The radio contest winner and mother of two from Independence wouldn’t last long. The Kansas City hotel manager would gut it out — very literally — but he couldn’t keep pace, either.
Not with “Erik the Red” and “The Mad Greek.”
In a spectacle that should make ol’ Nathan proud, 13 competitors lined up in the parking lot of a Sam’s Club in Overland Park on Saturday to digest — or at least swallow — as many hot dogs and buns as they could in 10 minutes.
A crowd of about 150 people stood in front of a large tent to watch one of the nationwide qualifiers for the annual Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island in New York.
The title may be a mouthful, but it’s only appropriate.
Erik “the Red” Denmark downed 24 hot dogs and buns — HDBs, as they’re called — for a narrow victory Saturday. By winning, he claimed his place in the annual July 4th Coney Island competition.
Slowed by the heat, Chris “The Mad Greek” Abatsas could swallow only 23 HDBs. He and the other challengers had to settle for the consolation of a full stomach and the inherent repercussions.
“I grew up playing golf, tennis, a lot of individual sports,” Denmark said. “Those 10 minutes are the most intense competition I’ve ever been involved in.”
He’s serious about competitive eating — as is George Shea, the chairman of Major League Eating who has spent two decades growing the … sport.
“To see 200 people come out, it shows you that people get it, and they’re hearing about it and they understand what it is,” said Shea, who served as emcee for the event Saturday. “They used to not understand what it was. … I would be in the middle of a food court at a mall on a stage, badgering people just to join the contest.”
Not anymore. He said there had been around 75 applicants for the limited number of spots in the Overland Park qualifier.
The competitors came from as far away as Cleveland, Chicago, Seattle and points in between to vie for a ticket to Coney Island.
The best of the bunch brought nicknames and reputations to the table.
Howard Harrison, the 35-year-old Kansas City hotel manager, came with neither and was stuffed after seven or eight HDBs.
“It’s quite overwhelming,” he said. “Definitely, I’m going to try this again, but … I’ll be (better) prepared.”
Wendy Bannister, the 32-year-old local stay-at-home mom who called into a radio show to earn her place, didn’t last that long. Stuck in the crossfire of flying hot dog residue between Denmark and Abatsas, she bowed out after less than five minutes.
“It was pretty disgusting,” she said later. “That’s why I ate two and ran … but it was fun.”
For others though, it’s a little more than that.
Shea says he’s a “true believer” in the competition. And he’s not the only one. The annual July 4th showdown in Coney Island has been broadcast on ESPN. There is even a competitive eating video game that’s been developed.
Denmark, a 29-year-old from Seattle, arrived after a business trip to St. Louis. He enters about 20 eating events a year and has competed in the July 4th hot dog challenge in Coney Island each of the past two years. His resume includes such feats as 147 jalapenos in 15 minutes and 61 hard boiled eggs in 8 minutes.
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