A new contest record
695.9428
highest overall ever cooked here
695.9428 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 689.7372 ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ set in 2016.
- old record 689.7372
- set 2016 by ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ
Interstate BBQ Festival 2017
Apr 14–15, 2017 · Hagerstown, MD · 📍 7313 Sharpsburg Pike
GOOD SMOKE BBQ won Grand Champion at the Interstate BBQ Festival on April 14, 2017 in Hagerstown, MD at 7313 Sharpsburg Pike, scoring 695.9428 in a field of 58 teams. DRILLING & GRILLING took Reserve Grand Champion with 691.4400. Category winners: Chicken — 2 RHODIES BBQ (177.7372); Pork Ribs — PIGGIN' WHISKEY (179.4400); Pork — DRILLING & GRILLING (174.8800); Brisket — SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA (178.8572). This is the 2nd of 5 editions of this contest on record; the 2016 edition was won by ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ; the next was held in 2018.
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.
456.50
median 660.19
695.94 🏆
How the meats cooked
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
- Chicken 177.74
- Pork Ribs 179.44
- Pork 174.88
- Brisket 178.86
20
179.44
Winning score by edition
What it has taken to win here, 2016 to 2019 — this edition picked out.
Entries
58
4 judged meats · 3 ancillary
Top score
695.9428
Winning margin
4.5028
GC over RC
Field average
649.56
456.50695.94
median 660.19 · last place to winner
Perfect 180s
0
Tightest race
Pork
1.7600 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
678.2284
456.50695.94
10th place overall
Field spread
239.4400
winner to last place
Double threats
6
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 50%
beats 50% of 4711 Master Series wins in the data
Came back for more
68%
28 of 41 teams from the previous edition returned
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.81 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1,602
avg power rating going in · stronger than 79% 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
31-in-100
shot on pre-contest ratings
The ratings favoured the top seed the other 69 times in 100
GOOD SMOKE BBQ came in rated below the field's top team, 3 EYZ BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 31-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
- champion 1739
- top seed 1875
Won without a category win
4 of 4
meats called to the stage
GOOD SMOKE BBQ won the Grand Championship without winning a single meat — 4 calls from 4 boards, best of them 2nd. Consistency beat fireworks.
- Chicken 10th
- Pork Ribs 2nd
- Pork 5th
- Brisket 10th
Photo finishes
Tie
closest of 13 calls decided inside half a point
Chicken places 5–6: OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE and TEAM MEAT COMA tied on 175.4172 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 4–5: CHECKERED FLAG 500 BBQ and 3 EYZ BBQ tied on 174.8572 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Brisket places 6–7: JD'S SMOKIN MISFITS and LO' -N- SLO' BBQ tied on 172.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
- Chicken 5–6 · tie
- Pork Ribs 4–5 · tie
- Brisket 6–7 · tie
- Brisket 8–9 · tie
A contest record in pork ribs
179.4400
best pork ribs ever cooked here
PIGGIN' WHISKEY turned in 179.4400 in pork ribs — past the 174.8916 that had stood across 1 earlier editions.
- old best 174.8916
- across 1 past editions
Back to defend
1
past champions back in the field
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ (won 2016).
- ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ · 2016
One of the big ones
58
teams on the grounds
Bigger than 91% of the 5,468 contests in the data
58 teams — bigger than 91% of the 5,468 contests in the data.
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 15, 2016 | Hagerstown, MD | Hagerstown, MD | 41 | 689.7372 | ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ | OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE |
| Apr 14, 2017 ← this one | Hagerstown, MD | 7313 Sharpsburg Pike | 58 | 695.9428 | GOOD SMOKE BBQ | DRILLING & GRILLING |
| Apr 20, 2018 | Hagerstown, MD | 7313 Sharpsburg Pike | — | — | — | — |
| Apr 20, 2018 | Hagerstown, MD | 7313 Sharpsburg Pike | 67 | 688.5140 | SMOKESTACK REDEMPTION | SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS |
| Apr 19, 2019 | Hagerstown, MD | 7313 Sharpsburg Pike | 54 | 689.0856 | Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | DRILLING & GRILLING |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7372 | 175.4172 | 172 |
| Pork Ribs | 179.4400 | 174.8572 | 171.9772 |
| Pork | 174.8800 | 173.1200 | 170.8228 |
| Brisket | 178.8572 | 173.1200 | 171.9656 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
58 entries · top 695.9428 · median 660.1946
Chicken
58 entries · top 177.7372 · median 165.1600
Pork Ribs
58 entries · top 179.4400 · median 164.8228
Pork
58 entries · top 174.8800 · median 164
Brisket
58 entries · top 178.8572 · median 163.6742
Ancillary categories
Run by the organizers alongside the sanctioned contest. These are judged on their own terms and do not count toward the overall score, so they're kept out of the meat stats above.
Master Series — Burger Challenge
8 entries · top 180 · median 167.4458 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | BROTHER-UNCLE BARBEQUE | |
| 2 | BENTWOOD SMOKERS | |
| 3 | WHISKEY RUN BBQ | |
| 4 | S and S BeerBQ | |
| 5 | PULLIN' MY MONEY MUSCLE | |
| 6 | Bubba Joe's Que | |
| 7 | BACKDRAFT BAR-B-Q CT | |
| 8 | Myrtle Beach BBQ Company |
Master Series — Dessert Challenge
6 entries · top 177.7144 · median 173.1200
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WE RIB U LONG TIME | |
| 2 | BENTWOOD SMOKERS | |
| 3 | SIR-PORK'S-ALOT BBQ | |
| 4 | BACKDRAFT BAR-B-Q CT | |
| 5 | PULLIN' MY MONEY MUSCLE | |
| 6 | SMACK THAT BUTT BBQ |
Master Series — Kids Q
3 entries · top 168.5600 · median 167.4856
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | WE RIB U LONG TIME | |
| 2 | S and S BeerBQ | |
| 3 | CAMP BACON BBQ |