The guy behind the gear
I'm Sean.
I cook it,
teach it
and wear it.
U.S. Army veteran. Pitmaster of Risky Brisket Championship BBQ. The guy who designs everything on this site, then gets sauce on it.
01 · Rucksacks to rib racks
BBQ started as my therapy.
I spent six years in the U.S. Army. When I got out, the thing that leveled me out wasn't a hobby I picked up on purpose. It was a smoker, a long cook, and a crew of friends standing around it.
That turned into Risky Brisket, our competition team, and my teammate Dave has been right there beside me at the pit. Together we've cooked KCBS, SCA and the World Food Championships, won People's Choice for our wings, and brought home five Grand Championships. I still get nervous at every turn-in.
02 · Then I started teaching
Backyard heroes, one class at a time.
Competition taught me what works. Teaching is where I get to give it away. Our Backyard Hero classes at Chicagoland retailers put 200–300 people a year in front of a smoker, and every one of them is about spreading the love of BBQ: the tricks, the know-how and the confidence to fire it up at home and feed the people you care about.
03 · Why I started Meat Sweats
Because BBQ is a personality type.
Everybody at a cook-off has that one piece of gear they won't retire. The joke only pitmasters get. The hoodie that's survived a dozen brisket wraps. I wanted more of that, made by somebody who actually stands at the pit at 2 a.m.
So I draw the designs, we print them here in the USA, and I wear-test everything at contests and classes before it ever hits the site.
Want the recipes?
The Pitmaster's Field Manual
17 recipes from my competition and class playbook, written for any smoker. Free with any bundle of 6 or more tees and hoodies through Dec 25, or grab it on its own.
Whether you run a drum smoker, a stick burner, a pellet grill or a kettle in the driveway, you're my people. Thanks for wearing the gear.