Sunday March 30th dawned dark and gray. I ventured out that morning bundled up against the chilly 44-degree weather with my extra battery pack and phone charging wire tucked into my winter coat pocket. I was full of unbridled nervous anticipation, knowing that my goal was to provide the superlative content and the superb photographic coverage that this event so RICHLY DESERVED…The exceptionally esteemed Day 2 of the NEBS Class ‘N Cook! The “4 P’s of Due Diligence” are: People, Performance, Philosophy, and Process. “These key elements form the foundation of a thorough due diligence process, covering aspects related to the teams involved, performance metrics, investment philosophy, and the overall process followed.” In the literal sense, I wanted my requisite effort in covering this NEBS event to indubitably reflect my genuine and authentic FANDOM for Team ElJefe Smoke ie; Jeff Kulacz, Dan Swanson, Amanda Swanson and Sabrina Swanson and as an enthusiastic STAN of NEBS! Hence, My Checklist:
- Aforementioned Phone/Camera Battery Back-Ups =Check
- Extra Omeprazole to prevent my ulcer from bleeding due to excessive stress should I embarrassingly fumble and/or stumble about and make a fool of myself =Check
- A POSITIVE ATTITUDE AND A BIG OL’ SMILE ON MY FACE – because even if I did make A FAUX PAS, I am certainly quite capable of laughing at myself, as well as the comforting fact that both Jeff and Dan have been nothing short of EXTRAORDINARILY KIND and supportive throughout my www.ribbqnews.com journey! =CHECK AND CHECK!
As soon as I pulled into the neighborhood surrounding the venue of the NEBS Class ‘N Cook, THE ESSENCE OF BBQ WAS IN THE AIR…even with my windows rolled up, the tantalizing aromatic smoke of BBQ permeated the circumjacent areas of the St. Joseph Veterans Association! The BBQ set-ups were in full swing! Cooks were well under way, smokers and cookers and drums were in process, open throttle! Day 2 of The Class ‘N Cook was at a stage where the level of activity was at its highest! Despite being overwhelmingly busy, EVERY SINGLE PERSON THAT I MET ON SUNDAY WAS ENGAGING, ENTERTAINING, AGREEABLE, AND DELIGHTFUL! Finally being able to meet Jeff, Dan, Amanda and Sabrina IN REAL LIFE was absolutely CHARMING! Amanda Swanson is The Northeast Barbecue Society Treasurer, and as mentioned in my previous article, Jeff Kulacz is the Vice-President of NEBS. Sabrina Swanson is also ½ of The BBQ Competition Team, “SMOKE SISTERS.” PLEASE DO HEARKEN TO THE NEWEST www.WiseGuysBBQ.com Podcast FOR A PHENOMENAL EPISODE FEATURING “Smoke Sisters!”
The Pit-Masters lending their WEALTH of knowledge and devoting their time and efforts to help teach NEW BBQ-ers WERE MASTERFUL AND GENEROUS! In attendance were:
Michael James Lane, President of the Northeast Barbecue Society, and ½ of the Team HOGWASH BBQ, pictured below with Mike Heroux- The JR Vice Commander of St. Joseph Veterans Association. Mike Heroux is a Chef by trade and works for The Army National Guard. Mike Heroux organizes an annual BBQ Contest held at The St. Joseph Veterans Association called, “BOOTS, BREWS, AND BBQ!” It is an “all-afternoon event,” slated to be held on Sunday, September 14th full of food, country music, and BBQ Teams sharing “FLAVORS AND TASTES!” AND: YOU HEARD THE ANNOUNCEMENT HERE FIRST, at www.ribbqnews.com FOLKS…Michael Lane has GRACIOUSLY stated that he will NEBS SANCTION The “Boots, Brews, and BBQ” Event! Whoo-Hoo!!!
Pit-Masters Team 16 MESH AKA THE KIMBALL FAMILY were in attendance; Dan and Kristen Kimball, Dan’s Dad Chris Kimball, and Dan’s brother “CHRIS 2.0” Kimball. Chris 2.0 Kimball is the NEBS Technology Chair and Secretary. Pictured below are Dan and Kristen Kimball with Chris Kimball, SR.
