• Rotary BBQ 2015

Don't tell me that you missed the big BBQ at Marna O'Brien Park. If you did... don't worry, there will be another one next year.

I'm starting to sound like a broken record here, but truly —What a great day for all Wildomartinis that attended (or Wildomartians, or WildOmarians if you prefer).

You can see the number of ticket stubs as of 2:00pm.

There were people of all ages in attendance and there is no real way to guess how many attended until after they count all the entry tickets, but the line to get in didn't go away until after 3:00pm. At 2:00pm  some of the vendors had actually sold out of food.

Once the lines started, they never went away... unless the food did. There were people all over the fenced off portion of the park, and the city had their own area that often had several staffers on hand, and they were also giving out barbecued pork ribs and chicken. In addition to the wet wipes they had too.

I had no idea how to open these... I was trying to
rip them apart like you would a food item.

If you'd like to get a sense of the day's event, take a look at this brief slideshow below.

 
There were 43 BBQ teams. There were five different categories of meat types they competed in. If memory serves that included chicken, pork, beef, brisket... the winners are mentioned below.

What most of those in attendance didn't see was the judging that was taking place in a tent that was in a secluded spot. These folks take this competition seriously, and if you were to wander into the tent by mistake, I hear that you'd be tackled by several secret service agents... or at least asked to leave in a stern tone delivered with one eyebrow up.

This was the first city wide event that I saw all five of our city council members at.

To most it was just a great opportunity to get out in some great Wildomar Spring air, hang out with family and or friends, taste a lot of good food, listen to a very good band and stroll around seeing what some of the vendors had on display. But to the BBQ teams, it was go time. Funny thing is, most of the competitors weren't there to serve food to the public, just to cook their backsides off in attempts to win one of the top prizes.

There was a total of $12,500 in prize money. 

1st Place Chicken: Thank the Lard BBQ and Mossy Rock BBQ tied
1st place Pork Ribs: Simply Marvelous BBQ.
1st place Pork: Left Coast Q
1st Place Brisket:  Left Coast Q
1st Place Beef Ribs: Porketeers

Overall Winners: Left Coast Q 

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The Wildomar Historical Society had a booth, and a raffle as a fund raiser. The prize, a Weber BBQ, a wagon to carry it in, bag of mesquite charcoal and a basket with other BBQ things in it. Gotta love irony... the winner of this was a neighbor of mine, Kevin Sax... who happens to be a vegetarian. But hey, veges are good barbecued too.

Funny thing about BBQs and me. I'm from California and I really don't like authentic Midwest BBQ. Sorry, I'll take regular old grilled steak, or maybe some fajitas, over BBQ about 100 out of 100 times. I was glad to find several others that also weren't fans of pulled pork either.

The only near casualty I heard about was one reveler that had one too many... well, I was told it was more like several too many, (though he wasn't actually seen at the beer/wine window) which leads one to assume he brought his own... but he was persuaded to leave without incident, though that was mostly due to the good nature of those near him. Had he been at a Raider game instead of a Wildomar event, he'd probably be MIA from what I'd heard.

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I know people that could serve me canned tuna and saltine crackers and have me feel more at home at their table than some people who can cook circles around me. The more you try to impress people, generally the less you do. — Alton Brown

Wildomar Rap tip of the day... remember it's easier to apply sunscreen before a sunburn than aloe vera after it's too late.