(The video that accompanies this story shows workers putting up the Peach Festival stage Friday morning between the county administration building and the Michael Gaffney cabin.)

By SCOTT POWELL Ledger Staff Writer spowell@gaffneyledger.com

Christian Wood of Knoxville, Tenn., launches off a ramp Wednesday morning while competing in a skateboard contest at Irene Park sponsored by the South Carolina Peach Festival. Wood finished second in the contest behind Devin Payne. (Ledger photo / SCOTT POWELL)

Wearing his "Two Old Men & A Grill" hat, Howard Wooten sat perfectly content Thursday afternoon in a lounge chair looking forward to a pleasant weekend of cooking barbecue.

Wooten is among several cookers who set up their recreational vehicles in the main parking lot beside the Michael Gaffney cabin and county administration building. He traveled from his home in Alexis, N.C., to enter his "Two Old Men & A Grill" team in the first South Carolina Peach Festival barbecue competition.

"It's a lot of fun. I enjoy going to barbecue competitions every weekend," Wooten said. "Whenever I hear about a new contest, I'm interested in coming to check it out. I'm looking forward to the South Carolina Peach Festival."

The barbecue competition will get underway Friday evening with contests in "Anything Butt" and desserts. Teams will compete Saturday in the categories of pork ribs, pork shoulder, beef brisket and chicken.

Just like the name says, "Anything Butt" can be anything cooked on the grill which isn't in the regular barbecue cookoff. At last week's Greenwood barbecue event, the winning entry was a pork tenderloin bacon grilled sandwich cooked on Texas Toast.

Dessert entries will be cooked on the grill so judges can sample dishes like peach cobbler.

The festival has received applications from 30 barbecue cooking teams for the barbecue competition to date, event chairman Dennis Stroupe said. National barbecue champion Lotta Bull BBQ from Marietta, Okla., is among the teams in the contest.

The peach festival is letting the public vote on their own barbecue winners Saturday afternoon.

Several teams will prepare additional barbecue for a "Taster's Choice" award sponsored by People's Choice Insurance in Gaffney.

Stroupe said the public can purchase tickets for $5 to sample the barbecue on Saturday from 2-4 p.m. on the festival event site in downtown Gaffney.

The festival will announce the "Taster's Choice" with the judge's top picks at the award ceremony at 4 p.m.

"The peach festival's main focus has always been to promote the peach industry and provide entertainment to bring people into Cherokee County," Stroupe said. "The barbecue competition is something different to add to the peach festival. We have been really pleased with the turnout so far. We have five teams from Cherokee County, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and a team from Oklahoma."

You can find out more about the Peach Festival at www.scpeachfestival.org.