Hello BBQ Gang! Here's what's going on in the world of the Illinois BBQ Society... ~ Competition Brisket & Butts Cooking Class ~ Nashville Maifest Growing by Leaps & Bounds ~ St. Jacob Contest is State Championship (Qualifier) Bound ~ 4th Annual Smokin' in the Park is BACK ON! ~ Back by Popular Demand... ~ Steeleville Contest Deemed a Success! ~ The OTHER MIM...Yankee Style ~ BBQ Department of Different and/or Unusual ~ Upcoming Non-Sanctioned/Backyard Contests... ~ Upcoming KCBS Contests... ~ Upcoming Classes... <- NEW INFO For additional information on these stories, and more, be sure to visit the Illinois BBQ Society online at http://www.ILBBQS.com . x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x This eNewsletter brought to you by: 2008 MaiFest in Nashville, Illinois The Lion's Club of Nashville, Illinois is sponsoring a non-sanctioned BBQ Contest that will be following KCBS rules. This first year event, set for May 24th & 25th (a Saturday/Sunday contest), is sure to draw a lot of interest from both South Central Illinois as well as the Metro St. Louis area. Entry fee is only $175. Live Entertainment and beverage vendors will be on hand to add a little more excitement to the overall event. This contest WILL be judging all four KCBS meat categories (Chicken, Ribs, Pork, Brisket) and will be repped by KCBS Reps Lynn Bruce & Suzanne Dailey. $3,000 in total prize money given out with a $1,500 Grand Champion Pay Day! For additional information, visit the Contest/Events page; their website at http://www.nashvillelionsclub.com/bbq/bbq.htm ; or call Dr. Rodney Small at 618-327-3224. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x ~ Competition Brisket & Butts Cooking Class Saturday June 28th 10am to 2pm Chris Marks from 3 Little Pigs BBQ and Ace of Hearts BBQ Specialties (Home of The Good-One) will be on hand for Briskets & Butts Smoking Class. Chris is an 8 time Grand Champion of the American Royal Cook-off and will be sharing secrets he has used over the years in competition and in his restaurant. Class Fee: $75...Knowledge Gained: Priceless! This class is sure to sell out, so contact Dan Marguerite at The Backyard Barbecue Store in Wilmette, Illinois right away for additional information! For additional information, visit http://www.ILBBQS.com -> BBQ Classes *************************************** ~ Nashville Maifest Growing by Leaps & Bounds { ILBBQS NOTE: This contest WILL be judging all four KCBS meat categories (Chicken, Ribs, Pork, Brisket) and will be repped by KCBS Reps Lynn Bruce & Suzanne Dailey. $3,000 in total prize money given out with a $1,500 Grand Champion Pay Day! } Many of you already know of the barbeque cook-off headed to the historic little town of Nashville, Illinois this Memorial Day weekend, but here's a nice article from The Nashville News to fill you in on the other activities for the weekend... Nashville, Illinois - A barbecue cook-off has been added to this year's Maifest, which will be held at Memorial Park in Nashville Friday-Sunday, May 23-25, sponsored by Nashville Lions Club. The cook-off will join the traditional weekend line-up of slow-pitch softball, tennis tournament, music, car show, entertainment and good food. Friday's events begin with a barbecue chicken dinner, softball tournament and music by Hicks and Strangers in the evening. Saturday's activities continue with the softball tournament, a performance by Jamie's Tumbling and the BBQ Cook-Off beginning at 3pm, with music by the Smash Band in the evening. Sunday's events open with the BBQ Cook-Off Judging and pulled pork dinners, provided by Nashville American Legion. The softball tourney continues. The car show opens at 1pm. The Mixx will provide music. Food will include pork steaks, pork burgers, fish and steak sandwiches, pork kabobs, onion rings, funnel