Southern Hospitality

OVS always likes to find new places and new towns to cook.  Enter Ayden, NC, and the inaugural Kings of Que competition.  We normally don’t hit the NC trail until later in the year, so the group was relishing this trip and the opportunity to see their BBQ peeps in North Carolina.

Luke drove down Thursday and spent the night at Redneck Scientific HQ, approximately 45 minutes  an hour and a half from Ayden. The chief execs of Redneck Scientific, the two girls, we’re certainly ready for Luke.

From El Presidente to the Princess.  Such is life.

(Pitmaster note:  If ever in the Raleigh area, please hit up Deep River Brewing in Clayton, NC.  Some tremendous brews there and great people.  Check them out at http://deepriverbrewing.com/.

On to Ayden bright and early.  Straight to our spot and setup began.   Usually this is where a first-time competition will drop the ball a bit in terms of logistics for the cook teams.

Not so in Ayden.  Everything was as it should be, with nice big spots, great power and water, and the most helpful people that you can find.  There wasn’t a half hour that went by where some representative from the town didn’t come by and ask us if we needed something.  A great job to all of the volunteers and everyone from the town of Ayden.

We’d have the pleasure again of cooking next to Redneck Scientific, which would automatically lead to a fun time with Jerry and Roxanne.  Roxanne would arrive on Friday afternoon…and two doors would open on the truck.

The Guv had returned.  The Mayor of G lot.   Read here if you are unfamiliar.

Oh, the great joy!  The group would have some cocktails and dinner together on Friday night, and then set to cooking on a rainy Friday night.  Kim and Leigh Anne would arrive late Friday night and the whole crew would be together again.

There were some slight changes to the cook, but everything went smoothly.  We headed to awards and hoped for the best.

A bit about the awards — Ayden raised the bar once more.  Wooden cutting boards for all 10 places in all four categories, with each category winner also getting a Dexter Cleaver, as well as cleavers for fifth through third overall.  RGC and GC would get two cleavers and a chopping box.  All handmade locally, and absolutely beautiful.

OVS was very fortunate to take some of that home — 3rd place chicken, 4th place ribs, and 1st place brisket would be good enough for Reserve Grand Champion, behind Grand Champion…Redneck Scientific.
The whole crew had a blast in Ayden and we can’t wait to go back next year.   A huge shout out to our NC BBQ family, Redneck Scientific, Smokin Skullies, Muttley Crew, Grillin Thyme, Fatheads, Fired Up, Recycled Smoke….gosh, so many good people down south.  A special shout to Billy Merrill from Holy Smokes BBQ for all that he has done for the comp…such a great experience.

And who can forget the Guv.  Brought the sunshine with him and made it an awesome weekend.

Hometown

About the closest thing that OVS has to a hometown competition is the BBQ Jamboree in Fredericksburg, VA.  Less than an hour from home, we always get a great turn out from our friends and family. And, the contest and festival are, by our estimation, the best in VA.

James and Jeremy do it right.  No nonsense organizers that make sure that teams have what they need, and most times everything that they want.

OVS also had the added benefit this year of getting some visitors from the south, our brothers and sisters in crime Redneck Scientific.  We would be right next to them, and it was sure to be a good time.

Everyone got set up on Friday in what would be the biggest field yet at the Jamboree — 72 teams in all.  Pretty much all of our BBQ Family were going to be there.  The cooks meeting is usually pretty fun at this one, as James and Jeremy put on a pretty good show.  But this year, the show was stolen by Jerry and Roxanne, as they surprised Luke with a new garment for his wardrobe as the new MABA president.  Behold–

The Rednecks, OVS, and those lovely folks from Checkered Flag 500 enjoyed a scrumptious dinner at the Bavarian Chef (highly recommended) and began to get settled in for the evening’s cook.

The night was great, the weather was holding up, and everything was on time.  And the weather continued to hold up until about an hour after turn ins.  Then, all hell broke loose.  Rain…wind…thunder.  Pop ups were flying.  Kids were tumbling.

But it calmed down for awards.  OVS did really well, garnering a fourth place in ribs and brisket, and a fifth place in pork which was good enough for a fifth place overall.  Big congrats to 3Eyz on the GC, and a HUGE congrats to Life is Good But BBQ is better on their first RGC.  A big thank you to all of our friends that came by to support us.  I’d name you all, but the list would be enormous!

Next stop, Ayden, NC.

Train to Lanexa

A couple of late schedule changes put us in the great position of being able to add another contest, so we figured we’d head back down to Pickin’ and Pullin’ in Lanexa for a fun filled weekend.

