THE COWBOY WAY AZ

At a glance (everything the results say about this team, in numbers)

Power ranking

#4945

of 6,413 rated · rankings

Rating

1463

peak 1463 · rated over 10 contests ⓘ

Contests

in the data

First seen

2013-03-22

latest 2014-05-02

Best ToY finish

#463

Master 2013

Grand champs

0 reserve

Category wins

2 podiums

Overall top-10s

of 10 contests

Avg finish

top 69%

overall standings

Best overall

674.7084 / 720

Master · Rhythm & Ribs

Perfect 180s

Current form

651.32 ▲

last 5 Master vs avg 640.48 (+10.85)

Walk rate

60%

contests with a top-10 call

Best single call

175.4172

Chicken · Rhythm & Ribs

Consistency

±18.42

std dev of Master overall scores (lower = steadier)

Strongest meat

Chicken

avg 166.90 · weakest Pork Ribs (156.67)

Road miles

1,591

mi across 10 mapped stops · furthest 390 mi

Schedule strength

15%

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

Master avg

640.48 / 720

10 Master contests · 0 GCs

⚔ Compare with another team

Storylines (7 found in this team's record)

Each card leads with the number that made it a story — read straight out of their results, no editorialising.

They almost always walk

60% of contests with a top-10 call

A call in 6 of 10 contests

A top-10 category call in 60% of their 10 contests — they get to the stage more often than not.

High-water mark

674.7084 career-best overall

93.7% of a perfect 720

Their best day on record: 674.7084 at Rhythm & Ribs — 93.7% of a perfect 720.

Master
2013-10-12

A tough matchup

10–0 behind in the head-to-head

LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ ahead in 100% of their meetings

LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ has come out ahead in 10 of their 10 shared contests.

The weak link

−10.2 points behind their best meat

Pork Ribs is where the weekend gets away from them — it averages 10.23 points below their chicken, and turns into a call 10% of the time against 40%.

Pork Ribs avg 156.67
Chicken avg 166.90
1 calls in 10 entries

A strong matchup

3–0 ahead in the head-to-head

Ahead in 100% of their meetings

They've finished ahead of PORK ON THE FORK in 3 of their 3 shared contests.

Chicken nemesis

6 of 10 shared chicken entries lost

LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ ahead 60% of the time

Even in their strongest meat, LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ has out-cooked them in 6 of 10 shared chicken entries.

An October team

Top 51% average finish in October

Something about October: average finish in the top 51% across 4 contests, versus top 69% the rest of the year.

4 October contests
top 69% the rest of the year

Teams like this (closest power rating)

The nearest teams in the power rankings, with a different reason on each card — six teams on one rating are rarely on it for the same reason. Rating decides who makes the list; where teams tie on it, the ones this team has actually cooked against come first, then teams at a similar point in their own career. KCBS doesn’t publish where a team is from, so nothing here is inferred from geography.

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

BBQ JUNKIES

#4939 of the rated field

1464 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 18%
Peak: 1464

No shared contest yet.

This is the highest they've ever been rated, 10 rated contests in — a team sitting at its own career peak.

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2023-09-27

⚔ Head-to-head

Q 12 Barbecue

#4954 of the rated field

1463 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1463

No shared contest yet.

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

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2023-03-31

⚔ Head-to-head

SMOKIN WALLY'S BBQ

#4957 of the rated field

1463 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 10
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 10%
Peak: 1500

No shared contest yet.

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

rated over 10 contests
last seen 2022-03-18

⚔ Head-to-head

CROSSROADS GRILLIN

#4923 of the rated field

1464 ▲ 0 power rating

Contests: 11
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1464

No shared contest yet.

Level with THE COWBOY WAY AZ on power rating, which is the whole reason they're on the list.

rated over 11 contests
last seen 2018-08-17

⚔ Head-to-head

KinFolks Smokin Butts

#4959 of the rated field

1463 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 9
GCs: 0
Top-10s: 0%
Peak: 1507

No shared contest yet.

They've been 1507 at their best, 44 points above where they sit today — they're arriving at this rating from above.

rated over 9 contests
last seen 2025-09-26

⚔ Head-to-head

Ain't it the Life

#4966 of the rated field

1463 ▼ 0 power rating

Contests: 13
GCs: 1
Top-10s: 15%
Peak: 1463

No shared contest yet.

Their rating is built on 1 Grand Championship in 13 contests, alongside a 15% overall top-10 rate.

rated over 12 contests
last seen 2023-09-21

⚔ Head-to-head

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

Opponent	Meetings	Ahead	Behind	Win rate
LOOT N' BOOTY BBQ	10	0	10	0%	⚔ compare
Phil the Grill	8	4	4	50%	⚔ compare
RANCH 13 BBQ	8	1	7	13%	⚔ compare
Bad Boyz BBQ	7	0	7	0%	⚔ compare
AFRO SMOKE BBQ	6	2	4	33%	⚔ compare
STEEL CITY BBQ	6	0	6	0%	⚔ compare
Karnivorous	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
KNIFE PORK AND SPOON	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
FORK U BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
DJS SMOKIN' BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
SWEET PETE'S BBQ	5	1	4	20%	⚔ compare
Rhythm n QUE	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare
I.A.B. 30 BBQ	5	0	5	0%	⚔ compare

By meat

Category	Entries	Calls	Podiums	Best	Worst	Average	Avg finish
Chicken	10	4	2	175.4172	159.4284	166.90	top 42%
Pork Ribs	10	1	0	166.2856	135.3716	156.67	top 69%
Pork	10	2	0	171.4056	144.5256	158.71	top 71%
Brisket	10	2	0	171.9656	144.5714	158.19	top 62%

