TC4 - Been there, done that

“I made it back. Check out my pictures. I'll let everyone else fill in the details.”

“Just got home. Becky and I had a great time this past weekend. We got to talk with good friends, go geocaching, and do some hiking.

Thanks to everyone who helped set this event up. It's a lot of fun and worth seeing all the serious looks on the faces of the chefs. haha Cumberland Gap is a VERY nice area and I'll definitely come back to enjoy it more in the future.

The leaves were turning beautiful colors and the trails were great. I also want to visit again and bring my bike along next time. Becky and I got to spend some good quality time together and she had such a good time that she was WIRED all the way home.

Thanks Everyone!”

“Wait, that's not Dub's girlfriend. Wait, Dub has a girlfriend?!?!?!”

“Great pics, eugene! You sure get around.


Who all from TT showed for this thing?”

“We just rolled in the door and man are we sore. Hot showers and leftover hamburger helper seems to be the order of the day for us! Let's see, competitors were Prosecuter, Dub, Opie, Miss Opie, KabinKamper and myself. Then, in the peanut gallery and judges booth there was MDS hiker and Becky, SuperTroll, Mrs Prosecuter, Divinity, Matt, Sherry (Dub's friend), Tilt, Smokeygirl and her dad and brother, CGHiker and Steve, and TMac. Then we also had some non-TTer's. A couple of Knoxvillians (Jim and Josh) who saw it in the events section of their local paper, Mother Goose - a fascinating lady who has hiked the AT 5 times and was the first woman to do a yo-yo (Ga-Mn-Ga), Mrs. Enertia, A local couple Nick and his wife (sorry, I can't remember her name). I think that was everyone. I'm sure I missed someone, but I know all that were there had a blast!”

“I'm HOME!!!!....650 miles on my car......good thing I had a rental...cause my car is not working :0

I had a GREAT time.......GREAT folks..wonderful views....and the food was AWESOME!!!!!!”

“I TOLD YOU I WAS INNOCENT!!!!!!!!!”

“oh...BY THE WAY....I LOVE my Prolite 4...wooooohooooooo”

“Driving into Cumberland Gap, each road had a huge banner welcoming the participants of "Titanium Chef". How is that for a backpackers welcome. The total attendance at the Martin's Fork campsite was 28 people. Actually, more adults showed up at TC4 than last year, but the number of children present was down due to the absense of Chili's kids, and Gemini's kids. A forecasted rain fell Saturday morning, scarying away some potential backpackers. Everyone who entered got a neat "Titanium Chef" Tee-shirt, and the festivites started with a catered in BBQ Friday night in the Cumberland Gap Town Park.

Saturday, the contested hiked the 7+ miles in to the campsite via Civic Park, while some spectators took a shortcut. An evil TT's kidnapped "Eugene", Matt's Troll doll. Matt first questioned Divinity if she knew where Eugene was, and she responded that, "She was seated right here when he was taken and she did not do it". Of course I had to point out that her answer indicated she knew when Matt's Troll Doll was taken by her answer, and if she knew when, she must know who did it. Since no one was "giving up" the name of the kidnapper, Matt searched around until he found his Troll Doll secretly confined against his will in a hammock tent. Matt was not amused. Some of the contestants got in late, so the cooking and judging occurred between 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m.

The celebrity judges of the contest included:

Bonita, age 57, trail named Mother Goose who was the first woman to do a yo-yo on the A.T., going back and forth the entire distance in one year.

Bethany, age in her early 40's (celebrated her birthday this morning on the trail), the head of research and development of new foods, and co-owner of Inertia Foods.

Matt, our illustrious Webmaster.

Nick, backpacker and mountain bike racing champion.

Kristin, local celebrity.

Nick, local celebrity.


The judges did much questioning about the weight of the ingredients, how long it took to prepare and cook, as well as tasting each dish. Each contestant made extras, so spectators were able to judge for themselves the taste of most dishes. The Judging resulted in the following awards and prizes:

1st Place overall: Crab Cakes; Prosecutor; Week end at the Old Mill Bed and Breakfast, Cat's Meow Sleeping bag ($159 value), Inertia Foods Starter Kit.

2nd Place Overall: Spicy Potato Chowder; Dubs; Scuba lessons, cook set & a cookbook

3rd Place overall: Chili Pie; KambinKamper; Kelty bag, & candle latern.

Best "Georgia to Maine ala A.T. dish: Chicken Pot Pie; Miss Opie; jet boil stove, Inertia Food

Best Spicy dish: Thai Curried Chicken; Prosecutor; cookbook, 3 spice kit, coffee press.

