SMOKE AIN'T NO JOKE

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#4204

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1479

peak 1479 · rated over 8 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2017-04-07

latest 2026-05-01

Best ToY finish

#490

Master 2020

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

1 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 8 contests

Avg finish

top 71%

overall standings

Best overall

678.2288 / 720

Master · Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash

Perfect 180s

Current form

667.21 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 664.77 (+2.44)

Walk rate

50%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

176.5828

Pork Ribs · Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash

Consistency

±8.39

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 168.91 · weakest Brisket (161.70)

Road miles

833

mi across 8 mapped stops · furthest 244 mi

Schedule strength

64%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1580)

Purse competed for

$27K

listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

GCs in 5 state-championship entries

Master avg

664.77 / 720

8 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (7 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.

High-water mark

678.2288 career-best overall

94.2% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 678.2288 at Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash — 94.2% of a perfect 720.

Master
2026-05-01

A tough matchup

8–0 behind in the head-to-head

CROOKED PIGS ahead in 100% of their meetings

CROOKED PIGS has come out ahead in 8 of their 8 shared contests.

The weak link

−7.2 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 7.21 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 25% of the time against 38%.

Brisket avg 161.70
Chicken avg 168.91
2 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 BEEHIVE BARBEQUE in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

The comeback

4 yrs off the trail, then back

Off the trail for 4 years, then back at Pitmaster's NorUt State BBQ Championship (2024-06-21).

last seen 2020-06-19
back 2024-06-21

Chicken nemesis

6 of 8 shared chicken entries lost

CROOKED PIGS ahead 75% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, CROOKED PIGS has out-cooked them in 6 of 8 shared chicken entries.

The metronome

±1.17% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.17% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 92.3% of a perfect score
8 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.

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

BBQ PIT KING

#4203 of the rated field

1479 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1479

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.

rated over 8 contests
last seen 2019-10-04

⚔ Head-to-head

DOUBLE DOWN BBQ

#4180 of the rated field

1479 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1500

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2019, 7 years before SMOKE AIN'T NO JOKE's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 8 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

SALT CREEK SMOKERS

#4179 of the rated field

1479 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1479

No shared contest yet.

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

rated over 9 contests
last seen 2021-07-30

⚔ Head-to-head

Alotta BS BBQ

#4217 of the rated field

1478 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 14%
Peak: 1511

No shared contest yet.

They turned up 5 years after SMOKE AIN'T NO JOKE did, first appearing in 2022.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2026-08-07

⚔ Head-to-head

Leaky Tiki

#4212 of the rated field

1478 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 14%
Peak: 1502

No shared contest yet.

Level with SMOKE AIN'T NO JOKE on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 7 contests
last seen 2025-06-14

⚔ Head-to-head

Sherman's Retreat BBQ

#4219 of the rated field

1478 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 7
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1478

No shared contest yet.

Their last contest in the data was back in 2023, 3 years before SMOKE AIN'T NO JOKE's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 7 contests

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
CROOKED PIGS	8	0	8	0%	⚔ compare
UTAH BBQ COMPANY	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	8	3	0	173.1316	165.1544	168.91	top 58%
Pork Ribs	8	3	1	176.5828	158.8116	166.19	top 58%
Pork	8	2	0	173.1200	163.9428	167.97	top 61%
Brisket	8	2	0	169.7260	149.6800	161.70	top 71%

“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
UT	7	0	top 71%
NV	1	0	top 73%

By contest size

Field	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	4	0	top 68%
Medium (20–39)	4	0	top 74%

The story so far (17 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 9.1 yrs 2017-04-07 → 2026-05-01

Busiest season 2017 3 contests

Contests a season 1.6 across 5 seasons in the data

Cooks most in UT 7 of 8 contests · 2 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 8 0 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 8 entries · 0 wins · 3 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 168.91 · weakest Brisket (161.70)