cakes and homemade desserts. Other activities include kids' camp, games, Rainbow Ranch, pet adoptions, train rides movies and more. More information is available at www.NashvilleLionsClub.com . *************************************** ~ St. Jacob Contest is State Championship (Qualifier) Bound Mayor Ray Muñiz is on a mission...to make the On Your Mark! Get Set! BBQ! contest, in St. Jacob, Illinois, an American Royal Qualifier, a Qualifier for The Jack Daniels World Championship, and a premier St. Louis Metro barbeque event! Mayor Muñiz realizes that the latter will take a little time, but is aiming to have the minimum 15 team requirement covered for this first year event to be a qualifier. Though not sanctioned this year (watch the KCBS calendar in 2009), the contest will be following KCBS rules and regulations to ensure consistency with other qualifiers. As of this writing, the team count is on it's way to legal voting age and is sure to draw even more interest as word gets around that the entry fee is only $100 for all four meat categories, includes water and electricity, FREE ice, and includes all permits/license fees for those teams who would like to sell their barbeque to the public! For additional information, visit http://www.ILBBQS.com -> Contests/Events *************************************** ~ 4th Annual Smokin' in the Park is BACK ON! From Hap & Becky Zook (of "HAP"py Smokin' BBQ): We have been fortunate enough to have one of the board members of the LBDG in LeRoy call us and say "We cannot loose this contest what can I do to help?". We told him and he has done it. We have contacted the teams we had in the past and the majority of them are coming back. So.......the LeRoy contest is back on June 14th. We are still offering the Grand Champion Trophy with $100 cash as well as 5 trophies per category. ...we are having to do a lot of scrambling in a short amount of time....but who cares as long as we have Q. Thanks to the overwhelming response from the community we would like to show our appreciation for the teams who have been loyal to us the last 3 years and have endured the ups and downs of this year's contest and the new teams who are joining us this year.   We are pleased to announce the following: We have increased the amount of Grand Champion to $175 Plus we have added a cash prize for the following:  1st place per category - $100 2nd place per category - $ 75 3rd place per category - $ 50 Trophies will be given for the Grand Champion and the first five places per category. If anyone wants information or an application they should contact us by email at bjzook@verizon.net or by cell phone to Hap at 309-397-1815. Unfortunately there is not a web-site with information. Thank you for anything you can do. Hap and Becky Zook "HAP"py Smokin' BBQ For additional information, visit http://www.ILBBQS.com *************************************** ~ Back by Popular Demand... The Holy Smoke Backyard BBQ Cook-Off has set their date for a fun day of cooking, learning, and camaraderie. Alma, Illinois will play host to this year's contest as teams and spectators will be hosted in the scenic countryside of the Orchard View Winery. Last year's contest entertained 9 teams from all over Illinois, classes with BBQ Legend Chris Marks (8 Time American Royal Grand Champion), and was run according to KCBS rules and regulations under the watchful eye of Lynn Bruce and Suzanne Dailey. This proved to be a fun little contest for new teams, 'backyard' enthusiasts, and those established teams who were wanting to try out some new recipes and/or techniques. Entry fee is only $75 and includes access to water, scenery, and fun. This will be an electric free contest and will follow KCBS rules for judging and garnish. The meat categories include: Sausage, Chicken, and Ribs. Other than the