Posts Tagged ‘Coney Island’

Nathan’s Famous July Fourth Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island

Posted by Val on July 7th, 2011 at 11:34 am | Permalink | 2 Comments » |

My around the world adventure officially started on Sunday in New York! Until I return to the US, whenever that may be, I’ll be blogging both archived U.S. roadside attractions and whatever weird things I find while I travel abroad! But first, here’s how I spent my time in New York!

It’s become a tradition for me, to spend the Fourth of July baking in the sun of Coney Island, defending against the crowds and thunder sticks to watch the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Championship.

Once you experience such a thing live it’s hard to go back to watching it on TV. So, ever since my first time in 2008, I’ve returned every summer.

There’s always a variety of acts to bide the time. Everything from performances by competitive eater/rapper Badlands Booker to high-flying trampolinists.

It’s best to get to the contest site by 9am. That insures that you’ll get a good view. This year I was running a little late and was further back than I normally was. I still could see the contest fine but they were further away than I like for photos.

I was, however, right next to where the honorary grill master of the day, actor Nick Cannon (best known in my mind for the movie Drumline…or maybe being married to one Miss Mariah Carey.)

This year the contest was different then in years past. Instead of one contest there were two, with separate divisions for men and women.

The women’s contest was up first, and it was just as fast paced as the men’s. It was close for a while between first, second, and third place, but in the end Sonya Thomas won with 40 dogs, Juliet Lee came in second with 29.5 and newcomer Stephanie Torres came in third with an impressive 28.5.

And then the attention turned to the men.

The contest was off and for 10 minutes the men ate quickly and ferociously. Although reigning champion Joey Chestnut had a lead from the start, Patrick Bertoletti was close behind for much of the contest.

But Joey Chestnut easily secured his fifth straight win, demolishing 62 hot dogs in 10 minutes. Pat Bertoletti took home second with 53. And Tim “Eater X” Janus ate 45 for third.

So the day was hot and I came home with a horrendous sunburn on my shoulders and a heat-induced, lack-of-caffeine-because-I-didn’t-want-to-drink-coffee-because-there-was-no-where-to-pee induced headache. But I can’t wait to return. Because, really, there is no more American way to spend the Fourth of July than watching a table full of people stuff their mouths with hot dogs.

Nathan’s Famous July Fourth Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island | 2 Comments » |

Nathan’s Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest

Posted by Val on July 9th, 2010 at 9:59 am | Permalink | No Comments » |

This was my third year in a row heading out to Coney for on the Fourth of July to watch the annual hot dog eating contest. It’s become a tradition for me, one I am not willing to give up any time soon. One of those things that once you see live it’s hard to go back to watching on TV.

Countdown clock to the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

We got up ridiculously early and took a subway to Coney getting there at just before 8:45am. It was hot. Too hot. Honestly none of us were really all that excited until the train approached. Looking out over the roller coasters and ferris wheels and seeing a crowd gathering around the stage gave us the kick we needed. We ran from the train, getting to the stage just as George Shea was rehearsing and Badlands Booker was preparing to sing frere jacque. We eventually found a spot right up near the stage and stood through the intense heat and opening acts we couldn’t see.

Frankster at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

If you saw the broadcast or any media we were right next to the dudes in the facepaint who were all over the photos and videos. Never mind, media people, that right next to them were four un-facepainted ladies that happened to be the number one fans of competitive eating. But whatever.

Red white and blue face painted fans at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

There was still a little buzz over whether or not Kobayashi would be there…especially to me since they usually do a practice run of the intros and they didn’t do it this year…little did we know though, standing at the opposite end that Kobayashi was there. In the crowd. We had no idea.

The broadcast began and the eaters were introduced.

Rich Shea announces the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Tim Gravy Brown as a zombie at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Tim Eater X Janus at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

And then they were off, eating.

Eater X eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Pat Bertoletti eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Joey Chestnut eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

We couldn’t see a thing from where we were so we moved a bit and then could sort of see some stuff. There is no good place to watch live. I have determined that. You could think you have the best spot ever and then the judges come out and you can’t see a thing. I often hope that someday I can stand in the press box, but even then I’d be able to see wonderfully but not be able to get the photos I like to take. Not that I could get those photos anyways.

