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Nickel City Smokers

Nickel City Smokers is a competition barbecue team with 10 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2018. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que (2015). They are ranked #1764 of 6,485 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

⚔ Compare with another team

At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#1,764
of 6,485 rated · rankings

Rating

1549
peak 1549 · rated over 9 contests1 invitational or side-series contest not counted

Contests

10
in the data

First seen

Jun 14, 2013
latest Sep 22, 2018 · 5.3 years on the trail

Grand champs

1
0 reserve · wins it all 10% of the time

Category wins

2
3 podiums

Overall top-10s

1
10% of 10 contests

Avg finish

top 39%
overall standings

Best overall

670.3776 / 720
Master · Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que

Perfect 180s

0

Current form

645.38 ▲
last 5 Master vs avg 643.49 (+1.89)

Walk rate

50%
contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

174.2972
Brisket · Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que

Consistency

±13.38
spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken
avg 162.72 · weakest Pork (157.31)

Road miles

1,849
across 10 mapped stops · furthest 873 mi

Schedule strength

15%
of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1522)

Master avg

643.49 / 720
10 Master contests · 1 GC

Storylines (10 found in their record)

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

Against the odds

30-in-100 shot on pre-contest ratings

The ratings favoured the top seed the other 70 times in 100

Their Grand Championship at Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que (Jun 19, 2015) came as the ratings underdog — roughly a 30-in-100 shot against the field's top-rated team, GOOD SMOKE BBQ.

Giant slayer

47 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 47-team field at Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que.

  • Jun 19, 2015

High-water mark

670.3776 career-best overall

93.1% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 670.3776 at Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que — 93.1% of a perfect 720.

  • Master
  • Jun 19, 2015

A tough matchup

8–2 behind in the head-to-head

GOOD SMOKE BBQ ahead in 80% of their meetings

GOOD SMOKE BBQ has come out ahead in 8 of their 10 shared contests.

The weak link

−5.4 points behind their best meat

Pork is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.42 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 10% of the time against 20%.

  • Pork avg 157.31
  • Chicken avg 162.72
  • 1 call in 10 entries

A strong matchup

6–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of BUTTS & LINKS BBQ in 6 of their 6 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

6 of 6 shared chicken entries lost

SMOKIN BOYS AND HOT GRILLS ahead 100% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, SMOKIN BOYS AND HOT GRILLS has out-cooked them in 6 of 6 shared chicken entries.

Show 3 more storylines

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

BEHIND BBQ has landed one call behind them 2 times.

A June team

Top 27% average finish in June

Something about June: average finish in the top 27% across 3 contests, versus top 39% the rest of the year.

  • 3 June contests
  • top 39% the rest of the year

The metronome

±1.86% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.86% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

  • averages 89.4% of a perfect score
  • 10 contests

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to Nickel City Smokers, each with one reason worth a look.

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

PIG IRON
#1,756 of the rated field
1550 power rating
Contests
12
GCs
0
Top-10s
42%
Peak
1564
1–3 in 4 shared contests (25% to Nickel City Smokers)

These two have cooked 4 of the same contests — PIG IRON ahead 3–1 — so there's a record behind this pairing and not just a matching number.

  • rated over 12 contests
  • last seen Jul 10, 2015
⚔ Head-to-head
Slogies butt hutt BBQ
#1,761 of the rated field
1550 power rating
Contests
5
GCs
0
Top-10s
60%
Peak
1550
1–1 in 2 shared contests (50% to Nickel City Smokers)

Their last contest in the data was back in 2013, 5 years before Nickel City Smokers's most recent — their rating stopped moving when they stopped cooking.

  • rated over 5 contests
⚔ Head-to-head
HOGS ON THE RUN
#1,754 of the rated field
1550 power rating
Contests
8
GCs
0
Top-10s
13%
Peak
1553

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 May 11, 2018
⚔ Compare careers
Smokin it up BBQ Australia
#1,765 of the rated field
1549 power rating
Contests
11
GCs
2
Top-10s
91%
Peak
1559

Careers of much the same size, 11 contests to 10, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

  • rated over 11 contests
  • last seen Apr 26, 2025
  • on a 4-contest top-10 run
⚔ Compare careers
THE SHED BBQ
#1,763 of the rated field
1550 power rating
Contests
11
GCs
0
Top-10s
9%
Peak
1550

Level with Nickel City Smokers on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

  • rated over 11 contests
  • last seen Sep 27, 2023
⚔ Compare careers
Thin Blue Smoke MS
#1,762 of the rated field
1550 power rating
Contests
14
GCs
0
Top-10s
14%
Peak
1550

