Memphis International BBQ contest/festival May 17, 2006

It's the Super Bowl of Swine. The College of Pig Knowledge. The Granddaddy of Grills. The Largest Pork Barbecue Cooking Contest on the Planet.

The sweetest smelling cloud hovers over Memphis Hickory, pork, tomato, mustard, vinegar, more pork ... Three stuffed days of smoked heaven where contestants eat, sleep, and live pig. All oink wildly, trying to win more than $61,050 in prizes.

Grillmasters and goodtimers will descend on Tom Lee Park in downtown Memphis for serious competition that's seriously fun. Even the grills dress up for this party like fire trucks, airplanes, piggy banks, pot bellied stoves; you name it, it's probably here.

More than 90,000 pork lovers from around the globe Australia, Russia, Morocco, Ivory Coast, Estonia, Canada, France, Japan, New Zealand, Thailand and the United Kingdom gather together to testify about their special sauces, rubs, ribs, and whatnot in Pig-dom.

And, there's the Main Stage, the site of world-class musical entertainment and the Ms. Piggie competition (grown men in snouts and tutus). You'll see funny faces, famous faces, and might end up having your face on one of these special reports on NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, Southern Living Network, PBS, A&E, TBS, Gourmet Magazine, Food & Wine, Martha Stewart Living TV, or one of many other media reports.