So after watching one of the many shows on the TV highlighting BBQ Fest, you have decided to attend the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. You have arranged to stay at a friend’s house or have rented a hotel room, you have read our Memphis in May Rules page (click to view) and decided you didn’t want to join one of the many teams.  Luckily you found and read our Guide to Memphis in May for people not on a BBQ Team (click to view), now what?

Now you plan what to do. Right now log onto your phone and download the Memphis in May app. This has an interactive map with click and find team names and booths…you will need this.

For those of you that have decided not to purchase a VIP PITPASS, this article should help you navigate how attend BBQ FEST, and how to have fun on the cheap. The VIP pass that Memphis in May offers is a scheduled itinerary of meet and greets, instructional sessions, and parties. It costs over $450. While this is not out of reach, it is a bit pricey for the BBQ Fanatic whose pockets are a bit shallow, or for the non-fanatic that wants to attend one day of this magical event. We are not saying that the VIP is not worth the money…because it totally is. Being able to hang out with 6 top teams and eat and drink with World Champion pitmasters is worth it’s weight in gold, just not everyone can afford it.

In our previous articles we have discussed Memphis in May’s (MIM) programs. They are the Cooker’s Caravan and the Kingsford Tour of Champions. Now with a bit of forethought and $91 we can show you how to have 3 full days of fun at MIM BBQ Fest.

First…click here to purchase your Kingsford Tour of Champions Tickets. They are $12 per session and are available Thursday and Friday. There are 3 sessions each day – 2pm-3:30pm, 3pm-4:30pm and 4pm-5:30pm.  I would purchase the Thursday 4pm-5:30pm session and the Friday 4pm-5:30pm session.

This program evolved from the People’s Choice contest that was a mainstay for a decade. In 2012 MIM decided to let teams be judged by the public in the team’s booth. This costs $15 and gives you access to 3 teams booths. You go to the booths and taste the teams BBQ…AND JUDGE IT. Many teams will offer you a libation while you are judging and will sweet talk you into voting for them. These sessions are 1.5 hours each and can be bought through MIM website before the contest. THESE SELL OUT EVERY YEAR…DO NOT WAIT

This program makes you an official judge. The Kingsford Tour of Champions provides an opportunity for barbecue enthusiasts to judge entries from contenders in the World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest. You will be participating in on-site judging for barbecued pork shoulder. A pork shoulder entry is defined by Memphis in May as the portion of the hog containing the arm bone, shank bone and a portion of the blade bone. The pork ham, considered to be a shoulder entry, contains the hind leg bone.  You will be given detailed judging information and scoring criteria in your judges packet and during the judging orientation.  If you have any questions about this program, please e-mail Barbecue@memphisinmay.org.

so that’s $30 spent.

Now it’s time to discuss the Cooker’s Caravan.  Before 2003 there were no programs for the general public, then came the Cooker Caravan. This program is a guided tour of team booths. It is absolutely FREE. All you have to do is show up at the Cooker’s Caravan Kiosk and sign up. There are two of these in the Park, one near the first set of Rib tents, and one in the Shoulders section. You visit 3 team’s booths, get a guided tour, have a question and answer period…and possibly get food and an invite back.  IF A TEAM INVITES YOU BACK WRITE DOWN THEIR 1. booth number, 2. name of person giving you the booth tour, 3. detailed description of where the booth is located in the park using landmarks able to be seen in the dark. These are imperative as when “Party Time” starts up you will need names of team members to get in the booth, but first you will have to find their booth after the sun goes down, hence #2 and 3.

Now for your itinerary…

Admission Gates are free on Thursday and Friday from 11am-1pm. 

Thursday May 16th – PARTY DAY

Thursday is the Best Booth, Best T-shirt, and the Ms. Piggie Idol contest. First two are self-explanatory, the third is well….more complicated.  Performers wear elaborate costumes, many featuring full-figured men in Pig Drag, singing porked up versions of popular songs.  An absolute MUST SEE!  Winners have included “Rib in a Box”, “Grills, Grills, Grills”, “Sweet Swine O’ Mine”, and the “Swine Warp.” The best time to connect with teams is on this day.  Go around and ask about their cookers, no team can resist showing off.  Awards are in the early evening and then a band is called in to finish out the night

