Hey Everyone!

It has been a rough week, but we just finished up the Competition BBQ class at the Big Green Egg Culinary Center. With the help of Amanda, her wonderful staff and fantastic volunteers, the class ran smoothly and everyone had a great time. Our students showed such enthusiasm and curiosity about competition BBQ and asked lots of questions. We wish them all lots of luck when they head out to their next contest.

We have struggled a bit though with the RV/traveling side of things. Our Ram 3500 diesel periodically displays a warning to "check trailer wiring" or "trailer brake disconnected". We went to the Dodge dealership, and they said the trailer is causing the issue. In true dealership fashion, when we headed over to the RV service center, they insist the problem is with the trailer. Hopefully, the dealership here in Atlanta will have some answers.

Friday night we rushed out to buy a generator before Cabela's closed, so we could park overnight at BGE. We filled it with oil and gas around 9:30 pm only to discover we needed an adapter we didn't have. Ken rushed to the 24 hr Walmart to no avail. At 11:30 pm, out of options, we resigned ourselves to sleeping outside our land yacht in camp chairs and tot cots. After all, 85 degrees beats the 97 or so it was inside.

First thing in the morning, we picked up the adapter and, full of confidence, we fired up the generator and plugged in. After running for 4 or 5 hours, only one of our two air conditioners could run at half capacity, barely cooling the inside of the RV to 86 degrees. We bought one with an alleged 7500 watt output, but we call major BS. Cabelas return policy is such that once you gas it up, the generator is no longer eligible for return or exchange. Look forward to updates on our fight with Cabelas over the coming weeks.

The lovely JB rescued us with a luxurious RV spot at Stone Mountain last night, and in our haste to reach Mecca, our travel fatigue and general carelessness resurfaced. We forgot to close the rear door before pulling in the slides. The door to the aft bath is now ajar...and being held tenuously "closed" with a bungee cord. The Progressive guy will be added to speed dial.

So, in light of our maintenance and repair needs, as well as the general consensus that we may have sprinted a little too hard, we plan to stay in Atlanta this week and adjust our long term itinerary. If you are in the area, send us a message and come join us at our site! We may be waylaid, but we still have a fridge full of food!

Rest assured that things aren't all doom and gloom. The kids have been AMAZING! Obi charms the ladies, and Maya strikes up a conversation with just about everyone. The two of them have spent a criminal amount of time in their respective car seats, and poor Johnny acts as referee. How he hasn't fled at a rest area by now can only be the hand of God.

The Circus will persevere. Our next installment of Tasty Tuesday's will be featured this week on KOA's social media, and Ken competes Tuesday night on Chopped Grill Masters Napa Valley. You can tune into Food Network at 10pm ET to see how he does!

Thank you all for your continued support. Keep following us @kenhessbbq on Twitter and Instagram and on Facebook at Ken Hess BBQ.

Smoke Rings Eternal,

The Carnies