FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE

FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE is a competition barbecue team with 30 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2015 and 2019. Their best overall finish is 3rd of 25 at the 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship (2016). They are ranked #2297 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#2,297

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1527

peak 1555 · rated over 30 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

Aug 21, 2015

latest Sep 20, 2019 · 4.1 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#376

Master 2018 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

2 podiums

Overall top-10s

7% of 30 contests

Avg finish

top 59%

overall standings

Best overall

678.3660 / 720

Master · 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship

Perfect 180s

Current form

643.15 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 648.53 (-5.38)

Walk rate

60%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

175.4744

Chicken · 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship

Consistency

±17.44

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 163.71 · weakest Brisket (159.43)

Road miles

3,355

across 30 mapped stops · furthest 264 mi

Schedule strength

81%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1605)

Purse competed for

$65K

listed at 7 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 10 state-championship entries

Master avg

648.53 / 720

30 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (12 found in their record)

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

They almost always walk

60% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 18 of 30 contests

A top-10 category call in 60% of their 30 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

678.3660 career-best overall

94.2% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 678.3660 at 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship — 94.2% of a perfect 720.

Master
Sep 9, 2016

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

HOLY SMOKE BBQ-NC has finished one call ahead of FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

23–0 behind in the head-to-head

OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE ahead in 100% of their meetings

OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE has come out ahead in 23 of their 23 shared contests.

The weak link

−4.3 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.28 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 10% of the time against 7%.

Brisket avg 159.43
Chicken avg 163.71
3 calls in 30 entries

A strong matchup

11–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of GRATEFUL 'QUE in 11 of their 11 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

21 of 22 shared chicken entries lost

WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ ahead 95% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ has out-cooked them in 21 of 22 shared chicken entries.

Show 5 more storylines

They cook the hard rooms

1605 average field rating faced

A tougher draw than 81% of rated fields

The fields they enter average a 1605 power rating — a tougher draw than 81% of every rated contest in the data.

30 rated contests

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

3N1 Q has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A March team

Top 48% average finish in March

Something about March: average finish in the top 48% across 4 contests, versus top 59% the rest of the year.

4 March contests
top 59% the rest of the year

The long haul

3,355 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 3,355 miles across 30 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 264 miles to Chillin & Grillin in the Glades.

30 mapped stops
furthest 264 mi

The metronome

±2.42% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.42% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.1% of a perfect score
30 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
2019 ↗	Master	#641 (510 pts)	#669 (510 pts)	#541 (640 pts)	#440 (780 pts)	#604 (565 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#376 (906 pts)	#428 (846 pts)	#383 (927 pts)	#304 (1,069 pts)	#305 (1,061 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#989 (343 pts)	#1105 (313 pts)	#1010 (363 pts)	#920 (413 pts)	#913 (408 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE, each with one reason worth a look.

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

Smokin in the Ozarks

#2,290 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 29
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 7%
Peak: 1536

Careers of much the same size, 29 contests to 30, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 29 contests
last seen Sep 21, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

Monarchbbq

#2,288 of the rated field

1528 power rating

Contests: 27
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 15%
Peak: 1530

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 27 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 27 contests
last seen Jul 24, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

BUTSY-Q

#2,304 of the rated field

1527 power rating

Contests: 32
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 16%
Peak: 1549

32 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 16% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 27 contests
last seen Oct 11, 2024

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MOTLEY QUE CREW

#2,307 of the rated field

1527 power rating

Contests: 41
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 24%
Peak: 1608

Level with FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 40 contests
last seen Oct 30, 2024

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3BBQ

#2,302 of the rated field

1527 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 48%
Peak: 1544

They turned up 6 years after FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE did, first appearing in 2021.

rated over 20 contests
last seen Sep 30, 2026

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Grillfellas

#2,299 of the rated field

1527 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 18%
Peak: 1527

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 17 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 17 contests
last seen Jul 24, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
OLD VIRGINIA SMOKE	23	0	23	0%	⚔ compare
WOLF'S REVENGE BBQ	22	1	21	5%	⚔ compare
BIG DOG BBQ VA	21	11	10	52%	⚔ compare
JD'S SMOKIN MISFITS	21	7	14	33%	⚔ compare
3N1 Q	21	4	17	19%	⚔ compare
APORKALYPSE NOW	20	0	20	0%	⚔ compare
OLD COLONY SMOKEHOUSE	18	5	13	28%	⚔ compare
CHECKERED FLAG 500 BBQ	18	1	17	6%	⚔ compare
FRED VEGAS SMOKERS	16	2	14	13%	⚔ compare
Serial Griller	15	3	12	20%	⚔ compare
PAVONE BROTHERS BBQ	15	2	13	13%	⚔ compare
ROCKIN ROBYNS BBQ	15	1	14	7%	⚔ compare
GRATE SMOKE	14	5	9	36%	⚔ compare
LIFE IS GOOD BUT BBQ IS BETTER	12	2	10	17%	⚔ compare
3 EYZ BBQ	12	0	12	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	30	2	1	175.4744	145.0972	163.71	top 57%
Pork Ribs	30	10	0	171.9772	143.3828	162.83	top 51%
Pork	30	8	1	175.4172	144.5372	162.56	top 53%
Brisket	30	3	0	171.9656	128.4916	159.43	top 57%

