All-Macon County Day Bar-B-Q Cook Off winner Sam Burton, right, congratulates his closest opponent in the contest, John Alexander Jr. When contest judges tallied contest results, Burton nosed Alexander's barbecue by only one point. advertisement

It was like an age-old tale, only the end didn’t follow the archetype. The underdog stood tall in the giant’s shadow and cast an accurate stone, but it wasn’t accurate enough.

Of 10 contenders to enter the first All-Macon County Day Bar-B-Q Cook Off, the top two were separated by only one point when all the votes were tallied – and they were tallied three times to be sure.

In the end, the team of Sam Burton of Tuskegee and Tony Washington of Auburn secured the title of best barbecue, but on close on their heels was the solo act – Tuskegee’s John Alexander Jr.

Decked out in camouflage and cooking in an old water heater, second-place Alexander spent Saturday morning (October 17) in the corner where the depot in downtown Tuskegee meets the back of the old Goodyear building. He was protected from the wind but overshadowed by the 20-square-foot grilling surface immediately to the north of him.

“We can easily get 300 burgers at a time on here,” said Burton, whose partner’s company, T.W. Enterprises, specializes in building and renting commercial cooking trailers.

Contest winners Burton and Washington cooked on a $12,500 portable kitchen the size of a truck. It boasted a four-by-five-foot grilling surface heated by their choice of wood, gas or charcoal, a boiler for shrimp, two commercial fryers, wood storage space and overhead lighting. To get an idea on the size of this thing, visit the Portable Kitchens section of Washington’s Web site, www.mygrillonwheels.com.

Burton and Washington’s grill had a staff to man it and the cooks served burgers to what appeared to be most of the crowd attending All-Macon County Day – especially after the pair was announced contest winners. The line backed out about 30 feet at that point.

All day, right next to the crowd clamoring for Burton’s food, was Alexander’s smoking water heater and the slow-cooked meat that almost won him the title.

“I guess I’ve been doing this for about 25 years,” Alexander said. “I started back when I was in the military.”

For winning the contest, Burton and Washington were awarded a new gas grill from Lowe’s – which they appeared to have no need for – and will have a plaque declaring them winners placed in the Macon County Courthouse. For second place, Alexander received a $100 gift certificate to Calhoun Foods

Third place winners Grace Charity and Edwin Marcus of Tuskegee weren’t far behind in points according to event coordinator Tracy Moon. The pair said before results were announced they planned to move on to Memphis and compete on Beale Street after winning in Tuskegee.

Instead, though their ribs were brilliantly tender and juicy, they left with a third place prize package that included a $75 gift certificate to Calhoun Foods.

The All-Macon County Day Bar-B-Q Cook Off was judged by Macon County Circuit Clerk David Love, Shirley Curry and Capt. Allen E. Mason of the VA Fire Department who scored contestants ribs and chicken in areas of taste, texture and presentation.