It’s kind of hard to tell in this photo, but the big jug of “Ausom Aussie” BBQ sauce has a handwritten warning that says says “HOT HOT HOT HOT!”.

David and I and our friends Joe, Lisa, and their son Anthony went to Naperville yesterday for Ribfest, a big barbecue and music festival. I didn’t realize when we got on the grounds how big it was and how many different booths there were for different permutations of slow-grilled ribs, pulled pork sandwiches, and lots of other “food booth” fare. It wasn’t actually that hot a day, but there was no shade except for a couple of overcrowded picnic tents. So I kept ducking into the shade wherever possible, just to minimize the chance of sunburn, heatstroke, and other fun activities that sometimes end with an involuntary visit to the emergency room.

I didn’t take any other photos, but I just was struck by the interesting variety of trophies at this particular booth. The ones that look like sculptures of cowboys made out of horseshoes are apparently from a BBQ competition in Portland, OR. From the great number of “winner” banners from various places and years, barbecue competitions are a big deal all over the country. The prices are pretty high, and of course the main thing for a lot of the booths is to sell their line of sauces, dips and rubs. A couple of booths had great big long lines, and others had short or no lines. We tried stuff from a couple of different booths, walked around until we found the Oberweis booth, paid $4.00 for a “citrus shake” drink that was good but not THAT good, and called it a day. There wasn’t any music going on, for which I was profoundly thankful, because the big acts on the schedule this weekend were Elvin Bishop (“Fooled Around And Fell In Love,” YUCK!)and David Lee Roth (YUCK on general principle, although “Just A Gigolo” was stupid good fun).

There were a lot of people, but not as many as apparently there would be later in the day and into the evening. We left just as it was really starting to get hot, mostly because we couldn’t really eat any more and there wasn’t anything else going on until the music started, and of course we already know there wasn’t much worth sticking around for.

It’s funny, I always used to go to all the big “food booth and music” festivals when I lived in Seattle. It’s a different vibe at similar, large-scale area gatherings here. Maybe because here it’s more of a hassle to find parking, and marshall the forces to get down to the grounds and so on. Also, I never feel like staying very long at the local doings here. Get some food, walk around for a while, get out. On the recent trip to Folk Life in Seattle, on the other hand, we wanted to be there as much of the day as possible, because there’s always something new to see or hear or taste around the next corner.

But the vibe is definitely different. The people look much the same – a spectrum of ethnicities and social groups. But on the West coast, there’s a lot more people that look like they belong to the Organic Food Group, and a lot fewer people wearing flag-waving, truck-and-tractor pull type T-shirts.

Also, the distinct lack of Utilikilts is probably a giveaway.

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Original upload: GinnyRED57.