sausage category, contest meat may not be pre-seasoned or injected in any way. All meat will go meat inspection prior to cooking and must be cooked onsite. Awards will be given to Grand Champion, Reserve Grand Champion, and Top 3 in each Category. Though activities are still in the works, additional information, including contest application, for this pre-cursor contest to The BBQ Throwdown & Jam contest in September, can be found online at http://www.gosalem.com/holysmoke . For additional information, visit http://www.ILBBQS.com *************************************** Steeleville Contest Deemed a Success! 27 teams cooking teams from 4 states gathered in Steeleville, Illinois this past weekend for what is being called ANOTHER fantastic contest! The fact that some pretty big hitters in the BBQ world are already planning for 2009 has pushed the organizers to set their dates for May 15th & 16th, 2009. The fact that this contest pays out big money and is extremely well run (and popular) is pushing the likelihood of 40+ teams to show up for next year's event. This is one contest to definitely think about for next year! By all accounts, the weather was perfect and attendance for the overall city wide festival was great for both days.  Here are the results for the contest and I attached a team list.  With at least 8 ILBBQS Members Competing, here's how this contest panned out... Overall 1. Dr. Porkenstein 2. Smokin’ T’s 3. Black Kettle Cooks 4. Ulcer Acres BBQ 5. Shigs In Pit 6. Smokey Joel 7. Big Chief BBQ 8. Hogs ‘N Heat 9. Bubba Joe BBQ 10. Steeleville Eagles 11. Iron Pig BBQ 12. Road Warriors 13. Good Greif BBQ 14. Beaucoup Basters 15. I QUE 16. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 17. Pigs Gone Wild 18. Church of Swinetology 19. Two Sows and a Boar 20. Pork Pistols BBQ 21. Goin’ Hog’n 22. 3 Hog Night 23. Swiney Ribbers BBQ 24. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 25. Chester VFW 26. Glory Bound 27. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited Chicken 1. Dr. Porkenstein 2. Hogs ‘N Heat 3. Ulcer Acres BBQ 4. Smokin’ T’s 5. I QUE 6. Good Greif BBQ 7. Shigs In Pit 8. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 9. Church of Swinetology 10. Steeleville Eagles 11. Black Kettle Cooks 12. Big Chief BBQ 13. 3 Hog Night 14. Iron Pig BBQ 15. Road Warriors 16. Smokey Joel 17. Pork Pistols BBQ 18. Beaucoup Basters 19. Goin’ Hog’n 20. Bubba Joe’s BBQ 21. Pigs Gone Wild 22. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 23. Swiney Ribbers BBQ 24. Glory Bound 25. Chester VFW 26. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited 27. Two Sows and a Boar Ribs 1. Smokin’ T’s 2. Black Kettle Cooks 3. Dr. Porkenstein 4. Bubba Joe’s BBQ 5. Pigs Gone Wild 6. Smokey Joel 7. Beaucoup Basters 8. I QUE 9. Church of Swinetology 10. Road Warriors 11. Ulcer Acres BBQ 12. Iron Pig BBQ 13. Two Sows and a Boar 14. Swiney Ribbers BBQ 15. Hogs ‘N Heat 16. Good Greif BBQ 17. Glory Bound 18. Big Chief BBQ 19. Shigs In Pit 20. Steeleville Eagles 21. 3 Hog Night 22. Chester VFW 23. Pork Pistols BBQ 24. Goin’ Hog’n 25. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 26. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 27. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited Pork 1. Big Chief BBQ 2. Ulcer Acres BBQ 3. Steeleville Eagles 4. Two Sows and a Boar 5. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 6. Shigs In Pit 7. Beaucoup Basters 8. Dr. Porkenstein 9. Hog ‘N Heat 10. Smokin’ T’s 11. Goin’ Hog’n 12. Black Kettle Cooks 13. Bubba Joe’s BBQ 14. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 15. Smokey Joel 16. Glory Bound 17. Road Warriors 18. Iron Pig BBQ 19. Church of Swinetology 20. Swiney Ribbers BBQ 21. Good Greif BBQ 22. 3 Hog Night 23. I QUE 24. Pigs Gone Wild 25. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited 26. Pork Pistols BBQ 27. Chester VFW Brisket 1. Dr. Porkenstein 2. Shigs In Pit 3. Smokey Joel 4. Smokin’ T’s 5. Pork Pistols BBQ 6. Iron Pig BBQ 7. Black Kettle Cooks 8. Big Chief BBQ 9. Road Warriors 10. Ulcer Acres BBQ 11. Bubba Joe’s BBQ 12. Steeleville Eagles 13. Pigs Gone Wild 14. Good Greif BBQ 15. Hogs ‘N Heat 16. Chester VFW 17. Beaucoup Basters 18. Goin’ Hog’n 19. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 20. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited 21. I QUE 22. Two Sows and a Boar 23. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 24. Swiney Ribbers BBQ 25. 3 Hog Night 26. Church of Swinetoloogy 27. Glory Bound Bloody Mary 1. Beaucoup Basters 2. Goin’ Hog’n 3. Good Greif BBQ 4. Swiney Ribers BBQ 5. Two Sows and a Boar 6. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 7. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited 8. Hogs ‘N Heat 9. Pigs Gone Wild 10. Shigs In Pit 11. Steeleville Eagles 12. Iron Pig BBQ 13. Smokey Joel 14. Pork Pistols BBQ 15. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 16. Glory Bound Anything Butt 1. It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere 2. Road Warriors 3. Iron Pig BBQ 4. Black Kettle Cooks 5. Beaucoup Basters 6. Shigs In Pit 7. Pigs Gone Wild 8. Goin’ Hog’n 9. Steeleville Ducks Unlimited 10. Good Greif BBQ 11. 3 Hog Night 12. Steeleville Eagles 13. Church of Swinetology 14. Two Sows and a Boar 15. Pork Pistols BBQ 16. Swiney Ribbers BBQ 17. Curly Q Bar-B-Que 18. Hogs ‘N Heat 19. Smokey Joel 20. Big Chief BBQ 21. Glory Bound Huge Congrats to All in the Call! *************************************** The OTHER MIM...Yankee Style Known as the OTHER MIM...Minnessota In May took place over this past weekend too. Though details have not come across my desk yet, word has it that Mike & Beth Wozniak (QUAU), after a resounding win in Arkansas last weekend, had a very strong showing by placing 5th Overall! CONGRATS MIKE & BETH! *************************************** BBQ Department of Different and/or Unusual The BBQ Donut Posted on May 19, 2008 by The Founding Father (of the internet blog spot "The Mantuary") Sebastian Schmitt is pure genius.  He is the German inventor who came up with this... (See http://www.ILBBQS.com for picture) Fire has been around since man first recorded history and boats were first recorded in 3500 B.C.  It simply amazes me that some 5,500 years passed by before a guy put em together and dubbed it The BBQ Donut.  An instant party on the water, this craft is designed for 8-10 people and does not lack a number of pretty cool features.  Weighing just under 79 stone, The BBQ Donut has a Torqeedo Travel 400 Electro-outboard motor which gives it a noiseless, pollution free cruising speed of 4km/h.  Eight storage containers and coolers are built directly into the seats giving you enough room to keep your suds cold for an entire day on the water.  A movable sunshade will do its best to keep you from turning into a raisin, and best of all, Sebastian designed a charcoal burning grill as the centerpiece of this fine craft with cavities integrated into the table to safely hold your beer, plates and cutlery. With Father’s Day less than a month away, The BBQ Donut will be on the top of my list. Be A Man. - The Founding Father (of the internet blog spot "The Mantuary") For additional information, visit http://www.ILBBQS.com *************************************** Upcoming 2008 Non-Sanctioned/Backyard Contests... (All info & web addresses are posted on http://www.ILBBQS.com -> Contests/Events) ~ May 24-25, 2008 - Nashville Lion's Club MaiFest - Contact: Rodney Small, Post Office Box 27, Nashville, IL 62263 - Phone: 618-327-3224 Fax: 618-327-8479 - E-mail: drsmall@accessus.net ~ June 14, 2008 - 4th Annual Smokin' in the Park - Contact: Hap & Becky Zook at 309-266-5078 or Jim & Anita Allen at 309-962-9388 - E-mail: bjzook@verizon.net or jaallen@msn.com ~ June 28, 2008 - 2nd Annual Galesburg Railroad Days Jaycees Rib Cook-Off - Contact: Sherry M. Kincaid - E-mail: ribcookoff@galesburgjaycees.org ~ August 31, 2008 - Kewanee Hog Days - Contact: Janie Metscaviz - Phone: 309-856-6160 - E-mail: mtscvz@yahoo.com ~ October 5, 2008 - Maschhoff's Pork Farm Backyard BBQ Cook-Off - Contact: Julie Maschhoff, 7475 State Route 127, Carlyle, IL 62231 - Phone: 618-594-2125 - E-mail: juliem@pigsrus.net **NOTE** This contest is only open to 'local' teams...those teams from Marion, Clinton, and Washington Counties in Illinois. *************************************** Upcoming 2008 KCBS Contests... (All info & web addresses are posted on http://www.ILBBQS.com -> Contests/Events) ~ May 24-25, 2008 - Red, White & Bar-B-Q - Contact: Jim Addington, 337 E. Traube Street, Westmont, IL 60559 - Phone: 630-443-2013 Fax: 630.443-2017 - E-mail: jaddington@ambankqc.com ~ June 13-14, 2008 - King City BBQ Showdown - Contact: Troy Heitmeyer, 104 N. 9th Street, Mt. Vernon, IL 62864 - Phone: 618-242-4020 x 15 ~ Fax: 618-242-3383 - E-mail: troy@cmacsoft.com ~ June 13-14, 2008 - Elk Grove Rotary Ribfest - Contact: Ron Nunes, 701 E. Irving Park Rd, Ste. 200, Roselle, IL 60172 - Phone: 630-307-8744 ~ Fax: 630-307-8755 - E-mail: rnunes9457@aol.com ~ July 11-12, 2008 - Illinois State Championship & Butt to Butt Pork Invitational - Contact: Connie Smith, 301 E. Sunrise Drive, Shannon, IL 61078 - Phone: 816-864-2542 ~ Fax: 815-864-2825 - E-mail: rrribs@frontiernet.net ~ September 12-13, 2008 - The BBQ Throwdown & Jam - Contact: Jim Reincke, PO Box 924, Salem, IL 62881 - Phone: 618-407-3300 ~ E-mail: bbqthrowdown@gosalem.com ~ September 19-20, 2008 - - Carbondale Main Street Pig Out - Contact: Meghan Cole, 121 S. Illinois Avenue, Carbondale, IL 62901 - Phone: 618-529-8040 ~ Fax: 618-529-8041 - E-mail: info@carbondalemainstreet.com ~ October 10-11, 2008 - Central Illinois Bragging Rights - Contact: George Fritz, 136 S. Vine Street, Arthur, IL 61911 - Phone: 217-543-2181 - E-mail: bbq@arthuril.com ~ October 17-18, 2008 - Barn Burner BBQ @ Lamb's Farm - Contact: Claudia Stevens, 14245 W. Rockland Rd, Libertyville, IL 60048 - Phone: 847-990-3750 ~ Fax: 847-362-0742 - E-mail: crs@lambsfarm.org *************************************** Upcoming Certified BBQ Judge's and Certified Table Captain's Classes... (All info posted on http://www.ILBBQS.com -> BBQ Classes) ~ None Scheduled (That we know of...if you know of an upcoming class, let us know!) *************************************** Upcoming BBQ Cooking Classes... (All info posted on http://www.ILBBQS.com -> BBQ Classes) ~ Briskets & Butts BBQ Cooking Class - Wilmette, Illinois ~ Date: Saturday - 06/28/2008 ~ Instructor: Chris Marks (8 Time American Royal Grand Champion) ~ Location: The Backyard Barbecue Store, 1147 Greenleaf Avenue, Wilmette, IL 60091 ~ Contact Information: Dan Marguerite ~ info@backyardbbqstore.com *************************************** These stories, and more, can be found online at http://www.ILBBQS.com . Most of the stories online have active links for ease of finding more information...be sure to visit the website for your full ILBBQS experience! If you have a BBQ related news item you would like to share with the group, be sure to send it in! There is an easy-to-use 'Submit News' button on our website at http://www.ILBBQS.com ...use it often! As always, if you have any pictures, stories, news items, comments, suggestions, questions, or ideas, let me know! Well folks, that's gonna do it for this year's news and updates. I hope you have a most wonderful, and safe, New Year! I'm looking forward to seeing a lot more of you down the BBQ trail of 2008! Carpe 'Que, Jim Rhino