Around here there were 3 each year. Now there's non.
Maybe because I was the organizer for all 3 of them and won't ever do that again.
I competed for 16 years. Was an organizer for 4.
Between the KCBS drama. The bullshit at the American royal every year. Tables of angels, tables from hell, broken scoring systems, whiney teams bitching about long grass or bad weather. Imo many of us just got fed up. As contests became further and further apart teams got more frustrated.. travel further for more stress and drama. Organizers were prepping contests for 6 months only to find they couldn't fill the spaces. I think that bbq pitmasters was the start of the downfall. Contests went from a bunch of us burping and farting and smokin cigars under a 10x10 ezup while we cooked a 25$ brisket on a wsm and had a pot luck dinner to $100k rvs, $20k jambos and $300 SRF briskets that would cook perfectly on the parking lot asphalt. To me..it just wasn't fun anymore. Within 20 miles of me there were 15-20 teams at one point.. now there's none. I think folks just got fed up between costs and drama and just gave up. I for one do all bbq charity work now. Cook for veterans and cancer coalitions. Less stress, more warm and fuzzies and no one grades my cooking for texture and tenderness.