Joey Chestnut eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Crazy Legs Conti eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

The contest seemed more subdued this year. With Kobayashi not a threat to Joey Chestnut he got in a comfortable lead and didn’t come close to his record (although, really, 54 hot dogs in ten minutes is nothing to sneeze at) and the crowd wasn’t as loud, weren’t all pushing towards the stage. Weren’t…as into it.

Joey Chestnut eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Oh, and Gravy kind of looked like he was going to reverse…and we really kind of wished he had because it would have made the show. But alas he kept it all in. :-(

Tim Gravy Brown eats at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

And it was over with little doubt that Chestnut had won. He grabbed his Pepto Bismol and his trophy and his American Flag.

Joey CHestnut wins the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Pat “Deep Dish” Bertoletti ended up in third place with 37 and Tim “Eater X” Janus in second with 45.

Pat Bertoletti comes in third at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Tim Eater X Janus comes in second at the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

And, apparently, Kobayashi rushed the stage…which me and my friends were totally oblivious to and we watched it on a handheld video camera in a bar afterwards and then YouTubed in back at the hotel. It was all rather odd. And I don’t even know what to think of it. Because a contract is a contract and you either choose to sign it or don’t. I mean even I have to sign an agreement that I won’t do any work that is a conflict of interest with the company I work for so I can understand the want to not have the eaters compete in outside contests or push products that compete with those of sanctioned contests. But at the same time I get a salary and guaranteed paycheck.

After the contest we went to a bar on the boardwalk. That had no power. And did I mention that it was hot? And finally the power and therefore fans came on and we drank some beer and mingled amongst eaters and zombies until it was too hot to handle.

Afterparty for the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

And even though it was way too hot and way too crowded with a more repressed crowd and we couldn’t see and the competition was no competition, I’ve already planned to be there next year. Because it’s awesome. Because it’s worth it. And because it is so much better live than watching it on TV.

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Ultimate Guide to the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest

Posted by Val on July 1st, 2010 at 11:12 am | Permalink | 6 Comments » |

It’s become as essential to the Fourth of July as flags waving, parades, watermelon, and fireworks: The Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Compettiive eaters eat at Coney Island in the Nathan's Famous hot dog eating contest every Fourth of July.

Every July 4 the best of the best competitive eaters gather together to go bun to bun in the ultimate gurgitory competition. Thousands of people gather at Coney Island each year to watch and more than a million more watch at home on TV (including the president of the United States).

My bags are packed and I’m anxiously awaiting my flight to New York so I can be there in person for the third year in a row. It’s definitely something to experience (even Lonely Planet’s 1,000 Ultimate Experiences mentions it as number 380). Whether you’re planning on watching the contest on TV, watching it in person, or are totally grossed out by it, you could probably stand to learn a few things to impress your fellow viewers by (or to enhance your point against it, I guess) and get the most out of your viewing experience. So here’s an ultimate competitive eating superfan’s ultimate guide to the July 4th hot dog eating contest, everything you need to know about how to watch and what you’re watching.

The Basics

The July Fourth hot dog eating contest is ten minutes long (formerly twelve minutes). It’s a timed challenge: contestants have ten minutes to eat as many hot dogs as they can. Both the hot dog and bun (HDB) need to be eaten. Dunking is allowed (meaning the contestants can submerge the hot dog, bun, or both into liquid before eating. The practice softens the bun and makes it easier to go down, but it is controversial because it leads to messier eating and a lot more debris.) You will see eaters with different liquids from plain ole water to fruit punch.

There is an automatic disqualification for a “reversal of fortune” aka throwing up what you ate.

Contestants have to be 18 years of age and qualified at smaller contests held around the country. (So, sorry, you can’t just show up and expect to compete). And all eaters are members of the International Federation of Competitive Eaters/Major League Eating.

On the line is fame, money (last year it was $10,000 for the winner), and the prized Mustard Yellow Belt.

Watching the Contest in Person

The contest starts at 12noon EST at the corner of Surf and Stillwell avenues in Coney Island, right in front of Nathan’s Famous. I highly recommend taking the subway: take D, F, or Q to Stillwell Avenue (it’s the final stop). Once you get off the train you can’t miss it! I would definitely recommend getting there by 9am if you want a good spot. you’ll have to stand around for a while, but there will be plenty of entertainment to entertain you (including acts from the Ringling Brother Circus).

