Every year, when I think of the Fourth of July, there is only one true symbol of the festive day. You can have your fireworks, you can have your bald eagle, and you can have your backyard BBQ. I don't want 'em. The only thing that makes my Fourth of July complete is watching a man house 69 hot dogs and waterlogged buns in 10 minutes. I want at Noon-o-clock sharp, the sounds of Eminem's "Lose Yourself" to slowly build in the background as our generation's greatest orator, George Shea, rises on a scissor lift to greet the massive crowd on the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues in Coney Island. On that corner sits the Mecca of Mastication, Nathan's Famous, a Coney Island landmark since 1916. And every July 4th, 20 masters of salivation and gurgitation will stand forth and show if they can handle one of America's most honored traditions, Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8RdQJjwTVI
Tyler Thompson and I will be Live Blogging the contest tomorrow, so be sure to join us for all of the Nathan's Famous action.
The women's competition will be at 11:15 on ESPN3. The Men's Competition will air on ESPN News/ESPN3 at Noon. There will also be a Joey Chestnut camera on ESPN3. I'm not sure what that's going to be, but I hope they have a separate camera on every hot dog he eats and he just starts eating cameras.
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Contest History
The first Nathan's Famous Hot Dog eating contest took place, according to legend, in 1916 as four immigrants had a hot dog eating contest to settle an argument on who was the most patriotic. While that story would possibly be the greatest story ever told, the first recorded contest took place in 1972, where american Jason Schechter ate 14 hot dogs in three-and-a-half minutes. His prize was a certificate for 40 more hot dogs. It did not become an annual event until 1978 where Manel Hollenback and Kevin Sinclair ate 10 hot dogs and buns in six-and-a-half minutes. Side note,
Brian Cranston joked in a press conference that Walter White entered the 1978 Nathan's Contest eating 38.5 dogs that year (which would have won by 28.5 dogs). The first female champion captured the crown in 1984 when Germany's Birgit Felden won with 9.5 hot dogs over a 10 minute span. She is now has a doctorate...
The number of hot dogs consumed each year rose through the year 2,000 where Japanese competitor Kazutoyo Arai took down the event and world record for hot dogs eaten that year, throwing down 25 1/8 hot dogs. The world, however, did not know what was in store in 2001 when a 128 lb. Japanese man named Takeru Kobayashi took the stage. Kobayashi, as he's known, ate 50 hot dogs, smashing the previous record set just the year before. In second place that year was Eric "Badlands" Booker, who finished off 26 hot dogs. Kobayashi would reign supreme over the next five years including setting the record again in 2006 with a mark of 53 3/4 hot dogs (breaking his 2004 record of 53 1/2).
However, in 2007, a man by the name of Joey Chestnut brought the title back to America with a performance of 66 hot dogs in front of the Coney Island crowd.. Since 2007, Chestnut has won seven consecutive Nathan's Famous Contests and now holds the World Hot Dog Eating Record with a tally of 69 dogs in 10 minutes. It is important to note that when Chestnut won in 2007 the time limit for the event was 12 minutes. In 2007, Chestnut was eating 5.5 dogs per minute (DPM), while in 2013 the California native ate 6.9 DPM.
[caption id="attachment_160923" align="alignnone" width="220"]
Takeru Kobayashi[/caption]
One can not bring up Kobayashi without noting his bowing out of the competition in 2010. Major League Eating and the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE - the governing body of competitive eating) wanted the eating superstar to sign an exclusive contract that would keep him from competing in non-sanctioned events. He showed up to the 2010 event wearing a black Free Kobi shirt. He crashed the stage after the event, promptly getting arrested. He has since been banned from the events and his image has been taken off the wall of fame at Nathan's Famous. In 2011, he held his own eating competition on a rooftop in New York, where he ate 69 hot dogs of his own.
In 2011, Major League Eating started putting on a Women's Championship, as there were many women who wanted to shoot for the women's eating record. Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas had been hanging with the men since 2003, even coming in 2nd place overall in the 2005 contest. Since the new women's championship, she has won all three times, setting the women's world record with 45 hot dogs in 10 minutes.