Pictured here BBQ-ing and competing and then WINNNG The NEBS Class ‘N Cook are Team Gringlebix; Mike Fillers and Will Clearo who were mentored by Team 16 MESH; pictured with Dan Kimball and Chris Kimball. Mike Fillers complimented the BBQ Luncheon prepared for the students on Saturday by Team ElJefe Smoke saying, “It was good to have an example of what GREAT BBQ LOOKS LIKE AND TASTES LIKE!” Team Gringlebix WON the GRAND CHAMPION CLASS ‘N COOK and took home the prize of The Broil King Vertical Smoker! Mike Fillers, Will Clearo, Jeff, Mike Lane and Sabrina are pictured below along with the Broil King Vertical Smoker!
Pit-Masters Rico and Katy Pasquale of Q-SHANTY were working up a storm; literally BBQ-ing and smoking with wild enthusiasm, intense energy, at a rapid pace of activity, expending tremendous effort and showcasing proficient skills!
Rico Pasquale of Q-SHANTY and Kristen Kimball of 16 MESH worked together preparing TURN-IN BOXES for the NEBS Judging Certification Class taking place indoors. The Turn-In boxes looked and smelled fantastic…and 1 of the most interesting facts that I learned on Sunday was that there is such a thing as “AN ILLEGAL GARNISH!” Therefore, no matter if that Turn-In Box held the most scrumptious BBQ Fare within, that BBQ Box would be DISQUALIFIED because of its ILLEGAL GARNISH! FASCINATING FACT! Here are a series of photos below of Rico and Kristen working in tandem, showing evidence of a mere fraction of the hard work that goes into preparing Turn-In Boxes!
And pictured below are 2 of the PERFECT TURN-IN BOXES!!
AND HERE IS THE ILLEGAL GARNISH TURN-IN BOX EQUALLING DISQUALIFICATION!!!
Team ElJefe Smoke mentored Roxanne Ballachino, Steve Raposa, and Kleber Tiban. Kleber Tiban told me that he drove up to RI from New Jersey to “make a weekend out of the class” like, “a little vacation” for he and his wife because his wife signed up for and took the NEBS Judging Certification Class on Sunday!! He said, “We LOVE BBQ, we wanted to meet some new people, so we made a trip out of The Class ‘N Cook!” Below are photos of Jeff, Kleber, Dan and Steve behind 1 of their work stations, and photos of Steve and Kleber hard at work! After Sunday’s Day 2 Class, Steve posted on FaceBook, “Thank you Dan and Jeff as well as the other participants in this weekend’s cooking class, had an awesome time with you all and looking forward to seeing you at future events.” Team Can-Q
After Day 2 of the NEBS Class ‘N Cook, Roxanne posted this comment on FaceBook, “ I would like to send a huge shout-out and thank you to Jeff and Dan from ElJefe Smoke as well as all the others who helped at last weekend’s 2 day cooking class. The information as well as the hints, tips, and techniques were invaluable. The comp on Sunday had so many accomplished Pit-Masters available for us it was nothing short of amazing. I personally didn’t fare well in the comp, but as they say maybe next time. Once again, thank you to everyone who gave up their time to mentor aspiring BBQ cooks.” I COULD NOT HAVE SAID IT BETTER MYSELF, ROXANNE!
Every Pit-Master brought along their trucks, trailers, awnings, tables, smokers, drums and cookers. They provided a delectable selection of spices, rubs, and sauces for the BBQ Students to utilize to make luscious chicken wings and ribs. EVERY PIT-MASTER COMBINED THEIR ALMIGHTY TALENTS FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE BBQ STUDENTS! The Pit-Masters POOLED THEIR EXTENSIVE RESOURCES- ANY TEAM WAS ALLOWED TO USE ANY INGREDIENT THAT THEY DESIRED! I found the entire afternoon to be OVERWHELMINGLY INSPIRING! *Note*- RICO still keeps his MAGICAL SECRET SEASONING DUST locked in the vault…LOL! Other than that, everyone shared EVERYTHING! Below is a photo of Roxanne as well as a plethora of photos of all of The MONUMENTAL TEAMWORK which took place. PEEP THE SPICE TABLES!!!
