Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Coney Island Or Bust


Chris Floyd, one of the top amateur eaters in the world, is set to take his first steps in the world of professional eating. This weekend he is competing in the Dallas regional qualifier for the Grand Daddy of Them All: The Nathan's Famous Coney Island Hot Dog Contest.

Yes, this is the contest that you've seen on ESPN. This is the contest that Japanese prodigy Takeru Kobayashi dominated until Rambo-esque American superstar Joey Chestnut finally brought the Mustard Belt back to the U.S. last year.

With a win in the regional qualifier, Chris wins a seat at the star-studded July 4th contest in New York. ESPN and the world will learn what Chris's friends, family, and many a struggling buffet restaurant owner have known for years: this guy can EAT.

Chris has been in training for weeks. There have been speed trials. He has held whiteboard strategy sessions. He's reviewed hours of footage to study the bio-mechanics and techniques of past champions. He has scrutinized the results of other regionals to set his targets and pace. He has been downing 8-packs of Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs in shockingly fast fashion (note: this is greater than 2,000 calories and 150 grams of fat in minutes).

He is ready to take his shot, and a huge contingent of friends and family will be there to cheer him on (Sam's Club in Plano, Texas on June 21st.). This could be the start of something huge. Is this the start of a professional eating career or simply a huge stomache ache? Only time will tell.
Background Info:

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Penultimate == second to last. Please adjust and delete this comment. dasquisha

Chris said...

Hey Squish. I'll leave your comment up as a monument to my carelessness with vocabulary. Thanks for the edit, and it's good to see you reading...

Dave S. said...

Good luck, have fun, take lots of pictures and don't forget the Tums!

Anonymous said...

I can't wait till Chris gets to Coney Island so we can start an official wiki page for him.

And for the audience, here is the correct link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan%27s_Hot_Dog_Eating_Contest

Chris said...

Quick update:
Chris ate 18 HDB's last night (hot dogs and buns). He's not playing around with this competition.

We'll see yall Friday and Saturday.

Anonymous said...

Is Chris single?