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Meet the Contestants
There are 20 competitors vying for the Mustard Yellow Title Belt (yep, that's a thing). Here are a few of the top competitors to watch out for this year:
Joey "Jaws" Chestnut
Chestnut is the current, reigning and defending 7x Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest Champion. At the age of 30, he has a bachelors degree in civil engineering and his girlfriend is competing in the women's championship on July 4th as well. He is the #1 ranked eater in the world and holds 32 World Eating Records, including:
- 70 Hillshire Farm Brats in 10 Minutes
- 141 Hard Boiled Eggs in 8 Minutes
- 5.9 lbs. of Funnel Cake in 10 Minutes
- 47 Grilled Cheese Sandwiches in 10 Minutes
- 103 Krystal Burgers in 8 Minutes
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Matt "Megatoad" Stonie
At just 22, Stonie has taken the competitive eating game by storm, being the #2 Ranked Eater in the World. In 2013, he defeated Joey Chestnut three times in Major League Eating Competitions. This is his fourth year in the Nathan's Famous Contest, and holds these world eating records:
- 100 Marshmallow Peeps in 2 Minutes
- 10.5 lbs. of Frozen Yogurt in 6 Minutes
- 5.5 lbs of Birthday Cake in 8:59 (on his 21st Birthday)
- 24 8-0z Gyros in 10 Minutes.
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Tim "Eater X" Janus
Born with the given name "Tim Janus", this eater goes by the name of Eater X during competition to "hide his inner torment." He is the #3 ranked eater in the world and won at the CitiField New York qualifier with 28.5 hot dogs in 10 minutes. He placed third last year with a mark of 50 dogs. He holds the distinction of being a contestant on Who Wants to Be A Millionaire who made it to the million dollar question. Along with the following records, he is also the world burping champion, belching for 18.1 seconds.
- 171 Pieces of Nigiri Sushi in 6 Minutes
- 4 lbs. of Tiramisu in 6 minutes
- 10.5 lbs. of Ramen in 8 minutes
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Erik "The Red" Denmark
Denmark is a Seattle native and won the Houston Qualifier with 36 hot dogs. He is the #14th ranked eater in the world. He took 10th last year, but looks to challenge for the title this year. His bio from MLE says that he is "Major League Eating's only known Boeing Executive" Here are some of his eating marks from his career:
- 4 lbs. 15 oz. of Spot Shrimp in 12 minutes (World Record)
- 5 lbs. of Kimchi in 6 Minutes
- 40 Ears of Sweet Corn in 12 Minutes
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Adrian "The Rabbit" Morgan
Morgan, out of New Orleans, enters his fifth consecutive Nathan's Contest as the #7 Ranked eater in the world. He placed 5th in last year's competition with 38 dogs. At 28 years old, he has had these milestones in the world of competitive eating:
- 30 Dozen Oysters in 8 Minutes (2nd Place)
- 20 Hard Boiled Eggs in 84 Seconds
- 2.7 lbs. of Crawfish in 10 Minutes
- 4.5 lbs of Catfish in 10 Minutes
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Eric "Badlands" Booker
Eric Booker is the MLE's resident rap star, having put out four albums titled "Hungry and Focused (1-4)." Booker has also appeared on an episode of Wife Swap. Not only being a member of the competition field, he will also appear on stage to perform a selection of his rap hits. Booker holds nine world records, including:
- 2 lbs. of Chocolate Candy Bars in 6 Minutes
- 4 lbs. of Corned Beef Hash in 1 Minute, 58 Seconds
- 9.5 lbs of Green Peas in 12 Minutes
- 49 Glazed Doughnuts in 8 Minutes.
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So there you have it. Some of the top names in the field, along with 14 others will vie to set a new world record, having to eat more than 70 hot dogs on the stage on the corner of Surf and Stillwell. There is rumor that it is supposed to rain tomorrow, so they won't have to worry about dunking their buns in glasses of water, or Gatorade.
Don't forget that Tyler and I will be doing a live blog of all the action, so be sure to stop by and hang out with us.