I was also introduced to The COMMANDER of The St. Joseph Veterans Association, Bill “GRIZZ” Griswold. Bill is a Former US Army 249 Combat Engineers Battalion Member. Bill organizes and participates in a vast amount of events advising, helping, and assisting Veterans and is a Herculean supporter of Veteran causes. Pictured below are Dan, Bill “GRIZZ,” Mike Lane, and Jeff; and the following photo includes Mike Lane, Jeff, Mike Heroux, Dan, and John Egan, SR.
John Egan, SR. is a Former NEBS Board Member and has been involved on the BBQ Circuit for over 18 years! John was actively involved in writing the handbook for The NEBS Judging Class! John believes that “Any day for BBQ is a GOOD DAY—and EVEN BAD BBQ MAKES A GOOD DAY!!!” John states that the NEBS Class ‘N Cook is “A great learning opportunity for people wanting to enter into the world of BBQ competition.” Below, find John Egan, SR decked out in FULL NEBS REGALIA- including his NEBS Northeast Barbecue Society Certified Judge/Table Captain Polo Shirt!!!
“Wise Guys BBQ” SUPERSTAR CHEF, TOMMY THE BUTCHER, was a participant in the NEBS Judging Certification Class on Sunday! The NEBS Judging Class was taught by Julie Kitayama, who is on the Board of Directors at NEBS, and who is a CERTIFIED BBQ JUDGE PROFESSOR! I tried to stealthily sneak into the class unobtrusively in order to take some photos…However, THAT plan was foiled when the Judging Class came to a silent halt upon my LESS than illustrious entry! I hurriedly introduced myself and was able to snap some “Teaching Moments” in action! Fortunately, Tommy the Butcher garnered NUMEROUS snippets of pertinent information and provided me with a PERFECT quote: “I enjoyed the class immensely! Best experience I found was the camaraderie amongst everyone in attendance, including the NEBS Staff Members. A lot of shared passion in the BBQ world that makes relating to all those involved a pleasure. We all love to share our experiences and help others in any way that we can. That’s exactly what I got out of the class. Not to mention some great BBQ. I was most amazed that the woman that I sat next to traveled all the way from New Jersey to be there with her husband. Her husband did the cooking class and she took the Judges Certification Class.” Well, www.ribbqnews.com readers, you guessed it- Our own Tommy the Butcher was seated next to Kleber Tiban’s wife!! As you can see from the photo below, Tommy the Butcher looked QUITE SNAZZY for the Judging Certification Class and he was thrilled to be there! I also took a photo of Tommy’s placemat “A MEAT BINGO CARD,”—which is what I named it in my mind- LOL- but of course I asked Jeff the proper terminology for it, and he answered that it can be referred to as “A Judging Plate,” or “A Judging Placemat.” All 15 participants earned their NEBS Judging Certifications! Hooray! I asked Tommy if the Saltine crackers on his Judging Placemat were just a snack or if they were meant to cleanse your palate in between bites of meats…Answer: The Saltines are a Palate Cleanser. Tommy then informed me that, “YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY NOT ALLOWED TO LICK YOUR FINGERS!” he said that he’s not sure he can do that, because “it’s an involuntary reaction!” …especially to mouth-watering BBQ! I thought perhaps he may be joshing, so I asked, “IS THAT REALLY A RULE?” Tommy responded, “Yes!! You have to have wet paper towels at your station to use. And our water bottles have to be placed on their sides when the Table Judge comes around to present the boxes so they don’t get accidentally tipped over!” Thus, there are some “Sneak Peek Inside Morsels of Information” for you, our Dear Readers!
From ALL ACCOUNTS, The NEBS Class ‘N Cook was a RESOUNDING SUCCESS!!! It was my absolute pleasure to “REPORT” on this prodigious event. The 4 P’s of Due Diligence were STELLAR: The People who participated had an exceptional experience. The Performance metrics of the event were unprecedented. The Philosophy imparted was wondrous. The Process of the event was unparalleled. BRAVO NEBS! IT WAS INDEED, A BONA FIDE NEBS LOVE FEST, ALL AROUND!
