Fort Gibson held its first “Smokin' the Fort” BBQ and Bluegrass Festival on Saturday.

Though plenty of sweet and spicy barbecue was available, the highlight for a large part of the crowd was the pumpkin pie eating contest instead.

About a dozen contestants circled the pie table, some wearing aprons, some pulling garbage bags over their shirts.

The object of the race — be the first to completely clean one pie tin, Gary Perkins, director of the Fort Gibson Chamber of Commerce, told the contestants.

On “Go!,” the contestants, ranging from teenagers to grandfathers, plunged their fingers into pumpkin pie and gobbled away.

Kaylynn Soap of Tahlequah was a clear crowd pleaser, scooping nearly her entire pie filling into one fist and plunging her face in, much to the delight of the cheering audience.

However, Curt Lawson of Coweta pushed his tin to his sticky face and licked it clean before anyone else had a chance.

“That was a lot of pie,” Lawson said, laughing and wiping pie filling out of his eyebrows. “My wife didn't believe I was going to do this.”

While the contestants recovered, the audience eagerly purchased $5 tasting kits and began making rounds.

Contestants in the barbecue cook-off ranged from professional cooks to families and friends just looking to have fun.

Smokers ran the gamut from backyard grills to an iron smoker roughly the size of a Volkswagen.

William Caviness of Sweet Willy's BBQ Tahlequah cooked up beef brisket for the judges and the hungry guests.

“We just do this for fun,” said his wife, Lisa Caviness. “He cooks for a lot of people, William does, and he's a Shriner, so we donate our services too.”

Cook-off contestants served everything from brisket, chicken, and ribs to pork butt at Saturday's event.

Fort Gibson resident Stacey Dobbs enjoyed a chicken leg and said it was delicious.

“They give you so much food,” she said. “Oh it's so good, it's all so good.”

At PigDawg BBQ, a competitive barbecue team, Don Simpson and Mike Hays of Tulsa whipped up chicken wings, ribs and brisket.

Their sign proclaimed, “Half pig, half dog...100% BBQ.”

Asked if the sign meant the meat or the people, Hays said, “yes.”



Winners



• Grand champion — Little Pigtown, Owasso.

• Reserve grand champion — Buffalo BBQ, Sperry.

• People’s choice, church category — Fort Gibson Church of Christ.

• People’s choice, overall — Fort Gibson State Bank.

Simpson said, “All of the above,” and laughingly continued cooking.