18th Wyoming Championship BBQ and bluegrass festival this weekend

WORLAND - Five local barbecue teams will join 23 others in hopes of winning the 2022 Pepsi Wyoming BBQ Championship this weekend.

Pepsi Wyoming BBQ Championship and Bluegrass Festival Committee Chairman Dave Paxton said there are 28 teams signed up to compete this year with 25 the minimum number for the Wyoming BBQ championship to be sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society (KCBS).

Local teams are Chubby Cheeks, 3 Smokin' Chicks, Sochies, Barr-B-Q and Unruly Smokers.

Paxton said last year's winner, American Heroes BBQ will be returning to defend their title.

The five local teams will also be this year's commercial vendors during the festival Friday and Saturday.

The celebration actually begins on Thursday with the annual fundraising brewfest at the fairgrounds from 5 to 9 p.m. eight different microbrews can be sampled.

Also tonight (Thursday) is a KCBS judging class at the fairgrounds. Paxton said they have judges for this year's competition but those wanting to be a KCBS judge and have the ability to judge at other KCBS events can take the class. Students must pay the first-year membership fee to take the class. Contact a committee member for more information.

BLUEGRASS

Friday's festival begins at 5:30 p.m. with opening ceremonies. The first bluegrass band, Montana Standard, will play from 6 to 7 p.m. According to the website, montanastandardbluegrass.com, the band plays "traditional bluegrass music from east of the Continental Divide. These folks have shared stages in Montana for many years, dating back to the mid-1970s. Among them are national and state fiddle champions, song writers, exceptional instrumentalists, great singers and best of all, they are good friends who love what they do."

The band is Larry Barnwell on vocals and guitar, Joe Rockafellow on vocals and banjo, Mike Parsons on vocals and mandolin, Louise Steinway on vocals and fiddle, Isaac Callender on vocals and fiddle and John Parker on bass and vocals.

Special Consensus plays from 7:15 to 8:15 p.m. Special Consensus "is a bluegrass band that has achieved a contemporary sound in their four decades of performing, making their music a modern classic. The band is led by Greg Cahill (banjo player and recipient of the prestigious Distinguished Achievement Award from the International Bluegrass Music Association (IBMA) and inducted into the Society for the Preservation of Bluegrass Music in America Hall of Greats) and includes Dan Eubanks (bass), Greg Blake (guitar) and Michael Prewitt (mandolin)," according to the band's website.

Special Consensus has received six awards from the IBMA and two Grammy nominations. According to the website special.com, "Special Consensus' sound is grounded in a deep appreciation and understanding of bluegrass music; the infectious band sound reminds people of the past while utilizing the innovations of today."

HillBilly Fever returns for its second year and plays from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. Hillbilly Fever, originally from the hills of North Carolina, entertains audiences "with their mix of bluegrass, classic country and gospel selections," according to the band's website.

Band members coming to Worland this week are Mark Krider, banjo; Randy Pasley, dobro player; Hudson Brosworth, banjo; Scott Norris, bass, lead singing; and Billy Park, mandolin.

Krider said when they performed at the festival for the first time last year they found the area beautiful and "all the folks were so nice and seemed to really enjoy the music. This is one of HillBilly Fever's favorite places to perform. We were very honored to be asked back this year."

He said they have an exciting show planned and will have a new CD available that they just finished recording titled, "Lonesome." He said they were able to record it in the same studio where Willie Nelson recorded "Red Headed Stranger."

Krider described their sound as "traditional bluegrass" but noted he hails from North Carolina where there is "a little different sound back there and we try to capture that."

Food, festival T shirts and bluegrass band merchandise must be purchased by Bone Bucks, which can be purchased from two Pinnacle bank booths onsite.

SATURDAY

FESTIVITIES

Saturday's events begin with the 5K BBQ Bluegrass Run at 8 a.m. The DOES will have their pancake breakfast from 7 to 9 a.m. for a small fee.

The CarQuest sponsored car show runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

There will be the annual Kids Q starting at 9:30 a.m. with the committee providing grills, buns and burger.

The KCBS judging begins at noon. They will be judged on the four traditional meats - pork, ribs, chicken and brisket. The BBQ committee have also added two optional contests – sauce and mystery meat. Currently, only the committee member in charge of selecting the mystery meat knows the mystery, Paxton said.

Music returns to the stage at 12:30 p.m. with each band again playing an hour.

Awards will be presented at 4:15 p.m. and the three bluegrass bands each take the stage one more time starting at 5 p.m.

There will be facepainting during the festival and Tim and Tami Young will have their kids barrel train available to give rides to kids.

The festival takes a year to plan with 10 active members on this year's committee. Paxton said they are always looking for volunteers for events and people do not have to become committee members to help out at events.