The Bloomin’ Idiot contest kicked off at 2 p.m. with poets, crazed costumers and a juggler given a moment to shine on stage.

The poetry section housed an eclectic bunch. The winner, Anthony McCarthy, sang a ditty about his dog Rover that he unfortunately ran over with his mower.

Barbara Steele, the third-place contestant, will actually be publishing a book of her works sometime in the near future.

This was Ms. Steele’s first time to read her work in front of an audience.

Next came the costume portion of the competition. Rick Jensen came out just to have fun and ended up taking home first place.

Jensen was decked out in greenery from head to toe, accented by an occasional flower, his alter ego, Flower Child.

No challengers turned out to face Fabian Gomez in the juggling contest, but that didn’t stop the crowd from oohing and awing over his performance. He took home first, second and third place.

The winners of the barbecue cookoff were announced Saturday afternoon and were greeted by a jubilant crowd.

The Country Critters team placed first in the chicken portion. RCS Farms followed in second place and Family Traditions made their way to third.

The Breadman knew how to cook a good brisket and placed first in that category, with the Country Critters coming in second in this round and David’s Wife placing third.

The Meat Tenders made some mean pork ribs and placed first; Smolderin Hot followed in at second and the Good the Bad & the Ugly won third in the pork ribs category.

Last, but not least, Smolderin Hot placed again, this time first in the beans competition, Longhorn Cookers took home second and third went to the Miller Light Renegades.

Ronnie Eckert of Manor placed first overall in the cookoff.

Special recognition went to Largato Heat for being the friendliest team and for traveling so far.

The group hails from George West and, according to Encarnacion Zapata, the grandfather of the family, they cook because “We love it and it’s our hobby and we enjoy making friends at all the cookouts we go to.”

The team consists of more than 25 family members who make up four generations in the Zapata family.

The car show also took place Saturday afternoon and owners brought some beauties with them.

Special awards included: Mayor’s Choice, 1965 Pontiac GTO, owned by Bill “Lil Bil” Gillen of Killeen; Special Youth Award, 1951 Miniature Model A, owned by: Will and Vanna Caffey of Blanket; and Best of Show, 1965 Chevy Impala, owned by Don Furry of Bastrop.

Events continue today with music throughout the afternoon, vendors, food and games for the children.