Barbeque and blues in the Wildwoods

Bring your appetite and dance moves to the Wildwoods’ 11th Annual New Jersey State Barbeque Championship and Anglesea Blues Festival, July 10-12.
The Wildwoods offers the best in barbeque and blues at their annual three-day festival beginning this Friday.
Indulge in mouth-watering ribs, chicken, brisket, and pork, while enjoying some of the best blues music you’ll ever find at the Jersey shore.
The three-day festival will feature barbeque teams from around the country showing off their grill skills in a quest for the best barbeque.
Teams will compete for glory by attempting to create masterfully marinated and seasoned meals, grilled to perfection, in order to earn the title of ‘Grand Champion,’ proving that barbequing is nothing less than an art.
The festival will also feature free live blues music performed by some of the region’s most soulful artists.
The festival kicks off Friday with an opening ceremony at 4 p.m.
Friday’s festivities will include meet-and-greets with on-air personalities from Cat Country 107.3 and some of the best barbeque to be had in the state.
Free blues performances by Grant Austin Taylor and the Joe Moss Band will be featured at set times during the day’s events. Friday’s events will conclude at 11 p.m.
Saturday’s festival hours are 10 a.m. – 11 p.m.
Events on Saturday will include a live all-day broadcast from New Jersey 101.5 featuring Big Joe Henry.
At 2 p.m., a Bud Light Wing Challenge will begin, and an “Anything Goes Iron Chef Contest” will follow at 3 p.m.
Guests can enjoy free, live musical sets from PP Junior’s Midnight Boogie, South Southern Delta and Bubba Mac throughout the day on Saturday at the festival’s main stage.
The festival concludes on Sunday with SoJo 104.9 broadcasting live from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Judging for the 2009 Barbeque Grand Championship, conducted by the Kansas City Barbeque Society and a panel of volunteer judges, begins at noon, with the awards ceremony commencing at 3 p.m.
Also on Sunday, James Day and the Fish Dry Band and Zydeco-A-Go-Go will boast their soulful vocals during free live performances at the main stage.
Festivalgoers can learn what it takes to cook great barbeque from national competitive barbeque authority, Big Lou Elrose, as he gives attendees valuable lessons in barbeque during two special classes offered during the festival.
Each all-encompassing class will cover the basics about cookers, food safety, rubs, sauces, slathers, mops, glazes, meat, butchering/trimming, cooking, and competition barbeque.
Classes will be offered on Saturday and Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required as space is limited.
“Tuition” for the special barbeque class is $30. For a registration form, email njbbq@njbbq.com and mention “Cooking Class” in the subject line, or call 609-523-6565.
The Anglesea Blues Festival, held in conjunction with the New Jersey State Barbeque Championship, will bring attendees the best national and regional Blues acts around.
The free blues concerts will be held on an outdoor main stage throughout the three-day festival.
The tentative schedule of performances:
Friday, July 10:
4:30 – 7 p.m. – Grant Austin Taylor
7:30 – 10:30 p.m. – The Joe Moss Band
Saturday, July 11:
11 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. – PP Junior’s Midnight Boogie
4 – 7 p.m. – South Southern Delta
7:30 – 10:30 p.m. – Bubba Mac
Sunday, July 12
11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – James Day and the Fish Dry Band
1:30 – 3 p.m. – Zydeco-A-Go-Go
4 – 5:30 p.m. – Zydeco-A-Go-Go
The 11th Annual New Jersey State Barbeque Championship and Anglesea Blues Festival is a celebration of great food, great music, and family fun you won’t want to miss.