1. 11:10am arrive at the Beale Street gates, enter the park, and find the “Cooker Caravan” Kiosk in the middle of the walkway near the first break in rib tents. Sign up for the 12:30pm and 3:00pm Caravans.
2. 11:45-12:15 make a loop around “Rib Row” by walking back towards the Beale Street Entrance to the north and making your last left and walking back towards the South along the riverside booths. Grab a beer ($4) from a vendor and Meet back at Cooker Caravan kiosk at 12:20
3. 12:30-1:20 Tour team booths, make friends, take notes of teams that invite you back.
4. 1:30-2:20 walk around the “Shoulder and Whole Hog” sections then grab something from a vendor ($12)
5. 2:50 meet back at Cooker Caravan kiosk.
6 3:00-3:50 Tour team booths, make friends, take notes of teams that invite you back.
7. 4:00-5:30 Tour Kingsford Tour of Champions teams. Pig out on Pork, judge it, have fun, make friends.
8. 6:30 Watch Ms. Piggie Idol competition. Utter hilarity
9. 8:00 Go back to the teams you made friends with and party until the Cops shut down the park at Midnight. While you can’t pay to get into a team booth, it is customary to throw some cash in the bartenders tip jar for the drinks and hospitality.

Notice today we only spent about $19 so far…why? Well you have hopefully had a few samples given to you by teams during the two caravans, you ate lunch from a vendor, you bought a beer and had water to stay hydrated, and, to get your vote, the 3 different 4pm-5:30pm Tour of Champions teams wined and dined you with pulled pork and a few libations. You have thus far spent $43 total. If you were invited back to a booth for a party, you should toss at least $10 into their tip jar, you have now spent $53…and are now indebted to your new friends, don’t forget you are a guest, try to remember team members names, and go back tomorrow to say hi. If you feel your welcome has worn out, move on, try again later tonight after they have had a couple liters of beer.

Friday May 17th – ANCILLARY DAY

Friday is chocked full of competition cooking with the ancillary division contests.  Categories include Tomato, Mustard and Vinegar Sauces; meat categories which include Beef, Poultry, Exotic, and Seafood, as well as the Hot Wings contest.  A band plays before the awards, and then another after.  Many cooking teams throw down the party on Thursday but are very much reserved on Friday night in anticipation for Saturday’s turn-ins.  Of course that is just the cooking  crew (about 5 people), the REST of the team, which on some teams include up to 200 members, live high on the hog and party till the cops shut them down for quiet time at midnight.

1. 11:10am arrive at the Beale Street gates, enter the park, and find the “Cooker Caravan” Kiosk in the middle of the park near the Shoulders section. Sign up for the 12:30pm and 3:00pm Caravans.
2. 11:45-12:15 make a loop around “Rib Row” and check back in with teams you have made friends with…or perhaps chat up a few new teams asking to see their rigs. Grab a beer ($4) from a vendor and Meet back at Cooker Caravan kiosk at 12:20
3. 12:30-1:20 Tour team booths, make more friends, take notes of teams that invite you back.
4. 1:30-2:20 walk around the “Shoulder and Whole Hog” sections checking in and chating to the teams that you visited the day before, then grab something from a vendor for lunch ($12)
5. 2:50 meet back at Cooker Caravan
6 3:00-3:50 Tour team booths, make friends, take notes of teams that invite you back.
7. 4:00-5:30 Tour Kingsford Tour of Champions teams. Pig out on Pork, judge it, have fun, make friends.
8. 6:30 Watch the daily awards ceremony
9. 8:00 Go back to the teams you made friends with and party until the Cops shut down the park at Midnight. While you can’t pay to get into a team booth, it is customary to throw some cash in the bartenders tip jar for the drinks and hospitality.

Notice again today we only spent about $19…why? Well you have hopefully had a few more samples given to you by teams during the two caravans, you ate lunch from a vendor, you bought a beer and had water to stay hydrated, and, to get your vote, the 3 different from last night 4pm-5:30pm Tour of Champions teams wined and dined you with pulled pork and a few libations. You have thus far spent $62 total. If you were invited back to a booth for a party, you should toss at least $10 into their tip jar, Lucky you were invited back to 2 teams tents thus you dropped $20. You have now spent $82…