“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
Medium (20–39)	14	0	top 56%
Large (40+)	16	0	top 62%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
VA	22	top 58%
NC	4	top 58%
WV	2	top 59%
PA	1	top 61%
DE	1	top 88%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival	2	8	0	top 33%	May 17, 2019
BBQ Gives Back	2	33	0	top 55%	Mar 23, 2018

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 11 contests

Contests a season 6 across 5 seasons in the data

Most contests held in VA 22 of 30 contests · 5 states in all

Contests visited 28 2 of them more than once

Opponents faced 439 finished ahead 539 times, behind 727

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

20193 milestones

Mar 23 25th tracked contest BBQ Gives Back-IV (DAY 2)
May 17 Peak power rating (1555) Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival
Sep 20 Most recent contest Tilley Harley-Davidson Biker Blues BBQ Rally and BBQ Classic

20171 milestone

May 12 10th tracked contest BBQ Jamboree- Day 2 (JUDGES FULL)

20166 milestones

May 13 First call BBQ Jamboree
Sep 9 First overall top-10 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship
Sep 9 First overall podium 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship
Sep 9 First overall past 90% of a perfect score678.3660 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship
Sep 9 Career-best overall score678.3660 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship
Sep 9 Career-best single call (Chicken)175.4744 12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship

20151 milestone

Aug 21 First tracked contest VA BBQ Championships

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16.8	12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship	Sep 9, 2016
+12.3	BBQ Jamboree Double Day 2	May 12, 2018
+11.6	Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival	May 18, 2018
+10	Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition	Apr 27, 2018
+10	13th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship	Sep 8, 2017

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-12.9	Tilley Harley-Davidson Biker Blues BBQ Rally and BBQ Classic	Sep 20, 2019
-9.3	Boo B Que By the Sea	Oct 30, 2015
-9.1	Chillin & Grillin in the Glades	Jul 19, 2019
-7.4	VA BBQ Championships	Aug 21, 2015
-6.9	BBQ Jamboree- Day 2 (JUDGES FULL)	May 12, 2017

