Not an expert by no means but here is some things I might look for. The last one mostly requires the builds to be fired up. Not sure if you all do that or not.
Quality of Build (straight cuts, good welds, type and thickness of material, sturdyness)
Appearance (design, innovation, creativity, fit and finish)
Functionality (How much can it hold, how long to get to temp, ability to hold temp, how much fuel during a cook)
Good looking pit is OK as first impressions generally are important.
Functionality, that is ease of using the thing. Ergonomics etc.
Economy, that is how well it performs for the wood/charcoal/pellets etc it consumes.
And by no means least, the Q that emerges from the pit. No sense in having a flash looking pit if it struggles to cook good Q.
Learning generally boils down to "Repetition or the avoidance of pain", some people learn by doing, some by watching and some just have to pee on the electric fence.
Whether you think that you can, or that you can't, you are usually right. Henry Ford
Does it actually work? We see a lot of great ideas on this site but, unfortunately, not all of them relate to functionality. Only way to test this is by use.
I’d give everyone a rack of ribs, an identical rub, a target temp and 6 hours to see who can produce the best ribs. You could check temps every 15 mins and award extra points on temp accuracy.
Great ideas so far. The pit will be in use at time of judging. It's my cookoff clubs annual event. Personally I have a scrap book of my builds. I look for welds how well it seals temperature variations etc.. I personally have trouble with pits that team had very little participation in the build. Anyone in the central (Austin) Texas area what to volunteer to head this up? LOL
sounds like a great contest!, I would also observe the users ability to maintain a thin blue to clear smoker and use an infrared or laser thermometer to judge how well the pit runs
Frank we think alike with the infrared thermometer that's kinda scary. How about let you guys judge through Skype ? Lol
What kind of CEU's do you need? Maybe I can get you some through state reciprocity ha ha.