Be sure to wear plenty of sunscreen. It gets toasty out there. Also, you’ll have to face the choice of if you would rather risk dehydration or having to pee the whole time. I choose the former and go without water or coffee the whole morning so I don’t have to give up my spot or wait in huge lines for a bathroom. If rain is in the forecast, bring a poncho (you don’t want to bother people with an umbrella in the way!) And look out for free swag. They usually throw out thunder sticks (blow up things that make noise when you hit them together — which I kind of hate because they get in the way of my photos) and sometimes a few t-shirts. Sometimes an eater will create posters to hand out, so look for those.

Fans hold thunder sticks at the Nathan's Famous hot dog eating contest at Coney Island.

Want to have a little more fun while there? The New York City Zombie Crawl is having a meet up there. So, if you so desire, you can come back from the dead and meet others of your kind.

Other than that, just watch and enjoy! It’s an amazing ten minutes of sports and you won’t regret heading out for it.

Watching the Contest on TV

On July 4 ESPN will be broadcasting the contest starting at 12noon EST. Look up what channel ESPN is on in your area. This year the broadcast will be repeated immediately afterwards at 1p.m. EST…so if you miss it the first time you can watch it in repeat…or you can watch it twice in a row!

Edited to add: Looks like the contest will also stream online at ESPN3.

People to Know

Only the best of the best eaters make it to the table each year to vie for the Mustard Yellow Belt. Each eater has a different style, whether they shake, jiggle, or hop to get the dogs down and whether they snap the hot dogs in half to eat both halves at once (the Solomon Method), separate the buns from the dog (Tokyo Method) or just, well, chew. Here are some of the key players in competitive eating to watch out for this Sunday.

Joey Chestnut at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Joey “Jaws” Chestnut
RANK: 1
QUALIFIED WITH: 68 HDB (last year’s winning total and world record)
Joey Chestnut is an engineer by week, eater by weekend. He is the number one ranked competitive eater in the world. As the Mustard Yellow Belt winner for the past three years, this defending champion is the one to beat…but he is not unbeatable. In other contests he has been eclipsed by Pat Bertoletti, Bob Shoudt, and Takeru Kobayashi. But if history is any judge, it will be a very hard battle for anyone to dethrone Jaws at hot dog eating.

Takeru Kobayashi at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Takeru Kobayashi
RANK: 3
Formerly the unbeatable, undisputed, most amazing competitive eater in history, Takeru Kobayashi is probably one of the best-known competitors (even if you just know his as “that little Japanese guy”). Kobayashi is a 6-time winner of the July 4th hot dog eating contest. But, after a jaw injury a few years ago he lost his reign to Chestnut and has been slipping in the rankings ever since. He made a triumphant return to the forefront last September when he won the Krystal Square Off, but has since lost to Chestnut. As of right now Kobayashi is not scheduled to compete due to “contract negotiations.” Kobayashi says he wants the freedom to compete elsewhere and that the contract for Natan’s limits his freedom. (Ironic that he is fighting for his eating freedom on our Independance Day.) Rumors are still torn between it being a publicity stunt or that he has retired for good. We’ll have to wait until Sunday to know for sure, but even if he doesn’t compete, prepare to hear his name dropped many times throughout the broadcast.

Bob Shoudt at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Notorious B.O.B. Shoudt.
RANK: 2
QUALIFIED WITH: 40 HDB
Formerly “Humble” Bob Shoudt, this eater is humble no more. He’s climbed up the ranking to the number two spot, has recently won contests in fries, pb&j sandwiches, ribs, and more, and is one to watch in this year’s contest. Fun fact: Bob Shoudt is a vegetarian in real life and only eats meat in sanctioned contests.

Pat Bertoletti at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Pat “Deep Dish” Bertoletti
RANK: 4
QUALIFIED WITH: 30
Pat Bertoletti is another strong contender. Although he’s slipped in the rankings over the last year (last year he was ranked #2, even ahead of Kobayashi) and has lost some recent contests to Shoudt and Chestnut. But he’s still got talent and conviction. And a mohawk. And he’s usually a good contender for a best dressed award. And he’s from Chicago. And I’m really hoping some day someone brings the victory to my town.