Best Trail Elite (ist night or winter camping recipes); Currahee; Sushi; Cookbook and cookset.

Best Breakfast: Tilt (done in town Saturday morning, so he will have to provide the details)

Backpacking Princess and I wrote down these recipes and will start posting them tomorrow.

After discussing TC5, we all ajorned to the campfire, imbibing in liquid refreshments, and enjoyed much comradery. Even the political discussions about the upcoming elections were friendly and jovial (I stirred the pot a little with a few quips, but no one was biting). After more imbibing, I closed my eyes for a brief moment and woke up to the smell of burning rubber and two hot feet. I cooled off the bottom of my boots and stumbled off to bed around 10:00 p.m., leaving the partying going full blast.

After hiking out Sunday, many of the participants ate a super meal at Webb's in Cumberland Gap where we grabbed the last four tables at the popular restaurant. For me, it was a 500 mile drive home. A great and jovial time was had by all, and thank you SmokyGirl, TownDawg, Barb, Inertia Foods, the Celebrity Judges, and all the local citizens for making this event possible.”

“Just rolled in...decided to go to my parents house in WV. I can't upload my pictures until tomorrow so keep an eye out for them Tuesday. Had a blast! It was great to see old faces and meet new ones. I'm already thinking of dishes for next year.”

“Morning everyone.......a shower and a wonderful night in my very own bed....yummmmy.....back to the real world today....and reality....

Eugene is a gnome......LOL.......someday I am going to go to jail cause I look guilty......I need to learn the phrase "I want an attorney"

Matt even searched my tent first...sheesh...next time he better have a TT warrant.....

Off to work I go.....

I can't wait to come home and read TT!!!!!”

“Sounds like a great time. One day I'll make it to a TC. It'll probably be 24 or 27. ;)”

“Eugene and I were sitting across from one another, and the subject of getting old came up....I mentioned that I was getting sore and tired, and he agreed that he was indeed also getting rather tired, and could he use my hammock for a short nap? Being a kind, genteel soul, I OF COURSE agreed, and wandered off to converse with other TT'ers at Martin's Fork, shortly there after I forgot about it. EUGENE, it would seem, took the permission literally, and wandered over to nap in the hammock....(Hey, even an old gnome knows comfort when he sees it!) when he saw that Feathered Friends bag in that comfy Hammock why he just laid back and floated off to sleep.....I SWEAR!

THAT'S MY STORY AND I'M STICKING TO IT!
last edited: 10/18/04 10:01:03 AM”

“SUSHI by Currahee
The following recipe won Best Gourmet Meal in the First Night Recipe Category at the 2004 Titanium Chef competition. It looks great, and tastes even better than it looks. Rice cooked for sushi should be slightly harder in texture than for other dishes, and should be flavored. Do not use instant rice, converted rice, long grained rice or brown rice, but use short-grained (Sushi) rice, like Cal-Rose.


At Home:
Cook one cup of Sushi Rice in water according to package directions. Place the cooked rice along the insides of a large bowl. Add one tablespoon sugar and a dash of salt to one ounce of rice wine vinegar, and sprinkle the vinegar/sugar/salt solution around the cooked rice while tossing with a large wooden spoon. Place the cooked rice in a ziplock bag. The rice should not be refrigerated, but must be eaten the same day it is prepared.

Also bring:
Crab Sticks in a package, transported to the trail cold.
Cucumber
Avocado
Dry wasabi
Cream cheese, transported cold
Lox/smoked salmon, transported cold
Nori (green Japanese seaweed sheets)
One ounce rice wine vinegar
Sesame Seeds
Pickled ginger
Sushi rolling bamboo
Sheet of waxed paper the size of the sushi rolling bamboo

On the Trail:
For the Cucumber Roll, Briefly, toast the smooth, shiny side of the nori over an open flame to awaken its flavor. Rehydrate the wasabi. Lay a sheet of waxed paper on the Sushi rolling bamboo, and then lay a sheet of nori on top of the sheet of waxed paper, leaving a slight edge of waxed paper all around. Then, place about a cup of rice evenly on top of the nori, less than a 1/4 inch thick. Do not pack the rice. Next, lay down the crab meat lengthwise near, but not on, the left edge. Next, place slices of avocados of equal volume to the crab, on top of the crab. Next, place a long slice of cucumber of equal volume to the crab, lengthwise along the crab. Slowly fold the rolling bamboo mat over, tucking the end of the bamboo to start a roll, lifting the wax paper covered rolling bamboo as you go. Spread a thin layer of white vinegar along the right edge of the rice to seal it, and finish the rolling with medium pressure. Remove the contents of the bamboo rolling mat. With a knife dipped in the white vinegar with each cut, cut into 6 or 8 even pieces. Turn the pieces on end and arrange on platter. Serve sprinkled with sesame seeds and serve with the reconstituted wasabi, pickled ginger, and soy sauce on the side.

