CHOWTOWN SMOKERS CALI

CHOWTOWN SMOKERS CALI is a competition barbecue team with 9 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2017 and 2020. Their best overall finish is 23rd of 36 at the Gilroy Garli-Que BBQ Challenge (2019). They are ranked #3919 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#3,919

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1485

peak 1485 · rated over 8 contests1 invitational or side-series contest not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Jan 27, 2017

latest Jan 24, 2020 · 3 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#856

Master 2020 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podium

Overall top-10s

0% of 9 contests

Avg finish

top 67%

overall standings

Best overall

663.2916 / 720

Master · The Golden State Battle II

Perfect 180s

Current form

656.83 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 646.44 (+10.39)

Walk rate

44%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

176.5600

Pork · The Golden State Battle II

Consistency

±13.42

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 164.11 · weakest Brisket (157.44)

Road miles

1,298

across 9 mapped stops · furthest 215 mi

Schedule strength

60%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1576)

Purse competed for

$58K

listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 4 state-championship entries

Master avg

646.44 / 720

9 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (6 found in their record)

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

High-water mark

663.2916 career-best overall

92.1% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 663.2916 at The Golden State Battle II — 92.1% of a perfect 720.

Master
Jan 24, 2020

A tough matchup

8–0 behind in the head-to-head

BIG POPPA SMOKERS ahead in 100% of their meetings

BIG POPPA SMOKERS has come out ahead in 8 of their 8 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.7 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.67 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 22%.

Brisket avg 157.44
Chicken avg 164.11
0 calls in 9 entries

A strong matchup

6–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 86% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of SMOKIN' AXE BBQ in 6 of their 7 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

7 of 8 shared chicken entries lost

BIG POPPA SMOKERS ahead 88% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, BIG POPPA SMOKERS has out-cooked them in 7 of 8 shared chicken entries.

The metronome

±1.86% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.86% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 89.8% of a perfect score
9 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
2020 ↗	Master	#856 (60 pts)	#874 (70 pts)	#913 (60 pts)	#442 (260 pts)	#883 (60 pts)
2019 ↗	Master	#1196 (190 pts)	#841 (380 pts)	#1285 (180 pts)	#1130 (235 pts)	#1277 (180 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1954 (60 pts)	#1529 (135 pts)	#1996 (60 pts)	#2030 (60 pts)	#1963 (65 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1392 (180 pts)	#1493 (180 pts)	#1506 (180 pts)	#1142 (295 pts)	#1476 (180 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to CHOWTOWN SMOKERS CALI, each with one reason worth a look.

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

Big Back BBQ

#3,930 of the rated field

1485 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1505

Careers of much the same size, 8 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Jun 12, 2026

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Rub'em Right BBQ

#3,895 of the rated field

1485 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1502

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 8 contests, alongside a 13% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Sep 12, 2025

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OPEN FLUE BBQ

#3,927 of the rated field

1485 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1485

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 Jun 4, 2021

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SMOKIN' DOUBLE Z BBQ

#3,909 of the rated field

1485 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1503

Level with CHOWTOWN SMOKERS CALI on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Aug 24, 2018

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JPIG Picture Perfect BBQ

#3,928 of the rated field

1485 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1485

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Jun 26, 2026

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TEAM HOLY SMOKES

#3,903 of the rated field

1485 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1505

Careers of much the same size, 9 contests to 9, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 9 contests
last seen May 3, 2019

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BIG POPPA SMOKERS	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
BAR-B-Q'S-2GO	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKED SEDUCTION	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' AXE BBQ	7	6	1	86%	⚔ compare
RBQ	7	2	5	29%	⚔ compare
Smokey and the Pirate	7	1	6	14%	⚔ compare
Burnin and Lootin	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Old Town Franklin BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
Cynical BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
BAR-B-CUDA BBQ	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
PIRATES OF THE PIG	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
SIMPLY MARVELOUS BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
RIDGE ROUTE BOYS BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
ROYAL SMOKIN' HOT	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
Pops BBQ 22	5	5	0	100%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	9	2	0	173.7372	146.2400	164.11	top 55%
Pork Ribs	9	0	0	165.7144	155.4056	161.50	top 66%
Pork	9	2	1	176.5600	150.8000	163.40	top 53%
Brisket	9	0	0	165.1544	153.6568	157.44	top 70%

