A new contest record
687.3600
highest overall ever cooked here
687.3600 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 681.1426 LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS set in 2013.
- old record 681.1426
- set 2013 by LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS
Pony Express BBQ Challenge 2014
Apr 25–26, 2014 · Gothenburg, NE
PORK PATROL BBQ won Grand Champion at the Pony Express BBQ Challenge on April 25, 2014 in Gothenburg, NE, scoring 687.3600 in a field of 28 teams. PLATTE RIVER BBQ took Reserve Grand Champion with 677.6684. Category winners: Chicken — PORK PATROL BBQ (177.7028); Pork Ribs — PLATTE RIVER BBQ (177.1772); Pork — PARROTHEAD SMOKERS (180.0000); Brisket — STARS AND STRIPES BBQ (180.0000). This is the 2nd of 2 editions of this contest on record; the 2013 edition was won by LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS.
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.
589.09
median 648.77
687.36 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.70
- Pork Ribs 177.18
- Pork 180 🔥
- Brisket 180 🔥
136.56
180
Entries
28
4 judged meats
Top score
687.3600
Winning margin
9.6916
GC over RC
Field average
645.82
589.09687.36
median 648.77 · last place to winner
Tightest race
Chicken
5.6912 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
656.5828
589.09687.36
10th place overall
Field spread
98.2748
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 78%
beats 22% of 4715 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
30%
14 of 47 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Moderate
ρ = -0.52 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,522
avg power rating going in · stronger than 15% 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
35-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 65 times in 100
PORK PATROL BBQ came in rated below the field's top team, PARROTHEAD SMOKERS, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 35-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1622
- top seed 1730
A statement win
9.6916
points clear of the field
Wider than 86% of the 4,714 championships in the data
The champion won by 9.6916 points — a wider margin than 86% of championships in the data.
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 12 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 8–9: DOUBLE D BBQ and SCORCH AND RESQUE tied on 166.2856 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 6–7: PLATTE RIVER BBQ and PORKY BUTTS BBQ tied on 167.9656 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 8–9: PARROTHEAD SMOKERS and TEAM BEHR BQ tied on 166.8228 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 8–9 · tie
- Pork 6–7 · tie
- Brisket 8–9 · tie
- Chicken 5–6 · 0.0116
How the title was won
3 of 4
meats called to the stage
PORK PATROL BBQ took the title on 3 calls from 4 meats, with 1 outright win — their weakest board was brisket at 12th.
- Chicken 1st
- Pork Ribs 7th
- Pork 2nd
- Brisket 12th
A contest record in pork
180.0000
best pork ever cooked here
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS turned in 180.0000 in pork — past the 173.1428 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 173.1428
- across 1 past editions
A perfect score on the table
2
perfect 180s
2 perfect 180s were scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
- STARS AND STRIPES BBQ · Brisket
- PARROTHEAD SMOKERS · Pork
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 26, 2013 | Gothenburg, NE | Gothenburg, NE | 47 | 681.1426 | LONESTAR SMOKE RANGERS | GQUE |
| Apr 25, 2014 ← this one | Gothenburg, NE | Gothenburg, NE 69138 | 28 | 687.3600 | PORK PATROL BBQ | PLATTE RIVER BBQ |
| May 1, 2015 | Gothenburg, NE | — | — | — | — | — |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 172.0116 | 164.5484 |
| Pork Ribs | 177.1772 | 170.8228 | 166.8456 |
| Pork | 180 | 167.9884 | 164.5600 |
| Brisket | 180 | 169.6800 | 166.2972 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
28 entries · top 687.3600 · median 648.7656
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PORK PATROL BBQ | |
| 2 | PLATTE RIVER BBQ | |
| 3 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | |
| 4 | PORKY BUTTS BBQ | |
| 5 | ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ | |
| 6 | BACKDRAFT BBQ | |
| 7 | TEAM BEHR BQ | |
| 8 | STARS AND STRIPES BBQ | |
| 9 | DOUBLE D BBQ | |
| 10 | SMOKIN K | |
| 11 | COOTERS COUNTRY CATERING | |
| 12 | BURNIN BOBS BUTTS N BONES | |
| 13 | Hot Sauce Hoppe's BBQ | |
| 14 | SCORCH AND RESQUE | |
| 15 | BUCK SNORT BBQ | |
| 16 | GOLDEN TOAD | |
| 17 | WHEN PIGS DIE | |
| 18 | LITTLE JOE'S BBQ | |
| 19 | LEEPS BBQ | |
| 20 | CIRCLE W BARBECUE | |
| 21 | EDNA'S KIDS | |
| 22 | HOGZ BREW | |
| 23 | WELL SAUCED BBQ | |
| 24 | GOT WOOD | |
| 25 | WYOMING BS BBQ | |
| 26 | WNW BBQ | |
| 27 | 303 BBQ | |
| 28 | BARBED B QUE |
Chicken
28 entries · top 177.7028 · median 163.4114
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PORK PATROL BBQ | |
| 2 | COOTERS COUNTRY CATERING | |
| 3 | WHEN PIGS DIE | |
| 4 | BURNIN BOBS BUTTS N BONES | |
| 5 | BACKDRAFT BBQ | |
| 6 | SMOKIN K | |
| 7 | LEEPS BBQ | |
| 8 | DOUBLE D BBQ | |
| 9 | SCORCH AND RESQUE | |
| 10 | TEAM BEHR BQ | |
| 11 | PORKY BUTTS BBQ | |
| 12 | GOLDEN TOAD | |
| 13 | EDNA'S KIDS | |
| 14 | Hot Sauce Hoppe's BBQ | |
| 15 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | |
| 16 | LITTLE JOE'S BBQ | |
| 17 | PLATTE RIVER BBQ | |
| 18 | WNW BBQ | |
| 19 | WYOMING BS BBQ | |
| 20 | GOT WOOD | |
| 21 | STARS AND STRIPES BBQ | |
| 22 | ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ | |
| 23 | CIRCLE W BARBECUE | |
| 24 | BARBED B QUE | |
| 25 | 303 BBQ | |
| 26 | HOGZ BREW | |
| 27 | WELL SAUCED BBQ | |
| 28 | BUCK SNORT BBQ |
Pork Ribs
28 entries · top 177.1772 · median 165.4000
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PLATTE RIVER BBQ | |
| 2 | TEAM BEHR BQ | |
| 3 | LITTLE JOE'S BBQ | |
| 4 | PORKY BUTTS BBQ | |
| 5 | COOTERS COUNTRY CATERING | |
| 6 | SMOKIN K | |
| 7 | PORK PATROL BBQ | |
| 8 | BUCK SNORT BBQ | |
| 9 | Hot Sauce Hoppe's BBQ | |
| 10 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | |
| 11 | WELL SAUCED BBQ | |
| 12 | ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ | |
| 13 | BACKDRAFT BBQ | |
| 14 | SCORCH AND RESQUE | |
| 15 | EDNA'S KIDS | |
| 16 | CIRCLE W BARBECUE | |
| 17 | STARS AND STRIPES BBQ | |
| 18 | HOGZ BREW | |
| 19 | LEEPS BBQ | |
| 20 | GOT WOOD | |
| 21 | DOUBLE D BBQ | |
| 22 | WNW BBQ | |
| 23 | BARBED B QUE | |
| 24 | GOLDEN TOAD | |
| 25 | WYOMING BS BBQ | |
| 26 | BURNIN BOBS BUTTS N BONES | |
| 27 | WHEN PIGS DIE | |
| 28 | 303 BBQ |
Pork
28 entries · top 180 · median 161.9656 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | |
| 2 | PORK PATROL BBQ | |
| 3 | ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ | |
| 4 | DOUBLE D BBQ | |
| 5 | BURNIN BOBS BUTTS N BONES | |
| 6 | PLATTE RIVER BBQ | |
| 7 | PORKY BUTTS BBQ | |
| 8 | Hot Sauce Hoppe's BBQ | |
| 9 | GOLDEN TOAD | |
| 10 | BUCK SNORT BBQ | |
| 11 | COOTERS COUNTRY CATERING | |
| 12 | BACKDRAFT BBQ | |
| 13 | TEAM BEHR BQ | |
| 14 | STARS AND STRIPES BBQ | |
| 15 | WHEN PIGS DIE | |
| 16 | CIRCLE W BARBECUE | |
| 17 | LEEPS BBQ | |
| 18 | WYOMING BS BBQ | |
| 19 | SCORCH AND RESQUE | |
| 20 | WELL SAUCED BBQ | |
| 21 | 303 BBQ | |
| 22 | HOGZ BREW | |
| 23 | LITTLE JOE'S BBQ | |
| 24 | WNW BBQ | |
| 25 | SMOKIN K | |
| 26 | GOT WOOD | |
| 27 | BARBED B QUE | |
| 28 | EDNA'S KIDS |
Brisket
28 entries · top 180 · median 163.1200 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | STARS AND STRIPES BBQ | |
| 2 | ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ | |
| 3 | PORKY BUTTS BBQ | |
| 4 | PLATTE RIVER BBQ | |
| 5 | BURNIN BOBS BUTTS N BONES | |
| 6 | DOUBLE D BBQ | |
| 7 | BACKDRAFT BBQ | |
| 8 | PARROTHEAD SMOKERS | |
| 9 | TEAM BEHR BQ | |
| 10 | SMOKIN K | |
| 11 | BUCK SNORT BBQ | |
| 12 | PORK PATROL BBQ | |
| 13 | WHEN PIGS DIE | |
| 14 | GOLDEN TOAD | |
| 15 | EDNA'S KIDS | |
| 16 | GOT WOOD | |
| 17 | SCORCH AND RESQUE | |
| 18 | HOGZ BREW | |
| 19 | CIRCLE W BARBECUE | |
| 20 | LITTLE JOE'S BBQ | |
| 21 | Hot Sauce Hoppe's BBQ | |
| 22 | WYOMING BS BBQ | |
| 23 | WELL SAUCED BBQ | |
| 24 | LEEPS BBQ | |
| 25 | 303 BBQ | |
| 26 | COOTERS COUNTRY CATERING | |
| 27 | BARBED B QUE | |
| 28 | WNW BBQ |