MGP Team To Compete At 2017 World Championship Barrel Rolling Relay

Press release by MGP Ingredients, Inc.  (Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - “Roll ‘em, roll ‘em, roll ‘em…Keep those barrels rollin’…Right side!” These paraphrased theme song lyrics from the classic 1960s TV western “Rawhide,” aptly describe the object of the World Championship Bourbon Barrel Relay™ in Bardstown, Ky.  It’s all about speed, direction and precision, as competing teams race the clock while keeping full-size oak barrels rolling and turning along a rectangular course until properly positioning them in place at the end of the line. MGP’s Lawrenceburg distillery’s warehouse team will represent the company in the relay, which is slated for Saturday, Sept. 16, and is heralded as one of the trademark events at the annual Kentucky Bourbon Festival™, now celebrating its 26th year. Consistent with prior years, MGP has the distinction of being the sole non-Kentucky team in the competition.  Team members are Cody Frank, (captain), Kelly Sebastian, Eric Ullrich and Patrick Whalen.  Whalen will also represent MGP in the individual competition.  Robert McCormack, logistics manager, serves as coach and team coordinator, and Susan Davies, administration support-logistics, serves as timer.  Other relay contestants include teams from Buffalo Trace, Diageo, Four Roses, Heaven Hill, Jim Beam, Maker’s Mark, Sazerac and Wild Turkey. The relay is a timed event that requires each team to roll 10 water-filled barrels over a 40-foot by 28-foot railed track before racking the barrels.  “The most critical part of the competition is correctly ‘clocking’ each barrel so that when it comes to a rest in the rack the bung is situated between the 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. positions,” McCormack noted. “For each barrel that meets those guidelines, ten seconds are subtracted and the lowest time wins,” he explained. Since late July, MGP’s team has been vigorously preparing for this year’s event using a practice track that was completed at the Lawrenceburg facility in 2015. McCormack stated that “While MGP is considered the novice competitor at this event, it will be our fourth straight year of vying for honors. The team is beginning to feel more comfortable with the relay, and feels we will see increased competiveness and consistency with clocking better times.  In the relatively short period that we have been competing, MGP has become a highly recognized name at this well-attended competition, where we are known for our expertise in creating the highest quality bourbons and whiskeys available.”