A tough matchup
5–0
behind in the head-to-head
LAZY BACON BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings
LAZY BACON BBQ has come out ahead in 5 of their 5 shared contests.
SMOKING AND THE BANDITS
SMOKING AND THE BANDITS is a competition barbecue team with 8 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2023. Their best overall finish is 19th of 25 at the R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship (2013). They are ranked #6182 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.
At a glance (the record in numbers)
Rating
1423
peak 1423 · rated over 8 contests
Contests
8
in the data
First seen
Apr 26, 2013
latest Sep 27, 2023 · 10.4 years on the trail
Grand champs
0
0 reserve
Category wins
0
0 podiums
Overall top-10s
0
0% of 8 contests
Avg finish
top 93%
overall standings
Perfect 180s
0
Current form
614.72 ▼
last 5 Master vs avg 618.39 (-3.66)
Walk rate
0%
contests with a top-10 call
Consistency
±14.53
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)
Strongest meat
Chicken
avg 158.05 · weakest Brisket (152.75)
Road miles
803
across 8 mapped stops · furthest 103 mi
Schedule strength
47%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1561)
Purse competed for
$76K
listed at 1 contest — purses, not winnings
State championships
0 🏅
won from 1 state-championship entry
Master avg
618.39 / 720
8 Master contests · 0 GCs
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 ↗ | Master | #1255 (60 pts) | #1319 (60 pts) | #1432 (60 pts) | #1287 (60 pts) | #1296 (60 pts) |
| 2017 ↗ | Master | #2935 (52 pts) | #2827 (57 pts) | #2926 (52 pts) | #2917 (52 pts) | #2914 (52 pts) |
| 2014 ↗ | Master | #2689 (61 pts) | #2703 (61 pts) | #2708 (61 pts) | #2706 (61 pts) | #2698 (61 pts) |
| 2013 ↗ | Master | #1631 (135 pts) | #1650 (140 pts) | #1683 (140 pts) | #1534 (155 pts) | #1483 (155 pts) |
Overall rank by season
Teams like this (closest power rating)
The teams rated closest to SMOKING AND THE BANDITS, each with one reason worth a look.
36 rated teams sit within a point of this rating, so a place on this list means the numbers match — no more than that.
#6,179 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1501
0–1 in 1 shared contest (0% to SMOKING AND THE BANDITS)
One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team SMOKING AND THE BANDITS has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.
⚔ Head-to-head#6,181 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1423
This is the highest they've ever been rated, 9 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.
⚔ Compare careers#6,183 of the rated field
- Contests
- 9
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1423
Their last contest in the data was back in 2018, 5 years before SMOKING AND THE BANDITS's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.
⚔ Compare careers#6,184 of the rated field
- Contests
- 12
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1502
A longer road to the same neighbourhood — 12 contests to 8.
⚔ Compare careers#6,180 of the rated field
- Contests
- 15
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1504
15 contests and no Grand Championship yet.
⚔ Compare careers#6,185 of the rated field
- Contests
- 16
- GCs
- 0
- Top-10s
- 0%
- Peak
- 1423
Level with SMOKING AND THE BANDITS on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.
