The heartbreaker
1.1084
points from the title
Came within 1.1084 points of the Grand Championship at Separation Colonial BBQ Competition (2019-06-07).
Bethlehem Smoke
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1552
peak 1552 · rated over 5 contests ⓘ
Best runs
3
straight top-10s
Contests
5
in the data
First seen
2017-10-06
latest 2019-06-07
Grand champs
0
1 reserve
Category wins
0
2 podiums
Overall top-10s
3
of 5 contests
Avg finish
top 25%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
330.22
last 3 Backyard vs avg 330.22 (+0.00)
Walk rate
60%
contests with a top-10 call
Top-10 streak
3
and counting
Consistency
±2.49
std dev of Backyard overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 165.45 · weakest Pork Ribs (161.57)
Road miles
216
mi across 5 mapped stops · furthest 81 mi
Schedule strength
59%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1574)
Purse competed for
$24K
listed at 3 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
GCs in 4 state-championship entries
Master avg
647.01 / 720
2 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
330.22 / 360
3 Backyard contests · 0 GCs
Master and Backyard overall scores sit on different scales (Master is out of 720, Backyard out of 360), so they're kept separate — averaging them together would be misleading.
This team cooks the Backyard series — its own boards, records and Team of the Year are here.
Storylines (5 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.
On the rise
+44
rating points in a year
Their power rating has climbed 44 points across 4 contests since 2018-10-05 — from 1507 up to 1552.
- 4 contests since 2018-10-05
- now 1552
Their season
2019
their best year
2019 was the year it came together: 3 contests, 0 Grand Championships and 0 category wins, at an average finish in the top 7%.
- 3 contests
- 3 overall top-10s
- 0 category wins
- average top 7%
A tough matchup
3–1
behind in the head-to-head
DRILLING & GRILLING ahead in 75% of their meetings
DRILLING & GRILLING has come out ahead in 3 of their 4 shared contests.
A strong matchup
4–0
ahead in the head-to-head
Ahead in 100% of their meetings
They've finished ahead of REDNECK SMOKE CLUB in 4 of their 4 shared 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.
59 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#1714 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 80%
- Peak
- 1551
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2014, 5 years before Bethlehem Smoke's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-head#1697 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 67%
- Peak
- 1552
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#1711 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 2
- Top-10s
- 67%
- Peak
- 1551
No shared contest yet.
Their rating is built on 2 Grand Championships in 6 contests, alongside a 67% overall top-10 rate.
⚔ Head-to-head#1716 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 33%
- Peak
- 1551
No shared contest yet.
Level with Bethlehem Smoke on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#1710 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1553
No shared contest yet.
Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 5, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.
⚔ Head-to-head#1695 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 50%
- Peak
- 1552
No shared contest yet.
Their last contest in the data was back in 2016, 3 years before Bethlehem Smoke's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Head-to-headFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit | 5 | 2 | 3 | 40% | ⚔ compare |
| Smokestack Redemption | 5 | 1 | 3 | 20% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 169.1200 | 163.3944 | 165.45 | top 27% |
| Pork Ribs | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 165.0740 | 157.7144 | 161.57 | top 29% |
| Pork | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 168.5600 | 155.9200 | 162.24 | top 53% |
| Brisket | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.8000 | 162.2628 | 162.53 | top 50% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| PA | 3 | 0 | top 37% |
| DE | 1 | 0 | top 6% |
| MD | 1 | 0 | top 7% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Medium (20–39) | 2 | 0 | top 25% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 25% |
The story so far (18 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
1.7 yrs
2017-10-06 → 2019-06-07
Busiest season
2019
3 contests
Contests a season
1.7
across 3 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
PA
3 of 5 contests · 3 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
5
0 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
5 entries · 0 wins · 3 calls
Strongest meat
Chicken
averages 165.45 · weakest Pork Ribs (161.57)
Walk rate
60%
a top-10 call in 3 of 5 contests
Overall top-10 rate
60%
3 of 5 contests
Best top-10 run
3
straight contests — and still running
Master average
647.01
out of 720 · 2 contests · 0 GCs
Backyard average
330.22
out of 360 · 3 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
177
205–53 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
216
5 mapped stops · furthest 81 mi
Schedule strength
1574
average field rating faced — tougher than 59% of rated contests
Purse competed for
$23,600
listed at 3 contests — purses, not winnings
State championships
0
from 4 state-championship entries
Power rating
1552
peak 1552 · #1706 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2017
- First tracked contest Keystone Classic BBQ
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score654.1944 Keystone Classic BBQ
- Career-best overall score654.1944 Keystone Classic BBQ
- 2019
- First call Interstate BBQ Festival
- First overall top-10 Interstate BBQ Festival
- First overall podium Separation Colonial BBQ Competition
- First Reserve Championship Separation Colonial BBQ Competition
- Career-best single call (Chicken)169.1200 Separation Colonial BBQ Competition
- Peak power rating (1552) Separation Colonial BBQ Competition
- Most recent contest Separation Colonial BBQ Competition
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📈 Biggest rating jumps
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| +15.9 | Interstate BBQ Festival | 2019-04-19 |
| +15.1 | Separation Colonial BBQ Competition | 2019-06-07 |
| +13.2 | Twin Valley Fire and Smoke | 2019-05-17 |
| +6 | Keystone Classic BBQ | 2017-10-06 |
| +1.3 | Keystone Classic BBQ State Championship | 2018-10-05 |
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)
Season by season
| Season | Contests | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 100% | top 7% | 92.7% | 91.7% |
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 57% | 88.9% | 88.9% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 44% | 90.9% | 90.9% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-06-07 | Separation Colonial BBQ Competition 🏅 New Castle, DE | 2 / 36 (333.6916) | 4 (169.1200) | 2 (164.5716) | — | — |
| 2019-05-17 | Twin Valley Fire and Smoke 🏅 Morgantown, PA | 4 / 44 (329.0284) | 7 (163.9544) | 2 (165.0740) | — | — |
| 2019-04-19 | Interstate BBQ Festival 🏅 Hagerstown, MD | 4 / 54 (327.9428) | 6 (165.6800) | 4 (162.2628) | — | — |
| 2018-10-05 | Keystone Classic BBQ State Championship 🏅 Harrisburg, PA | 24 / 42 (639.8172) | 23 (163.3944) | 27 (158.2400) | 32 (155.9200) | 19 (162.2628) |
| 2017-10-06 | Keystone Classic BBQ Harrisburg, PA | 17 / 39 (654.1944) | 17 (165.1200) | 25 (157.7144) | 12 (168.5600) | 21 (162.8000) |