“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 state / province

Where	Contests	Avg finish
AZ	7	top 73%
NV	2	top 72%
CA	1	top 33%

By contest size

Field	Contests	Avg finish
Small (<20 teams)	1	top 47%
Medium (20–39)	7	top 76%
Large (40+)	2	top 53%

Contest-by-contest record (recurring contests they've cooked twice or more)

Contest	Visits	Best	GCs	Avg finish	Last visit
Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2	23	0	top 82%	2014-03-21

The story so far (14 numbers that describe this team)

On the trail 1.1 yrs 2013-03-22 → 2014-05-02

Busiest season 2013 8 contests

Contests a season 5 across 2 seasons in the data

Cooks most in AZ 7 of 10 contests · 3 states/provinces in all

Contests visited 9 1 of them cooked more than once

Most-entered meat Chicken 10 entries · 0 wins · 4 calls

Strongest meat Chicken averages 166.90 · weakest Pork Ribs (156.67)

Walk rate 60% a top-10 call in 6 of 10 contests

Overall top-10 rate 10% 1 of 10 contests

Master average 640.48 out of 720 · 10 contests · 0 GCs

Opponents faced 244 144–246 across every shared overall standing

Road miles 1,591 10 mapped stops · furthest 390 mi

Schedule strength 1522 average field rating faced — tougher than 15% of rated contests

Power rating 1463 peak 1463 · #4945 of 6,413 rated

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

2013
Mar 22 First tracked contest Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
Mar 22 Peak power rating (1489) Sam's Club National BBQ Tour
May 3 First call 1st Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown
Oct 4 First overall past 90% of a perfect score653.5884 Dana Point State BBQ Championship
Oct 12 First overall top-10 Rhythm & Ribs
Oct 12 Career-best overall score674.7084 Rhythm & Ribs
Oct 12 Career-best single call (Chicken)175.4172 Rhythm & Ribs
2014
May 2 10th tracked contest 2nd Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown
May 2 Most recent contest 2nd Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown

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

📈 Biggest rating jumps

Swing	Contest	Date
+8.1	Dana Point State BBQ Championship	2013-10-04
+5	Rhythm & Ribs	2013-10-12
+2.3	A Smokin' Good Time	2013-10-18

📉 Toughest weekends

Swing	Contest	Date
-13.8	1st Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown	2013-05-03
-11.4	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2013-03-22
-6.6	2nd Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown	2014-05-02
-6.3	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour	2014-03-21
-5.9	3rd Annual Holbrook	2013-07-12

Category scores over time

Overall finish over time (top-% of field, lower is better)

Where they finish (overall)

Best vs average (by meat)

How entries end (by meat)

Team of the Year rank by season

Season by season

Season	Contests	GCs	Top-10s	Category wins	Walk rate	Avg finish	Best overall (% of perfect)	Avg overall (% of perfect)
2014	2	0	0	0	100%	top 77%	90.1%	89%
2013	8	0	1	0	50%	top 67%	93.7%	88.9%

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

Date	Event	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2014-05-02	2nd Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown Show Low, AZ	27 / 35 (648.9712)	32 (161.0856)	20 (162.2744)	34 (153.6456)	5 (171.9656)
2014-03-21	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Tucson, AZ	23 / 30 (633.0400)	9 (167.4056)	23 (157.1316)	25 (156.5256)	24 (151.9772)
2013-10-31	Riverside Resort Casino USA Barbecue Championship Laughlin, NV	62 / 85 (638.7772)	37 (167.4172)	50 (161.7144)	82 (144.5256)	29 (165.1200)
2013-10-18	A Smokin' Good Time Prescott Valley, AZ	12 / 24 (661.1084)	11 (166.2628)	9 (166.2856)	10 (169.1428)	16 (159.4172)
2013-10-12	Rhythm & Ribs Cottonwood, AZ	7 / 15 (674.7084)	3 (175.4172)	11 (160.5028)	7 (171.4056)	9 (167.3828)
2013-10-04	Dana Point State BBQ Championship Dana Point, CA	33 / 99 (653.5884)	18 (171.4056)	51 (160.5716)	61 (157.6684)	33 (163.9428)
2013-09-27	Avi Resort & Casino Music Brews & BBQ Championship Laughlin, NV	22 / 31 (636.9940)	20 (161.1428)	14 (162.8572)	27 (156.4912)	22 (156.5028)
2013-07-12	3rd Annual Holbrook Holbrook, AZ	21 / 27 (624.4232)	3 (173.1544)	27 (135.3716)	12 (161.1200)	20 (154.7772)
2013-05-03	1st Annual Show Low BBQ Throwdown Show Low, AZ	23 / 24 (622.8572)	8 (166.2858)	22 (153.1430)	19 (158.8570)	23 (144.5714)
2013-03-22	Sam's Club National BBQ Tour Tucson, AZ	26 / 30 (610.2854)	20 (159.4284)	29 (146.8570)	21 (157.7142)	26 (146.2858)

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

Team of the Year standings (rank per category by season — year links to the full board on kcbs.us)

Year	Series	Overall	Chicken	Ribs	Pork	Brisket
2014 ↗	Master	#1822 (125 pts)	#1453 (200 pts)	#1653 (150 pts)	#1957 (115 pts)	#1241 (245 pts)
2013 ↗	Master	#463 (666 pts)	#268 (1051 pts)	#486 (676 pts)	#430 (746 pts)	#507 (631 pts)