Chippewa Valley Ribfest (BACKYARD ONLY)
2026-08-07 – 2026-08-08 · Montevideo, MN · 📍 613 Legion Drive
Reps: LAURIE TWETEN · Prize money: $1,500.00
Grand Champion: Fender Bender BBQ (355.4400) · 14 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 Dawgs BBQ
Entries
14
2 judged meats
Top score
355.4400
Winning margin
6.8912
GC over RC
Field average
335.14
median 336.22
Tightest race
Chicken
5.7140 pts across the top 5
Top-10 cutoff
333.0856
10th place overall
Field spread
44.6288
winner to last place
Prize money
$1,500.00
on the line
Double threats
3
teams with 2+ top-5 calls
How hot was the win?
Top 24%
beats 76% of 708 Backyard Series wins in the data
Traveled in
36%
of the 14 teams with a home region came from outside MN
Form held
Strong
ρ = -0.74 between pre-contest rating and finish
Field strength
1565
avg power rating going in · stronger than 69% of contests
Storylines
🧳 Out-of-towners took the title
FENDER BENDER BBQ took the Grand Championship home to WI.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 5–6: Dawgs BBQ edged Natural Born Grillers by 0.0116. Pork Ribs places 7–8: Natural Born Grillers edged Smokey GQ by 0.0572.
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)
Where the field came from (home regions on file)
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 177.7028 | 171.9888 | 165.0972 |
| Pork Ribs | 180.0000 | 170.2744 | 165.6800 |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Backyard Series
Overall
14 entries · top 355.4400 · median 336.2228
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fender Bender BBQ | |
| 2 | Dawgs BBQ | |
| 3 | Big Ten Bones | |
| 4 | Big Bear BBQ | |
| 5 | Natural Born Grillers | |
| 6 | Dad Bod Barbeque | |
| 7 | Unknown Smokers | |
| 8 | Goner's BBQ | |
| 9 | Berg's BBQ | |
| 10 | Not Bad BBQ | |
| 11 | Smokey GQ | |
| 12 | Ribs for Your Pleasure | |
| 13 | Two Sexy Pitmasters | |
| 14 | Ole Mae I BBQ |
Chicken
14 entries · top 177.7028 · median 167.9714
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Goner's BBQ | |
| 2 | Big Ten Bones | |
| 3 | Fender Bender BBQ | |
| 4 | Dad Bod Barbeque | |
| 5 | Dawgs BBQ | |
| 6 | Natural Born Grillers | |
| 7 | Unknown Smokers | |
| 8 | Not Bad BBQ | |
| 9 | Ole Mae I BBQ | |
| 10 | Smokey GQ | |
| 11 | Big Bear BBQ | |
| 12 | Ribs for Your Pleasure | |
| 13 | Berg's BBQ | |
| 14 | Two Sexy Pitmasters |
Pork Ribs
14 entries · top 180.0000 · median 167.4114 · 🔥 perfect 180
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fender Bender BBQ | |
| 2 | Big Bear BBQ | |
| 3 | Dawgs BBQ | |
| 4 | Big Ten Bones | |
| 5 | Berg's BBQ | |
| 6 | Unknown Smokers | |
| 7 | Natural Born Grillers | |
| 8 | Smokey GQ | |
| 9 | Dad Bod Barbeque | |
| 10 | Not Bad BBQ | |
| 11 | Ribs for Your Pleasure | |
| 12 | Goner's BBQ | |
| 13 | Two Sexy Pitmasters | |
| 14 | Ole Mae I BBQ |