We'd just left the Little Miss Stampede and Buckaroo Contest, went through the doors to the Arena to the Rope and Run, then back through those same doors into what was now the Judging of the Chili.
Not any ordinary chili, mind you. This was State Championship-worthy Chili. They'd already gotten underway, and the announcer was saying that KQFC, a country radio station, had won a prize. Their team's name had been "Saints and Sinners", which I thought was colorful. The announcer assured the crowd that the prize had nothing to do with the placement of their booth (was it right next to the judges' table, I missed that one!), but that their chili was just that good."
Impressive.
In fifth place was the chili called "Code 3: Lights and Sirens." Sounded like my kind of chili...I like my chili to be respectfully spicy.
Fourth place was Team Number Ten, with Dustin Morrey (slaughtering it on the spelling, I'm sure!) and Chris Dawson. This was their first year...these two are in the fondue business; they operate the Mona Lisa Fondue Restaurant in town. If they make chili half as good as they make fondue, it's no wonder they placed.
Third place was Team Number Six, Joe and Marilee Barrett of Hi-Country Chili. They came all the way from Worley, Idaho. I asked my husband where on earth that was, and he said simply, "Up North." (Go, Worley!)
It was fun to watch the excitement building as they announced the Second Place and First Place winners. The tension level was climbing. There were a couple of girls standing in front of us, and when the Second Place winners were announced, it was as if their group had been hit by a lightning bolt. One of them must've jumped nearly three feet off the ground. I don't blame her; I wouldn't mind winning four-hundred dollars for a batch of my chili. As it is, that might be the price my family pays someone else to haul the stuff off! Apparently not the case with these people.
And the moment we'd all been anticipating: The Big Winner.
A wave of laughter, applause, and cheering went up when the announcer said: "Team Number Seven: 'Garcia'."
Prolonged applause and whoops. These people were well known, and from what I could tell, well loved. The announcer quoted their grandson who'd told her earlier, "THIS IS THE BEST CHILI EVER!"
The announcer asked the couple, "So was it worth all the sweat?"
To which the wife replied, "Thank you so much. We've been competing for ten years. We've been competing in other states, and if we win there, we feel like we aren't representing OUR state. It is so nice to win in IDAHO!" More cheering followed her statement.
She then said, "I'd better give my husband the mike because he thinks I always take over and say everything." She passed the microphone over to her spouse, who paused for a second with an impish grin on his face, waiting to have the attention of all who were listening. Then he very deliberately leaned over the mike and said, "Yes, Dear."
And that was it.
The audience was roaring again. They really liked these people. Not only that, there was just a general easy feeling of comraderie in the air, mixed in with the heavenly scent of the chili.
We got a picture of the Second Place winners, one of whom was absent. Melissa Stelzner spoke for them both. Their team was called "Autism Awareness". The other team member was a mother of an autistic child, as was Melissa. We asked her about the ingredients, but she warned us that rather than having to kill us after we knew, to just 'keep it on the low'. We promised that we would. She put her finger to her lips and said, "Shhhhh!" ....perhaps by way of a subtle warning. We knew she meant business. This chili thing is serious stuff.
Melissa told us that she'd jumped for joy, out of both gladness and shock when their team was announced. She and her friend had never entered a chili cook-off contest before; and here they'd won second place in the State! Not too shabby.
Melissa said that her 'secret recipe' was not extremely spicy, at which point a friend chimed in and said that was exactly what she liked about it. Her other 'secret' was that she used all natural beef steak, that because of this, their chili was 'very meaty'. She says that she buys all of her meat from Albertsons in Nampa, the one on Twelfth and Seventh. I asked for the name of her butcher, and she said she wasn't sure, that she always just called him 'the meat guy', but that she knows he drives a red Mini-Cooper. So there you have it; go and see the meat guy with the red Mini-Cooper at Albertsons.
We also couldn't resist getting a photo of the winning couple, David and Alicia Garcia. They told us that they actually own a restaurant called Garcia's off Kimball in downtown Caldwell. I asked them if they'd be serving their prize-winning chili there. They said that they would, but not all the time....it takes a lot of work to make it.
They told us of the other prizes they've won; their chili has been highly decorated. But they were thrilled with this new award. The Top Chili in the State. And that state was their home state of Idaho. Good deal.
We sat at the nearby table outdoors and wound down a bit, listening to the band playing outside. No more hundred degree weather; but it was still at least ninety. I hoped that the band knew that although we were a pretty mellow crowd, how much they were appreciated. Toes were tapping. You could hear people conversing, talking about their day. An older girl in a white sundress and a younger girl were swinging each other around, dancing to the music. People were snacking and sipping cold beverages. The chili winners were taking down their outdoor booths, with their friends and family members assisting. The Idaho sun was setting on a perfect day.
But we weren't done yet. One more event to go on this marathon adventure.
The Movie Under the Stars...
TO BE CONTINUED.
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