TOMBSTONE BBQ

TOMBSTONE BBQ is a competition barbecue team with 8 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2015. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) (2013). They are ranked #2564 of 6,485 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#2,564

of 6,485 rated · rankings

Rating

1518

peak 1532 · rated over 7 contests1 invitational or side-series contest not counted

Contests

in the data

First seen

Apr 12, 2013

latest Apr 3, 2015 · 2 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#813

Master 2013 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve · wins it all 13% of the time

Category wins

3 podiums

Overall top-10s

25% of 8 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 45%

overall standings

Best overall

667.9088 / 720

Master · Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Championship

Perfect 180s

Current form

649.82 ▼

last 5 Master vs avg 655.07 (-5.25)

Walk rate

63%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

176.5714

Brisket · BBQ, Blues & Brews on the Bay

Consistency

±13.01

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Brisket

avg 169.34 · weakest Pork Ribs (160.55)

Road miles

4,923

across 8 mapped stops · furthest 1,619 mi

Schedule strength

19%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1526)

Master avg

655.07 / 720

8 Master contests · 1 GC

Storylines (10 found in their record)

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

Giant slayer

30 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 30-team field at Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional).

Apr 19, 2013

They almost always walk

63% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 5 of 8 contests

A top-10 category call in 63% of their 8 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

667.9088 career-best overall

92.8% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 667.9088 at Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Championship — 92.8% of a perfect 720.

Master
Oct 18, 2013

A tough matchup

5–1 behind in the head-to-head

MOVIN' THE CHAINS ahead in 83% of their meetings

MOVIN' THE CHAINS has come out ahead in 5 of their 6 shared contests.

The weak link

−8.8 points behind their best meat

Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 8.79 points below their brisket, and turns into a call 25% of the time against 50%.

Pork Ribs avg 160.55
Brisket avg 169.34
2 calls in 8 entries

A strong matchup

3–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of SMOKIN TRIGGERS in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

Announced themselves early

4th at their very first contest

Finished 4 of 29 at their very first tracked contest, Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Apr 12, 2013).

Apr 12, 2013
29-team field

Show 3 more storylines

An April team

Top 34% average finish in April

Something about April: average finish in the top 34% across 4 contests, versus top 45% the rest of the year.

4 April contests
top 45% the rest of the year

The long haul

4,923 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 4,923 miles across 8 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 1,619 miles to Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Championship.

8 mapped stops
furthest 1,619 mi

The metronome

±1.81% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.81% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 91.0% of a perfect score
8 contests

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
2015 ↗	Master	#1962 (93 pts)	#2037 (93 pts)	#1882 (118 pts)	#2828 (53 pts)	#1517 (168 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#1970 (95 pts)	#2780 (55 pts)	#1653 (150 pts)	#2784 (55 pts)	#2013 (100 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#813 (375 pts)	#996 (315 pts)	#1180 (250 pts)	#1006 (310 pts)	#542 (585 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to TOMBSTONE BBQ, each with one reason worth a look.

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

SAY HELLO TO MY LITTLE SMOKER

#2,570 of the rated field

1518 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 38%
Peak: 1518

1–0 in 1 shared contest (100% to TOMBSTONE BBQ)

One contest in common so far: too few to settle anything, but a team TOMBSTONE BBQ has actually stood beside rather than a stranger on the same rating.

rated over 13 contests
last seen Jun 19, 2015

⚔ Head-to-head

SEXY Q/17TH ST BAR & GRILL

#2,565 of the rated field

1518 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1518

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 8 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Sep 22, 2017

⚔ Compare careers

TRAILHOUND SMOKERS

#2,556 of the rated field

1518 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 25%
Peak: 1518

Careers of much the same size, 8 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Apr 8, 2016

⚔ Compare careers

BBQ PIT STOP

#2,553 of the rated field

1518 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 50%
Peak: 1518

Both teams' first contest in the data came in 2013.

rated over 8 contests
last seen Jul 24, 2015

⚔ Compare careers

SMOKETACULAR

#2,557 of the rated field

1518 power rating

Contests: 8
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 13%
Peak: 1518

Level with TOMBSTONE BBQ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 8 contests
last seen May 2, 2014

