THE 5TH ARTERY

THE 5TH ARTERY is a competition barbecue team with 29 Kansas City Barbeque Society (KCBS) contests on record between 2013 and 2019. They have won 1 Grand Championship, at the Oinktoberfest (2019), and finished Reserve Grand Champion once. They are ranked #626 of 6,485 teams in the KCBS power rankings.

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At a glance (the record in numbers)

Power ranking

#626

of 6,485 rated · rankings

Rating

1655

peak 1655 · rated over 27 contests

Contests

in the data

First seen

May 25, 2013

latest Sep 21, 2019 · 6.3 years on the trail

Best ToY finish

#235

Master 2013 · every season

Grand champs

1 reserve · wins it all 3% of the time

Category wins

12 podiums

Overall top-10s

52% of 29 contests

Best top-10 run

straight overall top-10s

Avg finish

top 25%

overall standings

Best overall

681.0856 / 720

Master · The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival

Perfect 180s

Current form

660.14 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 653.55 (+6.59)

Walk rate

79%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

177.7600

Chicken · Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que

Consistency

±13.74

spread of their Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 167.22 · weakest Pork (162.03)

Road miles

5,706

across 29 mapped stops · furthest 331 mi

Schedule strength

21%

of rated fields were softer than their average draw (1530)

Purse competed for

$15K

listed at 2 contests — purses, not winnings

State championships

1 🏅

won from 2 state-championship entries

Master avg

653.55 / 720

26 Master contests · 0 GCs

Storylines (14 found in their record)

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

Among the elite

#626 of 6,485 rated teams

In the top 10% of every rated team in the data

A power rating of 1655 puts them #626 of 6,485 rated teams — the top 10% of the field.

rating 1655
peak 1655
27 rated contests

Giant slayer

43 teams beaten in one weekend

Took the Grand Championship over a 43-team field at Oinktoberfest.

Sep 21, 2019

Happy hunting ground

Top 10% average finish here

Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que is their spot: an average finish in the top 10% across 3 visits.

3 visits
best finish 3rd
average top 10%

They almost always walk

79% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 23 of 29 contests

A top-10 category call in 79% of their 29 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

681.0856 career-best overall

94.6% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 681.0856 at The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival — 94.6% of a perfect 720.

Master
Jul 23, 2016

State champions

1 state championship won

They've taken 1 state championship from 2 entries at contests carrying the title.

2 state-championship entries

The one to beat

2× one call ahead of them

GOOD SMOKE BBQ has finished one call ahead of THE 5TH ARTERY 2 times — their closest competition in the data.

Show 7 more storylines

A tough matchup

14–2 behind in the head-to-head

SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA ahead in 88% of their meetings

SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA has come out ahead in 14 of their 16 shared contests.

The weak link

−5.2 points behind their best meat

Pork is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 5.19 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 27% of the time against 58%.

Pork avg 162.03
Chicken avg 167.22
7 calls in 26 entries

A strong matchup

13–1 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 93% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of SMOKIN' AIN'T EASY in 13 of their 14 shared contests.

Looking over their shoulder

2× one call behind them

Q'N CANUCKS has landed one call behind them 2 times.

The long haul

5,706 road miles between contests

Contest to contest, they've covered roughly 5,706 miles across 29 mapped stops — the longest single trip being 331 miles to Wakefield Rotary Campus CookOff & State BBQ Championships.

29 mapped stops
furthest 331 mi

The metronome

±1.97% swing around their own average

Their overall lands within ±1.97% of a perfect score of their own average — whatever the field, you know roughly what they'll turn in.

averages 90.9% of a perfect score
29 contests

A standing appointment

4 years running at one contest

They've cooked The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival every year from 2016 to 2019 — the contest they never miss.

