Aug 20–21, 2021 · Baldwin City, KS · 📍 High St. · State championship
Reps: Forrest Bruce, Larry Hadley · Prize money: $13,000
DIRT ROAD BBQ won Grand Champion at the Smoke on the Bricks on August 20, 2021 in Baldwin City, KS at High St., scoring 710.8228 in a field of 46 teams. PIRATES OF BAR-B-QUE BAY took Reserve Grand Champion with 698.8116. Category winners: Chicken — DIRT ROAD BBQ (180.0000); Pork Ribs — Barking Dog BBQ (178.8572); Pork — Fat&Dumb BBQ (180.0000); Brisket — DIRT ROAD BBQ (180.0000). This is the 3rd of 9 editions of this contest on record; the 2020 edition was won by Heavy Smoke BBQ; the next was held in 2022.
Overall totals, every team on the board — tall stacks are where the pack sat.
Every board on one scale — the bar runs last score to first, the dot is the median.
What it has taken to win here, 2019 to 2026 — this edition picked out.
Everything below is read straight out of the results — the number on each card is the one that made it a story.
DIRT ROAD BBQ holds the KCBS record for most perfect 180s in one day — 3 180s at a single contest, Brisket, Chicken, Pork, set right here. Nobody has beaten it since.
710.8228 is the highest overall score this contest has ever produced — past the 700.5832 Heavy Smoke BBQ set in 2020.
Wider than 92% of the 4,722 championships in the data
The champion won by 12.0112 points — a wider margin than 92% of championships in the data.
4 perfect 180s were scored at this contest — every judge at the table handing back a nine.
Chicken places 9–10: PIRATES OF BAR-B-QUE BAY and Fat&Dumb BBQ tied on 173.1200 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork Ribs places 8–9: DIRT ROAD BBQ and 777 BBQ tied on 170.8228 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker. Pork places 1–2: Fat&Dumb BBQ and DIRT ROAD BBQ tied on 180.0000 — settled by the KCBS tiebreaker.
DIRT ROAD BBQ won Chicken, Brisket — a double, and took the Grand Championship on top of it.
DIRT ROAD BBQ took the title on 4 calls from 4 meats, with 2 outright wins — their weakest board was pork ribs at 8th.
Fat&Dumb BBQ turned in 180.0000 in pork — past the 178.8800 that had stood across 2 earlier editions.
Past winners of this contest cooked this edition: Fat&Dumb BBQ (won 2019).
What happened at this contest that stands in the all-time KCBS record book. A gold line is a record nobody has beaten.
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 31, 2019 | Baldwin City, KS | 1102 Main St | 49 | 692.5596 | Fat&Dumb BBQ | HIGH i QUE |
| Aug 21, 2020 | Baldwin City, KS | High St. | 43 | 700.5832 | Heavy Smoke BBQ | Happy Grillmore - KS |
| Aug 20, 2021 ← this one | Baldwin City, KS | High St. | 46 | 710.8228 | Dirt Road BBQ | PIRATES OF BAR-B-QUE BAY |
| Aug 26, 2022 | Baldwin City, KS | 705 High Street | 48 | 701.1200 | Slaps BBQ | SMOKIN TIMBERS BBQ |
| Aug 26, 2022 | Baldwin City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| Aug 25, 2023 | Baldwin City, KS | 705 High Street | 44 | 704.5372 | Meat Rushmore BBQ | MAN MEAT BBQ |
| Aug 9, 2024 | Baldwin City, KS | 705 High Street | 46 | 707.9888 | Dr. Squealgood BBQ | BREW 'N' BAR-B-QUE |
| Aug 8, 2025 | Baldwin City, KS | 710 High Street | 53 | 703.9888 | Squealin N Dealin BBQ | Aww Shucks BBQ |
| Aug 7, 2026 | Baldwin City, KS | 712 Chapel St. | 52 | 707.9772 | Janky Leg | Parts R Smokin |
| Aug 13, 2027 | Baldwin City, KS | — | — | — | — | — |
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 180 | 174.8456 | 173.1200 |
| Pork Ribs | 178.8572 | 173.1428 | 169.1312 |
| Pork | 180 | 176 | 174.2856 |
| Brisket | 180 | 174.2972 | 171.9772 |
46 entries · top 710.8228 · median 661.5540
46 entries · top 180 · median 167.6972 · 🔥 perfect 180
46 entries · top 178.8572 · median 165.1028
46 entries · top 180 · median 169.1142 · 🔥 perfect 180
45 entries · top 180 · median 163.4056 · 🔥 perfect 180
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.
11 entries · top 178.8572 · median 174.8572
19 entries · top 180 · median 169.6800 · 🔥 perfect 180