BBQ Profile: Chiles Cridlin

T. Michael Garrison

The Flying BBQ Judge

[email protected]

This month I will be presenting a true champion in the competition BBQ World. When he shows up, the other teams respond as he always gets a walk and usually ends up in the top rankings. It’s none other than Chiles Cridlin and his team Wolf’s Revenge. Years ago he formed a competition team and named it Big C’s Stew and Que — a real mouthful. He began getting criticism from mothers and they put pressure on Chiles to change the name. He got together with his 9-year-old God Son to come up with a better name — something to do with wolves. He felt the wolves needed some revenge. They came up with Wolf’s Revenge BBQ.

He trademarked the name and it has been his team name since that time. He has two loyal helpers who join him for many of the contests — Barry and Randy are important members of the team. Chiles never had backyard cooking or anything over fire in his background. There are rumors in his family of Q participation that led to bigger things. However, he has never been able to confirm any of these rumors, so he asked me not to mention them in this profile, so I am not.

In 2007 and 2008 he was invited to cook for the Virginia Folklife Association Big Apple Fest. He really enjoyed cooking for a group and he came home with a very nice smoker. Since he had the smoker he decided to compete in a KCBS event. He got a 1st place in Chicken and he was hooked. He never looked back. Soon after he got his first Grand. Today, he has 28 Grand Championships and 29 Reserves. Chiles has competed in 220 contests, so unquestionably, he has an experienced team. He has taught classes sharing his procedures that led to much success. One of his favorite events is the Smoking in the Foothills Barbecue Competition and Festival in Lenoir, North Carolina. After a contest, he keeps his leftovers and takes them home. He shares them with former students, classmates and friends because he doesn’t want it to go to waste. As these judges gain experience, they can give him tips and pointers on how he can improve his products for future contests.

One thing that really impressed me about Chiles is that he is giving back to the competition BBQ World. He has served on the KCBS Board for several years. Most recently he chaired the committee that was formed to provide online continuing education for judges. He handpicked his committee from across the country to make sure all areas were represented in the decisions. They developed the Judge Certification Update Program. This involves an online education program that covers several different parts of the judging procedure. Each part is followed by an online test and the participants must get 100% to complete each section. I have taken all the sections in the JCUP program and it was very helpful. There are many judges who took their judge training more than 20 years ago. I am one of them. I really appreciated the refresher classes and they helped me in the judging process. I think serious judges will see the value in this program and take the training. Chiles is always looking for ways to improve his product. He has designed a number of materials to hold his meats while cooking or smoking. Many of these are now commercially available and other teams are using items he designed. Chiles designed his smoker and had it professionally built, and did the same with his trailer. He is even trying out some new items for his brisket preparation at this contest.

He travels to events from his home in Richmond, Virginia. Chiles assist in managing data centers for the federal government. He has irregular hours and has been able to negotiate Fridays off so he can compete in BBQ events. He has a blue star list of sponsors with Smithfield leading the list. Then followed by Royal Oak Charcoal, The BBQ Superstore, Oklahoma Joes Smokers, Heath Riles BBQ, ARP Wood Products, ARShot Southern Honey, and Sweet Smoke Q. Chiles is the type of person we need in our BBQ Family. He is always willing to help other teams when there is a problem and always contributes to the contest where he is cooking and always giving back. He carries this attitude up to his position on the KCBS Board.

BBQ Profile: Matthew & Yvonne La Rou

T. Michael Garrison

The Flying BBQ Judge

[email protected]

I have received several emails about last months missing BBQ Profile. I want to let you know how much I appreciated all your comments. I was in the hospital over the end of the year and unable to write the article. As I prepare my articles each month I wonder if anyone ever reads my work. Although I am never happy with missing an issue, I was really appreciative of your comments.

This month I am presenting a very unique couple that I think you will find very interesting. Florida’s number one BBQ contest takes place the last weekend in January in Lakeland, Florida. The PigFest draws over 100 teams to the Sun-N-Fun grounds at Lakeland Linder airport. I judged all the ancillary contests on Friday evening and the BBQ contests on Saturday. Sharing my table in the Pro judging was Matthew La Rou, a KCBS Certified judge from The Hague, in the Netherlands. Also judging at the PigFest was his wife Yvonne, a KCBS Certified Judge. The couples’ presence in Florida is as Snow Birds. However, when they learned about a KCBS sanctioned contest they decided to judge it and see how BBQ events are done here in the U.S. They couldn’t have picked a better one to participate in for sure. This was the 25th year for the PigFest event.

Matthew was exposed to open fire cooking early in his childhood. He was raised in Michigan and his father cooked steaks, Northern Pike and a variety of meats over a gas grill in their backyard. This was a small portable grill, but it was open air cooking over a direct flame. Matthew evolved into charcoal grill cooking with an 18 inch Weber grill and used that a lot from 1976-1989. He still has that Weber charcoal grill today and uses it a lot.

In 2000 Matthew followed the blonde to the Netherlands and there he married Yvonne. That is where they both became more interested in open fire cooking. BBQ was not in the European culture at that time. He reflected that finding BBQ equipment and accessories was very difficult in Europe. Around 2013 Europe started developing an interest in BBQ and stores started offering grills and grilling accessories, sauces, rubs, and what any serious griller needed to practice their craft.

Both Matthew and Yvonne recall watching the TV show Grillmasters and how it made them want to do more grilling. He also recalls the difficulty of finding cuts of meat desirable to most BBQ and grilling folks. He walked into a local butcher shop in The Hague, his hometown, and couldn’t believe the lack of meat cuts available versus what he found in Florida. In 2011 he cooked his first beer can chicken with overwhelming success. In 2015 he entered his first Grillmaster chicken in a KCBS contest in Amsterdam. The very first contest he judged was Tony Stones event and has since judged this contest several times. Matthew’s next contest was the Regahfest in The Hague. Both have judged this contest several times and have also judged the Suydersee.

Yvonne volunteered to help at the Tony Stone contest, and she was put on the grazing table. She loved that experience so much that she quickly became certified as a KCBS Judge. When talking with Yvonne she explained to me how she loves the taste and variety of meats when smoked but she isn’t interested in the cooking part. She has someone doing the cooking for her and that allows her to enjoy eating the end result. Her role at most competi-tions was to run the grazing table. Unfortunately, most events have stopped having a grazing table with all the problems associated with the current pandemic.

Matthew is both a firefighter and an EMT. In his words, “I play with fire in my profession and also in my cooking.” His only regret is the limited number of contests in Europe. The last contest, until this weekend, was in Amsterdam in 2019.

Jim Elser and his team, Sweet Smoke Q, competed in the Pig Fest event which allowed him time to reminisce about this great event with both Yvonne and Matthew. Rub Bagby, from The Swamp Boys, brings another Europe connection to Florida through a judge’s class he taught in Amsterdam. They recalled that experience as well while attending Pig Fest. They also appreciated meeting Kevin Sandridge and learning more about the BBQBeat that he runs.

Four teams started a local BBQ competition in the Netherlands but currently Matthew’s interest is more in judging than cooking so he has withdrawn his entry from that event. Matthew is currently sponsored by Slow’N Sear, which is a U.S. based BBQ equipment manufacturer. Matthew says cooking with their equipment is a huge improvement over anything he has used to date.

This is a remarkable couple with a true love for BBQ. They continue their love for this wonderful sport that we share, even against all the challenges they face while creating their art in Europe. Please give a hearty welcome from our beloved BBQ Family to Matthew and Yvonne La Rou.