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

  • rated over 13 contests
  • last seen Apr 24, 2026
⚔ Compare careers

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

OpponentMeetingsAheadBehindWin rate
GOOD SMOKE BBQ 10 2 8 20% ⚔ compare
BEHIND BBQ 8 5 3 63% ⚔ compare
SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS 8 3 5 38% ⚔ compare
KISS MY BBQ 8 3 5 38% ⚔ compare
TRANQUIL CARNIVORES 7 4 3 57% ⚔ compare
RED VALLEY BBQ 7 4 3 57% ⚔ compare
THE GOOD CUE CREW 7 3 4 43% ⚔ compare
BUTTS & LINKS BBQ 6 6 0 100% ⚔ compare
SMOKIN BARRELS 6 5 1 83% ⚔ compare
SMOKIN' AIN'T EASY 6 4 2 67% ⚔ compare
Sweet Heat BBQ 6 3 3 50% ⚔ compare
BIG BELLY BBQ 6 3 3 50% ⚔ compare
THREE DOGS BBQ 6 2 4 33% ⚔ compare
SMOKIN BOYS AND HOT GRILLS 6 1 5 17% ⚔ compare
Priorville 6 1 5 17% ⚔ compare

By meat

CategoryEntriesCallsWinsPodiumsBestWorstAverageAvg finish
Chicken 10 2 0 1 171.9656 152.5712 162.72 top 47%
Pork Ribs 10 3 1 1 174.2860 151.9200 161.88 top 42%
Pork 10 1 0 0 166.8572 145.7140 157.31 top 59%
Brisket 10 1 1 1 174.2972 154.8684 161.58 top 39%

“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

FieldContestsGCsAvg finish
Medium (20–39)10top 35%
Large (40+)91top 40%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

WhereContestsGCsAvg finish
NY81top 34%
MO20top 60%

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

ContestVisitsBestGCsAvg finishLast visit
Oinktoberfest 4 15 0 top 39% Sep 22, 2018
Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que 3 1 1 top 27% Jun 19, 2015

More numbers

Busiest season 2015 3 contests · 1 GC
Contests a season 1.7 across 6 seasons in the data
Most contests held in NY 8 of 10 contests · 2 states in all
Contests visited 5 2 of them more than once
First title Jun 19, 2015 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
Opponents faced 763 finished ahead 718 times, behind 483
Longest layoff 1 yrs Sep 22, 2017 → Sep 22, 2018

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

20183 milestones
  1. 10th tracked contest Oinktoberfest
  2. Peak power rating (1549) Oinktoberfest
  3. Most recent contest Oinktoberfest
20157 milestones
  1. First overall top-10 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  2. First overall podium Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  3. First Grand Championship Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  4. First overall past 90% of a perfect score670.3776 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  5. Biggest field won (47 teams) Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  6. Career-best overall score670.3776 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  7. Career-best single call (Brisket)174.2972 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
20133 milestones
  1. First tracked contest Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  2. First call Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que
  3. First category win (Pork Ribs) Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

SwingContestDate
+16.1Crossborder Blues, Brews & QueJun 19, 2015
+7.836th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- OpenOct 3, 2015
+6.8OinktoberfestSep 22, 2018
+5.1OinktoberfestSep 20, 2013
+4.6Crossborder Blues, Brews & QueJun 14, 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

SeasonContestsGCsTop-10sCategory winsWalk rateAvg finishBest overall (% of perfect)Avg overall (% of perfect)
20181000 100% top 29% 88.3% 88.3%
20171000 0% top 45% 88.3% 88.3%
20161000 100% top 37% 89% 89%
20153111 33% top 41% 93.1% 91.9%
20142000 50% top 45% 89.1% 88.4%
20132001 50% top 35% 87.9% 87.9%

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

DateEventOverallChickenRibsPorkBrisket
Sep 22, 2018 Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY 15 / 51 (635.8168) 2 (171.9656) 34 (152.5484) 27 (154.8000) 16 (156.5028)
Sep 22, 2017 Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY 24 / 53 (635.8856) 12 (169.1772) 42 (151.9200) 36 (154.8456) 21 (159.9428)
Sep 23, 2016 Ointoberfest BBQ Cookoff Clarence, NY 20 / 54 (641.0744) 42 (153.6800) 6 (169.1200) 30 (158.8572) 23 (159.4172)
Oct 3, 2015 36th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- Open Kansas City, MO 176 / 606 (666.2968) 121 (170.8456) 320 (162.8800) 275 (164.6056) 174 (167.9656)
Oct 2, 2015 36th Annual American Royal World Series of Barbeque- Invitational unrated Kansas City, MO 170 / 187 (647.8396) 152 (164.5140) 113 (166.2972) 166 (159.9428) 176 (157.0856)
Jun 19, 2015 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY 1 / 47 (670.3776) 7 (169.7716) 20 (159.4516) 7 (166.8572) 1 (174.2972)
Sep 20, 2014 Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY 30 / 66 (630.7312) 44 (155.9312) 38 (153.1428) 21 (162.2400) 22 (159.4172)
Jun 13, 2014 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY 21 / 47 (641.7368) 28 (159.9312) 7 (170.3200) 29 (156.6172) 26 (154.8684)
Sep 20, 2013 Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY 25 / 71 (632.5484) 33 (158.8456) 21 (158.8456) 58 (148.5828) 14 (166.2744)
Jun 14, 2013 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY 11 / 31 (632.5714) 24 (152.5712) 1 (174.2860) 27 (145.7140) 12 (160.0002)

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

Career map (orange GC · green top-10 · grey the rest — tap a pin)

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