If you like good barbecue, perhaps your family would enjoy hitting a barbecue contest on your vacation this year. Here's a site that lists several, along with good recipes:

http://www.bbq-porch.org/qlinks2.htm

     I'm told that "the Jack Daniels" is the top contest, though it's not until October. Read all about it, and get prize-winning recipes, at:

http://www.fiery-foods.com/dave/jackd_bbq.asp

     And then, as I’ve already mentioned, there's food writer Calvin Trillin's belief that "the best restaurants in the world are, of course, in Kansas City. Not all of them. Only the top four or five." He was referring to barbecue restaurants, of course. To visit the site of the KANSAS CITY BARBEQUE SOCIETY, which agrees with Trillin and gives leads to more barbecue competitions, go to:

http://www.kcbs.us/default.php

BARBECUE IN YOUR BACK YARD

     THE SMOKE RING is a barbecue web ring with hundreds of websites on it. The address below is for its barbecue forum, which should give you all the information and inspiration you could possibly want, but, if you feel you need more, just tootle around the ring itself.

http://www.thesmokering.com/forum/index.php

     But perhaps you’d like a good recipe for barbecue? Try THE BBQ GUY, who only has a website devoted to barbecue and barbecue recipes, but a blog about barbecue too.

     Here’s the website:

http://www.thebbqguy.com/

     And here’s the blog:

http://bbqguyblog.blogspot.com/

KEEPING COOL WITH THE RING OF FIRE

     And here’s the RING OF FIRE, in case you want to toast your tastebuds in that fashion. It’s basically American heat, from people who really want to bring the tears to your eyes:

http://www.ringoffire.net/