ClovisFest, Red, Hot, & Real
A California State BBQ Championship
September 22 - 24, 2006
Downtown Clovis
KCBS Sanctioned
    
          
   
     < BBqbyDan Index of Past BBQ Events & Write-ups >

   

 Jerry King of Midland Texas
 Otis and the Bird

Anything Butt - Sunday
Sponsored by SaveMart
   
Grand Champion (Sunday)  - The Pit Stop
     

1st   The Pit Stop
2nd  QN4U
3rd   BBQbyDan
4th   Porchinators
5th   155 South
6th   Southern Style
   

1st   The Pit Stop
2nd  QN4U
3rd   Southern Style
4th   BBQbyDan
5th   Wahoo & KJ
6th   Porchinators
    

One of the BEST, if NOT THE BEST,  BBQ Cook-Offs we currently have in California. We are treated so nice by the SaveMart Staff, www.savemart.com , especially Sharon Blakely and Don Bean. However, the rest of the staff that it takes to make everything happen are always so nice, polite, helpful, and proactive to the teams cooking requirements. I do speak from personal experience but know the "team-friendly" can-do attitude does prevail everywhere.
 
Since I always use the same template for writing and everyone probably knows exactly what I will be saying, in what paragraph, what order, and so on... I will try another format, a bit more cryptic, however informational, and more to the point. But more importantly, less predictable and different!
 
Highlights of the weekend were:

Lee & Bobbie McWright provide a "BBQ Presentation" seminar and facilitate the Fiesta Grill Challenge

An hour long seminar on how to make up your presentation trays was given by Lee and Bobbie McWright, of BBQ Team Music City Pig Pals. They were here in the capacity of organizing and facilitating the Fiesta Grill Challenge, www.fiestagasgrills.com .  But, generously showed great camaraderie, friendship, and assistance in their areas of expertise to all the BBQ teams that were willing to attend and participate.
    
Over the years I have followed their great BBQ accomplishments and successes. It was a thrill to meet and talk to them for the first time. That is not to mention what a great speaker and organizer Lee is while handling the stage, keeping events moving, on track, and all while displaying a genuine kindness and endearment truly felt by all participants and those in attendance.
 
 
Dr. BBQ (Ray Lampe) giving good advice,  judging, and opinion
Dr. BBQ was in attendance and was a great addition as a judge to the Fiesta Challenge. His ideas, comments, and comparisons to other Challenges were thoughtful and provided a new insight to how other participants are doing these events in other cities. He thought that folks in California were a bit more creative than some other locations.
 
On Saturday night Ray was great company sitting around the tables after all the business of the day and award presentations were over. It was nice to hear the ideas, thoughts, and opinions, of somebody that has attended and participated in a LOT of BBQ events, on a daily and weekly basis, all over the country.
   
Sunday morning Dr. BBQ and Kelley also volunteered and stepped right up to the "judging plate" and pretty much managed and handled the "SaveMart Anything But" contest.  Brent also helped organize the event  in a very limited way as well but he was also a participant and was somewhat limited in his functions.  We had roughly 10-14 teams participating in the Tritip and Chicken contest. The contest went perfectly. Turn-in's were at 11:30 and noon, awards at 02:00pm. Presented by Dr. BBQ and Don Bean.
 
 
Sponsorship by:
    
SaveMart Food Markets, www.savemart.com
McCormick Seasonings,  www.mccormick.com
Fiesta Grills, www.fiestagasgrills.com

Especially SaveMart.  As usual, the best contest ever!!! What else can I say. No detail was left to chance.
   
You should have seen the Grand and Reserve trophies! To me they seemed a Clovis Western themed bronze cast trophy, truly beautiful. They were miniatures of what is located at the city limits of Clovis. I am sure they "broke the sponsors bank". Jerry King and Otis and the Bird were the lucky recipients of these Clovis signature trophies and probably have never received anything quite like them.
 
Also, lets not forget the great dinner provided both Friday and Saturday night by SaveMart and their dinner sponsor. We had Rigatoni pasta, garlic bread, and salad on Friday. And Saturday night a fantastic quantity of pizza delivered to our tables,  in the middle of street , in the middle of the Clovis, which was closed for our to use throughout the evening and  the afternoon of the next day, Sunday.
 
 
Some Well Deserved Winners:
I want to congratulate some great and deserving winners.  I just picked a few of the great winners to mention below.  There were of course so many that did a GREAT job I could not mention them all!
 
The Pit Stop, Pete Weaver, Pam Gram, and Pam's Mother.
What a great event it was for them. Their team took 1st in the Saturday Anything-But category as well as 1st in the Sunday Anything-But challenge. What more can I say except that Pam has the Anything-But category locked up and likes to "play outside the sandbox" apparently.
  

        
-  Burnt by the Best, the Meredith family
Who also did fantastic and took the Fiesta Challenge.  Lee mentioned that they not only won, but had higher scores and accolades than previous participants of these challenges across the country. Not to mention that there is a senior citizen (Bentley and Kristin's mother & it is not polite to mention age) on the team who worked very hard and her experience definitely showed the rest of us young whipper-snapper's a thing or two. Great job folks!
 
-  Poor Todd, Out of this World BBQ
They disqualified his Brisket entry as a hair was found in his box. Oh noooo, Todd, say it isn't soooo!!!  You have no hair on your head, where did that come from?
 
A big thanks to Brent and Kim, QN4U
I am sure they did a bunch of organizing for this event  behind the scenes.  Their expert knowledge and experience about BBQ Cook-Offs definitely translates into being great advisors and assistants to our sponsors and organizers.  Ensuring things will pretty much go perfectly, every time!  Not to mention they founded this event last year.  Thanks for all you do for our beloved BBQ passion.
 

     
   
I will wrap this up and in closing want to thank our great organizational participants. All the folks from SaveMart, Fiesta Grills, McCormick seasonings, KCBS representative, Judges, Kelley & Kathlean (helping everywhere as well as their journalistic duties) and everybody else that had a part in making this one of the best events I have ever attended.

Also, what great participation by all the teams.   It was nice to see everybody attending.  This is the most attended event I have ever attended in California since I have been involved in BBQ (1997).  It is nice to see new and old faces and visit with new and old friends. 

To all the teams I did not get a chance to visit I do regret that.  Sorry, will try and be more sociable next time!  I was REALLY busy at this event and did not even get a chance to break away once during the contest and visit.   Walt & Gene N., I really planned on and wanted to especially get by, visit a bit, and say hi and did not make it, next time!
 
I got the okay from the CBBQA board to plan and make the announcement for the upcoming Q-Fest at East Shore.  That will be February 10-11-12, 2007.  GOSH, can you believe it, it is LESS than 133 days away!!!!!!!  We already have all the same spots reserved that we have had for the last few years.  Everybody can plan on having their original or new spots.  The worksheet and announcement will go out net week!   Please mark your calendars and plan on attending. 
 
Dan Cannon
   

Jessica turning in BBQbyDan Fiesta Grill desert submission
     

Rick & Jessica

Team BBQbyDan
Anything Butt turn-in