Gremlin Grill

Our friends at Jay Robinson Racing expected over 60 guests and crew at IRP Saturday. I had brisket – I don’t remember when I cooked it, but it was with the old recipe, not Al’s fancy pants recipe. That one’s too labor-intensive for anyone but a pain-in-the-ass, my-poo-don’t-stink BBQ judge. And the old brisket recipe ain’t bad, if you believe John Madden.

So the briskets for the race team were damn good. Ditto on the ribs. I smoked 15 racks in two batches during the week before the race. Because smoking meat on a work night is just a hoot. I should have cooked it sooner, but it’s been a weird summer, so get off my back.

Breakfast of...

Plus, there are some perks to cooking overnight. For starters, peeing off of the deck at 3 am is always fun, because you don’t have to worry about neighbors the way you do when you pee off of the porch at noon. I also got to talk to some spiders. That was interesting. And I never quite fell asleep those nights, but rather was just asleep enough to dream about stuff like the ribs burning and the deck burning or the fire going out so the ribs don’t cook and 22 NASCAR crewmembers get sick and me burning for it.

Anyway, Kent and I pulled out of KC at about 7 am Friday. We’d have left earlier, but I slept-in until 5:30. Yeah, I know, I’m lazy. I was also slowed when it started pouring rain just as I began loading the car. Yeah, I know, I’m wimpy.

We started late, but luck was with us, as it stopped raining by the time we reached Illinois. So we only had about three and a half freakin’ hours of non-stop rain on I-70. Great times. The corn looked good, though. In case you’s wondering. Corn looked good.

Stopped in Kingdom City, MO for gas and McDonald’s breakfast, because we always do. When you find a comfortable exit, use it. Don’t stray. Stay with what you know. Ulysses stopped at the same Sonic every time he passed it during all those years wandering the Mediterranean, because they never once left a thing of tots out of his order. Look it up.

Where'd ya say I wandered?

We got to Indy at about 4, or maybe it was 3 or 5 or 8 or next Tuesday or sometime during the Renaissance. I can never tell what time it is in that state. After a well-fried tenderloin and a well-poured beer or two at the Knights of Columbus Brickyard Festival, the night ended without incident. That’s my story, I’m sticking to it.

Wait, one question: why is it OK to gamble at the K of C? Is it OK to lose money gambling if the church gets your losses? If so, that must mean it’s OK to win money if it’s from the church. I don’t get that. I like the sound of taking money from the church, but I don’t get it. And I could insert all kinds of jokes here about that money being needed for legal defense funds, but I’ll end here and cover Saturday’s events later.