SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#2552

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1518

peak 1518 · rated over 13 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-04-05

latest 2015-06-19

Best ToY finish

#617

Master 2014

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

5 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 13 contests

Avg finish

top 53%

overall standings

Best overall

686.2516 / 720

Master · Best Dam Barbecue

Perfect 180s

Current form

668.76 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 648.14 (+20.62)

Walk rate

54%

contests with a top-10 call

Top-10 streak

and counting

Best single call

178.8572

Pork · Best Dam Barbecue

Consistency

±27.78

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 164.87 · weakest Brisket (156.20)

Road miles

2,271

mi across 13 mapped stops · furthest 398 mi

Schedule strength

24%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1532)

Master avg

648.14 / 720

13 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (9 found in this team's record)

Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.

On the rise

+34 rating points in a year

Their power rating has climbed 34 points across 5 contests since 2014-10-02 — from 1484 up to 1518.

5 contests since 2014-10-02
now 1518

High-water mark

686.2516 career-best overall

95.3% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 686.2516 at Best Dam Barbecue — 95.3% of a perfect 720.

Master
2015-05-22

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

R&R BBQ has finished one call ahead of SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2015 their best year

2015 was the year it came together: 3 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 1 category win, at an average finish in the top 31%.

3 contests
2 overall top-10s
1 category wins
average top 31%

A tough matchup

8–0 behind in the head-to-head

Rooftop BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

Rooftop BBQ has come out ahead in 8 of their 8 shared contests.

The weak link

−8.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 8.67 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 15% of the time against 38%.

Brisket avg 156.20
Chicken avg 164.87
2 calls in 13 entries

Chicken nemesis

6 of 7 shared chicken entries lost

THE PIT CREW BBQ OF AZ ahead 86% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, THE PIT CREW BBQ OF AZ has out-cooked them in 6 of 7 shared chicken entries.

Announced themselves early

5th at their very first contest

Finished 5 of 29 at their very first tracked contest, Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (2013-04-05).

2013-04-05
29-team field

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

HD BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.

88 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.

TRAILHOUND SMOKERS

#2537 of the rated field

1518 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1518

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER)

One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2016-04-08

⚔ Head-to-head

BBQ PIT STOP

#2543 of the rated field

1518 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 50%
Peak: 1518

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER)

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2015-07-24

⚔ Head-to-head

TOMBSTONE BBQ

#2548 of the rated field

1518 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1532

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER)

Fewer contests behind them than SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER has cooked, 8 to 13, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2015-04-03

⚔ Head-to-head

THIRD SWINES CHARM

#2559 of the rated field

1518 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 23%
Peak: 1518

No shared contest yet.

13 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 23% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 13 contests
last seen 2026-05-29

⚔ Head-to-head

Sloppy Hogs

#2538 of the rated field

1518 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 31%
Peak: 1521

No shared contest yet.

Level with SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2025-11-05

⚔ Head-to-head

Saturday Night Swine

#2563 of the rated field

1518 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 12
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 33%
Peak: 1521

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 8 years after SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER did, first appearing in 2021.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2024-10-11

⚔ Head-to-head

Familiar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Rhythm n QUE	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare
Rooftop BBQ	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
THE PIT CREW BBQ OF AZ	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
LEFT COAST Q	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
BIG POPPA SMOKERS	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
HD BBQ	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare
VOODOO ZOMBQUE	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
Bad Boyz BBQ	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
KNIFE PORK AND SPOON	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
ZZYZX BAR.B.Q	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	13	5	0	2	173.7028	150.2856	164.87	top 47%
Pork Ribs	13	6	0	2	173.7144	149.7142	163.99	top 41%
Pork	13	4	1	1	178.8572	152.5372	163.10	top 54%
Brisket	13	2	0	0	170.3428	127.9996	156.20	top 63%

“Calls” = top-10 category finishes (getting called to the stage). Scores here are the final weighted totals KCBS publishes; per-criterion appearance/taste/tenderness marks aren’t in the public results feed.

By state / province

Where	Contests	Avg finish
NV	7	top 54%
CA	3	top 73%
UT	2	top 24%
AZ	1	top 46%

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 72%
Medium (20–39)	10	top 47%
Large (40+)	2	top 74%

The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 2.2 yrs 2013-04-05 → 2015-06-19

Busiest season 2014 6 contests

Contests a season 4.3 across 3 seasons in the data

Cooks most in NV 7 of 13 contests · 4 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 13 0 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 13 entries · 0 wins · 5 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 164.87 · weakest Brisket (156.20)

Walk rate 54% a top-10 call in 7 of 13 contests

Overall top-10 rate 38% 5 of 13 contests

Best top-10 run 2 straight contests — and still running

Master average 648.14 out of 720 · 13 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 280 217–237 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 2,271 13 mapped stops · furthest 398 mi

