← Every region
KCBS in Montana MT
58 tracked contests over 13.1 years,
454 teams on the scoresheets — the 37th busiest of 94 regions on file.
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At a glance
This season 3
contests in 2026 · 64 teams competing
Teams competed 454
distinct teams on record
Typical field 26
teams · biggest 44
Avg winning score 696.08
Master · of 720 · best 713.15
Avg category score 162.52
across 4,887 meat entries
Perfect 180s 39 🔥
8 per 1,000 entries
Grand champions 47
titles handed out here
State championships 25 🏅
on the calendar
Towns 8
22 venues · 26 recurring contests
Seasons on record 13
2013 – 2026
Published purses $211,775
across 21 contests that listed one
Cancelled 4
not counted as contests held
How Montana stacks up (against all 94 regions on file)
The bar is Montana's standing on that measure: a full bar is the region that leads it, an empty one is the region that trails it. Rate-based measures need a minimum body of results before a region is ranked at all, so a single hot weekend can't buy a place. The median is the middle region, not the average — one huge region would drag an average somewhere no region actually is.
Contests held
58
#37 of 94
▲ median 37
Teams competing
454
#35 of 88
▲ median 249.5
Contests this season
3
#41 of 75
▲ median 2.5
Field depth
26 teams
#45 of 61
▼ median 31 teams
Winning score
696.08
#19 of 52
▲ median 694.24
Judging severity (lowest average category score = toughest room)
162.52
#14 of 45
▼ median 163.95
Perfect-180 rate
8 /1k
#14 of 45
▲ median 5.7 /1k
State championships
25
#25 of 51
▲ median 5
Regions like this one
Matched on the shape of the scene — how many contests it runs, how deep the fields get, how the room scores and how often it hands out a 180 — not on the map. Counts are compared on a log scale, because 5 contests to 15 is a different scene while 300 to 310 is the same one.
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Season by season
Click a column heading to re-sort. Winning score is the Master overall (of 720); a season with no scored Master contest leaves it blank.
Contests per season (up to 2026)
When they cook (month of year)
Field depth over time (average teams per contest, and teams competing that season)
What it took to win (average Master winning score, and 180s scored)
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How the room scores (every judged meat, against the sport as a whole)
A lower average means a harder room. “vs sport” is this region's average minus the same meat's average everywhere KCBS is scored.
Montana marks chicken hardest — 1.85 points below the rest of the sport.
Meat Avg here vs sport Entries 180s 180s /1k
Chicken
163.31
-1.85
1,219
10
8.2
Pork Ribs
162.95
-0.67
1,222
6
4.9
Pork
162.78
-1.52
1,227
12
9.8
Brisket
161.06
-1.16
1,219
11
9
Top teams who cook here (by power rating)
The regulars (most contests cooked in Montana)
Team Contests GCs Last
MONTANA OUTLAW BBQ 33 5 Aug 22, 2025
PARROTHEAD SMOKERS 21 8 Jun 13, 2025
12 BAR BLUES CUE 21 — Aug 26, 2022
Beer Belly BBQ 20 2 Jun 16, 2023
BIG BOYZ BBQ 20 — Aug 28, 2026
Grate Expectations 19 1 Sep 27, 2019
SMOKIN JERKS 19 — Aug 23, 2019
SMELLAQUE 18 2 Aug 28, 2026
Camp House BBQ 18 — Aug 25, 2023
Up In Smoke BBQ 17 — Aug 22, 2025
OWENS BBQ 15 1 Aug 28, 2026
BIG PIG BBQ 15 — Jun 12, 2026
Highest scores in Montana (Master · /720)
