The comeback
1.8 yrs
off the trail, then back
Off the trail for 1.8 years, then back at Silicon Valley BBQ Championships (Jun 26, 2015).
- last seen Aug 31, 2013
- back Jun 26, 2015
WHERE THERE'S SMOKE
WHERE THERE'S SMOKE is a competition barbecue team with 6 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record in 2018. Their best overall finish is 24th of 27 at the Atlanta BBQ Festival (2018). They finished #2516 in the 2018 Master Series Team of the Year standings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1491
Unranked — needs 5 rated contests, has 1
Contests
6
in the data
First seen
May 5, 2018
latest May 5, 2018
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 6 contests
Avg finish
top 89%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Walk rate
17%
contests with a top-10 call
Strongest meat
Brisket
avg 161.13 · weakest Pork Ribs (147.11)
Road miles
6,816
across 6 mapped stops · furthest 2,580 mi
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 ↗ | Master | #2516 (57 pts) | #2565 (52 pts) | #1992 (62 pts) | #2561 (52 pts) | #1890 (82 pts) |
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to WHERE THERE'S SMOKE, each with one reason worth a look.
WHERE THERE'S SMOKE has 1 rated contest, short of the five a power ranking needs, so its rating is still close to the 1500 every team starts on and 153 rated teams sit within a point of it.
#3,607 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1491
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,623 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 17%
- Peak
- 1516
They turned up 5 years after WHERE THERE'S SMOKE did, first appearing in 2023.
⚔ Compare careers#3,624 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1491
Level with WHERE THERE'S SMOKE on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careers#3,630 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 20%
- Peak
- 1491
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,632 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1491
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careers#3,653 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1490
Careers of much the same size, 5 contests to 6, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Compare careersBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 155.3944 | 153.7028 | 154.55 | top 69% |
| Pork Ribs | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 149.0744 | 145.1428 | 147.11 | top 77% |
| Pork | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 152.5144 | 152.5144 | 152.51 | top 93% |
| Brisket | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 161.1316 | 161.1316 | 161.13 | 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.
More numbers
Busiest season
2018
2 contests
Contests a season
1.2
across 5 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
CA
4 of 6 contests · 3 states in all
Contests visited
1
a different one every time
Opponents faced
26
finished ahead 3 times, behind 23
Longest layoff
1.8 yrs
Aug 31, 2013 → Jun 26, 2015
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20183 milestones
- Career-best overall score618.1148 Atlanta BBQ Festival
- Career-best single call (Brisket)161.1316 Atlanta BBQ Festival
- Most recent contest Silicon Valley BBQ Championship
20132 milestones
- First tracked contest Blues, Views and BBQ (Competitor's Series)
- First call Blues, Views and BBQ (Competitor's Series)
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 89% | 85.8% | 85.8% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 100% | — | — | — |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 22, 2018 | Silicon Valley BBQ Championship Santa Clara, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| May 5, 2018 | Atlanta BBQ Festival Atlanta, GA | 24 / 27 (618.1148) | 25 (155.3944) | 23 (149.0744) | 25 (152.5144) | 19 (161.1316) |
| Jun 23, 2017 | Silicon Valley BBQ Championship Santa Clara, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jun 24, 2016 | Silicon Valley Barbeque Championships Santa Clara, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Jun 26, 2015 | Silicon Valley BBQ Championships Santa Clara, CA | — | — | — | — | — |
| Aug 31, 2013 | Blues, Views and BBQ (Competitor's Series) Westport, CT | — | 10 (153.7028) | 15 (145.1428) | — | — |