MEMPHIS BBQFest > 2023 > 1 Month Away - $100,000 budget due to inflation! (1 Viewer)

[DA RAIDERS]

looks good boys, keep it up

 

[TheFanatic]

Got so many invites to this the last couple years. Couldn;t swing it either time, but next year looks good. Not happy the Royal is on Labor Day. With as much fun as I had at the Royal, I can;t want to hit this one. 

It's amazing to see how much this has progressed for you Icon. I remember when you guys were shelling money out of your own pockets to do this out of pure passion. It's a great thing to see passion turn a profit. 

 

[Joe T]

I need to check flight prices from SFO again

ticket booked?

@jplvr

same question.

 

[MarvinTScamper]

ticket booked?

@jplvr

same question.

is there a "mediocre-hole" going on?

 

[[icon]]

Got so many invites to this the last couple years. Couldn;t swing it either time, but next year looks good. Not happy the Royal is on Labor Day. With as much fun as I had at the Royal, I can;t want to hit this one. 

It's amazing to see how much this has progressed for you Icon. I remember when you guys were shelling money out of your own pockets to do this out of pure passion. It's a great thing to see passion turn a profit. 

Thanks buddy! It's a different beast than the Royal for sure... but something any BBQ fan should try out sometime. 

Ha! We are still paying out of our own pockets, trust me..... but scaling up sponsors has allowed us to build this into something much more impressive, with far less effort involved. I'm very glad the days of lugging muddy floors and carpet, laying our own plywood decking 3 stories up, lugging kegs and meat for what seemed like miles...etc..... though none of this would have been possible without the lessons learned through those early years. 

 

[[icon]]

is there a "mediocre-hole" going on?

I'll be there so I think it's been downgraded to a MIDDLE-TO-LOWER-TIER -hole. 

 

[Mr. Pickles]

is there a "mediocre-hole" going on?

 

[sbonomo]

Without further ado... I present the Bartending Contest Winners..... 

Ashley & Miriam

In celebration here are some bonus pics of Ashley:

F U

Dressed UP

Biker Girl

Side

Keyhole




 

So i take it i will be bartending both Friday and Sat w/Miriam - This is one assignment i can't wait to fulfill!!!!!  

 

[[icon]]

So i take it i will be bartending both Friday and Sat w/Miriam - This is one assignment i can't wait to fulfill!!!!!  

LOL! we will give her every chance to hold her own but we may need an extra body to help during rushes. You get dibs  

One thing we will have to avoid this year is half the team crowding behind the bar to "help" the girls and doing more harm than good. We have 3 staffed and will occasionally need a 4th...otherwise behind the bar will have to be clear of obstructions
 

 

[sbonomo]

LOL! we will give her every chance to hold her own but we may need an extra body to help during rushes. You get dibs  

One thing we will have to avoid this year is half the team crowding behind the bar to "help" the girls and doing more harm than good. We have 3 staffed and will occasionally need a 4th...otherwise behind the bar will have to be clear of obstructions
 

Well then i must anointing myself the head of the talent if you will...They can just refer to me as "EL JEFE".  Someone needs to teach me how to use the twitter or chat snap so i can give this board real time updates of my superior leadership skills!  Definitely more to follow on this late breaking news!

ETA:  I may even bring a button down shirt,other than competition day shirts, and some hair gel this year.

 

[jplvr]

ticket booked?

@jplvr

same question.

I assumed I was driving up.  I've been meaning to shoot you a text.

 

[jplvr]

is there a "mediocre-hole" going on?

I was going to ask if your bell had been rung.

 

[MarvinTScamper]

I was going to ask if your bell had been rung.

not early enough....going to the cabins

 

[jplvr]

not early enough....going to the cabins

Ice fishing, I assume?

 

[Joe T]

Lolz

 

[MarvinTScamper]

Ice fishing, I assume?

lol

this from the guy who need a blanket when it dipped below 70

 

[[icon]]

Well then i must anointing myself the head of the talent if you will...They can just refer to me as "EL JEFE".  Someone needs to teach me how to use the twitter or chat snap so i can give this board real time updates of my superior leadership skills!  Definitely more to follow on this late breaking news!

ETA:  I may even bring a button down shirt,other than competition day shirts, and some hair gel this year.

El Jefe it is.... extra monogrammed team shirt ordered.

Jk

 

[[icon]]

Jesus..

