Cooking all four Categories for a KCBS Contest.

The following KCBS sequence consists of
2 each 14-15# packers
2 each 8-8.5# pork butts
4 slabs St Louis 3.5-4#
16 chix thighs

8:00 pm FEC set to 240
9:00 pm pork butts in 3rd shelf down
10:00 pm briskets in 2nd (+1st if needed) shelf down
Probe set to 190 in PB.
Monitor temps 1 hr
Hit the sack
6:00 am on site check-in on briskets and PB's. Rub ribs. Kick temp to 250
6:30 ribs in.
7:00 - 8:00 am Butts and briskets should be done or close. Pull. FTC kick temp to 275
10:30 am 2nd shelf from bottom gets covered with foil. Thighs in on lowest shelf position. Cook to 145, hold.
Ribs should be finishing by the time chicken's done and holding.
Thighs get finished over charcoal at 11:30

You can take the thighs to finish with the FEC but I prefer the grill for better bite thru.

Watch the clock like a hawk and say "Hail Marys"

Let's see:

Arrival - Test run to 300 to make sure smoker is working and shut down.

10pm FEC on and set for 2 stages. Another cook temp is programed in at 6:45am.
11 pm 2 butts and 2 briskets on (top 2 shelves)
6:30 wrap
7:10 ribs (4 racks) go on (bottom)
8-10 pork and brisket off
10:15 chicken on (top)
Chicken off
Ribs off
FEC off

I use 3 different temps at a competition and time my butts and brisket to have them come off before chicken goes on.

Before I had two, I would get butts & briskets off about the time ribs went on (7am).

I have a cambro and they would be plenty hot later.

It will depend on your cooking temps/style. While I've yet to do a comp, I've been working on times and temps.

I guess you will have to decide at what temp you want to wrap? If your doing two stage, yes for me.I seem to want to use a KISS approach and after taking the CS comp class, I think I can make this work.

On at 9pm on two stage, I like to build bark, so I tend to wrap later then most folks. My rib schedule allows me to remove my meat whenever I need. I pan my chicken so no need for high temps, which works into my rib schedule.

Like Smokin' says let the cooler/cambro work for you. Do a couple practice/simulated comps and adjust your time line as needed, my next project.

quote:

Originally posted by MaxQ:
10:00 pm briskets in 2nd (+1st if needed) shelf down

Probe set to 190 in PB.

6:00 am on site check-in on briskets and PB's.

Why don't you prefer top shelf?

Do you use the probe as insurance during sack time?

by on-site do you leave the contest and go to a room? I'm way too paranoid for that.

AZScott: I like the two stage method of smoke bathing for a little more flavor as well. I've found that the Smoke Stix in a SS Cup on the side of the fire box makes good smoke without adding to the time to cook at a lower temp.

Thanks Everyone for your replies!

For me, my top shelf was the hot spot, so it's the last place 3rd spot I use. Last is the bottom shelf because of the direct heat.

Also play with placement. PB over B or B over PB. Some do have a preference and if you've got meat side up and the one above it is dripping on it, both the fat and rub on the one above it will flavor the one below it. Not always a bad thing. Well as long as it's not chicken dripping on anything.

DQ...
1. Same reason S.O. stated.
2. Yes
3. Yes but sometimes it's predicated on weather conditions e.g. rain & wind.

I've gotten to the point of only probing when I wrap, I will also use my thermapen to check the temp at that point, but that just because of curiosity, I'm pretty confident of what the temp will be after doing this a few times.

Some comp cooks will use a dual probe for a pit monitor, if they stay on sight. Set a low and high setting for fires or flame outs.

Smokin cooks like many of us do.

We've held large packers up to nine hrs and still won.

How are you holding that long Tom?