On Saturday my significant other and I spent most of the day at Pork in the Park. It provides us the opportunity to enjoy good food, taking lots of pictures – which explains why I have two parts – and a chance to tell a story from perhaps a different angle from one you may have seen before.
During the awards ceremony, we were told that our humble little event has grown in seven years to be the second largest in the country and largest east of the Mississippi River. I guess that’s based on the number of participants, but it amazes me that something a lot of us guys take for granted has grown into a pastime which can take up most of a summer. Yes, leisure has become work for many, including what I presume is a local group called Smokin’ More Than Pork.
Other groups come from farther away, and they have one thing in mind.
Certainly slaving over a hot grill for hours on end can be demanding work.
I found this shirt worn by the folks at Mook’s BBQ interesting. If you didn’t think this was big business, check out this ambitious “Inaugural Tour” schedule:
It also takes some funding to buy the equipment necessary to compete at the level, like these special trailers.
Part of the marketing involves the bragging rights garnered from previous high finishes.
Others have various wares to sell to grilling enthusiasts.
Others chose their distinctiveness in different ways.
In the end, though, the competition was about the money. All those trinkets and toys cost some coin, and top finishes in the seven categories won up to $1,000. The Grand Champion, Reserve Champion, and Maryland State Champion also won additional prizes up to $2,500 – needless to say this hobby isn’t lucrative unless you do some additional marketing or have it as an adjunct to a main food service business.
But here were your winners from Saturday.
You may have noticed Kim took most of these pictures. I tended to look at the event as a whole for its newsworthiness and as a comparison to past events. Most of my photography will come with Part 2 tomorrow as will the later coverage of the music as another volume of Weekend of local rock.
