CLIVE — One of the winning teams from the BBQ & Brew at the Ballpark contest on Saturday, June 22, plans to donate all of their winnings to help their northwest Iowa neighbors who are facing severe flooding.
A celebrity panel of judges selected Le Mars’ Big Al’s Smokin Good BBQ as the winner for Best Pork Chop. Big Al’s also took second place in the Pork Chop category, earning a total of $1,100.
Allen DeVos and his team are from northwest Iowa, where local communities have been severely affected by flooding.
“We all got home Saturday night, but it was a real adventure. At one point, we were a mile from home, but we had to drive another 60 miles to get home because of blocked and flooded roads,” DeVos said Monday, June 24. “As a team, we donated our $1,100 winnings to flood victims.”
The Iowa Pork Producers Association will match this donation to help flood victims in northwest Iowa.
DeVos and her team will also help feed those affected by the floods and those helping with relief efforts.
“We are removing all the smokers and moving into Rock Valley to feed residents and volunteers pork loin sandwiches. The destruction in Rock Valley is simply unimaginable,” DeVos added.
Accepting his team’s award at the celebrity competition Saturday, DeVos said he was stepping down as pitmaster for the Big Al’s Smokin Good BBQ team. He hopes to return to BBQ & Brew at the Ballpark next year in a reduced role, as a team member.
The second annual BBQ & Brew at the Ballpark, held June 22 at Principal Park in Des Moines, raised more than $20,000 for food banks across the state. Iowans from across the state spent an afternoon enjoying delicious Iowa pork while 30 backyard barbecue teams competed for more than $10,000 in cash prizes.
The Iowa Pork Producers Association partnered with the Iowa Cubs to host the event.
Team Heavy & Sweaty BBQ from Washington, Iowa, was the big winner on Saturday, taking home the Grand Champion award and placing in the top five in several categories.
“It’s great what Iowa pork producers are doing for the state,” said Jeran Courtney, a team member at Heavy & Sweaty BBQ. “Keep up the good work. We have friends who are farmers and farming is a big part of what we do. We think giving back to Iowa food banks is a great thing to do as well.”
Team Nobody from Owatonna, Minnesota, won the reserve champion award and first place for best pork ribs.
The Community Choice Credit Union team from Urbandale was the judges’ top choice for best pork loin.
Marshalltown’s 6-Pack and a Rack team won first place for best pork loin from the judges and in the People’s Choice competition. Grimes’ Smoke Daddy’s BBQ placed first for best pork loin in the People’s Choice competition. Each People’s Choice winner took home $1,500 and a $1,500 donation will be made to the food bank of their choice.
“The turnout was great, even better than last year,” said Rod Leman, chairman of the Iowa Pork Producers Association’s promotion committee. “We had a lot of great barbecue and everyone had more than enough to eat. The competitors here were fantastic. They’re great people and we love them.”
Berkwood Farms donated all of the pork for the barbecue contest and Fareway Stores also provided many resources. Smokey D’s BBQ handed out many pork loin sandwiches to the participants.