Saturday May 18th – COMPETITION DAY

Saturday is held in the reverence of a Sunday morning Baptist church.  There are no loud stereos, no parties, and no sign of the Carnival like atmosphere of the previous days.  This is the Church of Cochon. Today we celebrate and piously reflect upon the main pork categories of Ribs, Shoulder, and Whole Hog.  Every team has a blind box to turn in, and three onsite judges to schmooze.  Booths are dolled up prettier than a 5th Avenue fine dining restaurant.  Silver platters hold racks of ribs, exotic lettuces and fruits ornately decorate grilles and smokers, and you could even spot a team or two wearing tuxes, and greeting judges with a maitre d’.   After all is said and done the long wait begins…only 3 teams from each category make the finals.  We all wait for a smiling guy in a golf cart to attach a sign to your fence, signaling you are a finalist.  When this happens, a HUGE cheer erupts, then you go into panic mode.  That sign means 4 judges are coming to your booth to judge your pork.  Fast forward to 6:30pm, everyone gathers at the main stage for the awards. The MC comes on and announces 10th through 1st place.  If you didn’t final you pray for 4th-10th a HUGE honor in a field of 250.

1. 11:10am arrive at the Beale Street gates, buy your ticket for $9 (NOT FREE ON SATURDAY) enter the park, and proceed to the “Whole Hog” area, they are the first to be judged. Situate yourself where you can duck between 3 team presentations…careful not to make a noise. Observe and be amazed.
2. 11:50 proceed to the “Shoulder” area, they are the second to be judged. Situate yourself where you can duck between 3 team presentations…careful not to make a noise. Again observe and be amazed.
3. 12:40 proceed to the “Rib” area, they are the third to be judged. Situate yourself where you can duck between 3 team presentations…careful not to make a noise. Again observe and be amazed.
4. 1:30-3:10 walk around the “Shoulder and Whole Hog” sections checking in and chatting to the teams that you visited the day before, if you have done as we said and made friends, they will invite you in for lunch.
5. 3:15 walk around the “Rib” section checking in and chatting to the teams that you visited the day before, if you have done as we said and made friends, they will invite you in for lunch.
6. 6:30 Watch the daily awards ceremony
7. 8:00 Go back to the teams you made friends with and party until the Cops shut down the park at 10PM.

You have partied at Memphis in May for $91…If at all possible throw a little more in those team tip jars, they spend thousands of dollars putting this amazing contest on, put it this way – two beers on Beale is $12 with a tip, do the right thing.

Today at 6:18pm we received word from the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest that we are officially in the contest.

If you are interested in joining us for the contest we still have spots left on the team, click “Join Us” in the menu to the right to get more info…

A few of us from Too Sauced To Pork are teaming up with other Barbecue Teams to cook for our troops.

Take a soldier fishing day will be held on April 26, 2014 and is an event for the soldiers of Fort Drum and is held on Oneida Lake in NY.  Members of the NY BASS Federation take soldiers fishing for the day.  Afterward, the soldiers are prepared meals by professional competition barbecue teams.  Teams from New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Canada will be participating.  The teams are donating their time and equipment to make the dinner a success, but we are raising funds to purchase the food necessary to feed our men and women in uniform as well as other expenses associated with this event.

Check out the website, and help if you can.

Take a Soldier Fishing website

We have received many inquiries over the last couple years on the subject of past Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest winners.  No one could find a full complete list anywhere on the Internet.  Fear not friends, we researched and now we bring you the list of Grand Champions; broken down by year, name, and category cooked…Enjoy!

1978    Bessie Lou Cathey                                  Ribs

1979    Don Burdison                                           Ribs

1980    John Wills                                                 Ribs

1981     John Wills                                                 Ribs

1982    Martec Coaters                                        Ribs

1983    Willingham’s River City Rooters        Ribs

1984    Willingham’s River City Rooters        Ribs

1985    Holy Smokers Too                                 Whole Hog

1986    Pig Iron Porkers                                      Whole Hog

1987    Cajun Country Cookers                        Whole Hog

1988    Holy Smokers Too                                 Whole Hog

1989    Super Swine Sizzlers                              Whole Hog

1990    Apple City Barbecue                             Ribs

1991    David Cox Barbecue Team                 Ribs

1992    Apple City Barbecue                              Ribs

1993    The Other Side                                         Shoulder

1994    Apple City Barbecue                             Ribs

1995    Rebel Roaster Revue                            Shoulder

1996    PyroPigmaniacs                                       Ribs

1997    Wildfire Gourmet Cooking Team     Ribs

1998    The Other Team                                       Ribs

1999    Custom Cookers                                       Whole Hog

2000   Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q                       Shoulder

2001   Jack’s Old South                                       Whole Hog

2002   PyroPigmaniacs                                        Ribs

2003   Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q                        Shoulder