JoeT Jeep and Cos all drunk in scaffold 8 feet from the fast moving waters of the Mississippi river... what could go wrong!

Oh a buddy who is CFO and Partner in a new MJ farm and chemistry facility may or may not be bringing a load of edibles, vape pens, and purified THC caps, etc to distribute at the booth on the down-low to interested parties.... 
 

 

[jplvr]

lol

this from the guy who need a blanket when it dipped below 70

It was 55 f-ing degrees in August, and that was the GD high.  @Tiger Fan will back me up as we were the ones spooning by the fire every night.

 

[MarvinTScamper]

It was 55 f-ing degrees in August, and that was the GD high.  @Tiger Fan will back me up as we were the ones spooning by the fire every night.

LMAO - this brings back some good memories.   You backflipping off the pontoon, Gator driving the chase boat.

 

[[icon]]

Final major team meeting tonight.... 

• 4 Porta Potties Ordered 
• 3 Ice Retailer Freezers ordered for refrigeration
• PODS unit (12x8x8) ordered & schedule sent for deliveries 
• Booth wristbands ordered and received
• 500 Koozies ordered and received 
• 20L and 10L Oak aging barrels ordered and received - filled with water / rinsing
• Colombia Shirt art finalized & getting quotes  
• Team Player Shirt art finalized & getting quotes 
• Re-Formed new LLC & W9 Generated for sponsors 
• Confirmed 30x40 Tent availability with Mahaffey 
• 1100 22oz stadium cups & 200 Sponsor plates ordered and recieved 
• Scaffold design finalized with Tennessee Scaffold
• Kitchen team working on meal breakdown/planning and shopping lists
• Confirmed booth space of R067 between Memphis Fire and Mitsubishi corporate sponsor
• Jr Sponsor program is up and running with deadline fast approaching. - 10 Junior Sponsorships sold so far. 
• Meetings next week with Nolan Audio (light/sound/video) but they're going bigger this year. 
• Met with RedBull and confirmed tons of product and support.
• Firming up liquor order quantities and breakout (Serving Beam Double Oaked / Fire / Apple, and either vox or effen vodka)
• Getting quotes for our $2MM liability policy and $50,000 light/sound equipment policy. 
• Gotta order the LED nightclub foam sticks

Much more going on.... 

 

[Tiger Fan]

It was 55 f-ing degrees in August, and that was the GD high.  @Tiger Fan will back me up as we were the ones spooning by the fire every night.

freezing

 

[MarvinTScamper]

freezing

Oh hello Lois. 

 

[jplvr]

Oh hello Lois. 

I forgot to text you about a month ago when I was eating at our rendezvous in Breckinridge. 

 

[MarvinTScamper]

I forgot to text you about a month ago when I was eating at our rendezvous in Breckinridge. 

how was the skiing?  mashed potatoes up in Big Sky

 

[Henry Ford]

If you guys get bored, just follow the Mississippi south to my house.  If you hit New Orleans, turn around.  I'll be out back. 

 

[jplvr]

how was the skiing?  mashed potatoes up in Big Sky

It was ok. A little icy in the afternoons. I think we are going to try Steamboat next year. 

 

[MarvinTScamper]

It was ok. A little icy in the afternoons. I think we are going to try Steamboat next year. 

Steamboat is much better winter skiing than spring skiing, unless you're there early.  Pretty much the whole mountain faces the afternoon sun.

 

[[icon]]

If you guys get bored, just follow the Mississippi south to my house.  If you hit New Orleans, turn around.  I'll be out back. 

Was just down there last weekend cooking at Hogs for the Cause :tardwave:

 

[jplvr]

Steamboat is much better winter skiing than spring skiing, unless you're there early.  Pretty much the whole mountain faces the afternoon sun.

I'm going to be pushing for late February over March.

@Joe T when are you getting to Memphis and leaving?

 

[[icon]]

I'm going to be pushing for late February over March.

@Joe T when are you getting to Memphis and leaving?

Steamboat and that "Champagne Powder" is awesome that time of year IMO.  Best spring break of my college years.

 

[[icon]]

CHANGE OF PLANS! 

BBQFest meeting last night resulted in a shakeup on bartending duty.... Miriam is OUT. A guy on the team who referred her said the pics she sent were "favorable" compared to her current appearance.... and he was still nervous about her skills behind the bar. So... Miriam is out but Kodie received rave reviews for being a great tender and having a rockin personality and body.... 

