Picture provided by Chile Pepper Magazine
Photographer – Rick McMillen

Many of you have been asking when you can find the issue of Chile Pepper magazine featuring us.  I got confirmation today that is hitting newsstands as we speak.  So check it out and let us know what you think.

Up until this point we have been a bit tight lipped about the details of the article and the ensuing rib competition.  We can now talk about it a bit more and share some of our experiences.  The article is of course about our competition team, experiences and what we bring to the table as a competitor in the Quest for the Perfect Ribs.  It also features our rib recipe, my favorite broccoli salad recipe and Mike’s sweet potato pie with pig candy recipe.  All in all, the editor of Chile Pepper magazine, Rick McMillen did an awesome job capturing who we are and what we are about as a competition team.  His photography skills are amazing and he was exceptionally easy to work with.  We are pleased to now count Rick as a personal friend and barbecue fanatic.

I want to also remember to thank Hoyt Liggins for the use of his amazing house down in Millington,TN for the photoshoot.  The location was nothing short of perfect and for those of you that know Hoyt you know his hospitality is second to none.  Hoyt remains one of the best people I have come across and we are blessed to call him a friend.

We begin the next leg of our journey to compete in the Quest for the Perfect Ribs on September 13^th, driving to Houston,Texas.  The activity starts the next day where we attend a Meet n’ Greet hosted by McAby Media owners of Chile Pepper magazine.  This will be the first time we get to meet the rest of the CPM team as well as our competitors.

Our competitors for this challenge include:  Bill & Barbara Milroy (Texas Rib Rangers, Denton,Tx), Dann & Dianne Boland (2 Skinny Cooks, St. Charles, Il), Pete & Melissa Cookston (Yazoo’s Delta Q, Memphis, Tn), Harvey Gebhard (Lone Star BBQ Society,  Burnet, Tx) and Vince Carrocci & Alexa Fairbairn (Rhythm ‘n Que, Phoenix, Az).

As you can see for yourself, a laundry list of world class talent makes up the field and we are just proud to be included in an event that includes these amazing pitmasters.

On Saturday, September 15^th the gloves come off and the competition takes place center stage at the Houston Hot Sauce Festival.  There are 3 turn-ins that take place.  The first is the main blind box turn-in to the judges.  An hour later we complete a second turn-in for people’s choice.  Finally, three hours after the people’s choice we serve ribs to the attendee’s for dinner.  The official awards ceremony takes place at 7:00pm and the Grand Champion is crowned.

The awards for this challenge are as follows:

Grand Champion - $2,000, 4 page feature story in Chile Pepper magazine, interview with editor in chief recorded and aired for 30 days on chilepepper.com, 2 ¼ page ads and 1 free booth space at the Chile Pepper Extravaganza to be held in New Orleans, La Sept 2013.

1^st Place - $500, feature story in Chile Pepper magazine, interview with editor in chief recorded and aired for 15 days on chilepepper.com.

2^nd Place - $250, feature story in Chile Pepper magazine.

This will mark the first live competition for Draper’s BBQ using Green Mountain Grills.  Green Mountain Grills has been a great partner and sponsor.  They are instrumental in Draper’s BBQ being able to attend this awesome event.

The test cooks we have done on the GMG’s for this event have been excellent and we expect nothing but a great cook on these cookers.  The GMG’s are easy to control the temp on, easy to maneuver, take up very little space and produce excellent barbecue.  These are essential when you are competing at a high level.

All in all this is shaping up to be one amazing opportunity and we plan to chronicle and document every part of our trip and our experiences.  So be on the look out for updates as we get ready to begin the Quest for the Perfect Rib.