If you’ve ever watched the Food Network show Chopped, you are likely familiar with the show formula. They set the clock for 20 or 30 minutes depending on the round, have the chefs “open” their basket of ingredients, and then cooking immediately begins. If that sounds hard, it is, though there are a few helpful nudges that aren’t disclosed to viewers (ie, ovens are preheated, a pot of water is put on boil at every station, contestants are given a tutorial on equipment before the show, etc.) (note from Derek: way to ruin the magic, Scott. Geez.).

Still, without fail on every episode, there are always chefs shown scrambling at the last second to plate their dishes before time expires (3…2…1…hands up!). I imagine some of this is constructed by the post-production team to add drama, but I’m also sure that a lot of contestants truly are working until the last second.

Well, with our special Spring sponsor event — CMEpalooza Gets Chopped — we are indeed getting down to those final seconds on the clock. All entries are due to me (scott@excaliburmeded.com) by 5 pm ET today. A few things to keep in mind as you furiously rush to do your research and send in your answer forms – this information was all included in our event announcement on Monday but is worth a revisit:

1. Did you know that there are prizes? OK, maybe we’re not giving out a life-changing $10,000 but we will be disbursing five $100 Amazon gift cards to individuals who successfully submit an entry and are selected in our prize drawing. Our special “10th Anniversary” bonus pool will distribute an additional $250 to the organization with the most completed entries.
2. You can submit up to three entries, but for each entry you need to answer questions about different sponsors. We’ve got 31 current sponsors of CMEpalooza Spring, so there are plenty of options for you.
3. Answers to all of the clues can typically either be found on the sponsor’s homepage or are one click away. I have not yet received any complaints that “this clue was too hard,” so presumably, people are finding all of the answers.
4. As always, one of our sponsors made an announcement after the clue sheet was published that changed one of the clue answers. You won’t even notice it, but believe me, this happens every year.

I think that’s about it. Now hurry to pull your entries together – the clock is most definitely ticking.

(Reminder from Derek: As one event comes to a close, another gets ready to begin. The CMEpalooza STEPtacular Challenge, sponsored by Talem Health, will kickoff on Monday, April 15. More details to come soon!)

Many of you likely heard the tragic news that one of our industry’s stalwarts — Ron Murray, Ed.D, CHCP, FACEHP, MRSB, PGCE — died in a car accident last week. Ron spent nearly three decades working in CME, first as Associate Director in the Office of Continuing Medical Education at the University of Virginia for 17 years before jumping back over the pond in 2013 to work as a CE Consultant/Contractor.

Ron was a regular at the Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions annual meeting, which is where many of us saw him in February. Ron was extremely well-known and popular amongst his colleagues because of his charm, wit, and genuine interest in others. Ron was tremendously authentic – he always went out of his way to say hello to me and talk about how much he enjoyed and valued CMEpalooza.

Back in the Fall of 2016, Ron participated in one of our earliest experimental CMEpalooza sessions called Casual Conversations in CME, where we paired him with his former colleague, Jann Balmer, with the instructions to “talk about whatever you want.” While I was hoping they might get into some sort of altercation about the rights and wrongs of the Revolutionary War, they kept things far more civil and ended up discussing the challenges of joint U.S.-European accreditation and international partnerships.

Outside of this appearance, there were typically two times each year that I could count on hearing from Ron as he was one of a handful of individuals who almost always participated in CMEpalooza’s special sponsor events (he won a prize at least once that I can recall). Ironically, this is the week of our Spring sponsor event, and I’m sad that I won’t see Ron’s entries pop up in my inbox again.

Certainly, there are many in our community who knew Ron far better than I did and shared far more interesting encounters. There have been several LinkedIn threads where people have been sharing small memories, which have been heartwarming to read. Clearly, I was not alone in my assessment of Ron’s character. He will be missed.

(Note from Derek: I want to echo Scott’s sentiments above. While I never got to work directly with Ron, I was privileged to have the opportunity to talk and share a dram with him at more than one Alliance conference. It still makes me smile to remember him laughing heartily along as I regaled him with my adventures driving on the “wrong side” of the road during a family trip to the Scottish Highlands the previous summer. He was a big supporter of CMEpalooza early on and never failed to offer encouragement whenever I saw him. The world is little sadder today without him in it.)

For someone who really likes to cook and eat well, I watch very few Food Network shows. I guess I never really saw the appeal of watching someone cook on television without getting to eat the food.

HOST: “Oh my God, you have to taste this. This is the best thing I have ever eaten!”

ME (talking to the TV like the old cantankerous man that I am): I can’t taste this, you moron! I’m not there! Now go get a haircut, Guy!

The one Food Network show I can stomach, however, is Chopped. I can do a lot in the kitchen, but I am not the kind of person who likes to look in the fridge, see what sort of ingredients I have on hand, and then come up with something on the fly (note from Derek: this is how my wife cooks. She’s like a mad scientist in the kitchen. Don’t tell her I said that.) It’s not that I can’t do it, but I am very much a cookbook/recipe person. I don’t really know why, but there is something very personally satisfying about being able to flawlessly follow instructions step-by-step that appeals to me (advance note to Derek: this only relates to cooking. Don’t even try to give me some sort of cockamamie list of tasks that you are too lazy to do yourself.) (note from Derek: too late. I’m already up to Task #4 on my list).

The creativity of the chefs on Chopped, however, goes way beyond my abilities. I would probably get flummoxed by a basket containing, bread, turkey, and mustard, while these geniuses are able to pull together swiss chard, sweetbreads, and Snickers bars without a problem. So while I will never, ever be a Chopped contestant, I figured I’d bring a little bit of the show’s creativity to our Spring sponsor event. And so, behold CMEpalooza Gets Chopped, this week’s special promotion.

Here is how CMEpalooza Gets Chopped works.

1. Click here to download the forms you will need. CMEpalooza Gets Chopped is pretty simple. We have divided our sponsors into four Chopped rounds – the appetizer round, the entree round, the side dish round, and the dessert round. Within each round of clues, you have to answer questions about one or more of our sponsors. Each question has a food-related theme. Some clues were trickier to come up with than others.
2. So, where do you find the answers? Well, by visiting the websites of our CMEpalooza Spring sponsors (we have links for you on our Sponsor tab). I promise that you won’t have to hunt too much to find anything. Most clues are either on the company’s homepage or one click away. There are a few where you’ll have to visit their social media feed, but those links are always on the company’s home page.
3. You can use the answer sheet located in the downloaded forms to complete your responses. You may submit up to three entries, but for each entry you must answer clues about different sponsors.
4. Within each entry, you must get every answer correct to qualify for our prize drawing. If I’m in a less curmudgeonly mood than usual, maybe I’ll let you get one wrong. We’ll see.
5. Completed answer forms can be sent to me at scott@excaliburmeded.com. Make sure to include your name and professional affiliation in your email so that when we announce that you’ve won, everyone can be sufficiently jealous.

We’ll have five prize winners who will each receive a $100 Amazon gift card. As a special CMEpalooza 10th anniversary bonus, for the first time, we’ll also have a $250 prize for the organization that has the most successful entries. So not only is this a personal challenge, but it can be a company-wide event as well! Maybe you can throw a staff pizza party or something on the day of CMEpalooza Spring (Wednesday, April 24) with your winnings.

Entries will be accepted anytime until the clock strikes 5 pm ET on Friday, April 12, so get cracking!