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Iowa
couple notches sixth title
this year with win in Madison
Iowa's
Smokey D's BBQ earns title
with first place in ribs
By
Don Ward
Editor
 |
|
Photo by Don Ward Sherry
and Darren Warth |
If there is such a thing as a dynasty in barbecue cooking
competitions, then Darren and Sherry Warth would be it this year on the
Kansas City Barbeque Society-sanctioned circuit. The couple from Des Moines,
Iowa, won their unprecedented sixth competition this year by taking the
Grand Champion trophy and $2,500 winner's check at the 2009 Madison Ribberfest.
The Warths needed just one more victory the following week in the season's
last major competition to try and make it a perfect seven, which would
automatically qualify them for the prestigious Jack Daniels World Championship
Invitational Barbecue competition this October in Lynchburg, Tenn.
|
2009
Madison Top 10 Overall
Results Local Teams: |
Even without a seventh victory, the couple are likely candidates
considering they will be entered in several drawings to earn an berth
in the Tennessee event. The Madison Ribberfest victory automatically qualified
them for the year-end KCBS American Royal, held Oct. 1-4 in Kansas City,
Mo.
"We are definitely on a roll; it's amazing," Warth, 41, said
Aug. 22, immediately after collecting his large wooden cutting board trophy
in Madison. "We did a lot better here than we did last year –
that's for sure."
The Warths made their third consecutive appearance in Madison and had
never won anything. they made up for that in grand fashion, then received
dozens of congratulatory handshakes from their friends and fellow competitors
as they slowly made their way back to their truck and RV.
The outscored their opponents by capturing first place in pork ribs, fifth
in pork, fourth in brisket and 12th in chicken. After those four required
competition categories, the team also collected additional points by placing
31st in sauce.
Versailles, Ind.-based Hickory Flats BBQ, led by Paul Everman, won second
place as the Reserve Grand Champion. Last year's Madison Ribberfest defending
champ Twyford's BBQ & Catering of Jacksonville, Ill., took third place.
Moonswiners, led by Chad and Christine Hayden of Fern Creek, Ky., who
won here in 2007, placed fourth.
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Photo by Don Ward Darren
and Sherry |
The Warths' six victories leads the country. Only two other
teams have won four each this year. "That puts a target on our backs,
for sure," Warth said, laughing.
The couple owns two barbecue restaurants in Des Moines called Smokey D's
BBQ and are preparing to open a third. They do not open the restaurant
on the weekends so they can travel to barbecue competitions.
Both have full-time jobs during the week. Darren is vice president of
a logistics transportation management company, and Sherry is an office
manager at a plumbing company.
On the weekends, however, Darren does the cooking at competitions and
Sherry's role is to assist in presentation, tasting and selecting the
pieces to be judged.
"It started out as a hobby, then we started catering, then we opened
the restaurants," Darren said.
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|
Photo by Don Ward Hickory
Flats BBQ win |
"Darren doesn't like to eat barbecue when he is competing,"
Sherry said. "So that's my job to taste it." He says competition
barbecue is "designed to get the 'wow' factor.
"This is my cocaine; it's my addition," Warth said of barbecue
competitions.
They travel from March to November taking part in such events. Madison
Ribberfest, the largest of six KCBS events in Indiana this year, boasted
61 teams and could have accepted more. But organizers opted to cap the
entries because of lack of space to put them all.
Already, the teams line up along Vaughn Drive in front of Crystal Beach
swimming pool, a block up Broadway and Vine streets on either side.
This year's event was the second-largest after hosting 63 teams in 2007.
Last year's event boasted 59 teams.