⚔ Compare careers

Porko Smoko

#2,566 of the rated field

1518 power rating

Contests: 6
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1518

Careers of much the same size, 6 contests to 8, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 6 contests
last seen Jun 12, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
BAD BONES BBQ	7	3	4	43%	⚔ compare
LAKE HOUSE BBQ	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
MOVIN' THE CHAINS	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
DANCES WITH SMOKE BARBEQUE	5	3	2	60%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	8	1	0	167.4056	153.6912	163.21	top 55%
Pork Ribs	8	2	0	169.7144	144.5256	160.55	top 53%
Pork	8	1	0	173.7144	147.9428	161.97	top 56%
Brisket	8	4	3	176.5714	158.2512	169.34	top 25%

“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	1	top 38%
Large (40+)	3	0	top 57%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
WA	3	0	top 44%
MO	2	0	top 41%
AR	1	0	top 88%
OR	1	0	top 55%
NV	1	1	top 3%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	3	4	0	top 44%	Apr 3, 2015

More numbers

Busiest season 2013 6 contests · 1 GC

Contests a season 2.7 across 3 seasons in the data

Most contests held in WA 3 of 8 contests · 5 states in all

Contests visited 6 1 of them more than once

First title Apr 19, 2013 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)

Opponents faced 664 finished ahead 547 times, behind 352

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

20151 milestone

Apr 3 Most recent contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour

201310 milestones

Apr 12 First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 12 First call Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 12 First overall top-10 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 12 First overall past 90% of a perfect score662.2850 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Apr 19 First overall podium Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)
Apr 19 First Grand Championship Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)
Apr 19 Biggest field won (30 teams) Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)
May 25 Career-best single call (Brisket)176.5714 BBQ, Blues & Brews on the Bay
Oct 3 Peak power rating (1532) 34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open
Oct 18 Career-best overall score667.9088 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Championship

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+16.2	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)	Apr 19, 2013
+12.6	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	Apr 12, 2013
+5.5	34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open	Oct 3, 2013

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-8.4	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Championship	Oct 18, 2013
-3.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	Apr 3, 2015
-2.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	Apr 4, 2014
-2.2	BBQ, Blues & Brews on the Bay	May 25, 2013

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	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2015	1	0	0	100%	top 61%	88.5%	88.5%
2014	1	0	0	100%	top 57%	87.8%	87.8%
2013	6	1	2	50%	top 40%	92.8%	91.9%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Apr 3, 2015	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Renton, WA	17 / 28 (637.0284)	17 (158.2972)	12 (161.6800)	28 (147.9428)	6 (169.1084)
Apr 4, 2014	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Renton, WA	17 / 30 (631.8048)	25 (153.6912)	8 (166.2168)	25 (153.6456)	16 (158.2512)
Oct 18, 2013	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Championship Bentonville, AR	44 / 50 (667.9088)	46 (165.1200)	25 (169.7144)	35 (163.3944)	29 (169.6800)
Oct 3, 2013	34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Invitational unrated Kansas City, MO	87 / 174 (662.1596)	82 (166.8456)	116 (160.5484)	108 (162.8000)	33 (171.9656)
Oct 3, 2013	34th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue Open Kansas City, MO	173 / 535 (650.2056)	126 (167.4056)	472 (144.5256)	24 (173.7144)	139 (164.5600)
May 25, 2013	BBQ, Blues & Brews on the Bay North Bend, OR	17 / 31 (661.7146)	18 (162.8572)	27 (151.4288)	10 (170.8572)	2 (176.5714)
Apr 19, 2013	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) Las Vegas, NV	1 / 30 (667.4280)	14 (164.5714)	6 (168)	13 (163.4282)	2 (171.4284)
Apr 12, 2013	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Renton, WA	4 / 29 (662.2850)	8 (166.8570)	12 (162.2856)	16 (159.9998)	2 (173.1426)

An unrated contest — an invitational, or a Competitor or Kosher Series board — is in the record but doesn’t move the power rating.

TOMBSTONE BBQ

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

Rating

Contests

First seen

Best ToY finish

Grand champs

Category wins

Overall top-10s

Best top-10 run

Avg finish

Best overall

Perfect 180s

Current form

Walk rate

Best single call

Consistency

Strongest meat

Road miles

Schedule strength

Master avg

Storylines (10 found in their record)

Giant slayer

They almost always walk

High-water mark

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Announced themselves early

An April team

The long haul

The metronome

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 — 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)