ShawneeDispatch.com

Shawnee — As the festivities began Friday for the 13th annual Great Grillers Blues & Barbeque State Championship, those who regularly compete in the contest knew there was something missing.

It was the first contest in years in which Al Bohnert of Shawnee and his team, Jacques Strappe & His Supporters, were not competing. Bohnert, 67, had died in June after a battle with stomach cancer, but his team was there in his memory, including his wife, Marilyn Bohnert.

"We all raised shot glasses with slivovitz and made him a toast," Marilyn said, explaining that slivovitz is a Croatian plum brandy their family always used to toast important occasions.

Bohnert's family moved to Shawnee when he was 3, and he lived here all his life, attending St. Joseph's school and then raising his family here. He began going to competitive barbecue events 25 years ago, forming a team with Ed Hartegan, Chuck Brennan, Bob Smith, Rick Cekovsky and anyone else who might want to help out.

Bohnert was the ringleader, Marilyn said.

"He loved bossing his team around, because he was just that kind of guy, and his team members would take it," she said.

Bohnert's jovial attitude and imitation of a French chef was the source of his team's interesting name, Marilyn said.

"He always used to kid around when he cooked, and he would say 'Ah, ma cherie, I am Jacques Strappe,'" she said. "So I would say, 'Well, I guess we're your supporters, then.'"

Since it was his hometown, Shawnee was one of Bohnert's favorite competitions, Marilyn said. He only missed one competition in the last 12 years - last year, when he was diagnosed in August, began his treatments and was not well enough to compete in the September competition.

Tonya Lecuru, deputy director of parks and recreation, said Bohnert was one of the best known competitors in Shawnee's competition, so they decided to honor him with a moment of silence at the cook's meeting Friday. But even with the moment of silence came a bit of irony.

"Al never would've been at the cook's meeting, because he would get busy and forget to come," Lecuru said.

"He would miss all of them," Marilyn agreed, "but he knew the rules and would never break them. He kept his rig clean."

Bohnert competed at several barbecue competitions, including Lenexa's competition and even Memphis in May one year. Marilyn said the team would win prizes every now and then, and the family has a whole case of ribbons at their lake house, but Bohnert was competing for the fun of it, not the money.

"He would always joke when we'd win a check, 'Ah, that takes care of the cost of the ice,'" Marilyn said.

Bohnert was serious about competition and sparing no expense to have a good time; he may have been known best for his barbecue "rig."

"I refer to it as the ninth wonder of the world," Marilyn said.

About 24 feet long, the rig comes with all the grilling extras: an insulated smoker so the team won't get burned from the outside, beer taps and a refrigeration compartment that can hold four kegs, hydraulics and just about every mechanical feature set up for a remote control. Bohnert once cooked 165 slabs of ribs and 100 half-chickens with the rig.

It now sits in a garage Bohnert had specially built for it at his lake house. Marilyn said she may sell it to some lucky griller, but she's also contemplating donating it to be auctioned off to raise funds for cancer research.

Marilyn said she appreciates the tribute the Great Grillers competition gave her husband.

"He's missed an awful lot by an awful lot of people," she said. "It would have been nice to keep him around longer, but the Lord had other plans."

Here are the winners from the 2007 Great Grillers State Barbecue Championships, held Friday and Saturday at Shawnee Town.

Are You Chicken? Wings Competition Awards

1st Place BBQ: Joint Effort

2nd Place BBQ: Limp Brisket

3rd Place BBQ: Jacks or Better

1st Place Open Smokin Joe's Barber Q

2nd Place Open 3 Guys with Wood

3rd Place Open FOMSB

1st Place Hot 3 Guys with Wood

2nd Place Hot Lazy G

3rd Place Hot FOMSB

Grand Champion overall 3 Guys with Wood

Reserve Grand Champion overall Smokin Joe's Barber Q

Barbecue contest

Overall

Grand Champion (1st Place) Custer's Clan BBQ

Reserve Grand Champion (2nd Place) Smokin' Joe's Barber Q

3rd Place FOMSB

4th Place Fat & Lippy

5th Place Four Men and a Pig

6th Place Dawghouse BBQ

7th Place Brew n BBQ

8th Place Sauced Pigs

9th Place Smokin' R's

10th Place Hot Meat Smokers

People's Choice Award

1st Place Dawghouse BBQ

2nd Place Four Men & a Pig

3rd Place Skin 'n Bones

4th Place The Smokin' Jakes

5th Place Good Times BBQ

6th Place KCQ

7th Place Mr. Bibs

8th Place Have Pig Will Travel

9th Place Blowin Smoke BBQ

10th Place A House Divided

Chicken Category

1st Place Sauced Pigs

2nd Place A House Divided

3rd Place T's Smokin Pit

4th Place And Then There Were Three

5th Place Fat & Lippy

6th Place Burning Bush BBQ

7th Place Brew N BBQ

8th Place Custer's Clan BBQ

9th Place Dead Last BBQ

10th Place Dawghouse BBQ

Ribs Category

1st Place FOMSB

2nd Place 3 Fat & Lazy Pigs

3rd Place Burnin' Down the Hog

4th Place Custer's Clan BBQ

5th Place Smokin' Joe's Barber Q

6th Place 4 J's and a What

7th Place Smokin R's

8th Place Smokin Salmons

9th Place Red Mistress BBQ Co.

10th Place Hoggy Style

Pork Category

1st Place Smokin Hogs BBQ

2nd Place Fat & Lippy

3rd Place Custer's Clan BBQ

4th Place Get in My Belly BBQ

5th Place Overland Pork BBQ

6th Place FOMSB

7th Place Second Hand Smokers

8th Place Happy Hawg Heaven

9th Place Slow Speed Barbeque

10th Place T's Smokin Pit

Brisket Category

1st Place Four Men and a Pig

2nd Place Burnt Ends

3rd Place Y Knot Smoke

4th Place Vagabond BBQ

5th Place Tar Baby-Q

6th Place Wild Blue

7th Place Skin n' Bones

8th Place Smokin' Joe's Barber Q

9th Place Pig Newton

10th Place Grilligan's Island

Sausage Category

1st Place The Smokin' Jakes

2nd Place Poke n Choke

3rd Place Slow Speed Barbeque

4th Place Hot Meat Smokers

5th Place Squeal of Approval

6th Place 4 Dawgz Smokin

7th Place Big Chiefs BBQ

8th Place Skin 'n Bones

9th Place Pork-U BBQ

10th Place Happy Hawg Heaven