HERDING SMOKE

HERDING SMOKE is a competition barbecue team with 15 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 (2014). They are ranked #1729 of 6,491 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,729

of 6,491 rated · rankings

Rating

1551

peak 1552 · rated over 15 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 10, 2013

latest Sep 26, 2015 · 2.4 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#340

Master 2014 · every season

Grand champs

0 reserve · wins it all 7% of the time

Category wins

6 podiums

Overall top-10s

40% of 15 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 43%

overall standings

Best overall

670.7312 / 720

Master · Sam's Club National BBQ Tour

Perfect 180s

Current form

647.42 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 633.17 (+14.25)

Walk rate

93%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

174.8800

Pork Ribs · Coal Cracker Smoke & Stoke BBQ Competition

Consistency

±25.28

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Pork

avg 162.15 · weakest Brisket (155.86)

Road miles

2,388

across 15 mapped stops · furthest 232 mi

Schedule strength

25%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1534)

Master avg

633.17 / 720

15 Master contests · 1 GC

Storylines (8 found in their record)

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

Against the odds

21-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 79 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Aug 15, 2014) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 21-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, 3 EYZ BBQ.

They almost always walk

93% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 14 of 15 contests

A top-10 category call in 93% of their 15 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

670.7312 career-best overall

93.2% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 670.7312 at Sam's Club National BBQ Tour — 93.2% of a perfect 720.

Master
Aug 15, 2014

A tough matchup

6–2 behind in the head-to-head

FIRE & SPICE ahead in 75% of their meetings

FIRE & SPICE has come out ahead in 6 of their 8 shared contests.

The weak link

−6.3 points behind their best meat

Brisket is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 6.30 points below their pork, and turns into a call 33% of the time against 53%.

Brisket avg 155.86
Pork avg 162.15
5 calls in 15 entries

A strong matchup

4–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of LITTLE CREEK BAR B CUE COMPANY in 4 of their 4 shared contests.

Pork nemesis

5 of 6 shared pork entries lost

WILBUR'S REVENGE ahead 83% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, WILBUR'S REVENGE has out-cooked them in 5 of 6 shared pork entries.

Show 1 more storyline

An October team

Top 27% average finish in October

Something about October: average finish in the top 27% across 3 contests, versus top 43% the rest of the year.

3 October contests
top 43% the rest of the year

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	#1970 (90 pts)	#1275 (235 pts)	#1671 (145 pts)	#2011 (100 pts)	#2214 (60 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#340 (1,070 pts)	#569 (685 pts)	#406 (955 pts)	#293 (1,175 pts)	#348 (1,055 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#384 (789 pts)	#449 (704 pts)	#389 (799 pts)	#313 (949 pts)	#336 (914 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to HERDING SMOKE, each with one reason worth a look.

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

FREE RANGE BBQ

#1,727 of the rated field

1551 power rating

Contests: 25
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 16%
Peak: 1581

1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to HERDING SMOKE)

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

rated over 24 contests
last seen Aug 24, 2018

⚔ Head-to-head

UFF-DA-Q

#1,738 of the rated field

1550 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 29%
Peak: 1550

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 16 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 16 contests
last seen May 25, 2019

⚔ Compare careers

EVEL QUE-NIEVEL

#1,734 of the rated field

1551 power rating

Contests: 14
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 21%
Peak: 1552

Careers of much the same size, 14 contests to 15, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 14 contests
last seen Oct 12, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

MOO COW

#1,731 of the rated field

1551 power rating

Contests: 17
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 35%
Peak: 1566

17 contests and no Grand Championship yet — a rating made of 35% top-10 finishes rather than wins.

rated over 17 contests
last seen Jun 1, 2018

⚔ Compare careers

BIG BUTT BBQ

#1,730 of the rated field

1551 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 15%
Peak: 1551

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

rated over 13 contests
last seen Apr 22, 2016

⚔ Compare careers

FAHRENHEIT 250

#1,739 of the rated field

1550 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 64%
Peak: 1550

3 straight overall top-10s says this rating is a moving target.

rated over 11 contests
last seen Feb 5, 2022

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
Badlands BBQ	8	4	4	50%	⚔ compare
FIRE & SPICE	8	2	6	25%	⚔ compare
WILBUR'S REVENGE	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
PIGHEADED BBQ	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
LO' -N- SLO' BBQ	6	1	5	17%	⚔ compare
CAMP BACON BBQ	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare
Uncle Pig's Barbeque Pit	5	4	1	80%	⚔ compare
Dr. Pearl's Medicinal Smoke BBQ Team	5	3	2	60%	⚔ compare
BBQ MAFIA	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
HAWG NATION BBQ	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
PHILLY BLIND PIG BBQ	5	2	3	40%	⚔ compare
THE BASIC BBQ TEAM	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
RIBS WITHIN	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
Rogue Hog BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	15	4	0	1	171.9772	140.4456	159.12	top 53%
Pork Ribs	15	6	1	2	174.8800	129.0400	156.04	top 51%
Pork	15	8	1	1	173.1428	149.6912	162.15	top 31%
Brisket	15	5	1	2	174.8572	127.9200	155.86	top 46%