2004   Jack’s Old South                                       Whole Hog

2005   Gwatney Championship BBQ              Whole Hog

2006   Red Hot Smokers                                     Shoulder

2007   Jack’s Old South                                       Whole Hog

2008   Natural Born Grillers                             Whole Hog

2009   Sweet Swine O’Mine                                Shoulder

2010   Yazoo’s Delta Q                                         Whole Hog

2011   Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q                        Shoulder

2012   Yazoo’s Delta Q                                          Whole Hog

2013   Sweet Swine O’Mine                                Shoulder

2014 Big Bob Gibson Bar-B-Q                           Shoulder

We had a few First Time teams email us and ask for some tips about competing at Memphis in May…

Here’s the “Crap they don’t tell you about Competing in Memphis in May” list…

Let’s start with the planning, since they are still accepting applications til March 3rd

Application here

1. At this time you need only sign up for the entry fee and cleaning deposit, this includes

• a. What category you are entered in
• b. What size space you want
• c. Do you want Riverside(more expensive) or a regular spot.

We choose riverside for the view…but MOSTLY for the Breeze.
2. The $350 clean up deposit. Of which $150 is returned to you upon site clean up
3. On the application it asks about wristbands, ancillaries, Big Hog, and Wednesday night tickets.

• a. Wristbands can be purchased at the Cooks Meeting in April (see below)
• b. Wednesday night tickets can be purchased at the Cooks Meeting in April (see below)
• c. Big Hog can be purchased at the Cooks Meeting in April (see below)
• d. Ancillaries can also be entered at the cooks meeting in April…but we pay them on the front end to show MIM we enter everything.
• e. Cooker Caravan – Your team gives 1 tour a day of your booth to the public. You have a question and answer session, and send them off with a smile. It is totally free for the public and you meet some very interesting and cool people. It is a great program, please think about doing it
• f. Kingsford Tour of Champions. You can only enter this if your team has placed top 20 at MIM before

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1. Cooks meeting – first timers – go if you can…great way to network
You can add ancillaries, wed. night tickets, and 3 day wristbands up until cooks meeting in April
2. Patio Porkers get 5 – 24 hour bands
3. Regular Teams get 15-24 Hour bands
4. 3 day wristbands are only for gate hours 11AM-12AM Thurs and Fri – 11am-10pm Sat
5. Big hog package can be a waste of money for a small team…check if you really need it
6. Cattleman’s offers free sauce to teams…sign up for it, get the maximum amount…free stuff is good stuff, and if you sign up for the max, that’s like 200 dollars worth of free bbq supplies. It includes French’s Mustard, Katsup, Worstershire, 5 kinds of Franks, and 6 kinds of Cattleman’s.

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Electric – NONE is provided

You will need to buy Electric hookups PRIOR to the Contest. If done before April, there is usually a good discount.

==============================

TENTS

Classic Party Rentals rents tents and floor…and they have a contract with Memphis in May. No other tent rental companies are allowed in the park.

Rent tents and floor BEFORE April and there is a discount

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The Contest

1. If you have a large trailer you want in your team booth get there the Saturday before the contest starts because once the fences go up it is dang near impossible to get that hoss into a muddy rutted out spot.

2. Put up your fence as soon as you get there – If you do not, then your empty spot will be used as a parking lot, a turn around, and a way to put a trailer into the spot behind yours. THIS SUCKS. The booth gets all rutted out and very nasty with mud. So prevention is the best policy

3. BRING some kind of floor. You will thank me for this. They don’t call it Memphis in Mud for nothing. It has to sit above the ground. No wood chips, plywood directly on the ground, etc. We use pallets then hammer plywood over em…cheap and easy. I say bring b/c the rental company charges 48 bucks per 4ftx4ft square of flooring.

