The Georgia BBQ Association headed over to Cordele, GA for the 2024 SMOKIN on BLACKSHEAR BBQ Festival. We had beautiful weather and an amazing venue, with Linda Hawkins and her staff going all out as usual! We had 30 GBA Pro Teams, 14 IAW Backyard Teams, and 7 Kids Burger Challenge Competitors. Huge Thank You to all the GBA Teams, IAW Teams, Kids Burger Cooks, GBA Judges, and GBA Reps that made this event GREAT. 30 GBA Teams made life tough for the judges there, and when all the judging was done RESCUE SMOKERS Won the Grand Championship with their Pork Entry scoring a 600 in the preliminary round. This event showed what the Georgia BBQ Association is all about, BBQ Family helping another when it was needed! Thank you to Chuck & Carrie East for helping the Rescue Smokers at a moments notice!
JOHNSON BOYS & GIRL – RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION
Johnson Boys & Girl BBQ won the Reserve Grand Championship with an amazing cook, taking a 1st Place Loin, 6th Place Pork, & 7th Place Rib call.
PORK LOIN CATEGORY
Johnson Boys & Girl BBQ came out on top with 1st Place Loin. Let’s Smoke Something took 2nd place Loin with 319 Q taking 3rd place Loin.
1st Place Pork Loin – Johnson Boys & Girl BBQ2nd Place Pork loin – Lets Smoke Something3rd place Pork Loin – 319Q
Pork Category
Congratulations to Rescue Smokers on their Pork category win with a perfect 600 in the preliminary round.! Kimbrell-Q took 2nd place pork with Heavy Metal Hogz taking 3rd place pork.
1st Place Pork – Rescue Smokers2nd Place Pork – Kimbrell-Q3rd Place Pork – Heavy Metal Hogz
RIB CATEGORY
Congrats to Big Butts BBQ on their 1st Place Rib! Big Daddys Meat House with 2nd place rib and Scott’s Smoke Shack on 3rd place ribs and a perfect 600 in the preliminary round.
1st Place Ribs – Big Butts BBQ2nd Place Ribs – Big Daddys Meat House2rd Place Ribs – Scott’s Smoke Shack
GBA CATEGORY RESULTS
Smokin on Blackshear Kids Burger Challenge
Jeb StanleyWon 1st Place at the Lake Blackshear Kids Burger Challenge, Huge Congrats on his first ever contest!!!!!!!!
Jeb Stanley – 1st Place Burger2nd Place Burger3rd Place Burger
Kids Turn In Pics
RIBPUBLICANS takes Grand Championship at the Smokin on Lake Blackshear IAW Backyard Event
HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ WINS the GRAND CHAMPIONSHIP at the 28th Annual Fire Ant Festival!
GRAND CHAMPION – HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ
Wow! What a weekend! Rain could not dampen the spirits of the Fire Amt Festival in Ashburn GA this weekend. A late surge in teams got the number of entrants up to 30 after being much more modest just a few days before. In addition to a GBA field of 30 Pro BBQ Teams, the Fire Ant Festival Committee hosted a Kids Hamburger Challenge, Pizza Cook-Off Association/Pizza Cook-off Community and a Brisket Ancillary with 19 Brisket entries! Huge thank you to out GBA Judges for a GREAT turn out to judge some amazing BBQ and Kid’s Burger Challenge.
The Fire Ant Festival is really a month-long series of events that engaged the citizens of Ashburn and Turner County in a variety of ways from February 22 through March 23rd. You can find out more about the 28th Annual Fire Ant Festival here https://fireantfestival.com/ and make plans to attend next year! The Dates are March 28-29, 2025!
RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION – POSSE BBQ
Join us in congratulating Posse BBQ for having the most consistent cook of the day and being named Reserve Grand Champion.
PORK LOIN CATEGORY
Congratulations to Real-Licious Q for taking 1st Place in the Loin category, Southern Hogs 2nd Place Loin, and Pig-eee-licious 3rd Place Loin.
1st PLACE LOIN – REAL-LICIOUS Q
PORK CATEGORY
Congratulations to Hold Your Horses BBQ for winning the Pulled Pork category, with Posse BBQ taking 2nd Place Pork, and Let’s Smoke Something 3rd Place Pork with their first ever finals in only their forth competition!
1st PLACE PORK – HOLD YOUR HORSES BBQ
RIB CATEGORY
Congratulations to Southern Hogs for winning the Rib Category & their (2) 600 Scores of the day, Posse BBQ takes 2nd Place Ribs, and Kimbrell-Q taking 3rd Place Ribs!