Crazy Legs Conti at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Crazy Legs Conti
RANK: 14
QUALIFIED WITH: 25
Crazy Legs Conti has become a familiar face of competitive eating. With his dreadlocked hair and personable demeanor he’s an advocate for the sport…but his entrance in this year’s contest has been marred with a lot of controversy. Videos and photos of the contest that he qualified in have surfaced that point to him possibly cheating by leaving more than your average about of debris, and possibly spitting hot dogs into his cup. One thing’s for sure: many eyes will be on Conti this Sunday.

Tim Eater X Janus at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Tim “Eater X” Janus
RANK: 6
QUALIFIED WITH: 46
Eater X always competes with his identity hidden behind face paint. But he also always eats well. And he had the highest number of hot dogs consumed to qualify. So he could be a strong contender this year.

Eric Badlands Booker at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Eric “Badlands” Booker
RANK: 12
QUALIFIED WITH: 38.5
Badlands has talent: both in eating and rapping. He will surely put up some good dog numbers, but really look for him before the contest performing one of his many competitive eating songs.

Sonya Thomas at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas
RANK: 5
QUALIFIED WITH: 34
Don’t let this tiny beauty fool you, she has the heart and belly of any eater up there. As the highest ranked female eater, Sonya is always up there in her totals.

Erik Denmark and Tim Brown at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
Erik “The Red” Denmark (RANK: 8/QUALIFIED WITH: 29)
Tim “Gravy” Brown (RANK: 10/QUALIFIED WITH: 28)
While everyone knows the great rivalry between Chestnut and Kobayashi, there are other rivalries in the eating world. Take for instance Tim Brown and Erik Denmark. In a constant battle over rankings, these two often go head to head. While, of course these two are in it to win it, they, a little more realistically, are in it to eat more than the other. Recently Erik finished ahead of Tim in a ribs eating contest. So watch these two to see who out-eats the other at Coney.

George Shea at the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest
George Shea
George Shea is the face of competitive eating. Always good for information and always good for a laugh, he serves as MC every year.

Other contestants:
“Big” Ben Monson (a newbie on the scene who has been doing well and climbed quickly to a rank of 7), Sean “Flash” Gordon (#15), Juliet Lee (#11 another strong lady of eating), Kristopher Adams (won a military-restricted contest), Andrew Bosque (won a military-restricted contest), Peter “Pretty Boy” Davekos (#20), and Bryan “Big Sexy” Beard (#32).

For live commentary from the event, follow my twitter @SillyAmerica and check back here next week for photos and an event recap! (Also be sure to follow @eatingcontest, the official Twitter of Major League Eating.) You can also head on over to EatFeats, a competitive eating news source, which will be sure to have the results and links to articles and more after the contest. Before the contest, be sure to head over to Pepto-Bismol on Facebook to guess and win how many dogs the winner will eat for a chance to win a T-shirt.

Whether you decide to brave the crowds at Coney or watch from the comfort of your own couch, the Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest is something that shouldn’t be missed. Kobayashi or not, this is the Super Bowl of eating: the biggest and greatest eating contest of the year. And who knows, Joey Chestnut could get dethroned, records could be shattered, someone could have a reversal of fortune, the little guy could come out of nowhere.

View my recaps from previous years’ hot dog eating contests:
Hot Dog Eating Contest 2008
Hot Dog Eating Contest 2009

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Ultimate Guide to the July 4th Coney Island Hot Dog Eating Contest | 6 Comments » |

Video Recap of the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest

Posted by Val on July 12th, 2009 at 10:02 pm | Permalink | No Comments » |

As a special Sunday treat, here are some video highlights of the 2009 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest!

>>Watch this video on Vimeo.

>>Watch this video on YouTube.

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Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest – Part 2

Posted by Val on July 10th, 2009 at 2:09 pm | Permalink | No Comments » |

Here are some more photos from the July 4 hot dog eating contest!

The audience holds thunder sticks at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

The National Anthem is sung at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Frankster and Little Jimmy hug at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

A strongman at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Eric Badlands Booker performs at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

George Shea at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Crazy Legs Conti at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Crazy Legs Conti eats at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Takeru Kobayashi eats at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Joey Chestnut eats at the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

Takeru Kobayashi loses the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island.

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