So.... Kodie is officially tender #2:

Kodie (original image) (she chose poorly)

Kodie 2

Kodie 3

Kodie 4

 

[Joe T]

I'm going to be pushing for late February over March.

@Joe T when are you getting to Memphis and leaving?

I think I get there Thurs afternoon and leave really early Sunday...

 

[[icon]]

I think I get there Thurs afternoon and leave really early Sunday...

Places to plan around downtown: 

MUST EAT: Gus's World Famous Fried Chicken.
Get chicken (at least try a thigh) and a 40oz beer. Drop a buck or two in the juke and play Lucero, Bobby Bland, BB, The King, The Killer and soak it in. There will be some tourists. There wil be a lot of locals. It will be the best fried chicken you will ever eat. 

Rednezvous is a cool experience. The ribs are decent but you'll have better down by the river. Sausage and cheese plate with a pitcher of michelob is worth the price admission to get treated like a jackass by the 60yo black waiter who probably waited in line 10 years for that job and probably has been doing it for 30. 

Good Bars to look at (in no order depending on what you're looking for):
Flying Saucer: 3.1 Milllion beers and nice open air patio. 
Bardog: Fun small divey bar
Local: Great bourbon and pub grub
Paula Raifords: Late night divey disco with 40oz beers and "anyting goes" attitude
Arcade: Classic Diner breakfast
Peabody Lobby Bar: Fru Fru but seeing the ducks walk in Am/Pm is kinda an institution
Silly Goose: fun martini bar that can get a little rowdy 

Beale street mostly sucks... Blues hall and tap room are two of the places I'll bother with under the right circumstances. Avoid eating food anywhere on beale if you can help it. It's like eating food on bourbon. 

More to come once I know where you guys are staying (you may have told me and I forgot). 

 

[[icon]]

"Team Day" at the Pyramid yesterday... big conference hall setup where all vendors have booths set up to handle payments. They also handed out our tickets, wristbands, etc. Everything went smoothly, had some beers with the team after.

Then leaving the pyramid we got into some ghetto mayhem down on riverside at Beale Street landing, with folks hanging out of windows, swerving all over the road, driving while seated in the window, etc. Total #### show. Had bad vibe so I got us out of there... apparently two people were shot about 15 mins later. http://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/breaking/2017/04/09/two-shot-riverside-drive-sunday-night/100271246/

 

 

[[icon]]

Sooooo I ALMOST totally ####ed our team with a hiccup yesterday.... 

Ancillary entries are everything but the main entry (Ribs for us). That accounts for Beef, Seafood, Poultry, Exotic, Wings, Tomato / Mustard / Vinegar base BBQ sauces. We usually pay for those when we apply for the initial lot in November or December, but this year guys were slow with dues and we were going to be short on cash. Sooo I put off ancillaries until the deadline (team day). 

Team day yesterday I several members of the team joined up for beers beforehand, then at the meeting I straight up forgot about ancillaries (we usually pre-pay for them). Well... this morning I woke up in a panic realizing what was up. I sent emails, called, left voicemails... apparently it was being escalated to the CFO because they had already finalized things... etc. etc. 

As a hail mary, I let the director of operations, daniel, know that we will cater Central BBQ for the office if they could squeeze us in late. 

7 minutes later I get an email saying to contact Annette at XXX-XXXX and she'll take down our categories and accept VISA over the phone.

There is apparently nothing you can't get done with a little BBQ in this city...  

 

[[icon]]

FINAL BEVERAGE TALLY:

Liquor:
• 96x 750ml Vox Vodka
• 60x 750m Beam Double Oak Bourbon
• 12x 750ml Beam Kentucky Fire Cinnamon Whiskey (On shot chiller machine)
• 12x 750ml Beam Apple Flavored Whiskey (On shot chiller machine)

Barrel Aged Old-Fashioneds:
- 35x 750ml Beam Black Extra Aged Bourbon
- 40oz Simple Syrup
- 10oz Angustura Bitters
- 10oz Stirrings Blood Orange Cocktail Bitters
- 15oz OJ
- 15oz Marischino Cherry Juice
Aged 5 weeks in New French Oak #3 Char barrels (20L & 10L) 

Beer: 
• 54 Cases : Lagunitas "12th of Never" Cans
• 7 Kegs Lagunitas IPA
• 7 Kegs Lagunitas "Lil Sumpin Sumpin"

Mixers: 
• 70 Gallons assorted Mixers
• 40 Cases RedBull (Orange Edition, Yellow Edition, Regular, and SugarFree)
• 30 Cases Bottled Water 

CUMULATIVE TOTAL:
• 3,225 1.5oz Liquor Drinks
• 3,606 12oz Beer Servings 
• 6,831 servings alcoholic beverages 




 

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

CHANGE OF PLANS! 

