If you have read any of my articles before, then you are already aware that I like to eat. I firmly believe food to be the elixir of life and I truly enjoy meeting like-minded people. One such kindred spirit is George Smith, aka Dr. Bar-B-Q. The moniker is a bit of a double entendre, since Dr. Smith is a career physician.

I met Dr. Smith at Jim & Nick’s BBQ Restaurant on Thompson Lane to learn of the upcoming BBQ Battle in the Boro on Saturday, Oct 26. Upon meeting Dr. Smith, I was immediately impressed with his jovial spirit and easygoing nature. Over the course of our meal and conversation, several people entering the restaurant waved at George. He returned the favor with a wave and a big smile of his own. After our meeting, he shook hands and engaged in conversation at several tables. I got the feeling that George has never met a stranger.

Now, I am no stranger to the art of smoking meat, and I can recognize someone who truly understands the passion and pride of doing it correctly.

“There is an old saying; it is so good it falls off the bone. If it falls off the bone,” said George, “it’s overcooked.” It should only come off the bone where you bite into it,” George said. His vivid descriptions and explanations of how to properly smoke meat was in itself enough to make you hungry. By the time our food arrived, I was eagerly anticipating sinking my teeth into some barbecue. I must admit, after the images conjured by the Dr. Bar-B-Q’s words on how to perfectly smoke meat, I couldn’t help but think that no matter how satisfying my meal was, it wasn’t going to be as good as what he had just described.

After our initial chat and a short hiatus for digestion, I asked George to give our readers the details of the upcoming event. During the course of several sweet teas and a few sidebars to discuss local history, Dr. Bar-B-Q gave me all the details.

“The first BBQ Battle in the Boro will be held in conjunction with Heritage Days at Cannonsburgh on Oct 26. Heritage Days is an annual event and they draw between 3,000 and 4,000 people. With the barbecue this year, maybe we will bring in even more,” George said. “There will also be live music with Larry & Gay Pinkerton and The Hardin Draw. The entry fee for competitors is $100 per team.”

There will be 36 teams, and as of press time, there is still room for more entries. If you are interested in competing, you shouldn’t dally about getting your team entered, as this contest will fill up.

George continued, “There will be two categories of competition: chicken and ribs. Meat must be raw, no precooked meat will be allowed. We will check the temperature of the meat and follow all health codes. You can use any means to cook that you want. The meat must be turned in at a certain time and will be judged on appearance, taste and tenderness. All meat will be scored from 0 to 9, and the high score wins.

“All entries will be scored by a panel of 36 judges . . . judges will consist of local celebrities and community leaders. Each category has 3 prizes, first place is $500, second place is $300 and third place is $200. And there is a Grand Champion prize of $600.”

I asked George if sauces would be allowed.

“In a formal contest points can be taken away for sauce,” he responded. “We believe in the rub. If it’s cooked right it doesn’t need any sauce. Plus, we can’t allow anything that individually identifies the meat.”

During our conversation, I asked George how he got involved in these contests. In keeping with the nature of the man, he smiled broadly and explained how and where it started, along with a little history.

“I was on the board of the Sam Davis Home when I first got involved with barbecue cook offs. While I was on the board, someone brought to my attention that we needed a fundraiser and, being a history buff, I knew that he Sam Davis Home supplied pork to the Confederate army. So I said, ‘How about a BBQ?’ Well, that gave rise to a barbecue cook-off at the Sam Davis Home. The first year we had about 50 entries. So, the next year we decided to submit to the Kansas City BBQ Society to become a sanctioned event. To be a member of the society you have to cook four different meats, chicken, ribs, pulled pork and brisket. You must also attend other sanctioned barbecues. Well, I am from Winchester so I went down to a contest there and ran into a character by the name of Al Knowles. Al was a judge for that contest and longtime cooker. So I enlisted him and, with his help, we put on the cook-off at the Sam Davis home for the next five years. I subsequently rotated off the board and they stopped having the cook-off. I am also a long-term member of the Rotary Club, and one day someone said we need a fundraiser for the Rotary Club,” explained George.

Then history repeated itself when George again said, “How about a BBQ?!”

“We approached Cannonsburgh about doing it there during Heritage Days and they thought it was a perfect fit. This will be the first year at Cannonsburgh and my thinking is, this is just the first year, maybe we can have a nationally sanctioned contest here. Maybe by this time next year we will be doing just that. Murfreesboro is a great place to have one, it’s the center of the state, the economy is good, there is a great Interstate system, plenty of infrastructures to support a large contest and it’s good for tourism,” George said.

The BBQ Battle in the Boro is sponsored by City Auto, Demos Restaurant and the Rotary Club. For those not familiar with the Rotary Club, George explained, “Rotary Club is an international, community service organization comprised of local businessmen and community leaders. There are Rotary Clubs in towns all over the world. Some of us meet for breakfast and some at noon. Once a week, we generally have someone come in and speak about the community. We work for local charities and we have a Giving Program. What usually happens is someone comes in and gives us a pitch about their charity and then we decide if it’s worthy enough to donate. Red Cross, Boys and Girls Club, Girls State, Center for the Arts, Read to Succeed, Interfaith Dental, CAPE, Folkfest, Sports4All, Sam Davis Home, MSO and Alzheimer’s Association are some of the charities we donate to. Annually we donate to Good Shepherd Home, Tennessee School of the Blind, Jabulani/Westville, Africa and the Polk Scholarship Fund.

For more information on the big battle, visit borobbqbattle.com.

There will also be a BBQ dinner on Fri., Oct. 11, for sponsors. The dinner will be held at Events 96 East, 9901 Lascassas Pike, Lascassas, and tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for children with the proceeds going to local charities.

I love barbecue so I plan to attend both; hope to see you there.