1st PLACE RIBS – SOUTHERN HOGS
BRISKET
Congratulations to Posse BBQ for delivering the best Brisket of the day to the Judges! 19 AMAZING Brisket Entries with Posse BBQ scoring a perfect “600” to win!
1st PLACE BRISKET – POSSE BBQ
Kid’s Burger Challenge
Congratulations to Ty Sorrell on winning the Kids Hamburger Challenge. He finished 3rd last year and broke through to be named Champion this year. Stella Boles took 2nd Place Kids Burger with Grace Gilley taking 3rd Place Kid’s Burger. There was some tough burger competition with 17 amazing entries!
Wow what a weekend! The GBA would like to tip its hat to Tori Gravlee and the Donalsonville DDA for hosting the Firehouse BBQ Festival this past weekend in Donalsonville GA. We had 15 Pro Teams who split over $10,000 in prize money! HUGE THANKD YOU to all of the amazing GBQ Judges that made the track down South for some great BBQ. Congratulations to Posse BBQ on winning the Grand Championship with their Ribs. We would like to give Keith Bowen and the Fry Crew a shout out for frying up some of the best Catfish ever, Great Hush Puppies, and French fries. Also huge shout out to Lisa Oliver O’Neal who 1coordinated the sides for the Fish Fry.
RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION – SHARK BITE BBQ
Shark Bite BBQ won the Reserve Grand Championship with an amazing cook taking Top 5 in all three categories with double finals.
PORK LOIN CATEGORY
K&E Little Smokers scored their first ever professional category win with their 1st Place Loin. Pig-eee-licious took 2nd place Loin with Flying Pig Bar-B-Que taking 3rd place Loin.
1ST PLACE LOIN – K&E Little Smokers2nd Place Loin3rd Place Loin
Pork Category
Congratulations to Shark Bite BBQ on their Pork category win! K&E Little Smokers took 2nd place pork with Magnum P.I.G. taking 3rd place pork.
1st PLACE PORK – SHARK BITE BBQ2nd Place Pork3rd Place Pork
RIB CATEGORY
Congrats to Posse BBQ on their 1st Place Rib! Big Butts BBQ with 2nd place rib and Shark Bite BBQ on 3rd place ribs.
1st PLACE RIBS – POSSE BBQ2nd Place Ribs3rd Place Ribs
319Q – GRAND CHAMPIONCAMDEN CISNEROS – BURGER CHAMPION
Rain and mud didn’t deter 29 teams from fighting it out at the first Double Points event this year – the TiftonRhythm & Ribs BBQ Festival held in Tifton, GA on March 01. Tifton puts on one of the best festivals in Georgia, and hosts both a professional and backyard event. For those who have never attended, keep an eye on the GBA events page and be sure not to miss this one next year! 319Q walked last as our GBA Grand Champion, winning on their Finals Loin Entry. Rollin Pit BBQ was our Reserve Grand Champion, finishing 10th in Loin and 3rd in both Pork and Ribs, his first ever Double Finals & RGC.
Rollin Pit BBQ – RESERVE GRAND CHAMPIONKids Burger Challenge – Camden Cisneros 1st Place, Luke Thompson 2nd Place, Sawyer Bennett 3rd Place
The GBA held their first ever Kid’s Cookoff on Friday night. 6 teams turned in hamburgers they prepared and plated themselves. The judges had a tough job, as every entry was fantastic. When all the scoring had been tabulated only one point separated the Tope 3 entries. Camden Cisneros was crowned with the Best Burger, followed by Luke Thompson in 2nd Place and Sawyer Bennett in 3rd Place. We’re very proud of these future pitmasters, and wish all of them luck in their next challenge!
In the GBA sanctioned Cookoff, the judges were presented with 29 entries in each category, from some of the best cooks Georgia has to offer. Only the top 3 entries in each category make it to finals, and here’s how the judges ranked them:
PORK LOIN CATEGORY
319Q Won Loin, followed by Magnum P.I.G. 2nd Place, and B-Rads BBQ 3rd Place.
PORK CATEGORY
Bite My Butt BBQ Won Pork, with Shark Bite BBQ 2nd Place, and Rollin Pit coming in 3rd Place.
RIB CATEGORY
Posse BBQ Won Ribs, Heavy Metal Hogz 2nd Place, and Rollin Pit in at 3rd Place.
Tifton Rhythm & Ribs Results
Reserve Grand Results
As expected, there were some shakeups in TOTY points after our first Double Points event: 319Q shot up to the top of the Overall Points category with 90 points. Flyin Pig dropped one spot to second, and is tied with Rollin Pit at 64 points. Bite My Butt settled in at 4th, with B-Rads jumping into 5th.
