This weekend, I’m, most likely, going to be judging my first KCBS competition.  My wife and I got our certifications in January, and we’ll be using them finally!  I thought I’d kind of document what my thoughts are going into the experience, then compare them next week after having done the judging for real.

Just like any new experience, it will be interesting to see how right or wrong my preconceptions are after this weekend!

Here’s a list of what my thoughts are going into the Ribberfest in Madison, Indiana:

• Some judges will take themselves too seriously.  Ok, a lot of teams spent a good amount of money to be there, but it’s barbecue, not life and death.  It should be fun, and judges shouldn’t think they’re more important than the cooks… Without judges, there’s still great barbecue.  Without cooks, there’s nothing to judge!
• Some judges will have negative attitudes.  This goes along with the first item.  Judges should be conditioned to err in the direction of the cook.  If there’s a question, mark up, not down.
• Some judges won’t have a clue about what they’re doing.  Some will judge taste and tenderness on what they like, not on what the entry is or what barbecue is necessarily supposed to be.  Some will want sauce and mark down dry entries.  Some won’t like sauce and will mark down sauced entries.  Some will think ribs are supposed to fall of the bone and will mark down ribs that bite off the bone instead.  This is why the KCBS throws out the low score!
• I’ll probably be hungry when I start, and barely able to eat anything when I’m done.  I’ll try to pace myself, but we’ll see how I do when I report back next week!
• Someone will change a score once it’s written down.  This may be someone that decides that the appearance score should have been lower or higher or they started to compare entries.  Each entry is to be judged on its own, so you do whatever you’re judging, write down that entry’s score, then move on to the next entry.
• I will end up with a piece of chicken that I can’t stand.  I don’t know why I think this, I just do! 
• Ribs will be very sweet.  I mean VERY sweet!
• There will be no disqualifications at my table.  These aren’t very common, so it’s not a stretch to say this one.
• After the judging, someone will complain that the judging was too inconsistent.  However, the typical teams will be at the top of the results again, disproving that judging is inconsistent.  Look at it this way… If I am judging at a lower standard than the judge next to me, one of two things will happen: 1. my score will be thrown out as low score, or 2. my other scores will also reflect the same bias toward lower scores.  Where this is potentially bad, however, is where different tables don’t have similar situations.  However, I go back to my original thoughts on inconsistent judging in comps… When you sign up to compete in any event that’s decided by human opinion, you’re taking the chance that inconsistencies will exist.  Sucketh it up!
• After it’s all over, I’ll be tired of barbecue for a while.  I figure at least until the next day.

Anyone competing this weekend, good luck and have fun!  Anyone competing in Madison this weekend, good luck in not getting me as your judge!  (Actually, I think I’ll do ok, coming from the cook side of things).  I still think all judges should have to cook in at least one competition before being certified!