Memphis in May BBQ contest: What it's like inside a defending champ's tent during judging

Scott Wadley is no stranger to barbecue or the Hometown BBQ team. For him, Saturday, May 18, was just a visit with family during the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest.

The Kansas native met the Mid-South-based team last year while he was a judge for the Memphis in May contest. He was one of the judges for Hometown BBQ's award-winning whole hog in 2023 (the team took first place in that category).

After the judging ended, he went back to the tent to speak with the team and said they welcomed him in as a friend. This year, Wadley was judging shoulder during the Memphis in May event at Liberty Park. He said judges won't judge the same team in consecutive years nor the same team in multiple categories on any given year. (Judges are only made aware of categories and if they'll be on-site or blind tasting the day of the event.) This year, he just wanted to come by and offer his support. After all, Hometown is partially responsible for his love (and hate) for barbecue.

“I can’t have commercial barbecue anymore, that (judging) has ruined it for me," he said.

Wadley waited outside the tent and watched as founding team member Dustey Walley presented sections of the recently smoked whole hog to a pair of judges sitting tableside inside the team's tent on May 18. Dozens of Hometown BBQ team members stood, arms folded or behind their backs as Walley led the judges through the trio of protein tastings: pork loin, shoulder and pulled ham. He introduced them to the dry rub and sauce they used. Several times during the process, Walley pointed out the team name and referred to the team as a "democracy." It is a family. Everyone helps each other out.

The judging itself was somewhat paradoxical in tone. There was a strict formality to it — not too dissimilar to that of a job interview — yet, odd in sight, given the fact that the majority of the persons involved are in shorts and T-shirts. Each team has 15 minutes to introduce themselves and share their product with the judges. Any overtime will result in a penalty or possible disqualification. The judges are ushered in and out of the text, almost like royalty. After the initial trio of judges has come and gone, the team waits for better news by way of a golf cart. As team members explained, a golf cart will come around within about 2 hours to inform a team if it is a finalist.

Walley said, if selected, a separate group of judges will come by to judge the team. If that happened, he would have used a second cooked whole hog to showcase. He said he would remove the entire loin, shoulder and ham sections separately for that occasion, shaving and cutting each piece in front of the judges for show.

During the wait, team members cleaned up and pulled out lawn chairs. Some cracked open beers, others paced. Each rev of an approaching golf cart got everyone's attention as heads and eyes lifted up toward the tent entrance.

At nearby tents, hoots and hollers erupted as the finalists for the shoulder category claimed their place and chance to "walk the stage." A phrase that was often uttered throughout the Memphis in May World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest by participants as both an honor and a prized memory.

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Dustey Walley's sons Connor and Ben Walley both enjoyed a beer while waiting for the good news to come. This was the siblings' first Memphis in May. Both have been with their father at previous competitions and events, however, both agreed nothing quite compares to the scale of Memphis in May.

"It is a lot more intense," Connor said. "I've been to other competitions but nothing like this."

Perhaps, that's due to the world-recognized prize and level of competition. Or mayhap, it's due to the camaraderie both inside Hometown BBQ and outside the team's home base.

Around 4 p.m., a judge arrived in the tent. Her passage was by foot, not cart. She wanted to wish the team well and shared her thoughts about the product and how much she enjoyed the team's delivery. Soon after, the finalists were announced — Hometown BBQ was not among them. Though the team was not without a successful title defense. Co-founding member Noel Grafe's nephew Dustin Stanford successfully defended his Sauce Wrestling championship belt earlier that week.

The mood in the tent was deflated, but far from somber. When asked if another competition was planned in the coming weeks, team member Scott Guy said no. He'll be attending and catering a wedding soon — for seven-time Memphis in May World Champion Mark Lambert of Sweet Swine O' Mine.

Guy said Lambert, along with John David of 2023 Grand Champion Ridiculous Bar-B-Krewe, is a mentor of his and helped get him into the barbecue competition world. Guy said he and Lambert have an agreement between each other: Guy caters for his children's weddings and Lambert is set to do the same in return for him and his family.

It wasn't too long after until Guy and Dustey Walley exited the tent and headed over to congratulate one of the finalists, The Shed BBQ, which later in the night would be named Grand Champion.

"We all support each other. One of the cool, lesser talked about things about all of this," Dustey Walley said regarding the support among the teams.

While The Shed BBQ team waited for the finalists' judges to arrive, several other teams showed up alongside Hometown BBQ including Blues Hog, Boars Night Out, Smoked N Spiced, The Hogfather and members of The Norwegian National Barbecue Team.

While Hometown wasn't able to hear the gospel of 'cue this time or get the chance to "walk to the stage," they still shared in the excitement for fellow pitmasters who did. Not to mention the consolation prize is still world-recognized pork for Saturday dinner.

Not a bad family meal.

Neil Strebig is a journalist with The Commercial Appeal. He can be reached at neil.strebig@commercialappeal.com, 901-426-0679 or via X/Twitter,@neilStrebig.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis in May barbecue contest: Inside one team's tent during judging