For the Philadelphia Roll, proceed as above, but assemble with salmon for the crab, and the cream cheese for the avocado/cucumber.”

“I am waiting for that Thai Curried Chicken recipe! Ya know I work for a Thai Food online company......”

“THAI CURRIED CHICKEN

The following recipe won Best Spicy Dish in the 2004 Titanium Chef Backpacking Cooking Contest. Lightweight, simple, with ingredients that will keep on the trail, this dish can be made as hot as you want it.

At Home:

Package in a pint freezer ziplock bag:
¼ cup dehydrated carrots
¼ cup dehydrated chopped onions
¼ cup dehydrated corn
3 tablespoons dehydrated green peppers
3 tablespoons dehydrated sweet red peppers
½ cup rice

Package in a second ziplock snack sized bag:
1 60 gram package of Chao Brand Coconut Cream Powder
1 teaspoon curry powder for mild, 1 tablespoon for hot.
¼ teaspoon dried vinegar
1 teaspoon chicken bullion powder
1.2 teaspoon salt

Also bring:
1 seven ounce pouch package of Tyson’s Chicken
1 ounce olive oil

On the Trail:

Rehydrate contents of pint ziplock bag of vegetables in 4 cups water in a one liter pot and wait one hour. Boil rice, rehydrated vegetables and olive oil for 15 minutes. Add second ziplock bag of spices and chicken during the last two minutes.”

“It's not nice to make the webmaster POed. ;-)”

“If you can't find the coconut cream powder locally you can order it from my job ;-)
http://importfood.com/spct5601.html”

“I forgot to thank Prosecutor and Backpacking Princess for the lovely cookbook. Opie, thanks again for your help!

I had a great time, and got some good notes from all your suggestions!

Tmack was there too!!”

“Tilt was the winner by default for the Breakfast Cookoff with his cheese grits and pepperoni. The pepperoni made the grits have a great flavor!. He won a weekend at the Cgap Ramada Inn, a cookbook, and an Enertia wrap. He did not have to hike since no one else entered the Breakfast Cookoff. NExt year, the Breakfast Cookoff will not have a hike requirement, will be held in town, and entrants will have plenty of time to ride the shuttle up to see TC5 of which Tilt did this year!”

“I tried to post my thoughts this morning, but the T-1 line crashed (again). Here's what I couldn't post:


I didn’t make it home until 2:15 this morning, but it was well worth it.

At the risk of sounding like I’m making some kind of acceptance speech, I want to give thanks where it’s due. I’m sure I’m forgetting some things , but thanks to:

Divinity & SuperTroll for showing this Yankee some Southern hospitality. The ideas, upgrades and company you offered means a lot to me.

Smokygirl & CG Hiker for your hard work putting this event together.

The cooks for the free samples, tips and recipes.

Dub for the Sunday afternoon meal and even the unexpected trip back into Virginia.

Cherie (sp?) for keeping me company on the Ridge Trail hike out and for the meal for the road. I love that bread.

The judges and sponsors for giving our cooks a reason to compete.

And, finally to the people of Cumberland Gap for giving us a place to gather.”

“Prizes were fantastic by the way. Angie won a set of AT map/bandanas from AntiGravity Gear, a zero degree bag from Kelty, and an REI candle lantern set. I won a GSI 5 piece hard adonized cookset and a lipsmackin' backpackin cookbook which I'm lookin forward to trying out soon.”

“I'll post more later. I'm at work now. I just wanted to say that I had a GREAT time! It was good seeing everyone.”

“Yeah, Divinity won a set of AT map/bandanas as a door prize on Friday night. I thought they were waaayyy cool!”

“Did lizs and gojo ever show?”

“Stomper - if they did, they had their own cook-off, as we didn't see them. :)”

“I'm having some kind of allergic reaction. I clawed at my legs the entire way home yesterday driving OPIE crazy and then when I got home my ankle started swelling. It was still swollen and red this morning so I went to the doctor. I'm also running a slight fever. The doctor said it's not a spider bite but it's something I'm allergic to.. duh! So she's treating me for the worse posibility-lyme disease. It just bugs me because the swelling isn't going down and it feels really tight. It's scary not knowing what caused it to happen.”