BBQFest meeting last night resulted in a shakeup on bartending duty.... Miriam is OUT. A guy on the team who referred her said the pics she sent were "favorable" compared to her current appearance.... and he was still nervous about her skills behind the bar. So... Miriam is out but Kodie received rave reviews for being a great tender and having a rockin personality and body.... 

So.... Kodie is officially tender #2:

Kodie (original image) (she chose poorly)

Kodie 2

Kodie 3

Kodie 4

It is nice to see in this ever increasing PC world we live in that some things are still sacred...no fatties behind the bar.

make these broads time stamp their photos next year.

 

[[icon]]

It is nice to see in this ever increasing PC world we live in that some things are still sacred...no fatties behind the bar.

make these broads time stamp their photos next year.

Truth. 

Lunch today with the light & sound company to go over the scaffold plans and work out placement of lighting, speakers, televisions, etc. 

 

[CGRdrJoe]

I think I get there Thurs afternoon and leave really early Sunday...

ticket prices looking good now for me

 

[CGRdrJoe]

LMAO - this brings back some good memories.   You backflipping off the pontoon, Gator driving the chase boat.

f'n chase boat was gonna run me over cause Gator wanted a better view of my ### crack

 

[CGRdrJoe]

I think I get there Thurs afternoon and leave really early Sunday...

@jplvr are you sure JoeT is gonna be there? I have a bad feeling that I'm going to book a ticket for this, show up and there be no room cause he was just fishing...

 

[MarvinTScamper]

@jplvr are you sure JoeT is gonna be there? I have a bad feeling that I'm going to book a ticket for this, show up and there be no room cause he was just fishing...

let's not pretend JoeT is going to show.  

 

[[icon]]

Just confirmed with my buddies from the TN Air Guard 155th Airlift Squadron... we SHOULD be having a C-17 Globemaster doing a low-altitude fly by over our booth again this year... looking like Thursday around 6:30pm or so.

That was a huge hit last year.... the pilot texted ahead the exact fly-by time so we had the booth empty out or head up to the top deck and there was quite the ovation. 'Murica and stuff...  

 

[CGRdrJoe]

Icon I forgot to ask what the buy in for this is, got to plan properly.

 

[[icon]]

Icon I forgot to ask what the buy in for this is, got to plan properly.

It's $10 a day at the gate to get into the festival/park.

There is no admission charge to our booth... invite only. Once you're in our booth everything is free. Open bar. Lunch & Dinner service, etc. All compliments of the team and our sponsors. Most folks will tip for drinks. Some folks choose to throw a donation the team's way but it's by no means mandatory.

You definitely don't have to budget a lot of cash for the festival.

 

[[icon]]

Just got back from lunch with the light/sound company (nolan audio/video) a few notes about this year's system: 
 

• Possibly moving from three 70" HDTVs to 80" or 90" HDTV's downstairs, and doing a smaller one upstairs for logos/etc for the sponsor meetings. 

• Adding a second subwoofer amp because the one last year couldn’t handle the peak power going to our 4 diswasher sized subwoofer cabinets. 

• Adding a blacklight flood light behind the bar. Should look cool. 

• Adding a remote control HD camera in the scaffold that can look around and broadcast to the Tvs. Will be handy for when band is playing friday, to have him up on screen for people who can't see.  There will also be a dedicated computer acting as a switch to send Logos, DirecTV, or live in booth video to any of the TV's (independently switchable). 

And best of all…

• They want to attach 4 high powered commercial spotlights to each corner of the booth shooting straight into the sky. They are reportedly visible from 10-20 miles away.  This will make our booth VERY easy to spot from anywhere in the park. Going to try Red (team color) but if it's not visible enough may go with something different. Apparently this will trigger a NOTAM with the FAA.

We MAY have a laser stencil cut to project our logo onto the walkway outside the booth but who knows... it's $3-400 so we may pass. 

 

 

[Joe T]

let's not pretend JoeT is going to show.  

I'm already there.

 

[MarvinTScamper]

I'm already there.

 

[CGRdrJoe]

I'm already there.