Schedule strength 1532 average field rating faced — tougher than 24% of rated contests

Power rating 1518 peak 1518 · #2552 of 6,413 rated

Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)

2013
Apr 5 First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 5 First call Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 5 First overall top-10 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 5 First overall past 90% of a perfect score655.9994 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
2014
Dec 12 10th tracked contest 2014 Down Town Throw Down
2015
May 22 First category win (Pork) Best Dam Barbecue
May 22 Career-best overall score686.2516 Best Dam Barbecue
May 22 Career-best single call (Pork)178.8572 Best Dam Barbecue
Jun 19 Peak power rating (1518) YCC - Real Men Can Cook BBQ Comp
Jun 19 Most recent contest YCC - Real Men Can Cook BBQ Comp

Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16	10th Annual Best Dam Barbecue Challenge	2014-05-23
+13	Best Dam Barbecue	2015-05-22
+11.4	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2013-04-05
+8.8	2014 Down Town Throw Down	2014-12-12
+8.6	YCC - Real Men Can Cook BBQ Comp	2015-06-19

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-12.1	The Guinea Pig (Competitor's Series)	2014-02-21
-11	9th Annual Best Dam Barbecue Challenge	2013-05-24
-10.2	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)	2013-04-19
-4.6	Downtown Throw Down Barbecue Championship	2013-12-13
-3.5	Havasu Landing California BBQ Championship	2014-02-28

Category scores over time

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Team of the Year rank by season

Season by season

Season	Contests	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2015	3	2	1	100%	top 31%	95.3%	93.3%
2014	6	2	0	50%	top 56%	94.7%	90.2%
2013	4	1	0	25%	top 66%	91.1%	87.3%

Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2015-06-19	YCC - Real Men Can Cook BBQ Comp Ogden, UT	7 / 23 (665.1776)	3 (169.1772)	6 (165.1544)	9 (166.8344)	9 (164.0116)
2015-05-22	Best Dam Barbecue Boulder City, NV	6 / 38 (686.2516)	14 (170.2744)	9 (169.1200)	1 (178.8572)	15 (168.0000)
2015-05-01	Show Low BBQ Throwdown Show Low, AZ	16 / 35 (664.4916)	7 (172.0000)	3 (173.7144)	29 (152.5372)	15 (166.2400)
2014-12-12	2014 Down Town Throw Down Las Vegas, NV	9 / 26 (670.2172)	5 (171.4172)	5 (169.7488)	6 (169.1084)	21 (159.9428)
2014-10-02	Dana Point State BBQ Championship Dana Point, CA	50 / 97 (657.6576)	22 (171.4172)	42 (166.2744)	66 (161.1088)	60 (158.8572)
2014-05-23	10th Annual Best Dam Barbecue Challenge Boulder City, NV	4 / 35 (681.7256)	4 (173.7028)	2 (173.1200)	15 (164.5600)	6 (170.3428)
2014-05-01	Smoke on the Water NEVADA BBQ Championship Laughlin, NV	13 / 18 (646.6628)	15 (159.3716)	9 (165.6800)	13 (163.3712)	11 (158.2400)
2014-02-28	Havasu Landing California BBQ Championship Havasu Landing, CA	20 / 28 (637.5432)	24 (159.9888)	16 (161.6572)	20 (162.8000)	21 (153.0972)
2014-02-21	The Guinea Pig (Competitor's Series) Indio, CA	46 / 48 (602.0572)	46 (151.3828)	20 (159.4172)	31 (156.5256)	48 (134.7316)
2013-12-13	Downtown Throw Down Barbecue Championship Las Vegas, NV	19 / 25 (642.0684)	12 (168.5256)	19 (159.3600)	21 (158.8228)	19 (155.3600)
2013-05-24	9th Annual Best Dam Barbecue Challenge Boulder City, NV	30 / 35 (588.5704)	28 (150.2856)	30 (149.7142)	16 (160.5710)	34 (127.9996)
2013-04-19	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) Las Vegas, NV	25 / 30 (627.4288)	26 (154.2858)	12 (161.1428)	23 (158.8572)	26 (153.1430)
2013-04-05	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	5 / 29 (655.9994)	3 (171.4286)	16 (157.7140)	9 (166.2856)	12 (160.5712)

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)

Team of the Year standings (rank per category by season — year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2015 ↗	Master	#798 (433 pts)	#734 (503 pts)	#699 (543 pts)	#779 (478 pts)	#964 (353 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#617 (602 pts)	#615 (627 pts)	#534 (737 pts)	#714 (532 pts)	#730 (507 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#922 (319 pts)	#803 (404 pts)	#1225 (239 pts)	#1001 (314 pts)	#1121 (259 pts)