This weekend I attended Rhythm & Que’s Fundamentals of Championship BBQ class at Eggs by the Bay inSanta Clara.  The class was led by the husband and wife team Rhythm & Que, Vince and Alexa.  The class was geared towards helping teams create a model for success in competition.  As some of you know we had some ups and downs last year in our first season of competing at the “professional” level.  We had moments of great success and getting calls in all but two competitions.  We also felt we left a lot to be desired, both in our preparation and execution during contests.  As Ricky Bobby says, “If you aint first, your last.”  That’s probably why I took 25+ pages of notes.

In the environment of secrecy which most successful competition BBQ teams operate its awesome when a team with as much success as Rhythm & Que has had opens up and shares their tricks of the trade.  So many of the things they shared seemed like absolute no brainers when I heard them, but it took someone with the level of experience and as many competitions under their belt to shine a light on them because they don’t cross your mind until you’ve gone to battle as many times as they have.  It was also pretty awesome to hear that they had started from humble beginnings and took it to the championship level over an incredibly short period of time.

One thing that resonated with me was their philosophy on how to win.  I’ve heard from other teams who have taken classes and it seems like the instructors of those classes were working to create clones.  This could not be further from the truth with Vince and Alexa.  It was very clear that they believe what makes a team successful is to set a goal, create a model for success, continue to improve it and practice until you’ve hit your target.

I would highly recommend that anyone in the market for a competition class to get to a class presented by Rhythm & Que.  It was incredibly comprehensive, from selecting meat for purchase, to butchering, to making boxes, to cooking methods and on and on.  Had I not been told at the conclusion of the class that this was the first competition class that they had put on I would have had no idea.  It seemed very well rehearsed and the immense amount of knowledge shared in a 7 hour period was amazing.  I can’t wait to practice and work to implement some of the strategies they provided.

Shout out to Smitty, great classroom setting and an awesome shop.  If you haven’t made it down to Eggs by the Bay, do so you will not be disappointed.  The shop is big, clean and well organized.   Be sure to check out the Facebook pages of Eggs by the Bay and Rhythm & Que!