We got down there early Thursday morning and got to see a lot of familiar faces, but also a bunch of folks we hadn’t seen yet this season, including the Palmers of New Revolution Q and Wes and Christina of Makin’ Bacon (a fantastic name.)

One group was there, however, that we didn’t realize was coming–our friends John and Tony from Historic BBQ out of Ohio.

When Kim and Luke decided to attend the KCBS Banquet in January, they decided to randomly sit at a table so that they could meet new people.  They sat down and were greeted by a couple of judges, and these two fellas from Historic BBQ in Ohio who were in the running for the Smithfield Team of the Year award, a contest that was held throughout the entire 2015 BBQ season.

They didn’t know where they had finished, and were extremely nervous during dinner.  After some good-natured professional football differences of opinion, the whole table rallied around John and Tony as they started to announce the Smithfield Team of the Year.

As they made it to the final two, the tension was thick.  The whole table had goosebumps.  And boom…Historic BBQ, 1st place.  Kim and Luke were super ecstatic for their new friends, who were promptly whisked away by the Smithfield folks.

Fast forward to Lanexa.  The Historic BBQ rig will leave you speechless.  It’s an impressive cooking machine.  But it isn’t nearly as impressive as John and Tony themselves.  They openly welcome all visitors, show them everything and are true ambassadors of not only Smithfield, but of the sport of BBQ.  They answer all questions and truly are two of the nicest people in BBQ.  If they are cooking at an event near you, OVS highly encourages you to pay them a visit.

(Pitmaster’s Note – I’d also highly encourage you to try the Smithfield Prime product.  We received some and it cooks GREAT.)

After a normal Friday, we headed to dinner with the Historic boys, Mark and Sharon from Checkered Flag 500, and Rick and Liz Hamilton from Hambones By The Fire.  Rick would be joining OVS on Saturday for some cleaning and turn-in action.  It was a fantastic dinner, and it’s always great to bring BBQ people together.

The cook itself didn’t go as planned.  Some adjustments had to be made throughout the night, but things looked to be on course in the morning when Rick and Leigh Anne showed up.

Upon Leigh Anne’s arrival, she informed the group that not all awards had been given at Hagerstown.   So, we had to make a delivery…1st place Sno-Cone.

That joke will never grow old.

We headed to awards, and started off strong with 4th place in chicken.  That would be the only call of the day for OVS, but a lot of friends did really well.  A huge shout out to Aporkalypse Now for the GC, 3 Eyz for the RGC and a special call out to Mark Gibbs for a perfect 180 in Pork!

If you haven’t done so, make sure to follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/OldVirginiaSmoke.

Free Sno-Cones!

This was the first year for the Interstate BBQ Festival in Hagerstown, MD, and it sure started off with a bang.   The weather was absolutely beautiful and Luke decided to drive up on Thursday and head to one of his favorite restaurants in the area, Hempen Hill.

After dropping off the trailer and picking up Brian from Brown Liquor (who had had plenty of it at that point) and his gambling buddy Mark from Sauce This, the three of them headed to Hempen Hill.  Everyone enjoyed a fantastic dinner and got to see more BBQ friends, Jay from 4:20Q and the Dizzy Pig family.

The weather was absolutely perfect for the entire weekend, and the OVS trailer would be a full house.  We would have a judge cooking with us, the lovely Miss Wendy, and Leigh Anne was with us for the first time this season.  Good times were about to ensue.

Everything went like clockwork on Friday, and we got to see a lot of great friends and make some new ones as well.  On Saturday, everyone was there and the OVS machine was humming.

We also had the exceptional luck to be next to our great buddy Mark Gibbs from Checkered Flag 500.  Those daredevils from Sauce This came for a visit, asking Mark for their free sno-cones.  The collective group decided to pull a prank on ol’ Gibbs, which resulted in the picture you see above.

All in all, it was a good day.  And it got even better when Luke’s brother showed up, all the way from Morgantown, WV.  What an awesome treat.

The crew got cleaned up and headed to awards.  As per usual when someone cooks with us, they got the short end of the stick and had to sit next to Luke at awards.  He was a disaster.

Wendy would ask Kim, “Is he gonna be okay?  He is a wreck.”

Kim replied, “Yes, it’s normal.”

The crew had a fantastic day!   10th place chicken, 2nd place ribs, 8th place pork and 8th place brisket, the teams 2nd ever 4 call comp, which was good enough for a Reserve Grand Championship!  Congrats to Rockin’ Robyn’s on their first ever GC!

Oh Goodie, Delaware

Ya know how there is that girl that you really like that doesn’t like you, but you continue to ask her out over and over again, thinking that she is gonna change her mind about ya?

