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Smoking out the competition

Winner of the event is the one who made the pipe burn the longest. But everyone had a good time.

GINO TROIANI Times Leader Correspondent

Sitting at a tiny table surrounded by six other contestants, Ward Wesley had one thing on his mind. Keep the pipe lit as long as possible.

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Stephen Roberts, of Drums, lights his pipe during a pipe smoking contest held at El Humidor in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday.

Pete G. Wilcox/The Times Leader

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The seven gentlemen gathered Saturday afternoon to compete in the first annual pipe smoking competition hosted by El Humidor Smoke Shop, Scott Street, Wilkes-Barre.

Wesley, a newcomer to the group, took up pipe smoking around eight months ago and has been practicing consistently over the past week in order to prepare for the competition.

“I own my own shop so I can smoke all day,” laughed Wesley, adding that he went as far as having his employees record his times.

The purpose of a pipe smoking competition is simple. The competitor who can make their pipe burn the longest wins. To begin, the contestants were read a short but strict list of rules which was consistent with the United Pipe Clubs of America’s (UPCA) standards.

Afterwards, each competitor was given three grams of “Spilman Mixture” brand pipe smoking tobacco, two matches, a uniform pipe and five minutes to fix their tobacco and pack their pipes. Directly following the loading period, a new timer started, allotting the gentlemen one minute to properly light their pipes. “OK gentlemen, smoke!” announced judge Doc Garr, and it was on.

To participate, contestants were required to pay an entry fee of $30, which included a pipe, two tins of tobacco, a tamper and a slew of assorted prizes for contestants who placed in the top four.

Contestant Scott Treloar said he traveled a long way to partake in the competition and visit with some old friends. Treloar, a former resident of the Wilkes-Barre area, made the trek all the way up from St. Augustine, Fla. “It’s kind of like a reunion,” he said while describing the atmosphere at the club. “Everybody pretty much knows everybody.”

Sitting around the table, each competitor had their own technique, some taking short puffs and some filling their mouth with large slow drags. “You kind of think the guys that are puffing fast are going to go out sooner because they’re going to burn up their tobacco,” said Treloar.

Another key factor of the competition was controlling the amount of ash buildup. In order to do so, each contestant periodically blotted a wooden cylinder shaped device called a “tamper,” into the base of their pipes. Garr explained it is important for competitors to keep their pipes clean because it keeps the remaining tobacco burning properly.

Keeping the official time of the competition, Michael Bussacco, of Scranton, said he smoked pipes for more than 12 years, however, after suffering from a stroke he had to give up his longtime hobby.

“I’m the oldest one, I’ll be 61,” said Bussacco.

He said that over the years, both he and Garr have traveled and competed on the national and international level. “We’ve been to Germany; Richmond, Virginia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Peekskill, New York; Chicago, Illinois… that’s about it,” he said.

As the clock continued to run, each of the contestants’ pipes burned out one by one. After an official time of 51 minutes, newcomer Wesley was victorious, however, all of the participants agreed the competition was more about having a good time.

“I’m glad this is an annual event; we should have done this a long time ago,” said Treloar. “There’s a stigma attached to smoking already because everybody lumps it in with cigarette smoking… what you see happening here just kind of shows the (gentlemen’s quality) of pipe smoking.”

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