Bloggin’ on the Edge

Posted by Scott Spielman at 4:08 PM | Comments

I played a little joke on Art Quintal on Saturday.

In the midst of a crowded tent where more than a dozen cooks tried to get attendees to sample their chili, I crept up behind the Wayne Rotarian.

“Boy, the Parks and Recreation Department did a good job putting this on,” I said.

The event—a first for the Wayne Wheelfest—was a joint project between the Wayne Rotary, the Chamber of Commerce and the Parks and Recreation Department, but so far the Rotary hadn’t gotten much credit. That was probably my fault, too, since I’ve been the only one writing about it.

I avoided Quintal’s ire, though, and I agree with his assessment: this event was a winner.

First of all, the atmosphere under that tent was redolent with small town charm. The competitors bantered back and forth. They called out to passersby, they joked with the crowd. They stood behind tables decorated with everything from red white and blue to—perhaps inevitably—campaign stickers.

Mathew Mulholland, one of the candidate/cooks, sported an impressively shiny Elvis toupee and equally large sunglasses as he called out fake Elvis statistics to attract people to the table he and former Councilman Don Hartford shared.

“I basically laughed for four straight hours,” Hartford said of the competition.

Councilman Tom Kelly and Bill Hawley were next to them; big grins on their faces.

Some of the entrants were first-time cooks, but you wouldn’t know that by sampling their product. I helped judge the event—along with George Marvaso from Marvaso’s in Westland, John VanStipdonk and Chili Joe and Chef Curtis, food critics from the daily papers.

I have a history in judging these kinds of things, from the Great Lakes Chili Cook-off in Plymouth to the chili-cookoff that’s part of the Fire and Ice event in Northville.

Each time, I tell my wife, Lisa, that my services are required—or at least requested—and each time she says the same thing: We’ll find something else to do. By that, she doesn’t mean during the event, but for the next day or so afterward.

Occupational hazard, I guess.

It was a tough choice. Everything was good enough to earn the respect of a professional chili cook—well, except for Hartford’s. Even Chili Joe and Chef Curtis were impressed.

The fire department earned top honors for their fiery concoction, but I think the big winner was the community. It just shows how a little creativity and hard work—and seasoning—can help bring a small town to life.

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