Story and Photos courtesy of Buffalo Trace
It was team Buffalo all the way at the 2017 World Champion Bourbon Barrel Relay held Saturday, Sept. 16 in Bardstown, KY as both the men and women barrel rolling teams from Buffalo Trace Distillery took home 1st place wins, and both teams set new world record times!
Buffalo Trace’s women’s team, consisting of Leslie Glazer, Connie Brey, Carolyn Paul and Lori Sergent completed the course in -13.62 seconds.
The men’s team, made up of Chad Castle, Brad Goodlett, David Stacey and Cody Bowen completed their round in -45.44 seconds.
The object of the contest is speed and accuracy and team with the lowest time wins. It a test to see which team can get the most barrels bung-up, and 10 seconds is subtracted for each bung-up barrel in its final resting place and brand on the correct side.
The “Bung Up” position is measured with a “Bung and a Half” measure that the judges use. The distance of 3 ¼ inches from the straight up position on either side will count as a bung up measure and credit will be given as bung up. The judge will place the 3 ¼ measure on top of the entered barrel with one edge at the 12 o’clock mark and if the barrel bung touches the measure it is “Bung Up.” This gives the contestant 6 ½ inches to place the bung for full credit. (About 11 o’clock to 1o’clock). This replicates acceptable practices in warehouse storage keeps the barrel leaking from the bung hole and also the brand on the correct side for inventory purposes.
This is the first time either team has won the barrel rolling competition, so to have both men and women’s team finish first is quite a feat. Special thanks to coaches Kelly Larkin, Tony Roberts and Patrick Clouse for their efforts in helping the teams prepare this season.
