The line stretched for hundreds of feet. Each of them ready, willing, hungry. The people waited politely for the judging to occur, but they were there for the main event; namely, the portion of the competition that allowed them to actually eat the succulent BBQ that had been delicately prepared all morning (and, for some, all week).

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Finally, the time came. The food came out, the servers prepared their stations. And the line started to form.

BBQ enthusiasts from all over Wyoming and beyond gathered at the Central Wyoming Fairgrounds on Saturday for the 2022 Smoke & Soul Fest.

29 different teams were competing to prove themselves as the barometer of BBQ, and all funds raised directly benefitted The Brain Injury Advocates of Wyoming.

The pre-competition reception the night before raised approximately $11,500 for the organization that, according to their website exists "to educate the community about the impact of brain injury so they can embrace prevention strategies."

It's an important organization and it's one the community came out in droves to support.

The smoke portion of the event was a Kansas City BBQ Society-sanctioned competition, and consisted of multiple categories, including a kids competition, a backyard BBQ competition for amateur cookers and the granddaddy of them all, the KCBS Competition.

It was Bushmaster BBQ who won the KCBS Competition, taking home the 'W' for the second year in a row.

There was also a People's Choice competition, which went to hometown group Wyo Smokeshow.

But the real winners of the afternoon were the attendees, all of whom stood in line for literal hours to get just a sampling of the sweet meats offered by these BBQ behemoths.

Photos absolutely can't do this event justice, you had to be there to see/smell/taste yourself, but we have some photos anyway, which can be seen below:

We Want the Smoke: Photos from the 2022 Smoke & Soul Fest

BBQ enthusiasts from all over gathered at the Central Wyoming Fairgrounds on Saturday for the 2022 Smoke & Soul Fest. 

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