4. Get the Fire Marshall permit tag as soon as you can on Monday or Tues…DO NOT FORGET…it will be absolute HELL trying to track these guys down come Wednesday

5. Bring your own grounding wire kit for your tent, if you don’t the electricians will charge you for a kit..AND INSTALLATION…if you bring your own they will hook you in no charge

6. WATCH your team boundaries…there are some teams that will move paint and stakes to get a bigger area. I won’t name names, but it is rude and sh**ty to do. Measure your spot, then drive BIG stakes into the ground at the corners…

7. Count on electric to not be hooked up until Tuesday…it usually gets hooked up before, but there have been snafu’s in the past. Make sure you have an
alternative plan for meat, tools, light, etc

8. RENT A PORT-O-JOHN, and put it in the BACK of your booth. You can thank me later for this. If your crapper is in the front people will just walk into your booth and use it without permission…not cool. If you don’t have one you will regret it when you go to relive yourself only to find overflowing crappers from the 100,000 people that used them before you. Plus all the drunks= PUKE in the public ones…NASTY

9. Team Beer sales end early by 9pm everyday…PLAN FOR THIS. Wed is like 6pm and Sat is 7 pm…Remember to stock up or you will be SOL…

10. Wednesday is the last day to load in…7am – NOON Vehicles must leave by 3pm…those of you driving in from points unknown This is the ABSOLUTE LAST time to load big stuff in…otherwise you will be hoofing it in from ½ a mile away…that is no exaggeration…½ a mile at least carrying stuff.

11. GET A WAGON – this will save you LOTS of heartache. From kegs to meat, to the 2 kids you can haul everything you need in them. A must for MIM.

12. You will need to have Blockers and runners for your entries. The crowds are thick and you will need 2 or 3 person teams to get your stuff to the judging quickly and safely.

13. You need to bring a fire extinguisher with a CURRENT INSPECTION TAG ATTACHED. They will not give you a fire permit without one.

14. All propane tanks must have a holder…a milk crate is perfect for this, without a holder…no permit

15. Bring PLENTY of bottled water. The Sams Club on site runs out…

AND THE BIGGEST RULE
If things go wrong with your pork entry put the beautiful portions in the blind box. (remember pork entries can have NO garnish) You have to learn to B.S. and sell your onsite judge on your product. You can talk your way out of a burnt looking rib or shoulder to an onsite judge, you can’t explain anything to the blind judges….

If any visitors or first timers need tips, don’t be afraid to ask.

Hello All,

It is less than 90 days to the load in for the Memphis in May BBQ Festival,

We still have 12 membership spots available for new members. As we have posted before, we at Too Sauced To Pork believe in inclusion vs exclusion. Every year we open up 20 Team Memberships to BBQ Lovers both near and far. We give tours of our booth to passers by because we beleive in being hospitable and love to educate visitors about our team, the contest and Barbecue in general.

Need a good guide for the Festival

If you are interested in joining our BBQ Family, please look to the main menu on the right of this page and click “Join Us”

In other News:

Memphis in May has released the link to sign up as a judge for the contest…
Here it is:

Judging Signup

Christmas is fast approaching. Have you or someone you know ever wanted to be on a BBQ Team for the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest? Here is your chance. We here at Too Sauced To Pork open up 20 membership spots every year for people from all over the World to join the team for MIM. Last year we had members from 8 foreign countries and 21 US States. This years contest honors the country of Panama and is held Wednesday May 14th to Saturday May 17th on the banks of the mighty Mississippi. (follow the link in the Main Menu to the right for our guide to the contest)

No cooking experience needed, we have members that cook all meals and contest entries…and if you feel comfortable, you are welcome to pitch in if you like. We are a team with no secrets, if you want to learn from us we will be elbow to elbow with you in the kitchen…We try to be good ambassadors of Barbecue.

We have a full bar, Kegs and Liquor, with bartenders and a double frozen beverage machine stocked with Bourbon Slush and Margaritas. We also have our own label of Wine (Too Sauced To Shiraz) made by the talented and award winning winemaker, Ms. Sara, as well as gallons of our own homemade Apple Pie Moonshine made by our resident good ole boy Johnny.

We have a BBQ buffet everyday for lunch and dinner that includes at least 3 meats and 3 sides…usually much more.

This all comes with a membership. If you or someone you know is interested please look to the main menu on the right of this page and hit “Join Us”…these memberships don’t last long.

Too Sauced To Pork took 1st Place Cabrito, 1st Place Ice Cream, 2nd Place Pulled Pork, 3rd Place Ribs, and 4th Place Bloody Mary at Goat Days this weekend….WOOT!!!!

We are in Millington, Tennessee at International Goat Days this weekend. This is a KCBS cook, with a great track record for us. We pulled 4 trophies last year, including the first place chicken that landed Too Sauced To Pork on Diva Q’s show BBQ Crawl.

Come down and say hi.

Video from this past Memphis in May (2013)

Party Like a Pork Star: Memphis in May BBQ Competition from Big Teeth Productions on Vimeo.