One of Madison’s most popular annual events returned to Town Park last Saturday for the first time since 2019 after being canceled twice and postponed earlier in October: The Chili Cook-off.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced a cancellation of the event in 2020 and a variant outbreak shut it down again in 2021.
The 2022 version had been scheduled for Oct. 1, but Hurricane Ian looked poised to track directly through central Georgia that weekend, so it was postponed for two weeks.
No sooner had the City of Madison made the decision to put off the event than Ian turned eastward and had only negligible impacts in Lake Country.
But on Oct. 15, the event finally returned.
According to Madison’s Special Events Coordinator Colleen Hall, its return was a rousing success.
Even though the postponement cost the event some of its vendors and cooks, the city still sold more than 1,000 wristbands to those who wanted to sample the various chilis prepared by 22 teams. Although lines were a bit long, they moved quickly, Hall said.
The Rivian EV company even set up a booth at the Chili-Cook-off and brought a couple of electric trucks for locals to peruse.
The weather turned out to be perfect for the Chili Cook-off with sunny skies and temperatures in the upper seventies to low eighties.
OPEN Chili Winners
• First Place— Madison Kiwanis Club (Madison)
• Second Place— Chihuahua Chili (Douglasville)
• Third Place—Backwoods Cooking (Madison)
CASI Chili Winners
• First Place— Faded Love Chili Co. #1 (Birmingham AL)
• Second Place— Fatty Blairs Chili Emporium (Douglasville)
• Third Place— Faded Love Chili Co. #2 (Hoover AL)
People’s Choice Awards
• First Place— Patriot Roofing (Buckhead)
• Second Place—Peak Steel Buildings (Madison)
• ThirdPlace—Dusty Boot Cookshed (Lizella)
Showmanship Award
• Team Hendrix Real Estate (Madison)