Sacramento Results Big Poppa Smokers

Big Poppa

Administrator
Ok it was the best of cooks and the worst of cooks...we aren't going on to Vegas

Results
Chicken 2nd
Ribs 5th
Pork 24th out of 29
brisket 26th out of 29
Overall 15th

We have never gotten that hammered in pork or brisket.....The funny thing is that we were happy with our turn ins....Now we want to get back at them!
 

HoDeDo

New member
The more comps you guys cook, the more you will learn about how random some of the judging can be. Don't even think twice about it. You guys are on the right track, and you know if your meat was on the money or not.

Case in point... I was able to get 2nd, in the Butt to Butt Invitational yesterday; but today, I thought the pork was even better.... and got 50th out of 83 teams. I'm already over it :) I know what I turned in. Sometime you just get a bad table.

Anyway, the more you cook, the more you will run into those times you get hammered. :) Enjoy them. OR pay the table captains to give you the licence plate #'s of the offending judges LOL

A solid performance, sorry you got the crappy table at the Sam's local.
 

Big Poppa

Administrator
Thanks Andy....Maybe somewhere in between....we may need to be more objective but we were happy iwth our cook and thats what counts.
 

Red

New member
Thanks Andy. We were really hoping for a good result this weekend to continue on the Sams Club tour... It was bound to happen eventually, we have seen great teams get hammered before. I guess it was our turn today.
 

HoDeDo

New member
Thanks Andy....Maybe somewhere in between....we may need to be more objective but we were happy iwth our cook and thats what counts.

Exactly! If you were happy with it, that is all that counts! And I can't wait to see the new digs... my bride tells me that there is a new smoke mobile I need to read about!
 

scooter

Moderator
It was 100% CBJs in the tent yesterday so no volunteers pulled into judging duty. Andy is right random judging as I had a two standout brisket entrees on my plate yesterday which is unusual. One I gave a 9-8-8 and the other I gave a 9-9-9. Couldn't find anything wrong with it. Nice beef flavor, everything in balance, looked beautiful in the box, I couldn't find a thing wrong with it!! I slyly looked over my neighbor judges score for the same entry and he gave it a ?-7-6! Go figure!
 

Big Poppa

Administrator
Having taken the class now there are some things that I learned.....The biggest one is that the presentation scores are kind of silly based on how long you get to see the presentation....especailly when you are only supposed to judge the meat....

Scooter....We are good with the results. Joe had walked 10 consecutive times mostly in the top five with the same recipe and what seemed like the same result...we consider that a blip....on the brisket we are making some changes based on it. A year ago we would have been happy with two calls a second and a 5th....

I am not in any way tossing stones at the contest or the judges We had fun and the weather was great.
 

Matt Dalton

New member
Thanks Andy....Maybe somewhere in between....we may need to be more objective but we were happy iwth our cook and thats what counts.
Exactly!..we've had the same problems Sterling..I feel your guys pain,but like you said we will cook on,hold our heads high and compete another day!..I'm already itching to get to the next comp.
 

Candy Sue

New member
I have never ever gotten 6s in appearance! Taste and tenderness, yeah, but appearance never before. Did on Saturday at the Capital Cookoff. I thought I had a worthy brisket box. Brisket shooting juices as it was sliced, 8 great looking slices in the box. Bombed big time 75 of 82. I hope I cook another one just like that one my next comp...
 

KimG SOW

New member
I have never ever gotten 6s in appearance! Taste and tenderness, yeah, but appearance never before. Did on Saturday at the Capital Cookoff. I thought I had a worthy brisket box. Brisket shooting juices as it was sliced, 8 great looking slices in the box. Bombed big time 75 of 82. I hope I cook another one just like that one my next comp...

We got one too, in Pork. The same style box as the Butt to Butt the day before. Our appearance scores were 6.8.8.9.9.9. I don't get it. The only thing I can think of is they wanted some pulled pork in the box. Oh well.
 
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Big Poppa

Administrator
Here is what I think...I hope we still have the presidents ear...A judge who gives a lone 6 needs to be talked to....In the haste to get enough good judges they tolerate judges that are really harsh....is there a review process where the judge is tracked in relation to his/her table?
 

Candy Sue

New member
This will happen with the new scoring system. Current system can't do judge tracking. Honestly, with my box scores, none of the judges would be red flagged. They were all within 2 points of each other. Yep, not a 9 in the score nowhere.
 

scooter

Moderator
Pressuring judges to all score the same (or close to the same) for the same team entry is based on an assumption that all 6 pieces of meat in your box are exactly identical (or nearly identical) in appearance, taste and tenderness. They're not all the same so scores should differ among judges at the same table with meat from the same turnin box to represent that difference when it presents itself. The problem with a system that will track judges is the system didn't taste the meat, the judge did and will be flagging a judge who scored a piece of meat down further than his/her table peers because his/her piece of chicken was dry but the system won't know that.
Just sayin.....
 

Big Poppa

Administrator
Scooter I don't buy it. I agree if it is just done one time. But at the end of the season tracking a judge will allow the opportunity to improve judging.... If he or she averages consistently 3 points below all the time that would be an issue. Same for judges who aren't critical enough. That is maybe worse because their score never gets thrown out....unlike the lowest score sheet
 
I think tracking will cause scores to be higher so everybody can be under the radar.if there is a 3 point swing either way it should be addressed by the rep at this time.
 
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