Kelly Says

Have you ever asked yourself why you cook in a cookoff? I was asked this question at a cookoff recently, by a group of rookie cookers. My first response was the same I always give – I cook for cash and prizes!

The rookies asked if I was really that good, and I had to honestly answer no. That got my mind in gear, and I finally came up with a good answer for them – I cook because I enjoy the people I meet, and the good things we do.

There are a few cookers out there who are really good enough and consistent enough to go out and make more money than they spend at a cookoff. But in order for them to always win something, there have to be a lot of us who occasionally hit in the top five, but never really expect to. We cook for a hobby; a way to enjoy ourselves and get away from the daily grind of our lives.

Hobbies are great, but they almost always involve spending more money than they make. Several years ago I decided to learn to fly. It is something that I had always wanted to do, as a hobby – not a job. I was fortunate enough to be able to get my license without incurring any debt, but I soon learned that it was something I couldn’t afford to do as often as I wanted to. At around $150 an hour, it gets expensive pretty quick. I never did get the golfing bug that so many other people have. That is another pastime that can rapidly separate a man from his money. But these are things that people enjoy, so they are willing to pay for them.

For me, cooking is a hobby. I have spent a great deal more money than I will ever make doing it, but I enjoy it. In order for me to be able to make a profit cooking, it would become another job for me – and I would no longer look forward to firing up my pit.

We have a somewhat unique hobby though. We may spend too much money doing it, but somebody always benefits from it. Every cookoff produces a winner who makes more than they spend. The judges get to eat some great meat, and get thanked for their efforts. But the most important thing to remember is that we are always raising money for something useful. Not many other hobbies can make that claim. I would love to know the amount of money we have donated to all of the various groups that benefit from our cookoffs. We have been able to help build up communities, improve lives and make little kids smile, and we have done it while having fun ourselves. Now that’s a pretty cool hobby.

The opinions listed here are those of Kelly Draper, and may not reflect the opinions of any other LSBS officers or members.