PDA

View Full Version : Professional eating sizzles in Sheboygan as top competitors wolf down bratwursts



fontman
08-06-06, 03:00 PM
By SARAH LARIMER
slarimer@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Aug. 5, 2006

Sheboygan, Wis. - Chew on this: 58 bratwursts in 10 minutes.

Professional eater and crowd favorite Joey Chestnut of San Jose, Calif., apologizes to fans for placing second Saturday in the Johnsonville Brat-Eating World Championship competition in Sheboygan.

"They say that competitive eating is the battleground against which God and Lucifer battle for men's souls, my friends," International Federation of Competitive Eating Chairman George Shea bellowed to the crowd before the 2006 Johnsonville Brat-Eating World Championship in Sheboygan on Saturday. "And they are right."

The crowd, a few thousand strong, roared as the 16 eaters wriggled, convulsed and bounced to shovel down brat after brat at the event. Takeru Kobayashi, a Japanese man with a small frame and growing fan base, easily won. Kobayashi downed 58 brats and shattered the previous world record of 35 brats. He said he'll shoot for 60 next year.

"I feel ecstatic. I'm so excited I won this thing," Kobayashi said through translator Robert Ikeda. "But I wanted to set a world record here, and I did, so I'm excited."

The rules of the contest are simple - eat as many brats as possible in 10 minutes. Brats are served "naked," without a bun, and competitors can eat them any way they want. They bend them and rip them. They split them, dunk them, crunch them and double-up on servings. And no throwing up.

"We don't do that," said Bob Shoudt, who took fourth in the contest Saturday with 38 ½ brats. "It's not the cool thing to do. You're not in the in-crowd when you do that."

When eating the brats, competitive eater P.J. Kim said his jaw tired before his stomach filled up. The trick to the sport was to utilize as much of the mouth as possible, the 27-year-old said.

"If you only do one at a time, there's a lot of teeth real estate that's not being used," Kim said.

Shea worked up the frenzied crowd from the stage on Saturday in his straw hat and suit jacket. The championship was part of the annual Johnsonville Brat Days, held Thursday though Saturday in Sheboygan. Shea and the federation combine glory and gluttony to attract fans. He said interest in the sport is growing.

"Eating contests are something that are part of our culture," Shea said.

Shea said thousands subscribe to the federation's e-mail alert service that notifies people of upcoming events in their area, and New Line Cinema plans to release a movie on the sport. He said competitive eating has been growing in popularity for years, but credited stars such as Kobayashi, rookie eater Joey Chestnut and Sonya Thomas, who held the bratwurst-eating world record until Saturday.

"It's the great-man theory of history," Shea said. "These are the eaters that made this happen."

Thomas, also known as "The Black Widow," set the previous record last year with 35 brats in 10 minutes. Thomas didn't place in the top five this year and said she was disappointed.

"I lose my confidence," Thomas said. "I used to be ranked No. 1."

Don't feel too bad for The Black Widow. After all, Thomas, ranked third with the federation, still holds the record for other foods consumed, including cheesecake (11 pounds in nine minutes), chicken nuggets (80 nuggets in five minutes), hard-boiled eggs (65 in six minutes, 40 seconds), fruitcake (4 pounds, 14 1/4 ounces in 10 minutes) and lobster (44 in 12 minutes).

In the world of heavy eating, Kobayashi is no lightweight. The top-ranked federation gustatory athlete has previously put away 57 cow brains in 15 minutes, 53 ½ Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs and buns in 12 minutes and 20 pounds of rice balls in 30 minutes.

Although competitive eater Patrick Bertoletti didn't come away with the $8,000 top prize, the college student did pick up $2,500 for his third place finish. Bertoletti said bratwurst is a "slow food," but he was pleased with his result.

"I didn't think I was going to eat more than 30," he said.

Good ol' Sheboygan, born and raised in that there quaint town...