The Pit Fiends have been competing since 2011. They are members of the Northeast BBQ Society (NEBS) and the Kansas City BBQ Society (KCBS). They have won over 15 awards including 2015 NEBS 3rd Place Tailgate Team of the Year and 2017 NEBS 2nd Place Tailgate Team of the Year. They compete primarily in the New England area. They are also certified KCBS judges.
Leah is the Pit Fiends pit boss. She learned to BBQ in 1994 from her friend Ryan, a Texas native. They met at a park in Pittsburgh at 4am to smoke a brisket. Leah bought her first bullet smoker in 1999 and lit it at 4am in the alley next to her apartment building in Somerville, MA. She smoked 1 brisket and fed 14 people, and the rest is history. Since then she and her fellow Fiends have hosted an annual BBQ which has grown to over 150 people, serving over 200 lbs of meat each year.
When Leah doesn't smell like smoke she works as a professional fundraiser concentrating on legacy giving for a non-profit in Worcester MA. She's married to fellow Fiend, Cris, and they have two kids.
When Leah doesn't smell like smoke she works as a professional fundraiser concentrating on legacy giving for a non-profit in Worcester MA. She's married to fellow Fiend, Cris, and they have two kids.
Cris met Leah at her 2nd BBQ in 2000, and she fell in love with his apple crisp. Shortly afterward, she fell in love with his Texas smoker, and shortly after that she fell in love with him! Cris proposed to Leah because she made him a tiramisu. They've been barbecuing together ever since.
Since his daughter doesn't actually pay him for all the racks of ribs she consumes, Cris works for a software company as a program manager in Hudson MA.
Since his daughter doesn't actually pay him for all the racks of ribs she consumes, Cris works for a software company as a program manager in Hudson MA.
Chuck met Cris & Leah early on here and there through mutual friends, but really got to know them through the magic of the Strawbanero, a devilish dessert he prepared for a friend's bachelor party. That got Chuck & his Weber Smokey Mountain in the door as a chef for the big annual BBQ, and he's refused to leave ever since.
When he's not being a BBQ superhero, Chuck maintains a secret identity as Chief Technology Officer of an educational technology company in Massachusetts. He lives with his very supportive wife Eileen and their two cats, Mae & Merry.
When he's not being a BBQ superhero, Chuck maintains a secret identity as Chief Technology Officer of an educational technology company in Massachusetts. He lives with his very supportive wife Eileen and their two cats, Mae & Merry.
David is Cris and Leah's son and has competed in Kids Qs since 2014. He is famous for his Swedish-Fish Chicken Glaze, a sweet/tart glaze that has earned a 2nd place in KidsQ and an 8th place in NEBS. When he turns 13 he intends to join the Pit Fiends as a full-time member. Right now he is busy with sports, sci tech camp and drawing cartoons.