SATURDAY - September 22, 2007

CHILI OLE REGIONAL

phoned in by Chief Judge L'il Robbie

SALSA

1st Paul Cordova

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CHILI VERDE

1st George Lott

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ICS RED

1st Steve Tomasek IV

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Full report on Monday

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MENTONE REGIONAL

All week the weathercasters were predicting torrential rains for Friday and into Saturday. This did not bode well for the Mentone Regional Cookoff on Saturday. By early Saturday morning there had been no rain in the Riverside/San Bernardino area, although very heavy rains had been reported west and south of us. We arrived at the cookoff venue about 8:00 a.m. to find a light rain falling---Mentone Mist, someone called it. As the day progressed and the cooks arrived, the rain came and went, sometimes light, sometimes heavier. There was little or no public. But by noon we could see blue skies in places and the temperatures improved. And the public began arriving. The band, "Yardog", which had been rained out earlier, was able to complete its setup and begin playing.

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This cookoff offers over $2,000 in prize money for several categories---$1,000 for first place red chili! The cooks did not disappoint, and there were enough contestants in all three categories to advance to the World's Championship two weeks from now. A mixture of locals, first-timers and seasoned ICS competitors presented their concoctions to the judges, hoping to be the winner. Among the red chili competitors were several former World's Champions:

Bob Dyer, 2003 Chili Verde World's Champion

Barry Steinberg, 2001 Salsa World's Champion

Norm Gaul, 1995 Red Chili World's Champion

Cathy Wilkey, 1993 Red Chili World's Champion

Kathy Stewart, 2002 Chili Verde World's Champion (supporting her husband, Mike Stewart)

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On the judging panel were:

Bill Ray, 1994 Red Chili World's Champion

Karen Ray, 2001 Chili Verde World's Champion

Bonnie Ford, 1998 Salsa World's Champion

Ormly Gumfudgin, ICS Historian

And numerous already-World's-qualified competitors, hoping to be the 2007 World's Champions

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This was a tough neighborhood, folks! The judging was managed well by Chief Judge, Mike Austin, assisted by Bill Ray and Dennis Macklin. Chief Scorekeeper, Karen Ray, was assisted by Mary Ellen Weber and Allene Macklin.

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After the weather cleared, the Miss Chili Pepper, Mr. Hot Sauce and Shoot-n-Holler contests were emceed by the World's Championship Master of Ceremonies, Claude Covington, and were enjoyed by all. The trophies at this cookoff are spectacular. They are provided by Mill Creek Studios, and each one is a unique collector's item. And the lucky winners were:

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Best Booth: Gene Wheat, Wild Wheat's Chili

Best Costume: Tony Angotti, Uncle Tony's Wop-Sided Chili

Showmanship: Mark Peterson, Loma Linda Plumbing

People's Choice Chili: Mark Peterson, Loma Linda Plumbing

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Salsa (11 entries):

3rd, Nibs Waters

2nd, Linda Beresford

1st, Charlie Blosfield

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Chili Verde (7 entries):

3rd, Rick McDaniel

2nd, Mark Peterson

1st, Charlie Blosfield (this gives Charlie a Hat Trick for 2007)

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Traditional Red Chili (20 entries)

4th, Norm Gaul tied with

4th, Mike Stewart (10 points each)

3rd, Red Brecke (12 points)

2nd, Barry Steinberg (14 points)

1st, Cathy Wilkey (17 points)

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See you in Omaha.

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