Of Gremlins, Gravel Monsters, and Great BBQ!

Hi…My Name Is “K” and I have a BBQ problem! As most of you know our trips have a culinary destination, which wouldn’t be so bad if I didn’t have a navigator who is co-dependent and a conspirator in planning. So we usually end up "stuffed to the gills" trying to mount up to head home.

We’ve wanted to go to Lockhart for awhile but you know how it is…it’s one of those “I’ll get there sooner or later" destinations in your backyard. It’s kind of like the New Yorker that has never bothered to see the Statue of Liberty. So we were watching a late night Travel Channel show about BBQ and low and behold they featured Lockhart. “That’s it we’re going!”

Now that name may not mean much to the average person reading this blog but to Texans, Lockhart is the BBQ Capital of Texas by a 2003 resolution of the Texas Legislature.

There are 4 main BBQ places in town and we want to eventually sample each one.

Kreuz Barbeque Founded circa 1900(pronounced Crites, long i)

Blacks Barbeque Blacksbbq.com Founded 1932
Chisholm Trail Barbeque Founded 1978
Smittys Market Founded (unknown, probably the newest)

This is a basically simple trip…Oh wait a minute…this is supposed to be a simple trip. However, the simple things end up a little more complicated or hazardous than we’d like. Not to worry, nothing major happened, just a couple of OOOPS moments. You know, Gremlins the malevolent creatures that tortured WWII aircrews. They hide your gear, make things difficult, get you lost, make your bike breakdown, etc… We had our run in on this trip.

It’s my own fault “S” bought a Ride Bell to ward off these endearing creatures, but I’m so anal I couldn’t find the right spot to strap it on the bike. To break it down, the trip went something like this…

I made a u-turn and put my foot down on loose gravel and slipped but thankfully didn’t tip "S" or the bike over.

On the way home, “S” Lost one of her gloves so we had to backtrack and find it in a construction zone.

At one point, I felt “S” jerk and the bike shook, so I slowed and yelled back what happened. I received a sheepish “nothing” reply so off we went. I later found out “S” learned that even one inch of open visor can let rocks in. Apparently, a pebble pinged off of my helmet into her visor and homed in on her nose like a cruise missile. The sheepish reply was because her eyes were still watering.

Later we stopped for water and a map check. I went in to buy more water and an ice cream sandwich. I looked out of the store window just in time to see “S”, water bottle in hand tipped up into her face shield. Water gushed out of the bottom of her helmet as she involuntarily coughed! It’s one of those moments you wished for a video camera.

I walked out and sat down next to her opening our Ice Cream sandwich, calmly looked at her and stated something along the lines of “Tried to drink with your helmet on Huh?” She turned beet red “You saw that?” Yep! Classic!

All's Well That Ends Well!!!

We chose Black’s as our first choice as it is supposedly the oldest BBQ restaurant continuously operated by the same family since 1932. However, Kreuz’s restaurant has been in operation since 1900 but not by the same family. And so the BBQ Wars have raged on since at least 1932.

A word to the wise, don’t ask for BBQ Sauce at Kreuz’s…Black’s has it but they don’t like the idea that they had to start offering it…LOL

Black's was great! I had Pork Loin and Turkey; “S” had Brisket and Sausage. The brisket was melt in your mouth tender, and the Pork Loin and Turkey was moist. Now the Sausage was in a league of its own. Often Sausage is so finely ground that it gets a texture kind of like spam. However, Black’s does it right! There are chunks of meat in the casing and the spices were perfectly balanced. Yes, we shared! One down, three to go!

Oh and one other thing! Even Jackalopes can't resist good Texas BBQ!

Lesson’s Learned:

1.) Eat at least a small Breakfast. (We wanted to save room for BBQ.)

2.) 183 South and the County Roads surrounding it are flat and not pretty.

3.) Watch where you put your feet down after a U-Turn Gravel is slick as ice.

4.) Keep your visor closed on rural roads.

5.) Gremlins know if you’ve been given a Ride Bell and haven’t put it on. (See Ride Bell Explanation)

6.) Most importantly, don’t try to drink out of a water bottle with your helmet on. !8-D