A new contest record
701.6684
highest overall ever cooked here
701.6684 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 701.0856 Razorracks BBQ set in 2023.
- old record 701.0856
- set 2023 by Razorracks BBQ
TN River BBQ Fest 2024
Sep 27–28, 2024 · Saltillo, TN · 📍 Main Street · State championship
Reps: Maria Lohman, Wayne Lohman · Prize money: $13,775
DANG GOOD BBQ won Grand Champion at the TN River BBQ Fest on September 27, 2024 in Saltillo, TN at Main Street, scoring 701.6684 in a field of 17 teams. Crossed Rifles BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 698.2400. Category winners: Chicken — DANG GOOD BBQ (180.0000); Pork Ribs — Crossed Rifles BBQ (175.4056); Pork — Colorado Bulldawg BBQ (177.7144); Brisket — Kith n' Kin (177.7028). This is the 2nd of 2 editions of this contest on record; the 2023 edition was won by Razorracks BBQ.
The contest at a glance (read off the scored boards)
How the field scored
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
621.12
median 679.86
701.67 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 180 🔥
- Pork Ribs 175.41
- Pork 177.71
- Brisket 177.70
141.06
180
Entries
17
4 judged meats
Top score
701.6684
Winning margin
3.4284
GC over RC
Field average
671.03
621.12701.67
median 679.86 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Pork Ribs
3.4400 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
679.3144
621.12701.67
10th place overall
Field spread
80.5480
winner to last place
Prize money
$13,775
on the line
Double threats
7
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 27%
beats 73% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
4%
1 of 23 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.59 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,589
avg power rating going in · stronger than 70% of contests
Storylines (7 found in this contest's numbers)
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
An upset on the books
15-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 85 times in 100
DANG GOOD BBQ came in rated below the field's top team, Organizer Portal, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 15-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1595
- top seed 1893
A first Grand Championship
32
tracked contests to get there
This was Dang Good BBQ's first Grand Championship in the data — it arrived at their 32nd tracked contest.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 10 calls decided inside half a point
Pork Ribs places 3–4: Colorado Bulldawg BBQ and SmokinGhost BBQ tied on 171.9772 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 7–8: Smokin Miss Piggy and The BBQ Asylum tied on 170.8228 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 3–4: Smokin Miss Piggy and Bourbon & Blues BBQ tied on 176.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Pork Ribs 3–4 · tie
- Pork Ribs 7–8 · tie
- Pork 3–4 · tie
- Pork 5–6 · tie
How the title was won
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
DANG GOOD BBQ took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was pork ribs at 5th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 5th
- Pork 5th
- Brisket 2nd
A contest record in brisket
177.7028
best brisket ever cooked here
Kith n' Kin turned in 177.7028 in brisket — past the 175.4172 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 175.4172
- across 1 past editions
A perfect score on the table
1
perfect 180s
1 perfect 180 was scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- DANG GOOD BBQ · Chicken
Score curves (score by finishing position — steep cliffs mean a spread field, flat lines a knife fight)
Category showdown (top / average / median score per meat)
Score distribution
Biggest rating movers (power-rating points won and lost at this contest)
Did form hold? (pre-contest rating vs overall finish — ratings called it if the dots climb to the right)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 25, 2023 | Saltillo, TN | Main Street | 23 | 701.0856 | Razorracks BBQ | UNDER THE RADAR |
| Sep 27, 2024 ← this one | Saltillo, TN | Main Street | 17 | 701.6684 | Dang Good BBQ | Crossed Rifles BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180 | 173.1200 | 169.6916 |
| Pork Ribs | 175.4056 | 171.9656 | 169.7028 |
| Pork | 177.7144 | 174.2628 | 169.6684 |
| Brisket | 177.7028 | 173.1200 | 168.5488 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
17 entries · top 701.6684 · median 679.8628
Chicken
17 entries · top 180 · median 170.8228 · 🔥 perfect 180
Pork Ribs
17 entries · top 175.4056 · median 170.2744
Pork
17 entries · top 177.7144 · median 169.7600
Brisket
17 entries · top 177.7028 · median 169.6800