319Q remains in the top Loin spot with 30 points, and Magnum P.I.G. moved into 2nd, 2 points ahead of B-Rads BBQ.
Shark Bite BBQ is now our top Pork team just ahead of Bite My Butt BBQ. Rollin Pit BBQ is in 3rd.
Posse BBQ is the top Rib team, followed by Heavy Metal Hogz and Rollin Pit.
The GBA travels next to Donalsonville, GA on March 16 for the Firehouse BBQ Festival. This is a great event with music, vendors – and don’t forget the fish fry on Friday night! After that we’ll hit one of the best events in Georgia – The FireAnt Festival in Ashburn, GA on March 23. Streets full of vendors, a carnival, music, and one of the best fireworks shows you’ll see! Next up is Smoking on Blackshear held on the shores of beautiful Lake Blackshear. This event is April 20, and is held at the Georgia War Veterans campground. Music, vendors, and an absolutely beautiful venue – don’t miss this one!
THE GBA WOULD LIKE TO THANK OUR TOTY SPONSORS FOR 2024:
Dexter Meats – Locally owned and customer service driven, Dexter Meat Company is ready to provide fresh quality meats. https://www.facebook.com/dextermeatco/
Bubba Grills – You can’t go to a bbq event without seeing a bunch of Bubba Grills. Their direct-fired, reverse flow cookers produce consistent results that often have their pitmasters walking the stage. See https://www.bubbagrills.net for more information.
Fireant Festival BBQ Bash – Look no further than Ashburn, GA on March 22 – 23, 2024 for one of the best festivals Georgia has to offer. Hundreds of Vendors, a carnival, Kids Burger Challenge, a sanctioned GBA event, and the best fireworks display this side of Atlanta! https://www.fireantfestival.com
Heath Riles BBQ – If you’re looking to up your bbq flavor game head over to https://www.HeathRilesBBQ.com. Heath has spent years perfecting his rubs, sauces, and injections, and the results speak for themselves.
Sunflower Apparel & Promotions – If you’re in the market for new team shirts, hats, or logo design, check out http://www.sunflowerapparel.com
The Georgia BBQ Association headed over to Vienna, GA for the 2024 Dilly Dally in Dooly. Starting off the 2024 GBA season with 43 amazing teams! We had beautiful weather and at a historic venue, with Great Organizers, GBA Teams, GBA Judges, and GBA Reps. Rhonda Lamb and the Dilly Dally Crew did a fabulous job! The GBA Teams made life tough for the judges there, and when all the judging was done, Flyin Pig BBQ won the Grand Championship with his 1st Place in Ribs.
EZQ – Reserve Grand Champion
EZQ wins the Reserve Grand Champion being the most consistent team behind Flyin Pig BBQ.
PORK LOIN CATEGORY
319Q won the Loin Category, Rum Runners in their first GBA event took 2nd Place Loin also having a perfect 600 in the preliminary round, and Bite My Butt took 3rd Place Loin.
PORK CATEGORY
Reed Nut Smokers won the Pork category in their very first GBA event, Big Daddy’s Meat House took 2nd Place Pork, and Rum Runners took 3rd Place Pork.
RIB CATEGORY
Flyin Pig BBQ won the Rib Category, Rescue Smokers took 2nd Place, and Scott’s Smoke Shack BBQ took 3rd Place Ribs with a Perfect
CATEGORY FINALS
DILLY DALLY in DOOLY RESULTS
RESERVE GRAND RESULTS
UPCOMING CONTESTS
The 2024 GBA Season is already on fire with the first competition in the books. Our next stop March 1-2, 2024 is the Tifton Rhythm & Ribs BBQ Festival with $11,700 in prize money and is the first “Double Points Contest” of the season! If you haven’t signed up, you need to contact Angela Elder immediately at (229) 848-9899 mobile or (229) 386-0216 office.
The GBA will be hosting the first ever GBA Kids Cook-Off Challenge at Rhythm and Ribs on Friday March 1, 2024. Registration is FREE and open to any kid regardless of GBA Membership.
March 15-16, 2024 is the Firehouse BBQ Festival in Donalsonville, GA with $10,000 in prize money! If you plan on competing in the contest, please go ahead and give the organizer Tori Gravlee a quick call so she can get an accurate team estimation. Cell: (229) 416-5929 Office: (229) 524-2118
March 22-23, 2024 is the Fire Ant Festival BBQ Bash in Ashburn, GA with $12,000 in prize money! Get your applications in as soon as possible, it’s sure to be a great weekend!
