2024 Bear & Burton's Key West Invitational

Born from a desire to make a positive impact, Bear & Burton’s 1st Annual Key West Invitational was nothing short of legendary. However, the 2024 event, held August 23-25, was undeniably bigger, bolder, and better.

This one-of-a-kind event took place at Ocean’s Edge Resort in Key West, Florida. The world-class BBQ event brought together top partners, competitors, and influencers, all while benefiting the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation from Tampa, FL. Over 20 teams competed in a grueling 3-day, 3-leg tournament consisting of fishing, lobster diving, and a mini-BBQ competition, raising funds for an incredible cause—giving hope to those who need it most.

 All of the different competitions were combined to crown the overall champion but only Bear and Burton themselves know the formula for winning it all. The fishing tournament was a huge blast for all the teams as they caught everything from Tarpon, Cobia, Barracuda, Amberjack, Grouper and plenty of sharks were hooked up but the highlight of the day was the massive 175 pound Tarpon that StaleKracker caught. The overall fishing winner was Team W Sauce that consisted of TFTI, Darkside of the Grill, Bama Grill Master, and Chucks FlavorTrain.

 The following day allowed the teams to go lobster diving. Afterwards all the teams, along with all of the attendees, met up on a huge sandbar for a huge party that had Big Green Eggs being used to cook up some R-C Ranch burgers for the first ever Cheese Burger in Paradise competition. Several of the teams also cooked up a few lobsters that were caught earlier. Each team served up their version of burgers and the attendees got to enjoy them all. The winner of this first time event ended up being Meat Church team that featured Tuffy Stone.

 The wrap up to this awesome event featured three swimming pools with all the teams cooking around them for the entire day. Teams competed in a mini BBQ competition that consisted of four different categories that included Tri-Tip, Ribs, Steak and Anything Seafood. The attendees were treated as judges for the people’s choice event as they got to sample extras from the team’s turn ins. Boars Night Out team won the SCA judged event while the W Sauce Team won the people’s choice award.

 Teams also got the opportunity to compete in the annual Belly Flop event on the last day. The start of this event allowed us to hear from an actual 10-year survivor of liver cancer at the age of two. She totally showed first-hand what this event is all about. Overall winner of the Belly Flop event went to Chucks Flavortrain while the most creative flop went to Meat Dave.

Our tickets, as attendees, rather than competitors, were donations that allowed us a two-day opportunity to hang out with the people making the BBQ world hotter than ever. The attached photos from Daren Proctor capture the vibe better than words can, but we've never experienced an event as indescribable as this one. This super event was a barbecue lover’s dreams come true.

 In 2023, this event generated over 65 million views, 200 million social media impressions, and raised tens of thousands of dollars for the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation. The totals for the 2024 event are still being tallied.

 We had an amazing time at this year’s event and plan to make it a must-attend from here on out. We highly recommend adding this one to your bucket list!