At Ease

At Ease is a competition barbecue team with 29 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2021 and 2026. Their best overall finish is 10th of 29 at the Beat the Heat BBQ & Brews (2024). They are ranked #2879 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#2,879

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1509

peak 1509 · rated over 28 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 7, 2021

latest Sep 30, 2026 · 5.4 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#297

Master 2026 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

5 podiums

Overall top-10s

3% of 29 contests

Avg finish

top 62%

overall standings

Best overall

694.8228 / 720

Master · American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest

Perfect 180s

1 🔥

Current form

682.65 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 665.92 (+16.72)

Walk rate

62%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

180 🔥

Brisket · Montana Pitmaster Classic

Consistency

±20.22

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 168.58 · weakest Brisket (162.35)

Road miles

10,661

across 29 mapped stops · furthest 642 mi

Schedule strength

61%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1577)

Purse competed for

$418K

listed at 29 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

0 🏅

won from 26 state-championship entries

Master avg

665.92 / 720

28 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (12 found in their record)

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

Perfect scores on the board

1 perfect 180

1 perfect 180 in the data — every judge at the table handing back a nine, all in brisket.

Brisket ×1

They almost always walk

62% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 18 of 29 contests

A top-10 category call in 62% of their 29 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

694.8228 career-best overall

96.5% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 694.8228 at American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest — 96.5% of a perfect 720.

Master
Nov 5, 2025

The one to beat

3× one call ahead of them

BRACKEN RACKS BBQ has finished one call ahead of At Ease 3 times — their closest competition in the data.

A tough matchup

19–0 behind in the head-to-head

Colorado Bulldawg BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

Colorado Bulldawg BBQ has come out ahead in 19 of their 19 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.2 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.22 points below their pork, and turns into a call 7% of the time against 32%.

Brisket avg 162.35
Pork avg 168.58
2 calls in 28 entries

A strong matchup

6–2 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 75% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of Q LIVE CREW in 6 of their 8 shared contests.

Show 5 more storylines

Pork nemesis

13 of 20 shared pork entries lost

Brinkerhoff BBQ ahead 65% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, Brinkerhoff BBQ has out-cooked them in 13 of 20 shared pork entries.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A March team

Top 52% average finish in March

Something about March: average finish in the top 52% across 3 contests, versus top 62% the rest of the year.

3 March contests
top 62% the rest of the year

The long haul

10,661 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 10,661 miles across 29 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 642 miles to Dillon Days Blowin' Smoke BBQ Cook Off.

29 mapped stops
furthest 642 mi

A standing appointment

6 years running at one contest

They've cooked Wild West BBQ Cook-Off every year from 2021 to 2026 — the contest they never miss.

6 visits in all
best finish 16th

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	#297 (678 pts)	#342 (648 pts)	#356 (673 pts)	#138 (1,128 pts)	#217 (928 pts)
2025 ↗	Master	#612 (255 pts)	#588 (320 pts)	#551 (385 pts)	#571 (315 pts)	#640 (250 pts)
2024 ↗	Master	#385 (554 pts)	#352 (659 pts)	#355 (694 pts)	#236 (929 pts)	#414 (529 pts)
2023 ↗	Master	#442 (443 pts)	#327 (703 pts)	#371 (678 pts)	#525 (378 pts)	#598 (293 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to At Ease, each with one reason worth a look.

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

CRUSH BBQ

#2,880 of the rated field

1509 power rating

Contests: 24
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 8%
Peak: 1514

0–2 in 2 shared contests (0% to At Ease)

2 contests in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team At Ease has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 24 contests
last seen Oct 22, 2022

⚔ Head-to-head

Boogs BBQ

#2,876 of the rated field

1509 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 33%
Peak: 1515

0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to At Ease)

Fewer contests behind them than At Ease has cooked, 9 to 29, which makes theirs the less settled rating of the two.

rated over 9 contests
last seen Aug 23, 2024

⚔ Head-to-head

Squeals like the First Time

#2,892 of the rated field

1508 power rating

Contests: 18
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 11%
Peak: 1508

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 18 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 18 contests
last seen Oct 9, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

BUFFALO MEATHEADS

#2,882 of the rated field

1509 power rating

Contests: 15
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 27%
Peak: 1520

Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 8 years before At Ease's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

rated over 15 contests

⚔ Compare careers

Serial Grillaz

#2,881 of the rated field

1509 power rating

Contests: 14
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 21%
Peak: 1538

14 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 21% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 14 contests
last seen Nov 11, 2016

⚔ Compare careers

NATTY QUE

#2,890 of the rated field

1509 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 31%
Peak: 1526

They were already cooking in 2013, 8 years before At Ease's first contest.

rated over 13 contests
last seen Apr 26, 2024

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Brinkerhoff BBQ	20	2	18	10%	⚔ compare
Colorado Bulldawg BBQ	19	0	19	0%	⚔ compare
ROCKET BOYS PYRO BBQ	14	7	7	50%	⚔ compare
POPPA PIG AND PORKCHOP	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
BRACKEN RACKS BBQ	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN HOT BUTTS BBQ	14	2	12	14%	⚔ compare
Heifers, Butts, & Clucks BBQ	14	1	13	7%	⚔ compare
Hooligans Barbecue	13	5	8	38%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' BOXERS BBQ	12	2	10	17%	⚔ compare
Texas Smoke Whisperer	12	1	11	8%	⚔ compare
AMERICAN HEROES BBQ	12	0	12	0%	⚔ compare
Monarchbbq	11	3	8	27%	⚔ compare
GETTIN' BASTED	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
Smoked & Furious	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare
Bushmaster BBQ	11	0	11	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	28	8	0	0	177.1772	153.0628	168.08	top 51%
Pork Ribs	28	5	0	2	178.2972	153.6800	166.91	top 56%
Pork	28	9	0	2	179.4400	129.6800	168.58	top 46%
Brisket	28	2	1	1	180 🔥	143.9656	162.35	top 68%

“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)	22	0	top 66%
Large (40+)	6	0	top 47%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	Avg finish
CO	13	top 69%
KS	5	top 45%
MT	5	top 53%
WY	2	top 68%
SD	2	top 68%
NM	1	top 77%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	Avg finish	Last visit
Wild West BBQ Cook-Off	6	16	top 73%	Apr 24, 2026
Montana Pitmaster Classic	3	19	top 55%	Aug 28, 2026
Veterans of Foreign Wars Colorado KCBS Pitmaster BBQ Contest	2	25	top 81%	Sep 6, 2024
Beat the Heat BBQ & Brews	2	10	top 41%	Aug 9, 2024

More numbers

Busiest season 2026 7 contests

Contests a season 4.8 across 6 seasons in the data

Most contests held in CO 13 of 29 contests · 6 states in all

Contests visited 19 4 of them more than once

Opponents faced 815 finished ahead 857 times, behind 803

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

20265 milestones

Jun 12 25th tracked contest Montana BBQ Cookoff
Aug 28 First category win (Brisket) Montana Pitmaster Classic
Aug 28 First perfect 180 (Brisket) Montana Pitmaster Classic
Sep 30 Peak power rating (1509) American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest
Sep 30 Most recent contest American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest

20251 milestone

Nov 5 Career-best overall score694.8228 American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest

20242 milestones

May 10 10th tracked contest Wild West BBQ Cook-Off
Aug 9 First overall top-10 Beat the Heat BBQ & Brews

20222 milestones

May 6 First call Wild West BBQ Cook-Off
May 6 First overall past 90% of a perfect score655.3716 Wild West BBQ Cook-Off

20211 milestone

May 7 First tracked contest Wild West BBQ Cook-Off

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16.4	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest	Nov 5, 2025
+9.1	Beat the Heat BBQ & Brews	Aug 9, 2024
+8.6	Montana BBQ Cookoff	Jun 12, 2026
+5.6	7th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship	Mar 21, 2025
+5.4	Art of Barbeque	Jun 30, 2023

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-12	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off	May 7, 2021
-8.9	Veterans of Foreign Wars Colorado KCBS Pitmaster BBQ Contest	May 27, 2023
-8.8	The Art of BBQ	Jul 1, 2022
-7.8	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off	Apr 25, 2025
-5.5	The Art of Barbeque	Jun 28, 2024