Score Team Where
713.1544 Piggin' Whiskey
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 23, 2024
711.4172 MONTANA OUTLAW BBQ
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 27, 2021
709.1200 PARROTHEAD SMOKERS
Nile Beer-B-Q Oct 14, 2017
708.5600 Texas Smoke Whisperer
Montana BBQ Cook-off Jun 11, 2021
707.4400 Colorado Bulldawg BBQ
Montana BBQ Cookoff Jun 9, 2023
707.4284 MONTANA OUTLAW BBQ
Nile Beer-B-Q Oct 14, 2017
706.8688 Beer Belly BBQ
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 26, 2022
706.8460 COCAMOKE SMOKE BBQ
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 28, 2026
706.8228 Rhythm n QUE
East Helena Smoke Show Aug 5, 2023
706.2744 Bushmaster BBQ
Montana BBQ Cook-off Jun 11, 2021
Contests that come back (recurring)
Contest Editions Biggest Last held
Montana BBQ Cook-off 9 35 Jun 10, 2022
Montana Pitmaster Classic 8 44 Aug 28, 2026
Montana BBQ Cookoff 4 36 Jun 12, 2026
East Helena Smoke Show 3 24 Sep 12, 2025
Miles City Cowtown Cookoff 3 26 Jun 14, 2024
Miles City Cowtown Cook Off 3 28 Jun 25, 2021
BBQ In The Badlands 3 26 Sep 27, 2019
Certified BBQ Judging Class 3 — Jun 15, 2017
Dillon Days Blowin' Smoke BBQ Cook Off 2 26 Jul 3, 2026
Montana Outlaw BBQ Tell-All Competition BBQ Class 2 — Apr 19, 2024
NILE Beer B Q 2 17 Oct 13, 2018
Montana State BBQ Championship at Montana Fair 2 26 Aug 11, 2015
Where it happens (towns in Montana)
Town Contests Seasons Avg field Last
Absarokee 14 13 29 Jun 12, 2026
Miles City 13 10 24 Jun 14, 2024
Billings 10 6 24 Apr 19, 2024
Bozeman 9 9 34 Aug 28, 2026
Glendive 4 4 26 Sep 27, 2019
Dillon 3 3 17 Jul 3, 2026
Missoula 3 3 17 Sep 23, 2016
East Helena 2 2 21 Aug 9, 2024
Reps who work Montana
Rep Contests Last
Steven Flewallen 10 Aug 28, 2026
Brian Moore 9 Aug 28, 2026
Del Anderson 9 Jun 12, 2026
Forrest Bruce 7 Jun 12, 2026
Michael Santiago 5 Jun 20, 2025
Rhonda Santiago 5 Jun 20, 2025
Ian Schmidt 2 Aug 9, 2024
Julie Poe 2 Aug 9, 2024
Michael Eberle 2 Sep 27, 2019
Troy Youngblood 2 Aug 23, 2019
State championships 🏅
Contest Teams Grand champion
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 28, 2026
39
Cocamoke Smoke BBQ
Dillon Days Blowin' Smoke BBQ Cook Off Jul 3, 2026
26
Brinkerhoff BBQ
Montana BBQ Cookoff Jun 12, 2026
29
Smellaque
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 22, 2025
38
Brinkerhoff BBQ
Dillon Days Blowin' Smoke BBQ Cook Off Jul 5, 2025
13
Brinkerhoff BBQ
Montana BBQ Cookoff Jun 13, 2025
33
Heifers, Butts, & Clucks BBQ
Montana Pitmaster Classic Aug 23, 2024
39
Piggin' Whiskey
East Helena Smoke Show Aug 9, 2024
18
SmellaQue
Blowin' Smoke Barbecue Cook Off Jul 27, 2024
11
Bearded Boar BBQ
Miles City Cowtown Cookoff Jun 14, 2024
16
Wyo Smoke Show
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Where else these teams cook
Of the 423 teams with a recorded finish in Montana, this is where else they turn up — the honest picture of which scenes share a travelling field. Follow one to open it up.
On the map (every mapped contest in Montana — tap a pin)
⚔ Compare MT with another region
🗺 Browse every region
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☕
Hey, I’m Ross
Most folks know me as SaucyRossyBBQ . I built this Helper App myself and put it out for free, because I wanted the tool to exist for our sport — no paywall, no account needed.
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