14th annual Men's Club Chili Cookoff

I'm not originally from Manchester, or any small town that features chili cookoffs. But Saturday's event, even though organizers said numbers were down (at blame was the state wrestling meet, Treasurer Bob Rhees said, which sent 14 Manchester wrestlers), was an impressive display of some awesome cooking, especially for a city kid like me.

By the time I left, which was about 6 p.m., the American Legion Hall was packed with people, and it smelled fantastic. The LaBlanc family from Onsted won the top prize of $200, with their southwestern chili recipe. Overall, a few hundred people showed up to sample only 11 cooks' chili. Here are some photos from the evening, which also featured a 32-person euchre tournament: