GRATE SMOKE

GRATE SMOKE is a competition barbecue team with 37 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2016 and 2020. Their best overall finish is 2nd of 25 at the Que & Cruz (2018), and they have finished Reserve Grand Champion twice. They are ranked #752 of 6,477 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#752

of 6,477 rated · rankings

Rating

1633

peak 1641 · rated over 37 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Apr 29, 2016

latest Nov 6, 2020 · 4.5 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#211

Master 2018 · every season

Grand champs

2 reserve

Category wins

10 podiums

Overall top-10s

32% of 37 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 43%

overall standings

Best overall

684.4800 / 720

Master · Que & Cruz

Perfect 180s

Current form

666.48 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 660.51 (+5.97)

Walk rate

70%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

178.2972

Chicken · Covington Cork & Pork Festival

Consistency

±13.60

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 166.59 · weakest Brisket (163.67)

Road miles

4,438

across 37 mapped stops · furthest 227 mi

Schedule strength

75%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1597)

Purse competed for

$117K

listed at 9 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 10 state-championship entries

Master avg

660.51 / 720

37 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (12 found in their record)

Each card leads with the number behind the story, straight from their results.

The heartbreaker

1.6796 points from the title

Came within 1.6796 points of the Grand Championship at Currituck Heritage Festival (Sep 16, 2016).

They almost always walk

70% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 26 of 37 contests

A top-10 category call in 70% of their 37 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

684.4800 career-best overall

95.1% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 684.4800 at Que & Cruz — 95.1% of a perfect 720.

Master
Oct 5, 2018

The one to beat

3× one call ahead of them

SMOKETASTIC BBQ has finished one call ahead of GRATE SMOKE 3 times — their closest competition in the data.

Their season

2016 their best year

2016 was the year it came together: 5 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 29%.

5 contests
1 overall top-10
0 category wins
average top 29%

A tough matchup

23–9 behind in the head-to-head

OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE ahead in 72% of their meetings

OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE has come out ahead in 23 of their 32 shared contests.

A strong matchup

10–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 83% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Grillin' Thyme in 10 of their 12 shared contests.

Show 5 more storylines

Chicken nemesis

21 of 32 shared chicken entries lost

OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE ahead 66% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE has out-cooked them in 21 of 32 shared chicken entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

BIG DOG BBQ VA has landed one call behind them 2 times.

An October team

Top 26% average finish in October

Something about October: average finish in the top 26% across 5 contests, versus top 43% the rest of the year.

5 October contests
top 43% the rest of the year

The long haul

4,438 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 4,438 miles across 37 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 227 miles to Jiggy With the Piggy.

37 mapped stops
furthest 227 mi

The metronome

±1.89% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.89% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 91.7% of a perfect score
37 contests

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

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2021 ↗	Master	#1083 (98 pts)	#1191 (83 pts)	#1017 (123 pts)	#874 (148 pts)	#1119 (93 pts)
2020 ↗	Master	#769 (95 pts)	#772 (110 pts)	#804 (100 pts)	#682 (125 pts)	#869 (65 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#352 (899 pts)	#496 (689 pts)	#349 (919 pts)	#252 (1,124 pts)	#463 (729 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#211 (1,375 pts)	#214 (1,305 pts)	#204 (1,336 pts)	#195 (1,375 pts)	#214 (1,340 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#339 (1,080 pts)	#291 (1,175 pts)	#266 (1,233 pts)	#391 (983 pts)	#320 (1,146 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#581 (677 pts)	#605 (672 pts)	#751 (532 pts)	#670 (602 pts)	#663 (597 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to GRATE SMOKE, each with one reason worth a look.

HAROLD'S HOT MEAT SMOKERS

#754 of the rated field

1633 power rating

Contests: 44
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 16%
Peak: 1648

Careers of much the same size, 44 contests to 37, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 41 contests
last seen Sep 11, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Eleven Thirteen Q

#749 of the rated field

1634 power rating

Contests: 27
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 26%
Peak: 1634

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 23 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 23 contests
last seen Oct 2, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

SCORE ONE SMOKIN'

#750 of the rated field

1634 power rating

Contests: 63
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 21%
Peak: 1634

63 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 21% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 61 contests
last seen Sep 25, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

RIVER ROAD GRILLBILLIES

#751 of the rated field

1633 power rating

Contests: 82
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 32%
Peak: 1687

Level with GRATE SMOKE on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 81 contests
last seen Sep 15, 2023

⚔ Compare careers

THE TWISTED TAIL

#753 of the rated field

1633 power rating

Contests: 16
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 63%
Peak: 1634

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2016.

rated over 16 contests
last seen Oct 26, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

BRISKET BURNERS

#755 of the rated field

1633 ▼ 1 power rating

Contests: 39
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 31%
Peak: 1669

They've been 1669 at their best, 37 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 39 contests
last seen Jul 26, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE	32	9	23	28%	⚔ compare
BIG DOG BBQ VA	23	16	7	70%	⚔ compare
WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ	23	3	20	13%	⚔ compare
Smoke-A-Holics	21	7	14	33%	⚔ compare
JD'S SMOKIN MISFITS	19	10	9	53%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	19	6	13	32%	⚔ compare
MUTTLEY CREW BBQ	19	3	16	16%	⚔ compare
3N1 Q	19	3	16	16%	⚔ compare
OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE	16	5	11	31%	⚔ compare
REDNECK SCIENTIFIC	16	0	16	0%	⚔ compare
4:20 Q	15	3	12	20%	⚔ compare
CHECKERED FLAG 500 BBQ	15	2	13	13%	⚔ compare
FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE	14	9	5	64%	⚔ compare
APORKALYPSE NOW	14	5	9	36%	⚔ compare
HAMTOWN SMOKERS	14	4	10	29%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	37	10	1	2	178.2972	153.6456	166.59	top 45%
Pork Ribs	37	14	0	2	173.7144	147.8968	165.06	top 43%
Pork	37	13	1	3	177.7028	150.2628	165.18	top 45%
Brisket	37	11	0	3	174.2972	145.1316	163.67	top 45%

“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	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 13%
Medium (20–39)	20	top 46%
Large (40+)	16	top 41%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
VA	21	top 44%
NC	15	top 41%
MD	1	top 31%

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down	3	4	top 22%	Oct 11, 2019
Currituck Heritage Festival	3	2	top 39%	Nov 2, 2018
Jiggy With The Piggy	2	20	top 41%	May 3, 2019
Covington Cork & Pork Festival	2	7	top 39%	Jun 22, 2018
Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-Off	2	3	top 23%	May 18, 2018
BBQ Gives Back	2	41	top 62%	Mar 23, 2018
Beak Week BBQ Challenge	2	11	top 56%	Sep 8, 2017

More numbers

Busiest season 2017 12 contests

Contests a season 7.4 across 5 seasons in the data

Most contests held in VA 21 of 37 contests · 3 states in all

Contests visited 28 7 of them more than once

Opponents faced 459 finished ahead 855 times, behind 595

Longest layoff 1 yrs Nov 1, 2019 → Nov 6, 2020

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

20201 milestone

Nov 6 Most recent contest Currituck Bulls & BBQ

20191 milestone

Oct 11 Peak power rating (1641) Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down

20182 milestones

Sep 7 25th tracked contest 14th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship
Oct 5 Career-best overall score684.4800 Que & Cruz

20173 milestones

May 19 10th tracked contest Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-Off
Jun 23 First category win (Chicken) Covington Cork & Pork Festival
Jun 23 Career-best single call (Chicken)178.2972 Covington Cork & Pork Festival

20166 milestones

Apr 29 First tracked contest 3rd Annual Pickin' N Pullin
Apr 29 First overall past 90% of a perfect score666.1712 3rd Annual Pickin' N Pullin
May 20 First call Chesapeake Jubilee
Sep 16 First overall top-10 Currituck Heritage Festival
Sep 16 First overall podium Currituck Heritage Festival
Sep 16 First Reserve Championship Currituck Heritage Festival

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16.4	Currituck Heritage Festival	Sep 16, 2016
+15.8	Que & Cruz	Oct 5, 2018
+15	BBQ Gives Back-III (Day 1)	Mar 22, 2019
+14.3	Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-Off	May 19, 2017
+13.5	Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down	Oct 13, 2017

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-10.3	Beak Week BBQ Challenge	Sep 8, 2017
-8.6	Smithfield BBQ Classic	Aug 4, 2017
-7.7	Currituck Heritage Festival	Sep 15, 2017
-5.9	14th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship	Sep 7, 2018
-4.3	Currituck Heritage Bulls & BBQ Festival	Nov 1, 2019

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2020	1	0	0	100%	top 57%	93.6%	93.6%
2019	8	2	1	75%	top 41%	94.4%	92.3%
2018	11	6	0	73%	top 36%	95.1%	92.5%
2017	12	3	1	67%	top 55%	94.4%	90.3%
2016	5	1	0	60%	top 29%	94.2%	92.3%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Nov 6, 2020	Currituck Bulls & BBQ 🏅 Powells Point, NC	16 / 28 (673.6116)	19 (168.5372)	11 (168.5600)	8 (171.9772)	17 (164.5372)
Nov 1, 2019	Currituck Heritage Bulls & BBQ Festival 🏅 Powells Point, NC	16 / 25 (656.3656)	13 (167.3828)	15 (164.5256)	10 (170.8228)	22 (153.6344)
Oct 11, 2019	Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down 🏅 Rocky Mount, NC	13 / 32 (664.4228)	22 (162.8000)	11 (165.6800)	5 (174.2972)	18 (161.6456)
Jun 21, 2019	8th Annual Covington Cork & Pork Festival 🏅 Covington, VA	9 / 32 (671.8396)	28 (155.9084)	4 (173.1084)	1 (177.7028)	13 (165.1200)
May 17, 2019	Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival 🏅 Ayden, NC	14 / 36 (666.1484)	12 (169.6916)	29 (157.0856)	12 (167.9656)	5 (171.4056)
May 3, 2019	Jiggy With The Piggy 🏅 Kannapolis, NC	20 / 60 (668.9828)	22 (167.9772)	9 (170.8228)	24 (166.2400)	33 (163.9428)
Apr 26, 2019	BBQ Capital Cook Off 🏅 Lexington, NC	22 / 43 (653.5312)	27 (161.6800)	24 (162.8000)	17 (166.8228)	22 (162.2284)
Mar 23, 2019	BBQ Gives Back-IV (DAY 2) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	33 / 52 (653.5424)	30 (167.9772)	35 (162.2284)	40 (158.7884)	24 (164.5484)
Mar 22, 2019	BBQ Gives Back-III (Day 1) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	4 / 63 (679.3372)	11 (171.4172)	8 (170.2744)	5 (173.1200)	23 (164.5256)
Nov 2, 2018	Currituck Heritage Festival Currituck, NC	6 / 25 (675.9084)	5 (171.4172)	6 (169.7028)	15 (162.8228)	8 (171.9656)
Oct 12, 2018	Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down Rocky Mount, NC	4 / 39 (674.2632)	19 (162.2744)	9 (167.9772)	5 (172.5944)	4 (171.4172)
Oct 5, 2018	Que & Cruz Louisa, VA	2 / 25 (684.4800)	3 (170.8344)	2 (173.7144)	2 (174.2628)	9 (165.6684)
Sep 7, 2018	14th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship 🏅 Richmond, VA	22 / 29 (635.7708)	22 (161.1200)	27 (147.8968)	17 (167.4056)	21 (159.3484)
Aug 17, 2018	Smokin on The Dock of the Bay Crisfield, MD	10 / 32 (662.2172)	18 (162.2284)	14 (160.5716)	9 (166.2744)	4 (173.1428)
Aug 3, 2018	Pigs & Pedals Asheboro, NC	16 / 48 (677.6000)	6 (174.8572)	32 (159.9428)	11 (171.9772)	17 (170.8228)
Jun 22, 2018	Covington Cork & Pork Festival Covington, VA	15 / 27 (663.8052)	23 (159.9428)	10 (167.3828)	17 (163.9312)	7 (172.5484)
May 18, 2018	Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-Off Chesapeake, VA	10 / 27 (661.6568)	5 (170.8572)	10 (165.1540)	18 (157.6684)	5 (167.9772)
May 4, 2018	Jiggy With the Piggy Kannapolis, NC	34 / 70 (663.8396)	11 (175.4056)	13 (171.4172)	69 (150.7540)	35 (166.2628)
Apr 27, 2018	Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lenexa, VA	8 / 45 (678.1944)	15 (167.9772)	10 (169.6800)	3 (176)	22 (164.5372)
Mar 23, 2018	BBQ Gives Back Urbanna, VA	41 / 75 (648.4684)	43 (163.9656)	18 (168.5600)	69 (150.2628)	29 (165.6800)
Oct 13, 2017	Eastern Carolina BBQ Throw Down Rocky Mount, NC	7 / 50 (679.9200)	14 (171.9656)	20 (165.6916)	17 (167.9656)	2 (174.2972)
Oct 6, 2017	Devon Grube Memorial BBQ Classic Virginia Beach, VA	13 / 23 (645.0400)	14 (163.9772)	15 (161.6800)	8 (167.9772)	20 (151.4056)
Sep 15, 2017	Currituck Heritage Festival Powells Point, NC	20 / 25 (642.6972)	18 (162.8000)	13 (164.5372)	18 (162.2400)	21 (153.1200)
Sep 8, 2017	Beak Week BBQ Challenge Goldsboro, NC	34 / 39 (637.5428)	22 (166.2744)	36 (154.8228)	26 (161.6456)	36 (154.8000)
Aug 18, 2017	Big Bad BBQ in Boydton Boydton, VA	17 / 31 (647.3144)	10 (169.6800)	5 (170.2628)	15 (162.2400)	24 (145.1316)
Aug 4, 2017	Smithfield BBQ Classic Smithfield, VA	24 / 28 (641.5888)	26 (156.5372)	22 (160)	21 (159.9544)	9 (165.0972)
Jun 23, 2017	Covington Cork & Pork Festival Covington, VA	7 / 32 (665.6000)	1 (178.2972)	8 (167.9772)	17 (163.3944)	25 (155.9312)
May 19, 2017	Chesapeake Jubilee BBQ Cook-Off Chesapeake, VA	3 / 34 (659.9660)	7 (166.8456)	5 (170.2628)	18 (156.5604)	3 (166.2972)
May 12, 2017	BBQ Jamboree- Day 2 (JUDGES FULL) Fredericksburg, VA	28 / 43 (644.9484)	22 (168.5256)	29 (158.8000)	39 (154.8116)	24 (162.8112)
May 12, 2017	BBQ Jamboree-Day 1 (JUDGES FULL) Fredericksburg, VA	30 / 54 (651.8056)	20 (166.8112)	41 (159.3600)	38 (157.6572)	12 (167.9772)
Apr 28, 2017	4th Annual Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lanexa, VA	29 / 46 (642.1600)	25 (163.9772)	33 (154.8228)	7 (169.7028)	32 (153.6572)
Mar 24, 2017	BBQ Gives Back Urbanna, VA	44 / 64 (642.6856)	59 (153.6456)	3 (173.1200)	50 (156.5372)	33 (159.3828)
Sep 16, 2016	Currituck Heritage Festival Powells Point, NC	2 / 16 (668.5144)	6 (165.6916)	5 (167.3828)	7 (163.9772)	3 (171.4628)
Sep 9, 2016	Beak Week BBQ Challenge Goldsboro, NC	11 / 44 (678.2404)	10 (171.9772)	17 (169.6800)	5 (173.1660)	22 (163.4172)
May 20, 2016	Chesapeake Jubilee Chesapeake, VA	12 / 26 (647.8632)	4 (168.5372)	15 (161.6916)	14 (161.1316)	15 (156.5028)
May 13, 2016	BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA	20 / 72 (662.7204)	32 (164.5256)	17 (167.3944)	21 (164.5488)	19 (166.2516)
Apr 29, 2016	3rd Annual Pickin' N Pullin Lanexa, VA	16 / 48 (666.1712)	13 (169.6800)	24 (162.8000)	20 (166.2856)	14 (167.4056)

GRATE SMOKE

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (12 found in their record)

The heartbreaker

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

Their season

A tough matchup

A strong matchup

Chicken nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

An October team

The long haul

The metronome

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

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

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

By meat

By field size and state

By contest size

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)

More numbers

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

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

📉 Toughest weekends

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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

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

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