“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)	8	1	top 42%
Large (40+)	7	0	top 45%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
PA	7	1	top 29%
VA	2	0	top 67%
NJ	1	0	top 54%
CT	1	0	top 25%
MA	1	0	top 19%
NY	1	0	top 78%
RI	1	0	top 93%
DE	1	0	top 39%

More numbers

Busiest season 2014 7 contests · 1 GC

Contests a season 5 across 3 seasons in the data

Most contests held in PA 7 of 15 contests · 8 states in all

Contests visited 15 a different one every time

First title Aug 15, 2014 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour

Opponents faced 344 finished ahead 334 times, behind 238

Longest layoff 1 yrs Sep 26, 2014 → Sep 26, 2015

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

20151 milestone

Sep 26 Most recent contest Red, White and Que

20147 milestones

Jul 12 First category win (Pork) Pork in the Park
Jul 12 10th tracked contest Pork in the Park
Aug 15 First overall podium Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Aug 15 First Grand Championship Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Aug 15 Career-best overall score670.7312 Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Sep 12 Career-best single call (Pork Ribs)174.8800 Coal Cracker Smoke & Stoke BBQ Competition
Sep 26 Peak power rating (1552) Lehigh Valley QueFest

20134 milestones

May 10 First tracked contest Green Lane Fire CO's
May 10 First call Green Lane Fire CO's
Oct 4 First overall top-10 Keystone Classic Barbeque
Oct 4 First overall past 90% of a perfect score652.4800 Keystone Classic Barbeque

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+17	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	Aug 15, 2014
+15.4	Que for the Troops	Jun 6, 2014
+13.3	Keystone Classic Barbeque	Oct 4, 2013
+11.9	Riverside Blues & BBQ Festival	Oct 11, 2013
+10.5	Pork in the Park	Jul 12, 2014

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.5	Wakefield Rotary Campus CookOff & State BBQ Championships	Jul 20, 2013
-7.6	Smoke in the Valley BBQ Competition	May 9, 2014
-7.4	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional)	Aug 29, 2014
-7.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	Aug 9, 2013
-1.1	Red, White and Que	Sep 26, 2015

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)
2015	1	0	0	0	100%	top 54%	87.8%	87.8%
2014	7	1	4	3	100%	top 38%	93.2%	89.5%
2013	7	0	2	0	86%	top 47%	90.8%	86.4%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 26, 2015	Red, White and Que Cresskill, NJ	19 / 35 (631.8284)	3 (171.9772)	9 (163.9656)	17 (157.1200)	30 (138.7656)
Sep 26, 2014	Lehigh Valley QueFest Allentown, PA	12 / 32 (639.9196)	19 (159.3600)	20 (151.9540)	13 (161.1428)	6 (167.4628)
Sep 12, 2014	Coal Cracker Smoke & Stoke BBQ Competition Scranton, PA	8 / 25 (645.0628)	16 (155.3484)	1 (174.8800)	12 (156.5600)	11 (158.2744)
Aug 29, 2014	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour (Regional) Richmond, VA	25 / 30 (649.5540)	27 (162.7884)	29 (155.3828)	4 (168.5600)	11 (162.8228)
Aug 15, 2014	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Harrisburg, PA	1 / 28 (670.7312)	14 (162.8000)	10 (163.9540)	4 (169.1200)	1 (174.8572)
Jul 12, 2014	Pork in the Park Stamford, CT	5 / 20 (651.8740)	14 (155.9200)	4 (166.2512)	1 (173.1428)	11 (156.5600)
Jun 6, 2014	Que for the Troops Levittown, PA	4 / 65 (655.3140)	9 (168)	11 (162.8228)	29 (158.8228)	8 (165.6684)
May 9, 2014	Smoke in the Valley BBQ Competition Green Lane, PA	41 / 54 (596.4116)	24 (159.4172)	54 (129.0400)	6 (166.2628)	44 (141.6916)
Oct 18, 2013	Autumnfest Woodstock, VA	20 / 40 (632.9368)	22 (159.3712)	25 (154.2056)	10 (165.1200)	21 (154.2400)
Oct 11, 2013	Riverside Blues & BBQ Festival Greenfield, MA	4 / 21 (653.5888)	7 (163.3944)	8 (163.4172)	5 (165.6800)	12 (161.0972)
Oct 4, 2013	Keystone Classic Barbeque Harrisburg, PA	7 / 55 (652.4800)	41 (151.4172)	2 (167.9772)	8 (166.2628)	6 (166.8228)
Aug 9, 2013	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Medford, NY	21 / 27 (589.9884)	27 (140.4456)	16 (149.6344)	10 (154.8228)	14 (145.0856)
Jul 20, 2013	Wakefield Rotary Campus CookOff & State BBQ Championships Kingston, RI	43 / 46 (581.5312)	32 (157.0972)	43 (146.8228)	40 (149.6912)	44 (127.9200)
May 17, 2013	Middletown BBQ Cook Off Middletown, DE	22 / 56 (624.5712)	34 (153.1426)	52 (138.8570)	15 (160.5716)	2 (172)
May 10, 2013	Green Lane Fire CO's Green Lane, PA	22 / 58 (621.7142)	5 (166.2856)	27 (151.4288)	11 (159.4284)	44 (144.5714)

HERDING SMOKE

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 (8 found in their record)

Against the odds

They almost always walk

High-water mark

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Pork nemesis

An October team

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)

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)