FRIDAY - Aug 8, 2008

A Special Message about WCCC 2008

WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS . . . . . WELL . . . . YOU KNOW!!!!

The 2008 World's Championship Chili Cookoff is finally in place at the legendary TROPICANA HOTEL AND CASINO on The Strip in Las Vegas. The dates are October 10-12th. The three-day holiday weekend gives the ICS participants an extra day for travel or more fun. Airfares to Las Vegas made this site most attractive! The cookoff site is visible to the public and we anticipate a crowd.

The TROPICANA is our host for this year and they are providing the majority of the necessary funding for the cookoff. The World's Championship is funded SOLELY by sponsorship dollars. Future years will DEPEND on the support of our sponsors by ICS participants. Please show loyalty to the ICS and the TROPICANA by booking your stay at the resort. All of our events will take place at the TROPICANA. October is a busy time of year in Las Vegas, but as a courtesy to the ICS participants, they have deeply discounted their regular rates. The special code for the discounted rates is SICS08 and MUST be used to receive the discount. Call 1-800-634-4000 or go to the ICS website for the special TROPICANA website link. THE RATES ARE $69/NIGHT SUNDAY-THURSDAY AND $99/NIGHT FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. IF YOU ARE NOT QUOTED THOSE RATES, CALL THE ICS OFFICE OR CALL THE 800 NUMBER AND YOU WILL RECEIVE THE DISCOUNTED RATE. THE TROPICANA HAS BLOCKED ROOMS FOR THE ICS AND THEY WILL BE AVAILABLE.

The ICS is offering an incentive for cooks to book rooms at the TROPICANA. If you are the winner of the red, chili verde or salsa contest, we will add $1000 to your prize money. Also names of judges and cooks staying at the TROPICANA will be entered into a drawing for your room stay FREE for the weekend. Winner will be announced from the stage during the Chili Verde and Salsa winners' awards on Saturday. The hotel staff and I are working on additional value-added incentives that will appear on our website as soon as possible. World's Championships in the future DEPEND on the ICS members' support of our sponsors.

I want to personally thank each and every one of you for your understanding and apologize for the stress and inconvenience the late announcement has caused. It's been tough acquiring the location because of the economy and lack of sponsorship funds. We are working diligently to insure that the 2008 WCCC will be a wonderful experience for all participants.

SEE YOU IN LAS VEGAS!

Carol Hancock
CEO

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From FRED WIELAND

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ICS Chief Judge Emeritus

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A message to all the International Chili Society's, World's Championship Chili Contestants and Judges and other WCCC Chiliheads planning to attend the WCCC 2008 event.

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As all of you know by now, we finally have a host for the WCCC 2008, however, it has been a very difficult year for Carol Hancock to convince the several potential WCCC hosts she has been working with to risk the investment that they must commit to such a large event.. Therefore the future of ICS may very well be in jeopardy of continuing to produce the WCCC for the benefit of everyone in the organization and for all the many things we have come to expect from this fine annual event.

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Many of you contestants, judges, scorekeepers, wranglers, cookoff chairpersons, cooking teammates and all the other support people involved each year, spend a great deal of money participating in chili cookoffs. Some of you, I venture to guess, spend several thousands of dollars over the course of the each annual chili season and above all, many of you have invested several years of your life, some even decades to be part of the ICS and the WCCC experience.

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So what is the problem you ask?

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While all of us are pursuing our cookoff related actives, Carol Hancock is spending most of each year working on acquiring the next WCCC, so we can enjoy all the things mentioned above.

Some of the problems she faces each year you may be aware of at the local level, such as the various health and fire department requirements which of course is something you cannot do anything about at the WCCC level. But do you realize that the WCCC costs upwards of $250,000? Immediately following the WCCC each year, that money has to be acquired – in cash – all over again. This year, it took Carol 10 months to get two commitments.

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And then there are the sponsors.

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Each year the cost of conducting the WCCC must be covered by sponsors and this year it has become especially more difficult because, I'll bet you guessed it - the declining economy.