4 visits in all
best finish 3rd

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
2019 ↗	Master	#1702 (103 pts)	#1384 (163 pts)	#1410 (153 pts)	#2487 (58 pts)	#1339 (173 pts)
2018 ↗	Master	#1834 (84 pts)	#1579 (124 pts)	#1786 (109 pts)	#1596 (124 pts)	#2488 (59 pts)
2017 ↗	Master	#1632 (140 pts)	#1768 (125 pts)	#2032 (105 pts)	#1644 (150 pts)	#2030 (100 pts)
2016 ↗	Master	#964 (341 pts)	#1096 (311 pts)	#1174 (281 pts)	#1284 (251 pts)	#1468 (191 pts)
2015 ↗	Master	#638 (575 pts)	#382 (975 pts)	#823 (440 pts)	#1108 (300 pts)	#777 (470 pts)
2014 ↗	Master	#295 (1,198 pts)	#200 (1,423 pts)	#456 (870 pts)	#372 (988 pts)	#286 (1,203 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#235 (1,247 pts)	#336 (907 pts)	#281 (1,057 pts)	#240 (1,152 pts)	#279 (1,067 pts)

Overall rank by season

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The teams rated closest to THE 5TH ARTERY, each with one reason worth a look.

TEXAS OIL DUST

#622 of the rated field

1655 power rating

Contests: 35
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 40%
Peak: 1675

Careers of much the same size, 35 contests to 29, so neither rating has had more chance to settle than the other.

rated over 31 contests
last seen Aug 21, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

SLAP YO' DADDY BBQ

#627 of the rated field

1655 power rating

Contests: 36
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 39%
Peak: 1655

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 35 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 35 contests
last seen Jul 7, 2017

⚔ Compare careers

BnB BBQ

#624 of the rated field

1655 power rating

Contests: 43
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 23%
Peak: 1666

Their rating is built on 2 Grand Championships in 43 contests, alongside a 23% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 40 contests
last seen Jun 5, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Bears Backyard Q

#625 of the rated field

1655 power rating

Contests: 56
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 23%
Peak: 1659

They turned up 5 years after THE 5TH ARTERY did, first appearing in 2018.

rated over 49 contests
last seen Sep 30, 2026

⚔ Compare careers

Up From The Pits BBQ

#629 of the rated field

1655 power rating

Contests: 54
GCs: 2
Top-10s: 28%
Peak: 1658

Level with THE 5TH ARTERY on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 49 contests
last seen Aug 22, 2025

⚔ Compare careers

DE VLIEGENDE HOLLANDER BBQ-TEAM

#621 of the rated field

1655 power rating

Contests: 59
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 63%
Peak: 1701

They've been 1701 at their best, 46 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 56 contests
last seen Sep 23, 2023

⚔ Compare careers

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
SMOKIN HOGGZ BBQ - MA	16	2	14	13%	⚔ compare
SHORTSVILLE SMOKERS	15	10	5	67%	⚔ compare
GOOD SMOKE BBQ	15	5	10	33%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN' AIN'T EASY	14	13	1	93%	⚔ compare
KISS MY BBQ	14	11	3	79%	⚔ compare
Rogue Hog BBQ	14	3	11	21%	⚔ compare
Big Pappa's Smokin' BBQ	13	13	0	100%	⚔ compare
BEHIND BBQ	13	11	2	85%	⚔ compare
BUCKNER BROTHERS BBQ	13	9	4	69%	⚔ compare
RED VALLEY BBQ	13	9	4	69%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN BOYS AND HOT GRILLS	12	8	4	67%	⚔ compare
THE BASIC BBQ TEAM	12	5	7	42%	⚔ compare
TEAM EATAPEDIA	12	5	7	42%	⚔ compare
SMOKIN BARRELS	11	10	1	91%	⚔ compare
THE GOOD CUE CREW	11	10	1	91%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Wins	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	26	15	2	7	177.7600	146.2856	167.22	top 29%
Pork Ribs	26	12	0	0	169.7028	149.0972	162.25	top 38%
Pork	26	7	1	2	175.4172	147.4286	162.03	top 41%
Brisket	26	10	1	3	172.5828	145.6456	162.05	top 35%

“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)	12	0	top 23%
Large (40+)	15	1	top 26%

By state / province (where the contests were held)

Where	Contests	GCs	Avg finish
NY	18	1	top 21%
VT	7	0	top 30%
MA	1	0	top 47%
RI	1	0	top 35%

