Three Texas team members on their way to a world-famous barbecue contest in Kansas stopped off to treat the Watco Overland Park team to a taste test.

Filimon Gonzalez, Andrew Frazier, and Tristan Ivy are the Red Zone Cookers. They got together as a barbecue team about four years ago when Gonzalez, assistant general manager at Freeport Industrial Rail Services, put the word out. Frazier, a senior trainmaster at Freeport, and Ivy, a safety manager who formerly worked at Freeport, made the trip with Gonzalez to serve lunch to the Overland Park office on October 2.

These pitmasters do eight or nine competitions a year, mostly in Brazoria County, located directly south of Houston. This was their first time competing at Kansas City’s World Series of Barbecue®. That contest is the signature event of the American Royal, a 127-year-old celebration of agriculture, livestock, rodeo, and — since 1980 — barbecue. Contestants travel from as far away as Australia, Germany, and Costa Rica.

While the Watco competitors didn’t travel that far, their 800-mile drive from south Texas to northeast Kansas was still a feat. The men and their wives left well before dawn Thursday, October 1. Gonzalez’s truck pulled a 12-foot utility trailer filled with a barbecue pit, a sink, a prep table, a toolbox for seasonings, insulated food carriers containing brisket, ribs, and sides, and a 13×26 pop-up tent. They arrived late that afternoon at their Overland Park hotel. The men then drove to the Overland Park office to set up in the parking lot, where they trimmed, seasoned, and smoked the brisket overnight, followed by cooking ribs and pork. Everything was complete in time for a Friday lunch accompanied by beans, rice, and mac ‘n’ cheese. About 70 team members from Overland Park enjoyed the cookout.

Overland Park is a suburb of Kansas City, which has been called the barbecue capital of the world. So there’s always the chance that local team members at the luncheon, like Devon Lohrenz and Brady Bielman, might favor the Kansas City style that’s heavy on sweet sauces versus Texas style, where the rub takes center stage. But both attested to the Texans’ skill at the pit.

Lohrenz, People Services recruiter, said the flavorful brisket was her favorite that day. “I was speechless,” she said. “It melted in your mouth. I feel like it was better than most of the popular K.C. barbecue places.” GIS Analyst Bielman said he tried everything and “thought it was fantastic.” He said the pork was his favorite but that the ribs “came right off the bone, and the brisket was tender and delicious.”

He called the Red Zone Cookers “competition worthy,” and it turns out he was right. Two days later in the big contest, out of 360 teams, they achieved a high ranking with Bielman’s favorite. Their money muscle, the cut from the side of a pork shoulder known for its superior texture and flavor, placed 21st. The team placed 120th overall, having entered the pork along with brisket, ribs, and chicken.