A tough matchup
3–0
behind in the head-to-head
Always Forward BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings
Always Forward BBQ has come out ahead in 3 of their 3 shared contests.
Bottoms Up Smokers
Bottoms Up Smokers is a competition barbecue team with 3 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2024 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 9th of 10 at the NSDDF presents the Inaugural Baylor Backyard BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) (2024). They finished #1065 in the 2026 Master Series Team of the Year standings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1477
Unranked — needs 5 rated contests, has 3
Contests
3
in the data
First seen
Jul 12, 2024
latest Sep 11, 2026 · 2.2 years on the trail
Overall top-10s
1
of 3 contests
Avg finish
top 79%
overall standings
Walk rate
33%
contests with a top-10 call
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 162.83 · weakest Brisket (159.74)
Road miles
21
across 3 mapped stops
Schedule strength
13%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1519)
Purse competed for
$100K
listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings
Master avg
648.25 / 720
2 Master contests · 0 GCs
Backyard avg
321.10 / 360
1 Backyard contest · 0 GCs
These overall scores sit on different scales (Master 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.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 ↗ | Master | #1065 (60 pts) | #1141 (60 pts) | #1203 (60 pts) | #1111 (60 pts) | #1102 (60 pts) |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 164.5372 | 161.6800 | 162.83 | top 77% |
| Pork Ribs | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 166.8456 | 156.5600 | 162.28 | top 73% |
| Pork | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.2400 | 160.5600 | 161.40 | top 79% |
| Brisket | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 160.5828 | 158.8916 | 159.74 | top 64% |
“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
Contests a season
1
across 3 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
TX
3 of 3 contests
Contests visited
3
a different one every time
Opponents faced
140
finished ahead 46 times, behind 128
Longest layoff
1.2 yrs
Jul 12, 2024 → Sep 12, 2025
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20261 milestone
- Most recent contest Danny Dietz Memorial World Championship Cookoff
20253 milestones
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score648.5600 Navy SEAL Danny Dietz Memorial Classic Cookoff
- Career-best overall score648.5600 Navy SEAL Danny Dietz Memorial Classic Cookoff
- Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)166.8456 Navy SEAL Danny Dietz Memorial Classic Cookoff
20244 milestones
- First tracked contest NSDDF presents the Inaugural Baylor Backyard BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First call NSDDF presents the Inaugural Baylor Backyard BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY)
- First overall top-10 NSDDF presents the Inaugural Baylor Backyard BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY)
- Peak power rating (1488) NSDDF presents the Inaugural Baylor Backyard BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY)
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 11, 2026 | Danny Dietz Memorial World Championship Cookoff 🏅 Waller, TX | 55 / 75 (647.9428) | 61 (161.6800) | 49 (163.4400) | 57 (162.2400) | 47 (160.5828) |
| Sep 12, 2025 | Navy SEAL Danny Dietz Memorial Classic Cookoff 🏅 Waller, TX | 67 / 92 (648.5600) | 64 (162.2628) | 49 (166.8456) | 75 (160.5600) | 61 (158.8916) |
| Jul 12, 2024 | NSDDF presents the Inaugural Baylor Backyard BBQ Bash (BACKYARD ONLY) Tomball, TX | 9 / 10 (321.0972) | 8 (164.5372) | 10 (156.5600) | — | — |