My pipe smoking victory!

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jader

jader

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A few weeks ago I went to my local shop and found out that there is a local "pipe guild" that meets up every other month or so. You can attend the first meeting for free, then after that you have to become a member. Long story short, I decided to go to the meeting.

Well, wouldn't you know they were having a pipe smoking contest sanctioned by the United Pipe Clubs of America. To be honest, I figured I was going to be the first one out of the contest. I was in a room of veteran smokers with as many years under their pipe smoking belt as I have days.

If you have never been to one of these contests they are pretty cool. Basically, all entrants are given a pipe (a briar in this case), tobacco (3gs), 2 matches, 2 pipe cleaners and a dowel tamp. You are given 1 minute to look over the pipe and clean it out, then 5 minutes to load the bowl. Once the contest starts, you have to use your two matches right away, and then the only means of bowl maintenance you are allowed is with the wooden tamp.

There were 13 or 14 guys and once we started, boy was I happy to last two minutes, then 10. Eventually the first person went out (they won a bag of matches :) ). Finally it came down 4 guys, with the top 3 getting nice prices, either a pipe, a very nice acrylic tamp, or a pipe bag (winner gets choice). Next thing you know, I am one of the last 3 to smoke, and have about 20% of my bowl left. At this point, I figured I gave it a good run and was pretty happy. Well wouldn't you know it, I ended up winning. My time was 42minutes and some odd seconds.

The first place price was a rusticated 2007 P&T/Savinelli pipe of the year and a trophy. From what I understand these competitions are a big deal across the pond, with actual team and country competitions. For me it was some good fun and a nice way a trophy and a couple of pipes.

Here are some pics, but I did forget to take a picture of the pipe that I smoked during the contest.

Fuzzy image of the trophy and pipe.
IMAG0125.jpg


Better image of the pipe and trophy:
IMAG0129.jpg


Close up of the pipe markings:
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Final picture of the winner :)
IMAG0131.jpg
 
Great story, and what a cool a prize! Nice of those guys to give the trophy and a Savinelli. I've read that Claudio Cavicchi is the world record holder, smoking for 3 hours!
 
Honestly, I never knew the contest existed until yesterday. But yeah, the guys at the meeting were saying that the world champ went like 3 hours...thats just crazy.
 
That's pretty awesome! They used to have one at our county fair years ago, but I never got in to it. I wish I would have. What a great trophy and prize! Your mantle will look good now!
 
Too cool! :cheers: Of course, now everybody in the club hates you for being the "new guy" that won "their" contest! :lol!: When you go back, don't leave your favorite pipe unattended, or you might find someone has given you a new cake of rubber cement. :affraid:

Seriously, very cool and I'm sure you've gained a lot of respect from your new friends.

Natch
 
Hey congrats! I´ve never been in a pipe smoking contest, only read about them. Sounds like you´re a natural!

:cheers: :cheers: :cheers:
 
Thanks guys, it was a good time and definitely a learning experience. I am pretty sure I will be joining the club.

Doc, I dont think there is any advancement. I took a quick look and I think the nationals are open to anyone that goes to the Chicago show. To be honest, I was not being a "slow" smoker, instead i was just able to keep it lit to the bottom of the bowl. I know some of the guys that dropped out before me had more tobacco left at the point than I did. If you were to think of it as the tortoise and the hare, I was the hare. My goal was to keep it lit, not smoke it slow :). There is no possible way I could keep the bowl lit for 2+ hours with only 3g's of baccy. However it looks like the winner of the nationals is sent to the international competition. Maybe its something I can practice on :)
 
Excellent!!! You did a great job and it was your first contest! Fantastic!

 
That's really cool,,,what tobacco did they supply you with to compete?
 
The local sponsoring store provided us with a blend of 2 burly blends. Unfortunately, the combo of me being a newb and smoking this stuff pretty hot to keep it lit makes it hard for me to give an adequate review of the tobacco itself.
 
After smoking a pipe regularly for only about a year, I also entered one of these, it was at Churchill's in Topeka Kansas. I was pretty intemidated by some of the other entrants as I was only 22 and most of the others had been smoking for years with a few winning contestes. I smoke a new from ebay $15 velani canadian about a group 4 and had only smoked it a few times. I thought the pipes as way to large after looking at the meager alotment of tobacco we were given(3.3g). I came in 1st just over 42 minutes also, besting a 50 yr old who had won 3 others across the US, and he was smoking a $500 Dunhill DR. I won a full bent Armellini Straight Grain.
 
Now in order to move on you must practice, practice, practice.

Practice at home.

Practice at work.

Practice out walking.

Practice at the coffee shop.

I dunno, sounds like you gotta lot of practicing to do!

:king:
 
Hey - that's pretty cool! I've been looking for a group of local guys to hang out with and smoke a pipe ocassionally, but all I have really found so far are cigar events. I still don't have that much time, since a little boy keeps his daddy busy all the time - :) - but I'd love an opportunity to learn from other pipe smokers by seeing how they do their thing in person.

I'm still having a really hard time with the pipe, although I've gotten better. I've noticed that the latakia blends seem to do he best for me, no matter what pipe I use.

I'd love to see one of those contests in person.

Martin
 
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