Walk rate 50% a top-10 call in 4 of 8 contests

Overall top-10 rate 25% 2 of 8 contests

Master average 664.77 out of 720 · 8 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 121 55–132 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 833 8 mapped stops · furthest 244 mi

Schedule strength 1580 average field rating faced — tougher than 64% of rated contests

Purse competed for $26,800 listed at 4 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships 0 from 5 state-championship entries

Longest layoff 4 yrs 2020-06-19 → 2024-06-21

Power rating 1479 peak 1479 · #4204 of 6,413 rated

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

2017
Apr 7 First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 7 First call Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 7 First overall past 90% of a perfect score649.0288 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 7 Peak power rating (1495) Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Jun 16 First overall top-10 Q'n With Kia-Kia-Kia
2026
May 1 Career-best overall score678.2288 Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash
May 1 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)176.5828 Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash
May 1 Most recent contest Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+3.9	Red Rock BBQ	2020-01-03

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-6.4	Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash	2026-05-01
-6.3	Pitmaster's NorUt State BBQ Championship	2024-06-21
-5.1	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2017-04-07
-3.3	Wild West BBQ Shoot Out	2017-08-25
-2.8	*Traeger NorUt State Championship	2018-06-29

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	Top-10s	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2026	1	0	100%	top 84%	94.2%	94.2%
2024	1	0	0%	top 83%	92.1%	92.1%
2020	2	1	50%	top 61%	93.5%	92.8%
2018	1	0	0%	top 68%	91.4%	91.4%
2017	3	1	67%	top 70%	92.9%	91.8%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2026-05-01	Blue Compass RV BBQ Bash 🏅 Marriott-Slaterville, UT	16 / 19 (678.2288)	10 (173.1316)	2 (176.5828)	16 (166.8572)	18 (161.6572)
2024-06-21	Pitmaster's NorUt State BBQ Championship 🏅 Ogden, UT	24 / 29 (663.2796)	22 (167.3828)	21 (167.9656)	23 (166.2284)	23 (161.7028)
2020-06-19	Traeger NorUt State BBQ Championship 🏅 Riverdale, UT	20 / 32 (663.3712)	22 (167.4056)	16 (167.9656)	17 (169.7028)	22 (158.2972)
2020-01-03	Red Rock BBQ 🏅 Hurrican, UT	9 / 15 (673.0172)	5 (171.9656)	10 (163.9428)	10 (167.3828)	7 (169.7260)
2018-06-29	*Traeger NorUt State Championship 🏅 Ogden, UT	13 / 19 (658.1716)	13 (165.1544)	12 (164.5488)	13 (163.9428)	12 (164.5256)
2017-08-25	Wild West BBQ Shoot Out West Wendover, NV	27 / 37 (669.0628)	31 (168.5256)	28 (164.5716)	12 (171.9772)	26 (163.9884)
2017-06-16	Q'n With Kia-Kia-Kia Ogden, UT	9 / 15 (664.0004)	5 (170.2744)	8 (165.1544)	13 (164.5716)	8 (164.0000)
2017-04-07	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Salt Lake City, UT	22 / 29 (649.0288)	14 (167.4172)	22 (158.8116)	5 (173.1200)	27 (149.6800)

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
2026 ↗	Master	#865 (89 pts)	#858 (119 pts)	#635 (244 pts)	#902 (89 pts)	#910 (79 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#1464 (59 pts)	#1219 (69 pts)	#1268 (74 pts)	#1218 (64 pts)	#1191 (64 pts)
2020 ↗	Master	#490 (207 pts)	#479 (237 pts)	#517 (217 pts)	#509 (212 pts)	#511 (217 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1753 (104 pts)	#1806 (104 pts)	#1786 (109 pts)	#1811 (104 pts)	#1762 (109 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1167 (254 pts)	#1067 (334 pts)	#1225 (264 pts)	#931 (404 pts)	#1241 (249 pts)