I'll be coming up on my 5-year membership in a few months. I THOUGHT I knew how to smoke pork spare ribs, which was an annual event for a block party every 4th of July for several years, before I joined SMF. I smoked a couple chickens and a turkey or two as well, but again, didn't really have the knowledge I needed to do it safely. In a nutshell, I was one of the guys who could grill just about anything, but didn't get very creative, and smoking was more of a seldom used cooking method which I knew little about.
As I began my real journey through smoking after joining SMF, things changed drastically for me and also turned into a fast-paced frenzy of smoking and grilling, cooking in charcoal-fired dutch ovens (a new venture for me)...smoking, and outdoor cooking in general, became an obsession...learning how to smoke safely and produce great meals became a labor of love and I held myself to very high standards where there was little room for error and failure was (still is) not an option. Shortly after joining and really getting into my groove, I turned out some crazy-good eating food, and this went on for over 3 years. New recipes popped up in my threads on a regular basis. I've slowed down in the last year or so, due to many life-changing events (nothing to do with the forum or all of our great members), but I do still hold my own. My main focus recently has been new methods to produce consistently better smoked foods with the equipment I have in my arsenal, and pass these methods on to others willing to learn and use them. I do still crank up the spice grinder for a new recipe on occasion, but advanced methods for backyard smoking are my main interests at this point. Throughout all of that, and to this day, I try to pass on tips, methods and recipes to any and all takers. I try to actively seek out HELP NEEDED threads, as well as any which require some coaching in food safety or the many other topics which may come up requiring a bit of tutoring.
Sometimes I may come out with excess information in a post, far above the basics which many may not fully understand without knowing my background, and that may cause some confusion to those new to cooking low & slow, grilling, etc. I try not to make a habit of that, but I also know that others reading the thread may miss that information if I don't bring it out in the open, so I tend to divulge more information than necessary at times, but with good reason.
So, we smoke, we learn, we pass on knowledge, as it should be...if we miss someones question or potential issue it is not intentional. If Anyone's thread does go unanswered for an extended period of time, I would encourage them to bump it up on the list by just stamping it with a simple "any takers?" and hopefully someone with experience in that particular situation can get things rolling for them...anything to get someone to read it will likely get it answered. If something is important enough to a member that they posted a new thread, they intended to get a response, and any threads we find unanswered deserve consideration...and even those we find which are answered that we can refine current statements or add additional information for a more complete overall answer to the question or issue at hand, is helpful.
I came a long way from the lowly smoker I was back in August 2008...thanks to everyone who walked me through some issues and all their posts that inspired me to take my skills and passion for outdoor cooking to another level with every visit to one of my cherished smokers. As time passes, I pay it forward, as I'm sure we all do, and even the "newbies" will as well, when their confidence, knowledge and skills are more developed...and so, the cycle continues with every visit we make to this great forum. We're all one great big family of almost 50,000 (!!!) and growing, and we take care of each other like family should. BTW, we were only ~17,000 strong when I joined just short of 5 years ago, and this forum has only been running since 2005, if I recall...that's what I call progress in getting the word out and keeping our craft alive and well...we're growing more and more every day.
BTW, I welcome anyone to PM me if they don't get the information they wanted from a thread, or have an idea that they want to pursue, but don't quite know how or where to start. If I don know or can't find what they need, I'll solicit help from other members who I think can help. I'll help them find what they need if it's handy in a post or article that I know of already, and do my best to provide supporting links to that information when possible. If I can't find it, I'll do my best to steer them in the right direction with personal attention to their specific needs...if it's just a nudge in the right direction for something new they want to try, I'm all for it. Unfortunately for me, in spending so much time trying to help others, I miss a lot of what other members have posted about their successes, so I have to find a better balance to be able to find more of others posts instead of just relying on my own personal experiences...(sigh)...and so it goes. I aim to provide others with the means to succeed, just as many others have done for me. When we can take all of this to build our skill level and confidence, and when we begin to see the results, there's more room for our creative side to surface, and that's when we can really soar to new heights. I have experienced this, and the satisfaction is a high that no drug can compete with, trust me...all thanks to others here on SMF, and I hope that someday, everyone who visits this site will experience at least a taste of it.
Keep your smokers warm and happy, your freezers full, and your sights on learning and helping others do the same!
Eric