“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)	1	0	top 64%
Large (40+)	7	0	top 67%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Silicon Valley BBQ Championship	3	25	0	top 54%	Jun 21, 2019

More numbers

Busiest season 2017 4 contests

Contests a season 2.3 across 4 seasons in the data

Most contests held in CA 9 of 9 contests

Contests visited 7 1 of them more than once

Opponents faced 243 finished ahead 150 times, behind 319

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

20203 milestones

Jan 24 Career-best overall score663.2916 The Golden State Battle II
Jan 24 Career-best single call (Pork)176.5600 The Golden State Battle II
Jan 24 Most recent contest The Golden State Battle II

20181 milestone

Jun 22 First overall past 90% of a perfect score654.8228 Silicon Valley BBQ Championship

20173 milestones

Jan 27 First tracked contest Newport Beach Winter Q
Jan 27 Peak power rating (1490) Newport Beach Winter Q
Jun 23 First call Silicon Valley BBQ Championship

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+4	Silicon Valley BBQ Championship	Jun 22, 2018
+2.1	Silicon Valley BBQ Championship	Jun 23, 2017
+1	The Golden State Battle	Jan 25, 2019

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-9.6	Newport Beach Winter Q	Jan 27, 2017
-6.2	Horse Town Brew B Que Festival ( Judges Full)	Jun 2, 2017
-4.4	Wine Country Big Q Competition and Festival	Jul 7, 2017
-2.1	The Golden State Battle II	Jan 24, 2020
-0.1	Gilroy Garli-Que BBQ Challenge	Jul 26, 2019

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2020	1	100%	top 65%	92.1%	92.1%
2019	3	33%	top 63%	91.3%	91%
2018	1	100%	top 51%	90.9%	90.9%
2017	4	25%	top 73%	89.6%	88%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Jan 24, 2020	The Golden State Battle II 🏅 Hollister, CA	30 / 46 (663.2916)	23 (169.1084)	29 (162.8116)	2 (176.5600)	41 (154.8116)
Jul 26, 2019	Gilroy Garli-Que BBQ Challenge 🏅 Gilroy, CA	23 / 36 (655.9432)	6 (173.7372)	28 (160.5372)	21 (163.4172)	25 (158.2516)
Jun 21, 2019	Silicon Valley BBQ Championship 🏅 unrated Santa Clara, CA	28 (653.0856)	11 (171.9884)	31 (161.1200)	23 (164.5944)	35 (155.3828)
Jan 25, 2019	The Golden State Battle 🏅 Santa Ynez, CA	30 / 48 (657.0052)	22 (169.6912)	27 (165.1200)	20 (168.5372)	44 (153.6568)
Jun 22, 2018	Silicon Valley BBQ Championship Santa Clara, CA	25 / 49 (654.8228)	10 (173.7028)	38 (157.1544)	28 (162.7884)	24 (161.1772)
Jul 7, 2017	Wine Country Big Q Competition and Festival Petaluma, CA	36 / 50 (622.6860)	42 (146.2400)	26 (163.9772)	33 (157.0972)	33 (155.3716)
Jun 23, 2017	Silicon Valley BBQ Championship Santa Clara, CA	35 / 62 (645.1316)	34 (160.0228)	39 (155.4056)	6 (172)	35 (157.7032)
Jun 2, 2017	Horse Town Brew B Que Festival ( Judges Full) Norco, CA	44 / 57 (639.8520)	48 (158.2516)	48 (161.6688)	53 (154.7772)	33 (165.1544)
Jan 27, 2017	Newport Beach Winter Q Newport, CA	49 / 56 (626.1828)	49 (154.2284)	29 (165.7144)	52 (150.8000)	46 (155.4400)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

CHOWTOWN SMOKERS CALI

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 (6 found in their record)

High-water mark

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Chicken nemesis

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

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 — 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)