The one to beat
2×
one call ahead of them
BEAR DOWN SMOKIN BBQ has finished one call ahead of Smokin' Hot Butts 2 times — their closest competition in the data.
Smokin' Hot Butts
At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)
Rating
1448
peak 1448 · rated over 5 contests ⓘ
Contests
9
in the data
First seen
2013-05-03
latest 2017-07-07
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
of 9 contests
Avg finish
top 90%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
601.28
last 5 Master vs avg 601.28 (+0.00)
Walk rate
22%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±11.57
std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Pork
avg 153.81 · weakest Pork Ribs (147.75)
Road miles
5,405
mi across 9 mapped stops · furthest 1391 mi
Schedule strength
25%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1534)
Master avg
601.28 / 720
5 Master contests · 0 GCs
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.
A tough matchup
3–0
behind in the head-to-head
QUAU ahead in 100% of their meetings
QUAU has come out ahead in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
The weak link
−6.1
points behind their best meat
Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.05 points below their pork, and turns into a call 0% of the time against 20%.
- Pork Ribs avg 147.75
- Pork avg 153.81
- 0 calls in 5 entries
The long haul
5,405
road miles between contests
Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 5,405 miles across 9 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 1,391 miles to *BBQ on the Elbow at the Calgary Stampede.
- 9 mapped stops
- furthest 1,391 mi
The metronome
±1.61%
swing around their own average
Their overall lands within ±1.61% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.
- averages 83.5% of a perfect score
- 9 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.
108 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#5569 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1448
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than Smokin' Hot Butts has cooked, 5 to 9, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#5564 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1449
No shared contest yet.
Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.
⚔ Head-to-head#5576 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1448
No shared contest yet.
Level with Smokin' Hot Butts on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Head-to-head#5572 of the rated field
- Contests
- 5
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1448
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than Smokin' Hot Butts has cooked, 5 to 9, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#5563 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1449
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than Smokin' Hot Butts has cooked, 6 to 9, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-head#5575 of the rated field
- Contests
- 6
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1448
No shared contest yet.
Fewer contests behind them than Smokin' Hot Butts has cooked, 6 to 9, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.
⚔ Head-to-headBy meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 165.6800 | 139.9660 | 151.18 | top 81% |
| Pork Ribs | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 159.4516 | 136.4796 | 147.75 | top 86% |
| Pork | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 164.5716 | 137.0856 | 153.81 | top 71% |
| Brisket | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 169.1084 | 127.3828 | 148.53 | top 73% |
“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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| IL | 3 | 0 | top 95% |
| NE | 1 | 0 | top 79% |
By contest size
| Field | Contests | GCs | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small (<20 teams) | 1 | 0 | top 94% |
| Medium (20–39) | 3 | 0 | top 89% |
| Large (40+) | 1 | 0 | top 90% |
Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *Route 66 Smoke Out | 2 | 29 | 0 | top 95% | 2017-05-05 |
The story so far (15 numbers that describe this team)
On the trail
4.2 yrs
2013-05-03 → 2017-07-07
Busiest season
2017
4 contests
Contests a season
1.5
across 6 seasons in the data
Cooks most in
IL
3 of 9 contests · 5 states/provinces in all
Contests visited
4
1 of them cooked more than once
Most-entered meat
Chicken
5 entries · 0 wins · 1 calls
Strongest meat
Pork
averages 153.81 · weakest Pork Ribs (147.75)
Walk rate
22%
a top-10 call in 2 of 9 contests
Overall top-10 rate
0%
0 of 9 contests
Master average
601.28
out of 720 · 5 contests · 0 GCs
Opponents faced
119
16–127 across every shared overall standing
Road miles
5,405
9 mapped stops · furthest 1,391 mi
Schedule strength
1534
average field rating faced — tougher than 25% of rated contests
Longest layoff
1.3 yrs
2013-05-03 → 2014-08-22
Power rating
1448
peak 1448 · #5570 of 6,413 rated
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
- 2013
- First tracked contest North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival
- Career-best overall score615.4284 North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival
- Peak power rating (1491) North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival
- 2017
- First call *I-39 Smokin Car Show
- Career-best single call (Brisket)169.1084 *BBQ on the Elbow at the Calgary Stampede
- 2018
- Most recent contest The Whistlestop Festival & Rocket City BBQ
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13 | *Route 66 Smoke Out | 2017-05-05 |
| -11.1 | *I-39 Smokin Car Show | 2017-07-01 |
| -10.4 | Route 66 Smoke Out | 2016-05-06 |
| -8.6 | North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival | 2013-05-03 |
| -8.5 | *BBQ on the Elbow at the Calgary Stampede | 2017-07-07 |
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) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2017 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 50% | top 94% | 84.6% | 83.6% |
| 2016 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 90% | 81.2% | 81.2% |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | — | — | — |
| 2013 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 79% | 85.5% | 85.5% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018-05-04 | The Whistlestop Festival & Rocket City BBQ Huntsville, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017-07-07 | *BBQ on the Elbow at the Calgary Stampede Calgary, T2 W 3J6 | 20 / 23 (606.1936) | 22 (149.7140) | 20 (150.2856) | 22 (137.0856) | 4 (169.1084) |
| 2017-07-01 | *I-39 Smokin Car Show Minonk, IL | 17 / 18 (591.3028) | 5 (165.6800) | 18 (137.1200) | 9 (161.1200) | 18 (127.3828) |
| 2017-05-05 | The Whistlestop Festival & Rocket City BBQ Huntsville, AL | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2017-05-05 | *Route 66 Smoke Out Dwight, IL | 29 / 29 (609.0636) | 29 (139.9660) | 23 (159.4516) | 14 (164.5716) | 26 (145.0744) |
| 2016-05-06 | Route 66 Smoke Out Dwight, IL | 36 / 40 (584.4112) | 36 (150.8460) | 40 (136.4796) | 33 (152.5484) | 36 (144.5372) |
| 2015-10-09 | The River Grill before the Big Chill Cincinnati, OH | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2014-08-22 | Music City BBQ Festival Nashville, TN | — | — | — | — | — |
| 2013-05-03 | North Platte Honky Tonk Barbecue Festival North Platte, NE | 30 / 38 (615.4284) | 34 (149.7140) | 25 (155.4286) | 29 (153.7140) | 26 (156.5718) |