smoking section

An old blog entry helped me finally accomplish something that I wanted to do two years ago. Last night, my wife and I went to the St. Joseph School Fall Festival. As I finished writing about it, I checked my archives to see if I had mentioned the festival last year or the year before. I had, in a 2006 post which told of my dashed hopes to visit the Tennessee State Bar-B-Q Championship in Lenoir City.

I enjoy watching BBQ competitions on Food Network and had a great time at the Jack Daniels World Championship Invitational Barbecue a few years ago. A couple of clicks revealed that St. Joseph's festival and the Tennessee state championship were on the same weekend for at least the third year in a row. This year the cook-off moved out of Lenoir City Park to be combined with an antique car show and street festival on Broadway and Depot Streets.

Because of my work schedule, my wife and I got to Lenoir City around 10:30 a.m. and left around noon. We hadn't been there but a few minutes when we encountered Tammy Hudson, the official photographer for the event. I told her that I had recently looked at her photos from last year. She said she would get today's pictures posted as soon as her slow upload would allow.

The only vehicle in the car show that intrigued me was the Doubleheader Volkswagen Beetle. My wife said it was just like the pushmi-pullyu. Unfortunately it has one engine and only drives from one end. She also photographed a radio relic. And a piece of antique cabinetry.



What looked like an eighteen wheeler turned out to be a Peterbilt conversion RV. Just across the way, a friendly contestant told us about the chocolate cherry cobbler he was making. He cooked it in a dutch oven using a Boy Scout recipe.



We found three booths selling BBQ on one of the side streets between Broadway and Depot. One was serving Cades Cove BBQ, which had been cooked in a nearby factory. I opted to get a plate from the Smokin' Rednecks, who were cooking on site. I avoided their "Sissy Sauce" and used a combination of their medium and hot. Before we left, I followed a contestant from 4 Little Pigs BBQ as he turned in his chicken entry at noon.

auction ends Sunday

The same guy who is building his own Batmobile asked if I had an extra $44,000 laying around. I had met him last June in Morristown and was very interested to hear how he had stripped down a Lincoln Continental and was using it to hold a fiberglass Batmobile body. His finished product will look very similar to the real deal that I saw in 1993.

Since I will never build my own Batmobile, the guy from Morristown wanted to let me know that I could buy one on eBay for a mere $44,000. Unlike the original, this car has a back seat for the Batkids. The auction listing says that the car has been in many parades and that it is currently housed in Burbank. I wonder if I've ever seen it.

holy labor and delivery!

No matter their age, guys like their toys. For example, I still have the Corgi Batmobile I played with as a kid. I've been a fan of the "Batman" TV series as long as I can remember. Naturally, it was a big deal for me to see the real Batmobile at Barris Kustom Industries.

Today, I spent the afternoon doing a remote broadcast from a car dealership. The time flew by quickly while a listener told me about the Batmobile he is building in his garage. He ordered a kit from CY Productions and found his own Lincoln Continental chassis. He said there are several companies selling do-it-yourself Batmobile parts and accessories. One is called Gotham Cruisers, another is called The Batcave.

For model making on a smaller scale, I found a site offering incredibly accurate resin kits of the actors who played the heroes and villains on "Batman." Like the site says, it's the "best likeness of Vincent Price ever done!"

out of my element

The East Tennessee Corvette Club asked me to be the "celebrity" judge at their car show, which was held this afternoon at Reeder Chevrolet. The annual event is a benefit for The Angel Tree. I know nothing about Corvettes. Fortunately, all I had to do was pick out the one I liked best while the real judges ran through a complicated checklist on their clipboards. The older cars impressed me more than the newer ones because it must be harder to restore and maintain the antiques.



Some of the newer Corvettes had unusual additions. One had star spangled engine parts. Another had a picture of the Sorcerer's Apprentice under the hood but with the car owner's face replacing Mickey Mouse's. Perhaps the most appropriate accessory was the vanity plate that read "ADUL TOY."