Lil Bear BBQ

04/27/2026

Eastern Pennsylvania this past weekend. We had plenty of fun before the contest seeing old friends we haven't seen in over a year, enjoying a "Lancaster quiche breakfast, attending a badass steak class by AnonymousQ Competition Cooking Team , and the usual laughing our tummy muscles sore.

Rick's class needs to be mentioned multiple times here. He's one of the most detailed people I know. He's a badass steak cook, a wonderful person, and just fun to be around. Plus I like the way he says "beayah". That's bear by the way. 🤣 If and when he has another one, you need to go. There's always room to learn and his products are top tier.

The cook! It was windy. It was cold...ish. It was so much fun though. I got to see some of my best humans win, walk (get a top 10 jargon) and take home their golden tickets to the world championship next year!

Speaking of walking, winning, and golden tickets... I got to do those things too! I was lucky enough to walk away with the following:

Steak A - 6th
Steak B - 3rd 🥉
Steak Jackpot - 1st! 🥇and Golden Ticket
Ribs - 7th

You know what goes here. My appreciation and dedicated use of my favorite products to continue the journey of trying to be the best by using the best:

Heath Riles BBQ for those delicious bold flavors
Swine Life BBQ for that deep beef deliciousness
Mister Brisket, Inc. for those top tier meats
The Ohio BBQ Store for anything and all things bbq
Go Big or Go BBQ for that smooth taste
Jealous Devil for that consistent heat

04/20/2026

Oklahoma is far! Ed (my Outlaw BBQ Smokers patio) and I made the 2,000 mile round trip to throw my hat in the ring at the Rib Cook Off Association World Championship this past weekend. I had qualified for this Invitational by winning a cook-off back in September last year.

It was incredibly windy the entire time but it was a great time. As always, I hung out with some old friends and made plenty of new ones.

They didn't care for my steak appearance or texture apparently and I placed somewhere in the 30s. Wildly confused by that. I dried my baby back out by taking them a little too far, and they didn't like anything about those sushi wings, but.... Spare ribs? My spare ribs were different.

I qualified for the Champion's One Rack Challenge by winning a contest in 2025 and ended up pulling out a 14th out of all the year's champions. Not too shabby.

As far as the championship spare ribs coated in Heath Riles BBQ and Go Big or Go BBQ rubs and sauce, I ended up tying for 1st with my buddy Dan Wright from Take It Easy BBQ. The tie was broken by tenderness. Dan ended up on top and I took 2nd. What a finish to a fun filled weekend.

As always, I use the best to try to be my best. Give them a look:

for those delicious bold flavors
Swine Life BBQ for that deep beef deliciousness
Mister Brisket, Inc. for those top tier meats
The Ohio BBQ Store for anything and all things bbq

03/19/2026

I'm finally back and caught up from an absolutely epic 2 weeks in one of my favorite states, Texas. This trip surrounded by friends and what I consider family was one I've been looking forward to all year. The reason... the SCA World Championship, SCA 2025 banquet, and 4 days of eating the finest BBQ in the country all while laughing with friends until you cramped up.

We started out cooking at the SCA headquarters the first Saturday where I claimed an 10th and 3rd. We swiftly moved down south 4 hours to Kyle, TX to our 16 restaurant BBQ crawl home base. We hit 14 of the 16 planned and loved every one of them. My favorite being between Burnt Bean, Franklin, and Leroy and Lewis. Just wow...

Back up to Fort Worth to the SCA Banquet and Championship. Myself and many of my friends were recognized for a great season, we ate some mediocre tacos, and shared some drinks and laughs. The next day, we got down to business.

First, a huge congratulations to all my friends that made finals and to those that hit the top 10 overall. What an amazing accomplishment. My entries fell just a little short this year. I was 1 appearance point from making finals in steak and tied for 10th in ribs but dropped to 11th on the tie breaker. I'll be honest, it was heartbreaking to be so close and not make it. I licked my wounds and listened to some of my own advice and enjoyed the rest of my time in the speedway rooting for those that did make it!

It was one hell of a trip after one hell of a year. Thanks to my sponsors for all that you do. Hopefully I've represented you well.

Heath Riles BBQ for those delicious bold flavors
Swine Life BBQ for that deep beef deliciousness
Mister Brisket, Inc. for those top tier meats
The Ohio BBQ Store for anything and all things bbq

02/15/2026

Usually this trailer is full of steak, BBQ, some snacks, and probably a coupla' two-tree whiskey bottles. Not yesterday though. Yesterday we picked up 1,644 boxes of Girl Scout cookies at the mega pick-up and delivered them to the girls in the troop for them to distribute to those they sold them to. We're very proud of their hard work. It made for a much easier pickup and only brought up 38½ "where's my steak" jokes.

So, if you ordered some cookies, I've got'em and you'll be getting them soon! Thanks for the support!

01/30/2026

Get after it!

🏈🔥 GAME DAY GIVEAWAY 🔥🏈
Wings? Covered. Seasoning? Covered. Gear? Covered.
We’re teaming up with Springer Mountain Farms to hook one fan up with a full wing tailgating prize pack PLUS a Heath Riles BBQ Wing Seasoning 6 Pack — delivered before the Big Game.

Enter to win:
✔ Like
✔ Tag 3 friends
✔ Follow Heath Riles BBQ
✔ Follow Springer Mountain Farms

Winner announced February 2.
Let’s see those tags 👇

01/30/2026

If you think I put this on almost everything... You're right. Nothing like a few over easies dusted with some Heath Riles BBQ Creole Garlic Butter on a cold Friday morning.

01/21/2026

Another year living the Thigh Life. Thanks Mister Brisket, Inc. for another year trusting me to represent your brand. I wouldn't get my BBQ meat anywhere else. I'm looking forward to a great 2026.

01/19/2026

1/3 cord of center cut hickory from the best around, Hot Stuff LLC! These new mesh bags are awesome! Forklift it into the truck, strap it down, and go!

No mess and it only took 10 minutes to unload it at home.

The wood can stay in this bag for as long as you need or until it's completely seasoned. This load was $400 and will last me a few years if both competitive and home cooking in my Outlaw.

They also sell other hardwoods in a variety of sizes for cooking or just tossing into a camp fire. Absolutely amazing product and very competitive pricing.