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Central Florida Barbecue Flares Up This Weekend

KATHY WATERS/HIGHLANDS TODAY

From left: John Palermini and Art Barnhart check on the Boston butt as they wait for it to thaw out on Wednesday at Firemen's Field in Sebring. The AMVETS Post 21 barbecue team has about 100 pounds of Boston butt that they plan to cook for this weekend's Central Florida Barbecue Festival.

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By MANDY SHEETS | Highlands Today

Published: January 10, 2008

SEBRING — Smells of barbeque will be wafting through the air this weekend at Fireman's Field as cooks fire up their grills for the annual Central Florida Barbecue Festival.

"If you drive by here with your windows down, the smell is enough to make your mouth water," said Skip Adams, co-chair of the barbecue festival. "The smell alone will be enough to draw you in."

About 40 teams will set up tents and grills at Firemen's Field for the competition, with the main contests Saturday in ribs, chicken, brisket and pulled pork.

"They are vying for cash prizes but mainly for bragging rights," Adams said.

Friday night will also feature competitions in beer-can chicken, barbecue sauce, chili and anything but, which allows for any dish that is not part of the other categories.

Adams said although the festival draws teams from throughout the Southeast, it's mostly supported by local sponsors and teams who return every year.

"Once a team starts coming, the fever starts, and they get excited for it every year," Adams said.

Jady Hill and his team, Florida Boys Championship Bar-B-Q, have been competing in barbecue festivals for 11 years, and he has boxes of trophies and plaques to prove it, but Hill isn't motivated by the notoriety.

"The best things I've won are the friends I've met through barbecuing," Hill said. "This weekend I will have family and friends gathered for a barbeque and it's the best thing I can imagine. If the whole world would barbecue, I don't think we would have any troubles at all."

Many of the teams are veteran barbecuers, but the rookie AMVETS Post 21 is one of the teams makings its debut this year.

Gene Murphy, of AMVETS Post 21, has wanted to participate in the event for several years and finally gathered a team to join him this year. The newbies said they aren't quite sure what to expect, but they are planning to have fun.

"We are backyard barbecue boys who enjoy cooking just about everything," Murphy said. "We all have our own recipes, and we will try them out, pick the best one and see how it goes. It looks like it will be a good time for everyone – who doesn't love a big barbecue party?"

Because this is the team's first year in the festival, they arrived early Wednesday to set up their tent and unload their meat and equipment.

"We are ahead of everyone right now," Art Barnhart quipped as he pointed out the empty Fireman's Field. "We want to finish the hard work early so we can relax."

Adams gave them a few pointers for success, like attending the cook's meeting, turning everything in on time and making sure to have enough meat inspected to feed eight judges. Adams said although some teams consistently perform well, no one is a shoe-in every year.

"Teams have to be innovative because if they just stick with the same thing, they can get lost in the crowd," Adams said. "You can't always go with the flow if you want to stand out."

The festival is free and open to the public from 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday

Samples of barbecue and meals will be sold. Entertainment, activities and vendors will be set up throughout the festival, with the band Quickfire playing from 6-10 p.m. Friday and 3-6 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. Saturday. The award ceremony is 6 p.m. Saturday.

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