I now leave you with one more bit of George Shea, introducing the competitors from last year's contest, as only he can do it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CYZ_JK6kN5c
@rbramblet
Every year, when I think of the Fourth of July, there is only one true symbol of the festive day. You can have your fireworks, you can have your bald eagle, and you can have your backyard BBQ. I don't want 'em. The only thing that makes my Fourth of July complete is watching a man house 69 hot dogs and waterlogged buns in 10 minutes. I want at Noon-o-clock sharp, the sounds of Eminem's "Lose Yourself" to slowly build in the background as our generation's greatest orator, George Shea, rises on a scissor lift to greet the massive crowd on the corner of Surf and Stillwell Avenues in Coney Island. On that corner sits the Mecca of Mastication, Nathan's Famous, a Coney Island landmark since 1916. And every July 4th, 20 masters of salivation and gurgitation will stand forth and show if they can handle one of America's most honored traditions, Nathan's Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8RdQJjwTVI
Tyler Thompson and I will be Live Blogging the contest tomorrow, so be sure to join us for all of the Nathan's Famous action.
The women's competition will be at 11:15 on ESPN3. The Men's Competition will air on ESPN News/ESPN3 at Noon. There will also be a Joey Chestnut camera on ESPN3. I'm not sure what that's going to be, but I hope they have a separate camera on every hot dog he eats and he just starts eating cameras.
__________________________________________________________________________________
The first Nathan's Famous Hot Dog eating contest took place, according to legend, in 1916 as four immigrants had a hot dog eating contest to settle an argument on who was the most patriotic. While that story would possibly be the greatest story ever told, the first recorded contest took place in 1972, where american Jason Schechter ate 14 hot dogs in three-and-a-half minutes. His prize was a certificate for 40 more hot dogs. It did not become an annual event until 1978 where Manel Hollenback and Kevin Sinclair ate 10 hot dogs and buns in six-and-a-half minutes. Side note, Brian Cranston joked in a press conference that Walter White entered the 1978 Nathan's Contest eating 38.5 dogs that year (which would have won by 28.5 dogs). The first female champion captured the crown in 1984 when Germany's Birgit Felden won with 9.5 hot dogs over a 10 minute span. She is now has a doctorate...
The number of hot dogs consumed each year rose through the year 2,000 where Japanese competitor Kazutoyo Arai took down the event and world record for hot dogs eaten that year, throwing down 25 1/8 hot dogs. The world, however, did not know what was in store in 2001 when a 128 lb. Japanese man named Takeru Kobayashi took the stage. Kobayashi, as he's known, ate 50 hot dogs, smashing the previous record set just the year before. In second place that year was Eric "Badlands" Booker, who finished off 26 hot dogs. Kobayashi would reign supreme over the next five years including setting the record again in 2006 with a mark of 53 3/4 hot dogs (breaking his 2004 record of 53 1/2).
However, in 2007, a man by the name of Joey Chestnut brought the title back to America with a performance of 66 hot dogs in front of the Coney Island crowd.. Since 2007, Chestnut has won seven consecutive Nathan's Famous Contests and now holds the World Hot Dog Eating Record with a tally of 69 dogs in 10 minutes. It is important to note that when Chestnut won in 2007 the time limit for the event was 12 minutes. In 2007, Chestnut was eating 5.5 dogs per minute (DPM), while in 2013 the California native ate 6.9 DPM.
[caption id="attachment_160923" align="alignnone" width="220"]
Takeru Kobayashi[/caption]
One can not bring up Kobayashi without noting his bowing out of the competition in 2010. Major League Eating and the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE - the governing body of competitive eating) wanted the eating superstar to sign an exclusive contract that would keep him from competing in non-sanctioned events. He showed up to the 2010 event wearing a black Free Kobi shirt. He crashed the stage after the event, promptly getting arrested. He has since been banned from the events and his image has been taken off the wall of fame at Nathan's Famous. In 2011, he held his own eating competition on a rooftop in New York, where he ate 69 hot dogs of his own.
In 2011, Major League Eating started putting on a Women's Championship, as there were many women who wanted to shoot for the women's eating record. Sonya "The Black Widow" Thomas had been hanging with the men since 2003, even coming in 2nd place overall in the 2005 contest. Since the new women's championship, she has won all three times, setting the women's world record with 45 hot dogs in 10 minutes.
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