It all started in 1990 when my dad gave me his used Weber Smokey Mountain. I burned my way through a lot of ribs before I finally got it right, and the hook was set. That Smokey Mountain led to an Oklahoma Joe's offset and ultimately a GoodOne Marshall. I've cooked thousands of pounds of meat on those rigs and shipped hundreds of gift baskets all across the US.
My neighbor and I thought it would be a great idea to enter a BBQ contest in 2002, so we took our grills to the American Royal and set up our booth with absolutely no idea what we were about to experience. Ended up being a pretty good weekend - we got 3rd in ribs with a perfect 180 score, never to be replicated. I spent the next 15 years chasing another perfect score at the American Royal and a dozen or so other contests, until I figured it was time to stop sleeping on a cot once it started taking way too long to recover in the morning.
I had my share of success along the way - top 30 out of 500 teams one year, a blue ribbon in brisket at another (after turning in the best of the worst brisket we'd cooked). And I had my share of failures too. Like the time I decided the day of a contest was a good time to try a new coffee rub. Bad move. Or the time I figured my slow, fat legs could get a turn-in box to the judges faster than my son and nephew, our usual runners. Turns out I am much slower. That ended in a walk of shame back to the booth, right past Tuffy Stone being interviewed for BBQ Pitmasters. Thankfully, I didn't make the cut that aired.
After 35 years at the pit, here's what I know: there's no one right way to do BBQ, and the scorecard was always the least important part. The friends, the drinks, and the jokes around the smoker were the real prize.
I left the corporate world in March 2026 and turned my attention to making shirts. It's just me running the show from Olathe, Kansas, with my partner Dana handing out cards at contests and keeping me honest.
I believe that it is important to give back, so I sought out an organization that I could help with my new venture. The obvious choice was Operation BBQ Relief. So, for every item that we sell we will give $1 to Operation BBQ Relief, right off the top. These folks deserve it, because this community has always shown up for each other.
~ Dave, Head Snark
Wear what you're thinking.