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In April, the Alt Games came, were a lot of fun, and then went. I came back home, intent on finishing up my 2 year associates degree and having a great competitive eating year. I had a monetary goal I wanted to reach, and winning a grand at the Alt Games seemed to put me in a comfortable place to reach that goal.
Then came May and the Strawberry contest. I didn't have experience in Strawberries, contest wise, or any fruit for that matter. I got together with some friends and made a practice run. I purchased 5 pounds of strawberries and timed how fast I could throw them down. My time was less than a pound a minute. I was feeling confident as I was also favored to win. At the last minute two top guys unexpectedly came out of the woodwork. The contest suddenly became a much bigger challenge. Additionally a newcomer that is making some waves in the local area showed up. Not only did I have some top talent to fight against but when the bell rang, the strawberry was knocking me out for the count. About three pounds in I became full and slowed. I was told that this year was a tougher than previous years because the strawberry was less dense and so there was more strawberry per pound, making it harder to consume.
The next contest was a local pizza eating contest at Rocco's, that I had previous won in 2005 and 2006. In 2007, I was away participating in the reality show Fat March and didn't compete. The winner of that particular contest, Sal Carbone, shattered my record and then beat me in head to head contest in 2008. This year, not only did he defeat me again, but two other respected veterans.
The year had not been going as well as I anticipated because, in addition to being on a losing streak, the organization that I was slowly trying to progress through had now decided to institute a contract which for many reasons, I had issues with. I would not longer be affiliated with them.
Even more heartbreaking was a burger contest in Astoria, Queens where an amateur beat me out. During an earlier round in the contest, a man known only as "Sunshine" had eaten 8 quarter pound burgers in 5 minutes. Thinking that all I had to do was eat little more than 8 burgers, I took an extra bite of the 9th, for what I thought was the win. I was informed that the rules were that only finished burgers would be counted. We went to an eat off in which "Sunshine" was just seconds quicker than me and took the win.
I needed a boost to feel confident in my ability and was going to take it out on a block of cheese at Cobble Hill's own Stinky Brooklyn. The event was not only fun, but held special meaning since it was where my current girlfriend and I had our first date. It was an anniversary, of sorts, for us. I did indeed take the title by following last years win with a 10 oz win this year.
With the cheese contest bringing June to a close, July brought the Bud Light Wing Challenge in North Wildwood, NJ. This was an unexpected contest. After a team member couldn't make it, my good friend Joel asked me to fill in. The format was a team relay race and it was a race to be the first to finish 75 hot wings. Or 25 per team member. Entry was gained through being a caller on a morning radio show in Atlantic City but we couldn't get through. We took the trip over anyway to see if we could grab the spot of a team that didn't make it. We took the two hour drive and got there super early with our eyes on the prize. Several hours later, the Bud Light team finally arrived and counted the arriving teams. Fortunately, only 6 teams arrived and we, along with another stand-by team, were allowed entry.
Jeff at the Anglesea Volunteer Fire Fighter Dept. was a great help and the people at Bud Light were more than accommodating. The contest, was very dramatic. Along with myself and Joel, my friend Jamal came for the trip. Being that contest entry was not guaranteed and it was a decently long trip, it was hard to find a third partner now that two thirds of the original team dropped out. Jamal's only previous CE experience was finishing a 1lb burger plus toppings, bun and fries in 20 minutes. We decided that the best course of action would be to place Joel, a mid level eater, first. Jamal would be second because of his inexperience. I would be last as the heavy hitter so that if there was any time to make up, I would know what I was up against. As Joel began, he started out in the lead and with a good pace but slowed a bit toward the end his run. Three teams jumped ahead and moved on to their second member. Finally Joel finished and Jamal was in the hot seat. Jamal did about what we needed him to do for his first contest. He wasn't a power eater, but he kept the pace. The other three teams ahead of us all moved on to their closer as Jamal struggled to keep the chicken down. He finally finished with just those 3 teams ahead and it was time for The Champ to step in. At this time, on the other end of the stage, there was controversy brewing. At one point I had heard another team mention that a member of the team in the lead had thrown up, which would mean automatic disqualification. Regardless of the status of the other teams, my job was to get in there and finish strong. Amid the confusion I powered through my 25 wings quickly. I was told to clear my mouth and secured the victory. Or so I thought. It seems that as I finished, the controversy at the other end of the table continued. From the information I was told from a variety of people watching, it looks like the second person did not throw up, instead, he apparently picked apart the meat off the bone, collected it in his hand and got out of his seat with his hand to his mouth, something I did see before but was still going by the vomit comment I had overheard. The truth was that he was continuing to eat as their third member sat at the table. He did not clear his mouth before moving forward, which was a violation. The other teams in the contest were actually rallying against them and said that they wanted to make sure that we secured the win because they felt the other team were cheaters. We were officially granted the win and left with a team prize of $2500.
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