To add to my previous post: most of that demographic fits the national points teams. They do 40-ish contests a year. Some contests are double headers. There’s a contest on Saturday (the way it normally works) followed immediately by another on Sunday. This seems like a crazy amount of work, and it is. But in some parts of the country it’s the only way to get a decent number of contests in a season. In a place like KC, you can find multiple contests within a 2 hr drive every weekend during the season. In places farther out, you might have to drive 6-8 hrs to the 3-4 per year in that radius. So doing back to back contests the same weekend works out. The logistics of traveling on the circuit for multiple weeks at a time are pretty tough. You can’t haul 10 briskets, 20 pork butts, and a ton of slabs of ribs and chicken at a time, so you make deals with sponsors to have meat delivered to restaurant supply houses for pickup. Or you get a local BBQ supply store to hold some meat for you. The teams based in KC have an advantage with the central location. They can be home most of the time and pick contests based on if their rivals will be there. During mid summer, contests dry up around here so they may take vacations days and make a road trip and hit a few contests.
I would say the majority of teams are like the one we had, we sort of retired from contests at the end of last year. Friends get together, pitch in with supplies, and do some contests nearby. Those teams, like ours, can beat the top teams in a category. But consistency wins contests. The top teams cook so often they have their process figured out. A “buddy” team might get a top finish in, say, chicken over the pros, but the pros will finish higher in the other three categories and get the big money.
It’s always fun to hear the awards and see the big boys go up to get a ribbon and check, then hear your team called next, or last, because you scored higher. A winning prize in a single category might get you $250-$500. But a top finish overall can be multiple thousands. After a few of those you start seeing their names on sauce and rub labels.
My bug guy even has his own line of rubs and sauces. He used to compete with some buddies, like me. Then he started mixing his own rubs and sauces, entering them in contests, and winning national awards. I use his stuff at home. I finally ran out so I need to call him back for my termite inspection and ant treatment and tell him to bring a couple jars of sauce and more bottles of rub.