“Dang, Miss Opie!
Hope you get better soon!”

“I'm jealous-- Sushi on the trail! Yummy! ;-) and the Thai curry chicken sounds good, too! Thinkbubelz & I will have to try out your recipes!

Maybe we can get some time off next year to go down for the TC5!”

“Miss Opie: Please don't discount the possibility of an infection in your blood stream or lymph system. I managed to get a virus into my lymph system several years ago, that ran my white blood count WAY up, and nearly cost me my life.

I've still got scars on the back of my leg where the infection killed my flesh.”

“Pictures are downloading to the computer now...hopefully I'll have them online in a few hours.”

“Hey Dub, that cute girl that was with you is really your cousin, isn't she? ;-)”

“y'all are going to have to wait on my trip report......I had to put a new battery in my car...my soon to be son in law did it and I put new wiper blades on his truck....fair exchange.....I bought them AND put them on.....

so far this month I have travelled about 1400 miles and been in 7 states.....woooo hoooooo!!!!”

“Sorry SS, not my cousin...but not my g/f either. Have at 'er!”

“By the way...has ANYONE heard anything from Gojo and Liz?????”

“I enjoyed meeting everyone on Friday night and hanging out over a few beverages and then again seeing everyone on Sunday and getting some stories. Next year I will be camping with you all. What a wonderful group of people. I am so glad that everyone enjoyed themselves here in 'The Gap."”

“kpeb...it was good to meet you to...I had a GREAT time this weekend & love the Gap.....we had so much fun.......got kicked out of a restraunt.....almost got arrested......got accused of gnomenapping......had my tent searched.....I am a rebel for sure......LMAO......”

“New Battery...tole ya so!...”

“LOL......and it cranked on the first try......glad I had a rental this weekend!!!”

“We saw a lot of yellow jackets on the hike out. You didn't get stung, did you? I know Currahee is pretty allergic to them. Did you find a tick? (not that that means anything).

KabinKamper”

“Blood disease seems to be pretty coming when hiking... I hope it's not that, Mrs. Opie!!”

“Missed you! Will have to update you with the discussion that was held afterwards - call me when you get a chance. The mountain bike/run relay race in town was really cool too!”

“Blood disease? Ok you guys are really scaring me now! It's been almost 24 hours and the swelling isn't going down any.

KabinKamper- I saw alot of yellow jackets too but I don't think I got stung. I had my boots and socks on and the swelling is going on around my ankle. I didn't notice anything until we were eating at Hardees and that is when I started itching. The doctor told me to keep my foot elevated but when I do that I start losing feeling in it.”

“The gold, silver, and bronze medals for the 5k run and the mountainbike/run relay race were big fat metal images of the logo you designed. Several of the bikers and runners exclaimed how cool the medals looked - way better than other races. Thanks again for your help! The father and son that came after seeing an ad and checked out your websites. They were impressed and lots of people had good comments to say about the t-shirts (we will send you one) with the logos and all.”

“The LNT Talk that one of the rangers gave was really good. My Pa and Bro pulled up a hay bale to check it out, and Pa said it was really informative. Most of the people that were sitting around the ranger were just folks that were walking around the festival with their families checking out the arts and crafts so LNT word was spread.”

“was there. I know some of you TC4ers didn't get to see the town Saturday morning, but the CTC set up a great booth and folks were crowding around checking out the trail work photos and maps. The old-fasioned apple butter making was really cool, and so was the old timey spinning and weaving. Earth Travers set up a small table. It's too bad the rock-climbing wall in town couldn't be set up because of the wind. The same couple set up the rock wall at Trail Days in Damascus and they promised to come back next year.”

“I think you get blood disease mostly from spider bites and stuff so you probably don't have it - at least I would hope not!”

“couldn't ride up on the shuttle because there was no room so KPEB let me keep in her fenced in yard. *Usually* he is well-behaved, but he freaked out and chewed a hole through her wooden fence and was a CGap Towndog for one day. Bad doggie!! Poor KPEB had a hell of a time trying to get him situated for the night when she came home. Then to add to Bubba's trauma, I gave him a bath when I got home cause he stunk bad. When I went to bed, he was missing. I didn't find him until this morning. He was locked in my car the whole night! He must have hopped in when I wasn't looking and after getting my gear out and in the house, I shut the back door! Good grief!”

“Your email isn't listed under your name page?”

“Dub - Sorry for you. I thought she WAS your gf.”