High-water mark
674.8460
career-best overall
93.7% of a perfect 720
Their best day on record: 674.8460 at *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash — 93.7% of a perfect 720.
- Master
- 2017-07-21
SWEET SMOKE RING BBQ
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1466
peak 1514 · rated over 8 contests ⓘ
Contests
8
in the data
First seen
2017-07-21
latest 2018-09-28
Best ToY finish
#971
Master 2018
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
1 podiums
Overall top-10s
1
of 8 contests
Avg finish
top 77%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
632.89 ▼
last 5 Master vs avg 638.31 (-5.42)
Walk rate
13%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±20.40
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 161.55 · weakest Pork Ribs (157.12)
Road miles
514
mi across 8 mapped stops · furthest 89 mi
Schedule strength
81%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1605)
Master avg
638.31 / 720
8 Master contests · 0 GCs
Storylines (8 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.
The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
MYASSIS SMOKIN has finished one call ahead of SWEET SMOKE RING BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Their season
2017
their best year
2017 was the year it came together: 3 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 57%.
- 3 contests
- 1 overall top-10s
- 0 category wins
- average top 57%
A tough matchup
8–0
behind in the head-to-head
LUCKY'S Q ahead in 100% of their meetings
LUCKY'S Q has come out ahead in 8 of their 8 shared contests.
The weak link
−4.4
points behind their best meat
Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 4.42 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 0%.
- Pork Ribs avg 157.12
- Chicken avg 161.55
- 0 calls in 8 entries
A strong matchup
3–0
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 100% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of 3 THIRDS BBQ in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
Chicken nemesis
7 of 8
shared chicken entries lost
LUCKY'S Q ahead 88% of the time
Even in their strongest meat, LUCKY'S Q has out-cooked them in 7 of 8 shared chicken entries.
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.
- 8 rated contests
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.
134 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#4836 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1466
1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to SWEET SMOKE RING BBQ)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SWEET SMOKE RING BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#4834 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1466
No shared contest yet.
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Head-to-head#4843 of the rated field
- Contests
- 8
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 8 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#4845 of the rated field
- Contests
- 10
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1465
No shared contest yet.
Level with SWEET SMOKE RING BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#4858 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
No shared contest yet.
They've been 1502 at their best, 37 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.
⚔ Head-to-head#4833 of the rated field
- Contests
- 7
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1466
No shared contest yet.
They turned up 5 years after SWEET SMOKE RING BBQ did, first appearing in 2022.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LUCKY'S Q | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| LUCKY 19 SAUCE COMPANY | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| Hogline | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| MYASSIS SMOKIN | 6 | 1 | 5 | 17% | ⚔ compare |
| SPITFIRE | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| CROIX VALLEY SAUCES | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BLACK DOG BBQ IA | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
| REBEL FIRE QUE'N COMPANY | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| SHIGGIN & GRINNIN | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| NECTAR OF THE HOGS | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| CASE OF RIBS | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 171.4172 | 155.9544 | 161.55 | top 73% |
| Pork Ribs | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 163.4516 | 148.5144 | 157.12 | top 78% |
| Pork | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 172.0000 | 143.3372 | 159.46 | top 69% |
| Brisket | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 178.2972 | 149.0972 | 160.18 | top 66% |
“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 | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| MN | 6 | 0 | top 85% |
| IA | 2 | 0 | top 53% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 1 | 0 | top 90% |
| Large (40+) | 7 | 0 | top 75% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash | 2 | 8 | 0 | top 53% | 2018-09-28 |
| *Mankato Cookout (Day 2) | 2 | 35 | 0 | top 85% | 2018-06-09 |
The story so far (14 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
1.2 yrs
2017-07-21 → 2018-09-28
Busiest season
2018
5 contests
Contests a season
4
across 2 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
MN
6 of 8 contests · 2 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
6
2 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
8 entries · 0 wins · 0 calls
Strongest meat
Chicken
averages 161.55 · weakest Pork Ribs (157.12)
Walk rate
13%
a top-10 call in 1 of 8 contests
Overall top-10 rate
13%
1 of 8 contests
Master average
638.31
out of 720 · 8 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
191
89–283 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
514
8 mapped stops · furthest 89 mi
Schedule strength
1605
average field rating faced — tougher than 81% of rated contests
Power rating
1466
peak 1514 · #4837 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2017
- First tracked contest *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- First call *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- First overall top-10 *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score674.8460 *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- Career-best overall score674.8460 *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- Career-best single call (Brisket)178.2972 *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- Peak power rating (1514) *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
- 2018
- Most recent contest *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +14.2 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash | 2017-07-21 |
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -12.2 | Minnesota in May | 2018-05-11 |
| -8.5 | 11th Annual Big Island BBQ | 2018-08-24 |
| -8 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash | 2018-09-28 |
| -6.8 | SMSU Smokefest | 2017-08-18 |
| -5.7 | *Mankato Cookout (Day 2) | 2018-06-09 |
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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 89% | 91.5% | 87.9% |
| 2017 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33% | top 57% | 93.7% | 89.9% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-09-28 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash Mason City, IA | 26 / 29 (614.6860) | 23 (155.9544) | 16 (157.6800) | 29 (146.8000) | 25 (154.2516) |
| 2018-08-24 | 11th Annual Big Island BBQ Alberta Lea, MN | 44 / 49 (625.5428) | 41 (160.0116) | 46 (154.8228) | 36 (157.6456) | 39 (153.0628) |
| 2018-06-09 | *Mankato Cookout (Day 2) Mankato, MN | 38 / 42 (652.0000) | 41 (158.8228) | 40 (156.5828) | 21 (168.5944) | 22 (168.0000) |
| 2018-06-08 | *Mankato Cookout (Day 1) Mankato, MN | 35 / 44 (658.7544) | 14 (171.4172) | 38 (156.5488) | 35 (165.0972) | 32 (165.6912) |
| 2018-05-11 | Minnesota in May Falcon Heights, MN | 66 / 70 (613.4744) | 60 (158.8228) | 56 (158.2516) | 69 (143.3372) | 61 (153.0628) |
| 2017-08-25 | 10th Annual Big Island BBQ Albert Lea, MN | 41 / 56 (635.2228) | 31 (167.4056) | 52 (148.5144) | 40 (159.3600) | 32 (159.9428) |
| 2017-08-18 | SMSU Smokefest Marshall, MN | 33 / 41 (631.9316) | 34 (158.8456) | 29 (161.1316) | 24 (162.8572) | 36 (149.0972) |
| 2017-07-21 | *Up in Smoke BBQ Bash Mason City, IA | 8 / 49 (674.8460) | 32 (161.0972) | 26 (163.4516) | 11 (172.0000) | 2 (178.2972) |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 ↗ | Master | #971 (294 pts) | #912 (359 pts) | #966 (339 pts) | #993 (314 pts) | #980 (309 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #1115 (275 pts) | #1493 (180 pts) | #1506 (180 pts) | #1249 (255 pts) | #948 (380 pts) |