Gnarly Head Rippin' Ribs Cook-Off, 2010

In March I was invited to Lake Tahoe to a rib cook-off.  Gnarly Head Wines sponsored the cook-off and flew me and Richard to Lake Tahoe.  The minute I stepped off of the plane in Reno, I began retaining water at a rate that astonished even me.  Never, NEVER have I been so bloated.  My face looked like a basketball. 

Apparently there is this horrible thing called altitude sickness, and I contracted it.  One of the symptoms is bloating, among others.  I felt awful the whole trip.

Anyway, we were wined and dined, and we skied (it didn't go well for me but I don't want to talk about it), and we ate, and we had a grand old time. The resort was absolutely beautiful.

There was lots and lots of snow.

This was the view from our breakfast table every day.  We were always the first ones in the restaurant when it opened each morning because we wanted to make sure we got our share of the smoked salmon before it ran out.  We're greedy when it comes to delicacies we don't usually experience in Buckatunna. 

 

And this was my view at breakfast every morning.  "Hi lover, and roll tide!  Are you going to finish your salmon?"

I bet my daughter is going to cringe when she sees that I called him lover. 

This is the view from our hotel lobby.  Heaven.  Pure heaven.

This is me before I skied.  I'd like to entitle this picture "Lorie's last happy face of ski day."

We got on a gondola and went up to the top of Hell Mountain Base Camp.  They call it Base Camp for some reason even though it's at the top of the mountain.  

My hubby hired a private ski instructor to teach me how not to kill myself, since I've never skied.  He taught me a lot, but in the end, the mountain won.  

I was defeated.  

And bloated.  Very bloated.

 


































I really liked hanging out in the alpine village, however.  It was very relaxing, unlike skiing.

Here I am prepping my ingredients in one of the restaurants at the resort on the day of the cook-off.

 



















































The folks at Gnarly Head really paid attention to all the details. 

 

















I can't tell you how nice my two competitors, Elise and Lisa, were.  They made the cook-off fun. 

 

And I'm happy to report that my grilling went well.

 
















So well, in fact, that I actually won the grand prize.  What a shocker!  I would have had just as much fun even if I hadn't have won, though.

Except for the bloating part.  That was difficult to endure.