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

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Oinktoberfest	4	1	1	top 20%	Sep 21, 2019
The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival	4	3	0	top 33%	Jul 27, 2019
Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que	3	3	0	top 10%	Jun 19, 2015
Roc City Rib Fest	2	14	0	top 26%	May 28, 2016
Harpoon Championships of New England BBQ	2	6	0	top 23%	Jul 25, 2015
Roc City Rib Fest	2	14	0	top 25%	May 23, 2015
Hudson Valley Ribfest	2	8	0	top 29%	Aug 16, 2014
Smokin' Eagles International BBQ Festival	2	2	0	top 14%	Aug 8, 2014

More numbers

Busiest season 2013 9 contests

Contests a season 4.1 across 7 seasons in the data

Most contests held in NY 20 of 29 contests · 4 states in all

Contests visited 14 8 of them more than once

First title Sep 21, 2019 Oinktoberfest

Opponents faced 442 finished ahead 908 times, behind 286

Longest layoff 1 yrs Jul 23, 2016 → Jul 29, 2017

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

20195 milestones

Sep 21 First Grand Championship Oinktoberfest
Sep 21 First state championship Oinktoberfest
Sep 21 Biggest field won (43 teams) Oinktoberfest
Sep 21 Peak power rating (1655) Oinktoberfest
Sep 21 Most recent contest Oinktoberfest

20171 milestone

Sep 22 25th tracked contest Oinktoberfest

20161 milestone

Jul 23 Career-best overall score681.0856 The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival

20151 milestone

Jun 19 Career-best single call (Chicken)177.7600 Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que

20142 milestones

May 24 10th tracked contest Roc City Rib Fest
Aug 8 First Reserve Championship Smokin' Eagles International BBQ Festival

20136 milestones

May 25 First tracked contest Roc City Rib Fest
Jun 7 First call Podunk Pig Party
Jun 7 First category win (Pork) Podunk Pig Party
Jun 7 First overall top-10 Podunk Pig Party
Jun 7 First overall podium Podunk Pig Party
Jun 7 First overall past 90% of a perfect score657.7148 Podunk Pig Party

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+13.9	Podunk Pig Party	Jun 7, 2013
+12.7	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que	Jun 14, 2013
+11.3	Smokin' Eagles International BBQ Festival	Aug 8, 2014
+11.2	Oinktoberfest	Sep 21, 2019
+10.5	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival	Jul 23, 2016

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-5	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival	Jul 28, 2018
-3.6	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival	Jul 27, 2019
-2.8	Oinktoberfest	Sep 19, 2015
-2.2	Harvard Fall Festival BBQ Contest	Sep 13, 2014
-2.1	Boston Hill BBQ Fest	Jun 28, 2013

