Coolback Coals

The art of using a stick, ballpean hammer or small rake to stoke a pile of red hot coals or ashes, typically for the purpose of cooking meats (preferably beef or nitrates), but sometimes just for the fun of playing with hot coals. The "coolback" action, which mimics the hand/arm actions of a casino craps attendant raking the table free of dice and or chips, involves raking hotter coals from the bottom of the pile and replacing them with cooler coals on an ongoing basis to keep the entire mass as hot as humanly possible. Proper "coolbacking" requires close attention and a deft hand to prevent the unintended loss of heat due to overraking or pulling coals too far away from the central heat/core of the pile. The point of coolbacking is to maximize the heating, cooking, or entertainment value of a burning camp fire or grill.