World, meet my special lady.  Delaware.

We routinely get our ass whipped in Delaware, yet we always continue to go back.  Maybe some day she will change her mind!

We got to a spot near our friends JD’s Smokin Misfits on Thursday.  The weather was gonna be wild.  The wind was buckin’, and everything needed to be strapped down tight.  Jerry and Mary let Luke shack up with them in the RV.  Jerry whipped up a fabulous pasta dinner, which was enjoyed by Luke and Mark from Sauce This.  Then…Miss Mary came back from the casino.

But not for too long!  Luke and Mark decided that it was a good thing to go back with Mary and try their luck.

Turns out that Mark hasn’t gambled too much.  So first, Luke takes him to the craps table.  He explains that you have to roll the dice down to one end, and make sure they hit the other side.  Mark gets the dice…and then…

BAM!  He throws em as hard as he can.  They hit the far rail and come all the way back to the opposite rail, and the off of that.  The dice were screamin in pain.  He grabbed em and fired again.

After about the fifth time, Luke casually pulled him aside and explained, “hey man…they just have to TOUCH the other rail.   Not break it.”  They stuck around for a bit and then headed over to the black jack table.

Mark was more comfortable here.  Until he had QJ against the dealers 6.

“Split em.”

Luke said, “What are you doing???”

Mark replied, “splitting them against a six.  Watch!”

Another face card comes, and Mark splits again.   And yet another face card comes….and he splits. Again.

Luke’s face was aghast.  The last two face cards were dealer bust cards.  Mark ended up winning two of his hands, and losing two others against the dealers three card 19.

Which coincidentally murdered Luke’s 14 .  They stuck around a bit, but headed back with their tails between their legs.

Sorry….BBQ!

The weather on Friday wasn’t great.  Luke got the meat prepped and anxiously awaited the arrival of the Lil’ General.  The group went out for a fabulous dinner at the casino, and then set to it.

The weather was abysmal.   It snowed during chicken turn in.  Sleet during ribs.  Rain during pork and a howling wind during brisket.  All turn ins seemed good, but hey, it’s Delaware.

And damn.  OVS thought maybe this was the time she said yes, starting strong with a 4th place chicken.  But that was the only call on the way to a totally Delaware 20th place finish.  Congrats to Aporkalypse Now on GC and Wolfs Revenge on RGC.

Until we meet again, my Delaware.

Ironman!

Whew…what a long offseason.   April 2 would be the kickoff to the new 2016 season, and the good ol’ Ironman in Greencastle, PA.  Hosted by our good friends at Mason Dixon BBQ Services, the Ironman doesn’t let you use any electronics, such as Gurus or anything like that.  And also, you get to only cook 7 pieces of chicken, 1 rack of ribs, 1 pork butt and 1 brisket.

It’s always a fun time.  We got to see a lot of our BBQ family that we don’t get to see very often, especially our good friend Sal Gobat and the rest of the Smokin’ Gnomes.  And a lot of our usual buddies.  270 Smokers hosted a fabulous paella contest on Friday night (all of it was delish), and we set to cooking.

Our fabulous Humphreys, which love working with a BBQ Guru, fought hard all night and into the morning, giving us four great turn in boxes.  We also had a blast cooking all night right next to our great buddy Mark Gibbs from Checkered Flag 500.

We were able to manage a fourth place rib call and a 10th place brisket call to finish with a very strong 5th place overall finish.  Congrats to 3Eyz on the GC and an extra special huge congrats to our brothers Brown Liquor BBQ on their first ever Reserve Grand Championship!

Sign Up Today for the OVS Weekend Warrior BBQ School

Join Pitmaster Luke Darnell and Old Virginia Smoke for a fun-filled day of BBQ tips and tricks to push your weekend barbecue activities to the next level.

You’ll learn techniques that will have your neighbors singing your praises about your ribs, brisket and pork.

Learn about fire and smoke management, meat selection, trimming, seasoning, sauce profiles and much, much more to help you rule the backyard.

WHEN: April 30, 2016 (8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.)

WHERE: Bristow, VA

CLASS SIZE: First 20 people

PRICE: $195 (includes instruction, handouts, coffee, light lunch, and of course…BBQ!)

NOTE: This is NOT a competition BBQ class. But you will learn things that the team does week in and week out that will make an invitation to your house for BBQ one that is most coveted. Get tips and tricks that propelled Old Virginia Smoke to the top 25 in the country in KCBS rankings, as well as multiple grand championships and the title of National Pork Champion.

