2019
Caruthersville Chamber of Commerce
7th Annual Backyard BBQ Festival
Contest Rules and Regulations
August 2 & 3, 2019
Reynold’s Park | Caruthersville, Missouri

CATEGORIES
Strictly Grilling:         Item of your choice
Division 1:                Chicken
Division 2:                Ribs
Division 3:                Butt

RULES
• All teams in the Backyard BBQ Contest must have pre‐registered and paid the $50 entry fee to compete in the contest.
• Deadline for entry is July 27th.
• Each team will consist of a Chief Cook and as many assistants as the Chief Cook deems necessary. Five wrist bands are included in the $50 entry fee. All others will need to purchase a wrist band for $2. Each team will provide a grill/cooker to be used exclusively by that team within the confines of the team’s cooking space.
• Meat to be judged: Chicken, Ribs & Butt
• Meat must be cooked on site in the designated cooking area.
• Each team will bring their own products, including meat, seasonings, and cooking equipment.
• Each team will receive a space to cook in. Vehicles must be parked outside the cooking area. Small “easy up” style tents or umbrellas are permitted for shade.
• Set-up begins at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, August 2. Spaces will be assigned. If a specific need or request is made, set up arrangements can be addressed on individual basis. (Example: Early set-up, larger space, etc.)
• Take down can begin after awards are presented. Due to safety, no vehicles will be allowed in until this time.
• You may season or prepare the meat as you see fit.
• Prep work (rub down, par-boiling, marinating, etc.) can be performed off site and in advance.
• All meat to be considered for judging must be inspected by contest official(s) prior to placement on grill or smoker. Meat inspection will take place at 5:00 am Saturday morning.
• You are responsible for observing prudent temperature and sanitary requirements.
• Cooking can be done on a charcoal, wood fired, electric, wood pellet, or propane cooker of any design.
• Meat can be presented for judging as “wet” or “dry”. Sauces are optional. If used, it shall be applied directly to the meat and not be pooled or puddled in the container. No side sauce containers will be permitted in the turn-in container.
• Garnishments are not allowed.
• Containers will be provided to contestants for submitting entries for judging. The container shall not be marked in any way so as to make the container unique or identifiable. Aluminum foil, toothpicks, skewers, foreign material, and/or stuffing are prohibited in the container.
• Judging will be “Blind”. Contestants will be assigned an identification number by contest official(s).

• Entries will be scored in whole numbers from 9 (Excellent) to 2 (Inedible).
9=Excellent, 8=Very Good, 7=Above Average, 6=Average, 5=Below Average, 4=Poor, 3=Bad, and 2=Inedible
• The weighting factors for the point system will be:
Appearance – .5600, Taste – 2.2972, and Tenderness – 1.1428
• The low score will be thrown out. Results will be tallied. If there is a tie in one of the categories, it will be broken as follows: The scores will be compared (excluding the previously dropped score) for the highest cumulative scores in taste, then tenderness, then appearance. If still tied, then the low score, which was thrown out, will be compared and the higher of the low scores will break the tie. If still tied, then contest official(s) will use a coin toss.
• Grand Champion will be determined by totaling the highest scores from all 3 divisions.
• Strictly Grilling: Any item of your choice. This competition will be judged off of one bite only and will begin with a shotgun start at 5:00 pm and judging will begin approximately at 7:00 pm Friday. This category is not included in grand champion totaling.
• Division 1: Chicken judging will begin approximately at 2:00 pm
• Division 2: Ribs judging will begin approximately at 3:30 pm
• Division 3: Butt judging will begin approximately at 5:00 pm
• Entry fee is $50 per team. All divisions are included in the fee.
• Contest will be held at Reynold’s Park (riverfront).
• Limited electricity, limited water, trash receptacles, and port-a-potties will be provided.
• Contestants must adhere to all electrical, fire, health and other codes whether local, county, state or federal.
• All contestants are expected to respect the rights of other teams. Profane language or infringement on another team’s area will not be permitted.
• Distribution of alcohol to anyone other than team members over the age of 21 is prohibited.

This contest is not sanctioned by any organization and all decisions of contest official(s) including awarding of prizes and interpretation of contest rules shall be deemed final decisions. Contact Beth Warmath for information, 573-333-1222 or caruthersvillechamber@gmail.com.