Scores over time (% of a perfect score, averaged over 5 contests — 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)
2026	7	0	1	71%	top 54%	95.8%	94.1%
2025	7	0	0	43%	top 57%	96.5%	93.9%
2024	7	1	0	57%	top 63%	94.6%	92.7%
2023	5	0	0	80%	top 64%	93.6%	91.5%
2022	2	0	0	100%	top 79%	91%	89.6%
2021	1	0	0	0%	top 94%	82.1%	82.1%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 30, 2026	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest Kansas City, KS	201 / 360 (677.6112)	156 (170.8572)	246 (167.3828)	158 (171.4056)	199 (167.9656)
Aug 28, 2026	Montana Pitmaster Classic 🏅 Bozeman, MT	19 / 39 (687.8972)	30 (162.8000)	26 (169.6800)	6 (175.4172)	1 (180)
Aug 14, 2026	Pepsi Wyoming State BBQ Championships & Bluegrass Festival 🏅 Worland, WY	18 / 29 (681.5884)	6 (174.2628)	20 (166.2284)	5 (174.2628)	18 (166.8344)
Jul 3, 2026	Dillon Days Blowin' Smoke BBQ Cook Off 🏅 Dillon, MT	16 / 26 (689.6456)	13 (171.9884)	17 (171.4172)	5 (176.5716)	18 (169.6684)
Jun 12, 2026	Montana BBQ Cookoff 🏅 Absarokee, MT	11 / 29 (676.5028)	25 (160.5256)	8 (172.5600)	6 (172)	6 (171.4172)
Apr 24, 2026	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Lamar, CO	16 / 27 (654.6512)	24 (153.0628)	14 (163.9428)	5 (174.2628)	14 (163.3828)
Mar 20, 2026	8th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship 🏅 Olathe, KS	36 / 68 (675.3484)	36 (169.1084)	25 (170.2628)	14 (175.4172)	55 (160.5600)
Nov 5, 2025	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS	50 / 401 (694.8228)	145 (172.5484)	186 (169.7028)	85 (174.8688)	25 (177.7028)
Nov 5, 2025	American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Sides Kansas City, KS	—	—	—	—	—
Aug 22, 2025	Montana Pitmaster Classic 🏅 Bozeman, MT	21 / 38 (678.8000)	32 (164)	4 (178.2972)	18 (171.4056)	24 (165.0972)
Jun 6, 2025	Original SD BBQ Championships 🏅 Huron, SD	28 / 48 (672.5144)	16 (171.9772)	29 (166.2972)	16 (172)	32 (162.2400)
May 2, 2025	The All American Comeback BBQ, Bourbon, & Bands Ruidoso Downs, NM	23 / 30 (678.1944)	15 (172.5716)	28 (165.0972)	2 (179.4400)	28 (161.0856)
Apr 25, 2025	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Lamar, CO	27 / 30 (650.6740)	26 (160.5256)	25 (162.2284)	16 (167.9772)	23 (159.9428)
Mar 21, 2025	7th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship 🏅 Olathe, KS	35 / 70 (681.6228)	9 (176.5600)	25 (171.9772)	42 (170.2628)	55 (162.8228)
Sep 6, 2024	Veterans of Foreign Wars Colorado KCBS Pitmaster BBQ Contest 🏅 Castle Rock, CO	25 / 36 (665.0744)	4 (177.1772)	35 (155.3832)	19 (169.6684)	27 (162.8456)
Aug 23, 2024	Montana Pitmaster Classic 🏅 Bozeman, MT	24 / 39 (666.6740)	23 (166.2284)	28 (165.6800)	27 (167.3828)	21 (167.3828)
Aug 9, 2024	Beat the Heat BBQ & Brews 🏅 Alamosa, CO	10 / 29 (681.1088)	16 (166.2744)	3 (176.5600)	7 (171.4172)	15 (166.8572)
Jul 12, 2024	Smoke & Soul Fest 🏅 Casper, WY	19 / 26 (664.4000)	23 (159.9544)	15 (168.5256)	13 (169.6800)	17 (166.2400)
Jun 28, 2024	The Art of Barbeque 🏅 Sterling, CO	20 / 25 (656.5264)	24 (159.9888)	19 (161.6688)	2 (177.7372)	23 (157.1316)
May 10, 2024	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Lamar, CO	19 / 29 (663.3260)	15 (167.9772)	15 (166.2972)	21 (166.2516)	21 (162.8000)
Mar 15, 2024	6th Annual Qlathe BBQ Championship 🏅 Olathe, KS	31 / 58 (674.1600)	27 (170.8572)	46 (162.8000)	5 (177.7144)	40 (162.7884)
Aug 25, 2023	Hill City Wine, Brew & BBQ Fest 🏅 Hill City, SD	20 / 26 (651.8396)	18 (163.9884)	14 (167.9656)	19 (163.9544)	23 (155.9312)
Aug 11, 2023	Beat the Heat BBQ & Brews 🏅 Alamosa, CO	13 / 27 (667.3372)	7 (171.9772)	2 (173.1428)	20 (164.5372)	24 (157.6800)
Jun 30, 2023	Art of Barbeque 🏅 Sterling, CO	18 / 35 (673.6684)	8 (173.7144)	13 (172)	29 (163.9656)	27 (163.9884)
May 27, 2023	Veterans of Foreign Wars Colorado KCBS Pitmaster BBQ Contest 🏅 Castle Rock, CO	34 / 37 (639.3480)	5 (174.3200)	32 (157.6568)	31 (163.4056)	36 (143.9656)
May 12, 2023	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Lamar, CO	16 / 30 (660.5948)	12 (168.5600)	9 (170.3088)	16 (167.4516)	28 (154.2744)
Jul 1, 2022	The Art of BBQ 🏅 Sterling, CO	24 / 28 (635.3028)	7 (172.5484)	16 (163.9544)	26 (146.8572)	24 (151.9428)
May 6, 2022	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Lamar, CO	24 / 33 (655.3716)	6 (171.4400)	22 (162.8572)	17 (165.1428)	29 (155.9316)
May 7, 2021	Wild West BBQ Cook-Off 🏅 Lamar, CO	33 / 35 (591.2800)	25 (160.5372)	28 (153.6800)	35 (129.6800)	30 (147.3828)

At Ease

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

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 (12 found in their record)

Perfect scores on the board

They almost always walk

High-water mark

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Pork nemesis

Looking over their shoulder

A March team

The long haul

A standing appointment

Team of the Year (rank per category by season — the year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Overall rank by season

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, averaged over 5 contests — 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)