This is particularly true when the major financial sponsor this year is a hotel in Las Vegas, the Tropicana Hotel and Casino. The first thing they asked Carol Hancock was "What economic return can we expect for our investment from the WCCC. How many people will stay at our hotel?" If you want Carol Hancock to continue producing the WCCC each year for all of us, it's your turn to support her and stay at the WCCC host Las Vegas Tropicana Hotel and Casino where the WCCC 2008 is to be held. It's a sad day when our own "ICS family" needs to be begged or bribed to support the program that's been put together for our benefit. The other continuing sponsor that has stuck with us for 40 years is McIlhenny Company (Tabasco) to whom we also owe a debt of gratitude.

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Besides, if all 300 or 400 of us stay at the host hotel, we can all have one hell of a big party.

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And--------they may ask us back next year!

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Fred Wieland

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Thistledown Regional chili cook-off

Saturday Agust 23

Thistledown racetrack is located 15 minutes southeast of Cleveland, Ohio

1,700 dollars in prize money

Come join a good day of chili cooking, music and horseracing !!!!. The folks at thistledown take great care of the cook's so please make plan's now to come and join the fun.Hotel rooms are Courtyard by Marriott. 216-901-9988 for 99.00 a night or next door at the Residence inn at 216-520-1450 at 109.00 a night that includes a breakfast buffet. You must ask for the thistledown rate.Tables and cover are provided as long as we know that you are coming.Hope to see you at the track

Ken Kostal

419-734-4458 or bigboppers@cros.net

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Illinois State Fair Chili Cookoff

For all those cooks who have been having problems signing up through the ICS web site please be advised that the e-mail address was incorrect and has been corrected t0 Chilliexperience@comcast.net . The State Fair is a great time, and the cookoff is under a large tent with tables provided. We'll also be able to assist with transportation back and forth to you cars for loading and unloading equipment. For travelers the red turn in time is 2:00pm with awards about 3:00 - 3:30 so you can get out quick. I do need to get cooks names by Friday August 15, so I can arrange for entry and parking passes. Entries can be mailed to the Fair or submitted through the ICS web site. If there are questions please call Larry Eastep at 217 622-3805

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MISSOURI COOK-OFF

SEPTEMBER 27TH-ALMOST YOUR LAST CHANCE

Don't be left out of the WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP. September 27^th in St. Louis is shaping up to be one of the Largest Events we have had in years. I am getting calls and emails daily from Chili and Salsa cooks wanting to enter. Everyone is really excited and looking forward to the 2^nd to last event before the WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP.

If you are still on the fence, please feel free to join us at the Ameristar Casino in St. Charles, MO for our Cooks Meeting at 6 pm on September 10th. Plenty of drinks and Complimentary Food for everyone. Come out and let me persuade you to sign up!!!! If you have already signed up, please be sure to show up early to stake out your favorite location. You can contact me if you have any questions. I look forward to seeing some old friends and better yet, making some new "chili-friends".

Don't miss your "almost" last chance to qualify!!!!!!!!!!

Michael Goldstein-Event Chair

National Kidney Foundation of Eastern Missouri

Mgreferee1@aol.com

314.277.9551 cell

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MONTANA STATE

WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE (preferably ALIVE), ICS CHILI COOKS!!!

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE!!! I DON'T THINK SO!

YOUR ASSIGNMENT:

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BRING YOUR BIG FAT CHILI POT AND FILL IT UP WITH YOUR FANTASTIC SALSA, CHILI VERDE OR RED CHILI!

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AUGUST 16, FIFTH AND MAIN, MANHATTAN, MT; 7AM COOK'S MEETING

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AUGUST 15, 6:30 PM A BARBECUE IN YOUR HONOR; FIFTH AND MAIN

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OUR MISSION: To make sure you have a great time in Manhattan, MT and that you win-win-win prizes and money! SEE YOU SOON!

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Contact Bob and Darol Wetzel if you are coming: 406-284-6562 or just respond to this email.

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