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	GCs	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2019	2	1	1	0	50%	top 18%	94.5%	93.2%
2018	2	0	0	0	0%	top 59%	89.2%	89.2%
2017	2	0	1	0	50%	top 30%	90.9%	90.9%
2016	2	0	1	0	100%	top 20%	94.6%	93.3%
2015	4	0	2	2	100%	top 23%	93.6%	91.3%
2014	8	0	4	1	100%	top 24%	94.4%	90.7%
2013	9	0	6	1	78%	top 24%	91.8%	90.1%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
Sep 21, 2019	Oinktoberfest 🏅 Clarence, NY	1 / 43 (680.6744)	—	—	—	—
Jul 27, 2019	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival 🏅 Windsor, VT	11 / 33 (661.0172)	7 (173.1200)	8 (169.1200)	31 (151.3712)	6 (167.4172)
Sep 22, 2018	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	—	—	—	—	—
Jul 28, 2018	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival Windsor, VT	20 / 34 (642.1372)	12 (166.2744)	15 (163.9544)	12 (165.1200)	31 (146.7884)
Sep 22, 2017	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	—	—	—	—	—
Jul 29, 2017	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival Windsor, VT	9 / 30 (654.2740)	11 (167.9884)	15 (161.7256)	8 (166.8572)	16 (157.7028)
Jul 23, 2016	The Harpoon Brewery BBQ Festival Windsor, VT	3 / 26 (681.0856)	2 (177.1428)	8 (169.6800)	10 (168.5372)	10 (165.7256)
May 28, 2016	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	14 / 50 (662.1828)	29 (163.4056)	10 (169.1200)	12 (167.3828)	24 (162.2744)
Sep 19, 2015	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	22 / 52 (634.2172)	9 (166.2744)	29 (156.5600)	38 (150.8228)	14 (160.5600)
Jul 25, 2015	Harpoon Championships of New England BBQ Windsor, VT	6 / 35 (674.2744)	1 (176.5716)	22 (161.1428)	13 (165.7028)	7 (170.8572)
Jun 19, 2015	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY	4 / 47 (663.3368)	1 (177.7600)	6 (166.2512)	25 (158.2172)	13 (161.1084)
May 23, 2015	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	14 / 57 (658.8116)	2 (174.8572)	11 (166.8572)	51 (152.5600)	23 (164.5372)
Sep 20, 2014	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	16 / 66 (642.2860)	9 (168.5716)	15 (163.4628)	27 (159.4172)	39 (150.8344)
Sep 13, 2014	Harvard Fall Festival BBQ Contest Harvard, MA	20 / 43 (635.8628)	7 (169.1428)	38 (149.0972)	23 (157.6456)	18 (159.9772)
Aug 16, 2014	Hudson Valley Ribfest New Paltz, NY	25 / 60 (634.7316)	3 (169.1200)	31 (157.6800)	24 (158.8228)	42 (149.1088)
Aug 8, 2014	Smokin' Eagles International BBQ Festival N. Tonawanda, NY	2 / 39 (679.3944)	5 (170.8344)	7 (169.7028)	12 (166.2744)	3 (172.5828)
Jul 25, 2014	Harpoon Championships of New England BBQ Windsor, VT	10 / 34 (651.3944)	13 (163.3828)	4 (165.7144)	21 (156.0572)	8 (166.2400)
Jul 19, 2014	Troy Pig Out Troy, NY	3 / 25 (659.4172)	10 (164.5600)	8 (161.6800)	4 (165.7372)	1 (167.4400)
Jun 13, 2014	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY	5 / 47 (671.3484)	3 (173.7028)	27 (158.8228)	2 (175.4172)	17 (163.4056)
May 24, 2014	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	22 / 86 (647.4284)	9 (169.1428)	53 (153.1316)	61 (153.1312)	8 (172.0228)
Sep 20, 2013	Oinktoberfest Clarence, NY	8 / 71 (661.1200)	7 (170.2628)	9 (166.2744)	33 (157.7028)	12 (166.8800)
Aug 16, 2013	Hudson Valley Ribfest New Paltz, NY	8 / 51 (651.3716)	23 (161.6684)	8 (167.4172)	15 (163.3828)	14 (158.9032)
Aug 9, 2013	Smokin' Eagles International BBQ Festival N. Tonawanda, NY	7 / 31 (649.0860)	20 (160.5372)	14 (160.5600)	9 (163.9772)	9 (164.0116)
Jul 26, 2013	The Harpoon Championships of New England BBQ Windsor, VT	10 / 31 (655.9316)	11 (167.9656)	23 (157.6916)	11 (165.7372)	10 (164.5372)
Jul 20, 2013	Wakefield Rotary Campus CookOff & State BBQ Championships Kingston, RI	16 / 46 (649.6800)	3 (173.1084)	10 (165.1772)	11 (165.7488)	34 (145.6456)
Jun 28, 2013	Boston Hill BBQ Fest Hamburg, NY	26 / 49 (630.2854)	45 (146.2856)	35 (152.5714)	11 (168.5714)	18 (162.8570)
Jun 14, 2013	Crossborder Blues, Brews & Que Wilson, NY	3 / 31 (651.4278)	27 (150.8568)	6 (165.1426)	5 (168.5712)	3 (166.8572)
Jun 7, 2013	Podunk Pig Party Springwater, NY	3 / 20 (657.7148)	12 (163.9998)	7 (163.4286)	1 (172.5716)	11 (157.7148)
May 25, 2013	Roc City Rib Fest Rochester, NY	19 / 80 (632.5714)	28 (161.1426)	27 (156.5716)	58 (147.4286)	14 (167.4286)

THE 5TH ARTERY

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

Purse competed for

State championships

Master avg

Storylines (14 found in their record)

Among the elite

Giant slayer

Happy hunting ground

They almost always walk

High-water mark

State champions

The one to beat

A tough matchup

The weak link

A strong matchup

Looking over their shoulder

The long haul

The metronome

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)