4 Corners Regional Chili Cookoff

Saturday August 20, 2005

Red River, New Mexico

4th Place Red, 3rd Place Showmanship

If this cookoff is not on your list of annual events - you need to mark it now!  With a setting in the beautiful Sangre de Cristo Mountains, surrounded by green trees and running brooks full of trout, the Red River Music Festival and Four Corners Regional Chili Cookoff is not one to be missed.  Start your weekend off right, with a ride on the ski lift up to a mountain top concert amid the trees in the cool mountain air.  And it only gets better.  The cooks’ party Friday night was fantastic.  Lot's of chili cooks from all over the country.  It was a great opportunity to sit back and catch up on old times.  The food was themed - everything had to have chilies in it.  From the Green Chile Chicken to the Jack Daniels Beans.  The cook’s party was capped off by Larry Joe Taylor in Concert followed by Cooder Graw.

   When dawn broke on Saturday, some cooks were already setting up.  A slightly overcast morning soon gave way to showers.  However, the spirit of this cookoff was not going to be washed away that easily.  The cooks kept right on with their preparations.  Even in the rain, the public started to show up and really kick the day off right.

After a while, the sun started to make an appearance, but not before the temperature had cooled down into the mid sixties - PERFECT CHILI WEATHER!  It was good to see Texas Pod members Colleen and Julie Wallace.  When the rain started, they moved in with Steve Lee and John Montgomery to keep dry.  Then the music got going, the crowd gathered and things really got moving.  No shortage of a chili hungry public here.  Larry Joe Taylor took the stage right about turn-in time.  33 cooks at this event and nobody had chili left at the end of it. 

Then it was time for announcements.  In the background, from the stage, Larry Joe Taylor was playing Terlingua Skies.  How appropriate.  The Colorado Pod did very well at this regional event.  Mike Parker and Rocky Kimball both made the final table.  Julie Wallace took 10th place.  Steve Lee took fourth and 3rd in Showmanship, Colleen Wallace snagged 3rd while John Montgomery pulled down a 2nd place win.

All in all a great showing for the Colorado Chili Pod

But the weekend was not over yet!  There was music at the cookoff site by Cooder Graw until 6 P.M.  Then an Acoustic Concert followed by Larry Joe Taylor and friends at 9 P.M.

Mark this one on your calendars for next year!  It just keeps getting better and better

For a slideshow of this wonderful event, press on the button below