⚔ Compare careersFamiliar foes (most-met opponents in overall standings — one meeting per contest)
| Opponent | Meetings | Ahead | Behind | Win rate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LAZY BACON BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| BUTCHER BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| THE AMERICAN DREAM BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| 4 LEGS UP BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
| GREAT PLAINS BBQ | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0% | ⚔ compare |
By meat
| Category | Entries | Calls | Wins | Podiums | Best | Worst | Average | Avg finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 165.7144 | 149.6800 | 158.05 | top 83% |
| Pork Ribs | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 162.8572 | 141.6800 | 153.40 | top 88% |
| Pork | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 163.9998 | 140.5256 | 154.19 | top 86% |
| Brisket | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 159.4284 | 148.5372 | 152.75 | top 87% |
“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) | 5 | 0 | top 92% |
| Large (40+) | 3 | 0 | top 94% |
Repeat visits (contests they've cooked twice or more)
| Contest | Visits | Best | GCs | Avg finish | Last visit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| When Pigs Fly BBQ Contest & Fly In | 2 | 30 | 0 | top 97% | Aug 22, 2014 |
More numbers
Busiest season
2015
2 contests
Contests a season
1.6
across 5 seasons in the data
Most contests held in
KS
8 of 8 contests
Contests visited
7
1 of them more than once
Opponents faced
628
finished ahead 37 times, behind 689
Longest layoff
6.5 yrs
Mar 24, 2017 → Sep 27, 2023
Milestones (the firsts, the round numbers and the personal bests)
20231 milestone
- Most recent contest American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest
20135 milestones
- First tracked contest R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship
- First overall past 90% of a perfect score651.4280 R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship
- Career-best overall score651.4280 R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship
- Career-best single call (Chicken)165.7144 R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship
- Peak power rating (1493) R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship
Power rating over time (1500 = average; recomputed nightly)
📉 Toughest weekends
| Swing | Contest | Date |
|---|---|---|
| -13.9 | When Pigs Fly BBQ Contest & Fly In | Aug 23, 2013 |
| -10.4 | When Pigs Fly BBQ Contest & Fly In | Aug 22, 2014 |
| -10.2 | Sugar Mound BBQ Festival | May 23, 2015 |
| -9.4 | Smoked & Sauced a BBQ for Badges | Mar 24, 2017 |
| -8.7 | Ol' Glory BBQ Bash | Jun 20, 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 | GCs | Top-10s | Category wins | Walk rate | Avg finish | Best overall (% of perfect) | Avg overall (% of perfect) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 96% | 84.9% | 84.9% |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 100% | 85.8% | 85.8% |
| 2015 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 93% | 86.5% | 85.4% |
| 2014 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 91% | 86.5% | 85.9% |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0% | top 88% | 90.5% | 86.9% |
Contest history (click a row for the event, a column to sort)
| Date | Event | Overall | Chicken | Ribs | Pork | Brisket |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 27, 2023 | American Royal World Series of Barbecue - Open Contest 🏅 Kansas City, KS | 467 / 487 (611.3260) | 373 (162.2972) | 475 (147.9316) | 458 (152) | 455 (149.0972) |
| Mar 24, 2017 | Smoked & Sauced a BBQ for Badges Spring Hill, KS | 27 / 27 (618.1144) | 24 (157.6456) | 26 (157.1200) | 27 (152.5260) | 27 (150.8228) |
| Sep 11, 2015 | Derby BBQ Festival Derby, KS | 23 / 26 (622.7088) | 21 (157.6456) | 24 (151.3828) | 12 (162.8344) | 24 (150.8460) |
| May 23, 2015 | Sugar Mound BBQ Festival Mound City, KS | 61 / 62 (606.7084) | 62 (149.6800) | 39 (162.8572) | 62 (140.5256) | 50 (153.6456) |
| Aug 22, 2014 | When Pigs Fly BBQ Contest & Fly In McPherson, KS | 34 / 36 (614.7656) | 28 (158.2856) | 33 (151.4400) | 34 (156.5028) | 35 (148.5372) |
| Jun 20, 2014 | Ol' Glory BBQ Bash Fredonia, KS | 37 / 42 (622.6744) | 37 (156.5488) | 37 (152.5028) | 38 (159.3712) | 36 (154.2516) |
| Aug 23, 2013 | When Pigs Fly BBQ Contest & Fly In McPherson, KS | 30 / 30 (599.3712) | 25 (156.5712) | 30 (141.6800) | 30 (145.7256) | 20 (155.3944) |
| Apr 26, 2013 | R'Kansas City State BBQ Championship Arkansas City, KS | 19 / 25 (651.4280) | 18 (165.7144) | 18 (162.2854) | 15 (163.9998) | 20 (159.4284) |