almost three inches of rain in around an hour.
I didn't have a chance to get any pics of the rain or the results of the rain but trust me by the end of the day 3 inches of rain+bottom of canyon+by lake = rising water. By the end of the day the water had risen from its original level to flood the turn in tent, and end up about 10-20 feet from the road (originally 200-300 yards) and shut down one road in to the campgrounds.
Ok back to cooking. Ribs on at 0700, 2-2-1 meathod for 1330 turn in (light rib rub, splash of a/j, wrap, unwrap, spritz every 20 min)
Chix on @ I don't remember to enternal temp of 180* 1200 turn in time (injected italian dressing, light poultry rub)
Briskets off and in cooler before ribs went on (coolered and they were at 203*, will be unwrapped and put back on later to firm up) for 1500 turn in time
Everything went fast and furious through all the cooking and didn't get alot of pics but here is what I ended up with.
Click link or pic for slideshow
http://s273.photobucket.com/albums/...ookoff 2008/?action=view¤t=a5493348.pbw
http://s273.photobucket.com/albums/j...t=a5493348.pbw
We did manage to place 6th in brisket for $75
Had a great time, can't wait till next months comp
Sorry for the novel