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	7	0	57%	top 64%	92.8%	90.1%
2018	11	1	64%	top 51%	93.7%	91.2%
2017	6	0	67%	top 62%	92.4%	89.6%
2016	4	1	75%	top 53%	94.2%	90.1%
2015	2	0	0%	top 85%	87%	85.1%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 20, 2019	Tilley Harley-Davidson Biker Blues BBQ Rally and BBQ Classic 🏅 Salisbury, NC	53 / 56 (618.0344)	14 (169.6800)	51 (157.0744)	33 (162.7884)	56 (128.4916)
Sep 6, 2019	15th annual Recovery Fest/ 10th annual State BBQ Championship (JUDGES FULL) 🏅 Richmond, VA	20 / 31 (646.1712)	24 (159.4172)	9 (165.1200)	19 (163.9656)	20 (157.6684)
Jul 19, 2019	Chillin & Grillin in the Glades 🏅 Wise, VA	26 / 27 (634.0916)	26 (157.6572)	26 (158.8116)	24 (157.0856)	22 (160.5372)
Jun 21, 2019	8th Annual Covington Cork & Pork Festival 🏅 Covington, VA	21 / 32 (653.5316)	19 (162.8344)	10 (166.2400)	15 (165.1088)	21 (159.3484)
May 17, 2019	Kings of Q BBQ Cook-off and Festival 🏅 Ayden, NC	16 / 36 (663.9200)	22 (166.8456)	14 (164.5256)	8 (168.5372)	18 (164.0116)
Mar 23, 2019	BBQ Gives Back-IV (DAY 2) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	22 / 52 (667.8972)	31 (167.3944)	21 (167.9772)	4 (173.1428)	33 (159.3828)
Mar 22, 2019	BBQ Gives Back-III (Day 1) 🏅 Urbanna, VA	26 / 63 (659.8972)	43 (162.8344)	35 (160.5600)	16 (167.3828)	12 (169.1200)
Nov 2, 2018	Currituck Heritage Festival Currituck, NC	18 / 25 (641.5316)	13 (165.0972)	10 (167.3944)	24 (154.2628)	17 (154.7772)
Sep 7, 2018	14th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship 🏅 Richmond, VA	17 / 29 (656.9712)	8 (171.4056)	24 (155.9428)	18 (163.3828)	12 (166.2400)
Aug 31, 2018	West Virginia BBQ Festival (JUDGES FULL) Ranson, WV	28 / 40 (635.7712)	32 (158.2400)	28 (158.8228)	24 (162.7884)	30 (155.9200)
Jul 27, 2018	Smoke in the Grove Spring Grove, PA	33 / 54 (642.1260)	34 (157.6688)	32 (161.0972)	18 (164.5600)	36 (158.8000)
Jun 22, 2018	Covington Cork & Pork Festival Covington, VA	18 / 27 (655.2688)	22 (159.9544)	9 (167.9772)	27 (155.9200)	9 (171.4172)
Jun 15, 2018	Almost Heaven BBQ Bash Weston, WV	28 / 59 (656.4688)	36 (163.3944)	23 (164.0116)	40 (159.9428)	18 (169.1200)
May 18, 2018	Kings of Q BBQ cook off and Festival Ayden, NC	8 / 38 (674.8228)	18 (167.4400)	14 (167.9772)	9 (169.7028)	6 (169.7028)
May 12, 2018	BBQ Jamboree Double Day 2 Fredericksburg, VA	12 / 38 (674.7428)	33 (162.2400)	23 (165.1200)	3 (175.4172)	6 (171.9656)
May 11, 2018	BBQ Jamboree Double Day 1 Fredericksburg, VA	26 / 45 (661.6576)	31 (165.6916)	24 (165.1088)	27 (164.5600)	19 (166.2972)
Apr 27, 2018	Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lenexa, VA	13 / 45 (667.3944)	13 (170.2628)	7 (171.4516)	19 (165.7028)	31 (159.9772)
Mar 23, 2018	BBQ Gives Back Urbanna, VA	33 / 75 (655.8744)	24 (168)	45 (159.9544)	6 (171.9656)	55 (155.9544)
Oct 6, 2017	Que & Cruz Louisa, VA	16 / 28 (640.9488)	17 (161.0972)	16 (159.3944)	10 (162.2400)	14 (158.2172)
Sep 8, 2017	13th Annual Recovery Fest/8th Annual BBQ State Championship 🏅 Richmond, VA	12 / 35 (665.6344)	17 (165.7028)	9 (169.6800)	17 (163.4172)	12 (166.8344)
May 12, 2017	BBQ Jamboree- Day 2 (JUDGES FULL) Fredericksburg, VA	38 / 43 (635.2684)	40 (158.2400)	26 (159.9428)	41 (150.2628)	17 (166.8228)
May 12, 2017	BBQ Jamboree-Day 1 (JUDGES FULL) Fredericksburg, VA	39 / 54 (639.8404)	54 (145.0972)	29 (163.3944)	12 (168.5372)	22 (162.8116)
Apr 28, 2017	4th Annual Pickin N Pullin BBQ competition Lanexa, VA	26 / 46 (642.8116)	11 (169.1772)	6 (170.2744)	42 (149.7144)	33 (153.6456)
Mar 24, 2017	BBQ Gives Back Urbanna, VA	42 / 64 (645.6344)	25 (169.7028)	5 (171.9772)	46 (157.6800)	54 (146.2744)
Sep 9, 2016	12th Annual Recovery Fest/7th Annual BBQ State Championship 🏅 Richmond, VA	3 / 25 (678.3660)	2 (175.4744)	6 (168.5716)	4 (172.6172)	12 (161.7028)
Aug 12, 2016	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Richmond, VA	22 / 28 (636.4800)	22 (158.8456)	26 (150.2744)	7 (169.1316)	19 (158.2284)
Jul 15, 2016	Smoke on the mountain/VA state BBQ championship Galax, VA	19 / 25 (634.1144)	12 (165.1084)	16 (160.5144)	21 (154.8116)	19 (153.6800)
May 13, 2016	BBQ Jamboree Fredericksburg, VA	32 / 72 (644.9716)	55 (156.5256)	8 (171.9772)	47 (158.2516)	39 (158.2172)
Oct 30, 2015	Boo B Que By the Sea Rehobeth Beach, DE	52 / 59 (599.3144)	13 (165.7028)	51 (150.2400)	55 (144.5372)	56 (138.8344)
Aug 21, 2015	VA BBQ Championships Hampton, VA	38 / 46 (626.1940)	18 (164.6056)	43 (143.3828)	34 (159.4056)	28 (158.8000)

FIREHOUSE BAR-B-QUE

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

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)

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Chicken nemesis

They cook the hard rooms

Looking over their shoulder

A March 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)