Steamboat BBQ

Steamboat BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 21 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2014 and 2019. Their best overall finish is 10th of 51 at the Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off (2016). They are ranked #1673 of 6,476 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,673

of 6,476 rated · rankings

Rating

1553

peak 1553 · rated over 21 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 23, 2014

latest Sep 20, 2019 · 5.3 years on the trail

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

3 podiums

Overall top-10s

5% of 21 contests

Avg finish

top 52%

overall standings

Best overall

680.5028 / 720

Master · Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff

Perfect 180s

Current form

667.29 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 652.03 (+15.26)

Walk rate

48%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

178.8800

Chicken · Masters in May- The Classic

Consistency

±15.67

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 165.20 · weakest Pork Ribs (158.38)

Road miles

2,290

across 21 mapped stops · furthest 231 mi

Schedule strength

66%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1583)

Purse competed for

$19K

listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 2 state-championship entries

Master avg

652.03 / 720

21 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (8 found in their record)

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

High-water mark

680.5028 career-best overall

94.5% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 680.5028 at Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff — 94.5% of a perfect 720.

Master
Sep 21, 2018

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

BLUE ISLAND BBQ CO. has finished one call ahead of Steamboat BBQ 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

14–0 behind in the head-to-head

IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ has come out ahead in 14 of their 14 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.8 points behind their best meat

Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.81 points below their pork, and turns into a call 5% of the time against 38%.

Pork Ribs avg 158.38
Pork avg 165.20
1 call in 21 entries

A strong matchup

6–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 75% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of BIG DADDY OOWEE SMOKIN BONES BBQ in 6 of their 8 shared contests.

Pork nemesis

11 of 14 shared pork entries lost

IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ ahead 79% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ has out-cooked them in 11 of 14 shared pork entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

CAPTAIN RON'S BREW-N-QUE has landed one call behind them 2 times.

Show 1 more storyline

The metronome

±2.18% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±2.18% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.6% of a perfect score
21 contests

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Steamboat BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

Rucking Fidiculous BBQ

#1,679 of the rated field

1553 power rating

Contests: 21
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 71%
Peak: 1553

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 21 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 21 contests
last seen Mar 20, 2026
on a 7-contest top-10 run

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3 GUYS WITH WOOD

#1,672 of the rated field

1554 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 4%
Peak: 1585

Careers of much the same size, 23 contests to 21, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 22 contests
last seen Sep 27, 2023

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THE UNIVERSITY OF QUE

#1,682 of the rated field

1553 power rating

Contests: 24
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1588

Their rating is built on 2 Grand Championships in 24 contests, alongside a 25% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 23 contests
last seen Sep 13, 2019

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OUTTA GAS BBQ

#1,667 of the rated field

1554 power rating

Contests: 23
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 4%
Peak: 1554

Level with Steamboat BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 23 contests
last seen Dec 14, 2018

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Velvet Swine

#1,671 of the rated field

1554 power rating

Contests: 19
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1554

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 19 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 19 contests
last seen Sep 25, 2026

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Waypoint BBQ

#1,676 of the rated field

1553 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 27%
Peak: 1558

They turned up 8 years after Steamboat BBQ did, first appearing in 2022.

rated over 14 contests
last seen Jul 18, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BIG "E" BBQ	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
iBQ'n	14	2	12	14%	⚔ compare
IOWA'S SMOKEY D'S BBQ	14	0	14	0%	⚔ compare
THE REAL SMOKIN ACES	13	2	11	15%	⚔ compare
TIM'S FULL BELLI DELI	13	1	12	8%	⚔ compare
LEGENDS OF SMOKE - TEAM RED ARROW	11	7	4	64%	⚔ compare
Mac Attack BBQ	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
BLUE ISLAND BBQ CO.	10	5	5	50%	⚔ compare
RACK MASTERS BBQ	10	3	7	30%	⚔ compare
QUAU	10	2	8	20%	⚔ compare
THE SMOKE HUNTERS	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
Littles BBQ Co	9	5	4	56%	⚔ compare
DESIGNATED SMOKIN' AREA	9	3	6	33%	⚔ compare
CAPTAIN RON'S BREW-N-QUE	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare
THE SMOKIN' C'S BBQ	9	2	7	22%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	21	2	0	1	178.8800	147.9656	164.00	top 53%
Pork Ribs	21	1	0	0	168.5600	145.6684	158.38	top 65%
Pork	21	8	1	2	178.8572	149.6572	165.20	top 43%
Brisket	21	1	0	0	172.0228	145.6912	164.44	top 43%

“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)	3	0	top 65%
Large (40+)	18	0	top 50%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
IL	10	top 55%
WI	10	top 47%
IN	1	top 79%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Red, White and BBQ (Day 2)	4	30	top 67%	May 23, 2015
The Masters In May (DAY 2)	3	19	top 46%	May 5, 2018
Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off	2	10	top 36%	Oct 19, 2018
Grill Games	2	14	top 42%	Aug 24, 2018
Red, White & BBQ (Day 2)	2	23	top 50%	May 28, 2016

More numbers

Busiest season 2018 5 contests

Contests a season 3.5 across 6 seasons in the data

Most contests held in IL 10 of 21 contests · 3 states in all

Contests visited 13 5 of them more than once

Opponents faced 376 finished ahead 503 times, behind 508

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

20192 milestones

Sep 20 Peak power rating (1553) Murphysboro BBQ Cook Off
Sep 20 Most recent contest Murphysboro BBQ Cook Off

20181 milestone

Sep 21 Career-best overall score680.5028 Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff

20164 milestones

Apr 30 Career-best single call (Chicken)178.8800 Masters in May- The Classic
May 28 10th tracked contest Red, White & BBQ (Day 2)
Oct 21 First category win (Pork) Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off
Oct 21 First overall top-10 Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off

20151 milestone

May 23 First overall past 90% of a perfect score650.2400 Red, White and BBQ (Day 2)

20142 milestones

May 23 First tracked contest Red, White, and BBQ
Jul 11 First call Firin' Up the Fox BBQ Contest

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+12.2	Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off	Oct 21, 2016
+12.2	Masters in May- The Classic	Apr 30, 2016
+9.6	The Masters In May (DAY 2)	May 5, 2018
+9.5	The Masters In May (also Big Green Egg challenge)	May 5, 2017
+7.1	Grill Games	Aug 24, 2018

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-5.7	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	Jul 10, 2015
-5.6	Red, White and BBQ (Day 1)	May 22, 2015
-5.2	Masters in May	Apr 29, 2016
-4.5	Red, White, and BBQ	May 23, 2014
-3.5	Firin' Up the Fox BBQ Contest	Jul 11, 2014

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	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	2	0	0	0%	top 40%	93.7%	93.4%
2018	5	0	0	80%	top 46%	94.5%	91.8%
2017	3	0	0	33%	top 50%	92.5%	90.5%
2016	5	1	1	60%	top 45%	92.2%	90.9%
2015	3	0	0	33%	top 70%	90.3%	88.5%
2014	3	0	0	33%	top 67%	88.7%	88.2%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 20, 2019	Murphysboro BBQ Cook Off 🏅 Murphysboro, IL	21 / 54 (674.7544)	17 (169.6800)	34 (163.9544)	16 (170.8228)	16 (170.2972)
Jun 28, 2019	BBQ SmokeDown at Chicagoland 🏅 Joliet, IL	17 / 42 (670.7200)	12 (173.1200)	25 (163.3944)	22 (164.5372)	14 (169.6684)
Oct 19, 2018	Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off Union Grove, WI	22 / 42 (645.4740)	20 (161.6456)	24 (158.8116)	29 (159.3484)	13 (165.6684)
Sep 21, 2018	Murphysboro BBQ Cookoff Murphysboro, IL	23 / 59 (680.5028)	32 (167.9656)	34 (166.2400)	8 (174.2744)	16 (172.0228)
Aug 24, 2018	Grill Games Kenosha, WI	14 / 42 (665.0056)	22 (165.6800)	8 (168.5600)	10 (167.9772)	19 (162.7884)
May 5, 2018	The Masters In May (DAY 2) Appleton, WI	21 / 54 (666.2288)	37 (164.5372)	47 (156.5372)	2 (174.2744)	12 (170.8800)
May 4, 2018	The Masters In May ( DAY 1) Appleton, WI	35 / 54 (646.7660)	53 (148.5372)	21 (165.1088)	7 (169.7372)	33 (163.3828)
Aug 25, 2017	Grill Games Kenosha, WI	20 / 39 (641.4972)	13 (165.0856)	23 (161.6456)	35 (149.6572)	11 (165.1088)
May 6, 2017	Master In May-The Classic Appleton, WI	32 / 50 (646.1944)	27 (164.5600)	19 (164.5600)	40 (156.5600)	34 (160.5144)
May 5, 2017	The Masters In May (also Big Green Egg challenge) Appleton, WI	19 / 56 (666.2176)	30 (166.2744)	37 (159.4060)	7 (173.1428)	23 (167.3944)
Oct 21, 2016	Best of the Midwest BBQ Cook-off Union Grove, WI	10 / 51 (663.9084)	19 (165.1312)	31 (155.9772)	1 (178.8572)	26 (163.9428)
May 28, 2016	Red, White & BBQ (Day 2) Westmont, IL	25 / 55 (659.9200)	35 (163.9656)	28 (162.8228)	34 (163.4400)	11 (169.6916)
May 27, 2016	Red, White & BBQ (Day 1) Westmont, IL	23 / 42 (654.7884)	27 (163.4172)	39 (150.2400)	4 (170.8456)	7 (170.2856)
Apr 30, 2016	Masters in May- The Classic Appleton, WI	16 / 58 (663.9316)	2 (178.8800)	35 (159.3944)	37 (160.5144)	25 (165.1428)
Apr 29, 2016	Masters in May Appleton, WI	47 / 59 (630.7084)	30 (164)	40 (154.8344)	39 (158.7884)	49 (153.0856)
Jul 10, 2015	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Indianapolis, IN	22 / 28 (630.7200)	24 (156.5256)	25 (151.3944)	23 (158.2400)	13 (164.5600)
May 23, 2015	Red, White and BBQ (Day 2) Westmont, IL	30 / 58 (650.2400)	26 (166.8684)	51 (152.5028)	27 (165.7028)	17 (165.1660)
May 22, 2015	Red, White and BBQ (Day 1) Westmont, IL	33 / 41 (630.7996)	5 (174.8800)	36 (145.6684)	18 (164.5600)	38 (145.6912)
Jul 11, 2014	Firin' Up the Fox BBQ Contest St. Charles, IL	22 / 34 (638.1256)	30 (147.9656)	20 (159.3600)	10 (167.9656)	13 (162.8344)
May 24, 2014	Red, White, And BBQ Westmont, IL	46 / 72 (638.6968)	52 (158.2284)	55 (154.2400)	39 (161.6340)	28 (164.5944)
May 23, 2014	Red, White, and BBQ Westmont, IL	31 / 43 (627.3600)	30 (157.1316)	33 (151.4056)	27 (158.2856)	21 (160.5372)

Steamboat BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

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 (8 found in their record)

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Pork nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

The metronome

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 — 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)