Kenai River BBQ Competition
2023-06-30 – 2023-07-01 · Soldotna, AK · 📍 251 States Ave
Reps: JOHN MANN, MICHELLE MANN · Prize money: $2,300.00
Grand Champion: Smokey Haze BBQ (693.6800) · 9 teams
Reserve Champion: 🥈 Halfracks Smoke Shack
Entries
Top score
Winning margin
Field average
Perfect 180s
Tightest race
Field spread
Prize money
Double threats
How hot was the win?
Traveled in
Form held
Field strength
Storylines
🪒 A razor-thin finish
The Grand Championship was decided by 1.1312 points — closer than 82% of every championship in the data.
🧹 A double category winner
Smoken J's BBQ won Chicken, Pork Ribs — a double.
📸 Photo finishes
Chicken places 6–7: Cowgirls Forever edged Buzzed Bee Que by 0.4912.
🃏 An upset on the books
SMOKEY HAZE came in rated below the field's top team, WHO DAT BBQ, and took the Grand Championship anyway — roughly a 31-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings.
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)
This contest over the years full contest page →
| Date | Where | Venue | Teams | High score | Grand Champion | Reserve Champion |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-06-30 ← this one | Soldotna, AK | 251 States Ave | 9 | 693.6800 | Smokey Haze BBQ | Halfracks Smoke Shack |
| 2024-05-31 | Soldotna, AK | 44223 Sterling Hwy | 7 | 710.8228 | Smokin J's BBQ | Holy Trinity BBQ |
What a call cost (the score it took to finish 1st, 5th and 10th)
| Category | 1st | 5th | 10th |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 178.8572 | 169.6800 | — |
| Pork Ribs | 171.9884 | 167.4056 | — |
| Pork | 177.7144 | 166.8456 | — |
| Brisket | 176.5716 | 163.4288 | — |
Official results on kcbs.us ↗
Master Series
Overall
9 entries · top 693.6800 · median 668.5372
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SMOKEY HAZE | |
| 2 | Halfracks Smoke Shack | |
| 3 | JC Holy Smokes | |
| 4 | Up N Smoke | |
| 5 | Buzzed Bee Que | |
| 6 | Cowgirls Forever | |
| 7 | J & J BBQ | |
| 8 | Who Dat BBQ | |
| 9 | Smoken J's BBQ |
Chicken
9 entries · top 178.8572 · median 169.6800
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smoken J's BBQ | |
| 2 | JC Holy Smokes | |
| 3 | SMOKEY HAZE | |
| 4 | Halfracks Smoke Shack | |
| 5 | Up N Smoke | |
| 6 | Cowgirls Forever | |
| 7 | Buzzed Bee Que | |
| 8 | Who Dat BBQ | |
| 9 | J & J BBQ |
Pork Ribs
9 entries · top 171.9884 · median 167.4056
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smoken J's BBQ | |
| 2 | SMOKEY HAZE | |
| 3 | Halfracks Smoke Shack | |
| 4 | JC Holy Smokes | |
| 5 | Buzzed Bee Que | |
| 6 | J & J BBQ | |
| 7 | Up N Smoke | |
| 8 | Cowgirls Forever | |
| 9 | Who Dat BBQ |
Pork
8 entries · top 177.7144 · median 168.8514
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SMOKEY HAZE | |
| 2 | Halfracks Smoke Shack | |
| 3 | Up N Smoke | |
| 4 | JC Holy Smokes | |
| 5 | Buzzed Bee Que | |
| 6 | Cowgirls Forever | |
| 7 | J & J BBQ | |
| 8 | Who Dat BBQ |
Brisket
8 entries · top 176.5716 · median 163.6972
| # | Team | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Halfracks Smoke Shack | |
| 2 | SMOKEY HAZE | |
| 3 | Buzzed Bee Que | |
| 4 | Up N Smoke | |
| 5 | J & J BBQ | |
| 6 | JC Holy Smokes | |
| 7 | Cowgirls Forever | |
| 8 | Who Dat BBQ |