Big Boned BBQ Member Biographies

Morgan Wotherspoon, Pitmaster

Morgan Wotherspoon’s barbeque ambition started with an arc welder, an old compressor tank and a utility trailer in the garage of his Coventry, RI home. After a few weeks, Big Boned Barbeque was born.
A phone company lineman by trade, Morgan found that the telecom world did little to satisfy his creative mind, highly competitive nature, and his love for food. He started doing catering jobs, at first only for friends and family. Then word spread of his culinary prowess and complete strangers started calling and wanting his barbeque for their parties. He decided it was time to see how his BBQ stacked up against the best of New England.
Big Boned Barbeque’s rookie season in the New England Barbecue Society competition circuit started at the Rhode Island State BBQ Championship in May 2005, taking home a top ten finish in the brisket category. In all, BBB competed in four events in 2005, earning several ribbons and a trophy for Best Pork Shoulder at the Cape Cod Classic.
In addition to barbecue, Morgan enjoys punishing softballs and spending time with his wife Kristen and his children Brett and Miranda.

Alex Morales, Marinade & Sauce King

Alex Morales is more than just Big Boned Barbeque’s token New York Yankee fan. He is the master of all things liquid and sweet.
The man from Queens has grown into a genuine New Englander, but the aromas from the backyard barbeques of his hometown neighborhood are fresh in his memory. The flavors are evident in every sauce and marinade he creates.
Alex’s signature dish, buttery grilled salmon, is so good that even his wife Christan loves it… and she hates salmon!
When he’s not working on new recipes or sauces, Alex is a player-coach for his softball team and enjoys riding his hog. He also enjoys traveling and camping with his wife and his three awesome children, Karin, David and Abby.

Tom Wotherspoon, Grillmaster

“You can’t drink all day if you don’t start in the morning” is Tom Wotherspoon’s motto on barbecue competition weekends. To him, there is nothing like the smell of burning charcoal, the sound of a sizzling steak, and the taste of an ice cold beer, even at 6:30 in the morning!
A machinist by trade, Tom has also fabricated many parts of the Big Boned Barbeque smoker rig. He earned his reputation as the grillmaster when he earned a top-five finish with his very first grilling entry. His grill marks looked like someone stenciled them onto the tuna steak!
In his down time, Tom enjoys spending time with his wife and children.

Mike Wiemer, Chief Logistics Coordinator

“Fins Up!” is Mike Wiemer’s motto. This Jersey born boy has many loves. At the top of the list are his wife (Nicole) and son (Jake). Mike has lived all over, NJ, CA, OK, TX, SC, and CT to name a few. This guy moves around. One thing stays true about Mike and that is his love for movies, music and of course Barbeque. As an integral part of the Big Boned BBQ team, we can always count on Mike to figure out the sleeping arrangements. Not only does this guy secure hotels, but who do you know that brings a GPS and laptop to a barbecue competition?! Mike is man when it comes to grilling pork. Whether it is sausage or chops, you can always count on him serving up some great eats.