Please complete the OVS Weekend Warrior BBQ School – FORM and return it to –

Old Virginia Smoke
10032 Hume Court
Bristow, VA 20136

Or submit it via email to luke@oldvirginiasmoke.com

Reserve your spot today, as space is limited! Please email Luke at luke@oldvirginiasmoke.com with any questions.

OVS Welcomes New Partner Whiskey Bent BBQ

Welcome welcome welcome to an exciting beginning to the 2016 BBQ season!   Old Virginia Smoke has a packed schedule for this year, so be sure to check the calendar to see if we are going to be in your area.  We are going to some new places, some old favorites, and have already secured our seat at the World Food Championships in November in Alabama.

With the new year, OVS also has the great fortune to welcome new partners to the team.  Enter the debonair gentlemen from Whiskey Bent BBQ Supply out of Lakeland, Florida. Chad Ward, Carl Griffith and the rest of the team run a great store down in Central Florida, with also a store front online.  Basically, if you need it for BBQ, Whiskey Bent is going to have it.

As you probably know, Chad and Griff also host an Internet radio show on the Outdoor Cooking Channel called, “In the Pit,” of which Luke has had the pleasure of being a guest several times.  You can find the show at http://www.outdoorcookingchannel.com/.

Great service. Great people.  And a welcome partner to the OVS family.

Check them out at Whiskey Bent BBQ Supply.

The Finale–The National BBQ Cup

After a week off, Luke and Kim loaded up the truck and headed south one more time…for one more contest…and their first foray in Georgia.  They were excited.  A few of their good BBQ buddies had sung the praises of Georgia, saying it was a great experience and a great place to cook.  Another buddy wasn’t as complementary.

“F Georgia,” he had said.

Luke and the Little General sped down Rte 29 after work on Thursday to spend the night with Todd with Smokin’ Buttheads.  Todd treated them to late night libations, great conversation, and a great place to sleep.  They woke up early, hooked up the Ol’ Creeper and headed south to the land of Jimmy Carter and peaches.

They arrived at the Cumming Fairgrounds around 11 a.m. and patiently waited for their place to park.  And waited. And waited.  Finally, the Creeper was situated in a gravel area pretty close to some friends, including Mark from Checkered Flag 500, some Carolina buds with Sauced! and The Smokehouse Mafia, and some new friends.

Kim and Luke would be joined by Rick Hamilton from Hambones By the Fire.  He wanted to come down for the weekend, and the extra help was greatly appreciated.  Once the hurried setup was complete, all the meat was prepped and everything was ready to go.

There were a lot of heavy hitters in the crowd.  Because Cumming was near the end of the season, a lot of the teams were there to try and earn precious KCBS team of the year points.  There were teams from as far as Wisconsin and California.  It was going to be a daunting task.

The best news though was that Jim Burg was in the house for the weekend.  He and Jan were around, and it was great to see our friend, who has been battling for so long, out and about.

For the first time all year, there was a hiccup.  Someone, who shall remain nameless, knocked over one of the BBQ Guru’s, and it wasn’t behaving properly.  Luckily, Bob Trudnak from BBQ Guru was cooking, and had a spare to lend the team.  Luke had also forgot the chicken rub and another ingredient, which luckily he was able to find.  (Thank you 270 Smokers and Checkered Flag 500!)

The cook went pretty good throughout the night and next morning.  Rick fell into rhythm with Luke and Kim, and they didn’t miss a beat. (Mostly cause the Little General was being the Little General.).   There was even some music sharing, which was awesome, and also some productivity hacks learned from Rick…which we now call Rickovations.

We finished everything up and started packing up.  We were gonna beat feet after awards and see how far we could make it.  And we were done an hour before awards…mostly because Rick was an absolute animal.  He crushed the dishes and had the outside torn down before Luke had even touched the smokers.

Rick said his goodbyes and headed back to VA. Afterwards, Kim and Luke decided to visit with some friends before awards.  Darkness started to fall, and the temps began to drop.  On to awards.

OVS started with a chicken call…7th place.   Luke and Kim were thrilled.  Victory Lane got first with a 180 and Smokehouse Mafia also had a 180.  Then ribs…OVS grabbed an 8th.  With two calls, we knew we were in the mix.

Next was pork…and no call.  But Victory Lane got a first in pork.

Things were so tight.  OVS then grabbed a 10th in brisket!  But that was followed by another 180 and 1st place brisket by Smokehouse Mafia!

Luke and Kim were pretty sure they were up there.  Stephanie from 270 Smokers said, “I think you might be RGC.”  We were hopeful.

So they started the top ten overall…10th place- Victory Lane.  Wow.  Two firsts and one of the strongest teams in the country.  10th.  Anything could happen.

They called all of the top five to the stage, and OVS was up there, along with Foggy Bottom BBQ, Will and the Thrills, The Smokehouse Mafia, and Yellow River.

They would go five down.  Will and the Thrills.  Yellow River.  OVS was in the top three.

OVS has had a lot of 3rds.  And they were both hoping they didn’t have another.

3rd place…Foggy Bottom.

Holy crap.  That left Luke and Kim on stage with Andrew, Melissa, and their daughter from The Smokehouse Mafia.  There was lots of hugs and anticipation.  And several other awards to give out before they got to RGC and GC.  So all of em were just up there chatting away like nothing else was going on.

Andrew asked, “How do you think this is gonna go?”

“I dunno man. You have two 180’s.  I think you have it.”

“I don’t know,” Andrew replied.

The emcee then turned around and asked us, “You guys okay?  ”

We told him, “Don’t worry about us.  Do what you gotta do.”

After another award, we finally got to the RGC and GC.  And The Smokehouse Mafia was RGC.

We couldn’t believe it.  The huge wooden cup was coming back to VA.  Huge hugs were shared with everyone we saw.  After loading up the trophy, (thank you John Layton), we decided to spend the night in Georgia and celebrate with our good friends from Checkered Flag 500 and 270 Smokers.

What a fantastic way to end the season.  A huge thank you to Randall Bowman and his crew who put on a fantastic event in Cumming, to BBQ Guru, and to everyone else who helped us along the way.

Lil’ General Goes Nuts in Shelby

Beautiful Shelby, NC.  We’ve heard legendary stories of the weather.  We were excited to head south into NC again.  Luke had the Little General with him Thursday on this trip, and they were looking for adventure.   It started early…

“Which way you wanna go?”, asked Kim.

“I dunno.   I’m so tired of I-81 and I-95.  Same stuff all the time.”

“Is there another way?”

“Google maps always says to take Rte 29, but I’m unfamiliar with the road,” Luke replied.

“Up to you.  You are driving.”

“Screw it,” he said.  “Let’s do it and try something new.

Rte 29 turned out to be a revelation.   A little hilly, but mostly two lane highway the whole way.  They slept just outside of Lynchburg, VA, and they got up early and hit the road toward Shelby.

The weather had looked ominous all week, but showed signs of improving.   It would probably rain all day Saturday, but Friday could be fine.

So much for that.  Just south of Charlotte, things turned to shit.  Cold, rain, and fog.

They got to the fairgrounds and found their spot, next to friends from Virginia, 270 Smokers.  Fun with Stephanie and Terry all weekend!

Also in the house this weekend was Mike Lindley from Smokin’ Mo’s.  We hadn’t seen him for a while, so that would be fun.

Setup on Friday was a bit crazy though.  Kim would be cooking four ancillary categories on Friday night, and they would all be judged on site.  Luckily, Beverly and Greg Gordon, Rick Back, and Karen York would be helping out.   Then, Luke would be presenting each dish to the judges.

“You got any stories lined up?” Kim asked.

All she got back in return was a smile.

Luckily, the weather had turned for the better and it wouldn’t really rain much the next two days.

The categories that Kim cooked were Stew/Gumbo, Vegetable, Meat, and Seafood.  She would be preparing beef Provençal stew, stuffed mushrooms, California tri tip, and the famed lobster bacon mac n cheese.

Each turn in went well, and Luke told some stories for each dish.  Basically, the rest of the gang had to stay out of sight because they were laughing so hard.

Now it was in to the BBQ.  Everything went smooth throughout the night and the next day.  The two hit their marks and had a lot of fun, especially with 270 Smokers and their new friend Carolina Smokin’ John’s.   The occasional visit from Smokin’ Mo’s also provided a lot of fun.  We also got to spend some time with our good friends Smokin’ Hoggz from Massachusetts and the Clegg’s with Rhode Hog BBQ.

Awards came, and the ancillary contests were first.  The Little General was on point…grabbing a first place in seafood and three second places in the other categories.

On to the barbecue.  We got a nice 7th place pork call, but that was it.  A little discouraging given the food we turned in.  But two friends had big days, with that mustachioed demon Smokin Mo’s winning GC and 270 Smokers winning RGC.    With one call, we weren’t looking forward to getting the score sheet.  But we were pleasantly surprised to finish 7th overall. 

Only one contest left…two weeks later down in Georgia.  We beat feet out of Shelby and headed south to Spartanburg, SC, and dropped the creeper of with our buddy Todd from Smokin’ Buttheads.  He would take good care of her until we got back down to her in two weeks.