High-water mark
678.1712
career-best overall
94.2% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 678.1712 at Bootleggin' BBQ — 94.2% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- Aug 22, 2014
DAKOTA BBQ
DAKOTA BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 5 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2015. Their best overall finish is 7th of 17 at the Bootleggin' BBQ (2014). They are ranked #2565 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1518
peak 1518 · rated over 5 contests
Contests
5
in the data
First seen
May 3, 2013
latest Jan 9, 2015 · 1.7 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
2
40% of 5 contests
Best top-10 run
2
straight overall top-10s, still running
Avg finish
top 43%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
60%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±17.17
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 165.35 · weakest Brisket (162.27)
Road miles
439
across 5 mapped stops · furthest 241 mi
Schedule strength
18%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1526)
Master avg
656.62 / 720
5 Master contests · 0 GCs
Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to DAKOTA BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.
83 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#2,576 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1518
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#2,571 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 40%
- Peak
- 1520
Level with DAKOTA BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#2,553 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 40%
- Peak
- 1532
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#2,575 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1518
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#2,569 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1518
They turned up 12 years after DAKOTA BBQ did, first appearing in 2025.
⚔ Compare careers#2,577 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 33%
- Peak
- 1524
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backdraft BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| G "QUE" | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BURNIN BOBS BUTTS N BONES | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 171.4056 | 158.2854 | 165.35 | top 45% |
| Pork Ribs | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 171.4284 | 153.7028 | 163.77 | top 45% |
| Pork | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 171.4056 | 157.1426 | 165.24 | top 46% |
| Brisket | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 169.6800 | 157.1316 | 162.27 | top 47% |
“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 field size and state
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 2 | 0 | top 61% |
| Medium (20–39) | 1 | 0 | top 42% |
| Large (40+) | 2 | 0 | top 25% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bootleggin' BBQ | 2 | 7 | 0 | top 61% | Aug 22, 2014 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2013
3 contests
Contests a season
1.7
across 3 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
CO
4 of 5 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited
4
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
126
finished ahead 109 times, behind 58
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20152 milestones
- Peak power rating (1518) National Western BBQ Throwdown
- Most recent contest National Western BBQ Throwdown
20144 milestones
- First overall top-10 Bootleggin' BBQ
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score678.1712 Bootleggin' BBQ
- Career-best overall score678.1712 Bootleggin' BBQ
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)171.4284 Bootleggin' BBQ
20132 milestones
- First tracked contest North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival
- First call Bootleggin' BBQ
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +10.8 | National Western BBQ Throwdown | Jan 9, 2015 |
| +7.5 | Colorado Barbecue Challenge | Jun 14, 2013 |
| +5.3 | Bootleggin' BBQ | Aug 22, 2014 |
| +3.5 | North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival | May 3, 2013 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -9 | Bootleggin' BBQ | Aug 23, 2013 |
Scores over time (% of a perfect score — tap a meat to add it)
Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)
Where they finish (overall)
Best vs average (by meat)
How entries end (by meat)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 25% | 94% | 94% |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 100% | top 41% | 94.2% | 94.2% |
| 2013 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33% | top 49% | 89.4% | 89.3% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 9, 2015 | National Western BBQ Throwdown Denver, CO | 10 / 40 (677.0512) | 11 (171.4056) | 20 (164.5600) | 8 (171.4056) | 10 (169.6800) |
| Aug 22, 2014 | Bootleggin' BBQ Garden City, CO | 7 / 17 (678.1712) | 10 (168.5372) | 5 (171.4284) | 9 (168.5256) | 7 (169.6800) |
| Aug 23, 2013 | Bootleggin' BBQ Garden City, CO | 13 / 16 (641.0284) | 9 (163.9312) | 14 (153.7028) | 10 (166.2628) | 11 (157.1316) |
| Jun 14, 2013 | Colorado Barbecue Challenge Frisco, CO | 17 / 68 (642.8566) | 13 (164.5714) | 16 (163.9998) | 31 (157.1426) | 22 (157.1428) |
| May 3, 2013 | North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival North Platte, NE | 16 / 38 (643.9996) | 24 (158.2854) | 13 (165.1430) | 18 (162.8570) | 25 (157.7142) |