Is using the Flameboss cheating?

I have had my egg for 11 years now and finally got tired of monitoring the egg for overnight cooks. Just got a flame boss and am not looking back. I need my sleep.....Go for it!

We all started to cheat when we bought the egg. 

I used to be obsessed all night checking the egg throughout the night only to find it was always spot on....not I obsess all night looking @ useless data from my controller

I think it's cheating.

I want one.  I don't want it bad enough to spend the money yet though.

I don't have a controller yet, but probably will at some point. There is great satisfaction in pulling off an over nighter without the help, but it seems pointless to suggest it's somehow cheating to use a blower. I say quit badgering your buddy and bite the bullet yourself.

i don't understand needing to get up in the middle of the night to check the BGE, honestly.

but there was a time that the daisy wheel was considered cheating.  the real tough guys just angled the ceramic cap on the thing and used the lower vent.

personally, i honestly believe i see just as many "my fire went out" posts as i do those that say "my powered draft thingey isn't working".

if you like electronics and stuff, why not. but realize that it isn't a *need*.  the BGE's selling point for me was not needing to monitor it, and i haven't ever had to.  i bought mine before the advent of these electronic controlled fan units though.  back when the BGE was seen as perfectly controllable via the vents (as opposed to other, usually metal, smokers), so i learned that way.  no other option.

some will say they prefer "having peace of mind", but that refers only to their peace of mind.  it implies we don't have peace of mind (those who use the vents alone). but mine is fine.  i think 15+ years and i had one fire go out.  a flameboss (or other) wouldn't have helped it.

doesn't make a person more or less manly though, if that's the question. 

acting dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage

What is your purpose of cooking on the egg?  Trying to get bragging rights over your buddies? Are you pretending that you have returned to some primitive form of cooking and have mastered fire to create amazing food?  Is measuring internal temps with a Thermapen cheating?  How about using propane torches to light a fire instead of rubbing sticks together?  

I haven't seen the BGE Rule Book that defines what is allowed and what is not.  Use your egg the way you want to produce the food you want.

stlcharcoal said:

For the folks that say it's too expensive......you bought a BGE when you could have bought a Weber.  

Not me, I bought a house that came with a BGE.  But whenever we move I'm taking the Egg with me.  So you could say I bought a crazy over-priced BGE but got a free house with it.

WeberWho said:

HurricaneEddie1 said:

if you're not cheating, you're not  trying.

Hell, most hardcore bbq nuts say that Big Green Egg grills are cheating.

Exactly. 

Unlike all you tough guys, when I got my egg (as a gift, with no advance warning) it was a bit intimidating for someone who'd grilled (not bbq'd) on a weber gasser or kettle all his life.  As part of the journey, I thought it was important to learn to do certain things to the best of my ability, and with as few "crutches" as possible.  So I found the forum, read and researched, watched youtube and dove in feet first to what has turned out to be the best hobby of all time.  That meant I lit the fire with the starter cubes that came with the egg before soaking napkins in oil before getting a bernzomatic (which I avoided for a long time thinking it was cheating and I was in it for "the process").  I also experimented with airflow top and bottom to learn to find and hold at various temps in all sorts of weather conditions and for all sorts of cooks.  I built a home-brewed raised grid rather than buy an AR or woo.  And along the way I came to appreciate that there's really no mastering of the art (at least not for me)  -- there's just continued learning and tweaking and experimenting, which is what I'm in it for.  

I don't have a flameboss.  When a buddy of mine (who got a gift of an egg after enjoying some of my cooks) got his, I was all over him about cheating -- all in good sport, of course.  That said, it's been a while since I've had a fire crap out on me on an overnight cook and it sure would be nice to use the available technology to get me a better night's sleep.  Or to eliminate the anxiety when I wake up wondering if my SRF brisket is too hot, too cold or just right.  I'm not "giving in" quite so yet, but based on my buddy's results and what I keep reading here, I'm getting close.  

gmac said:

Yes. If it has a cord it's cheating. In fact I now start my lump only with a magnifying glass and the rays of the sun. 

GAH! You have a magnifying glass! Man I really need to upgrade from the two sticks I rub together!

I'm in the learn how it works then whatever after-market toys you want to use.  But if you are asking the question, then there may be some internal self-doubt

How is it cheating when good food is the end goal? You do what it takes to get there, and the Flame Boss is just another tool. 

 It's only cheating when there's a rule book.