Hot dogs

Time for a public service announcement: Set your DVR, Nathan's hotdog eating contest takes place tomorrow at noon. Ah, to be an American.

Hot dog eating contests are cool, but the grossest competitive eating I ever saw was on some TV special and they made the contestants eat sticks of butter. Gguausuubhrhhhhggggh..

http://www.ifoce.com/records.php

Don't bother. Like so many other great sports this is being ruined by a contract problem. http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2010/07/01/2010-07-01_dont_gag_me_sez_hot_dog_eatin_star.html

All Takeru Kobayashi wants for Independence Day is his freedom.

The competitive-eating titan says the beef keeping him out of this year's hot-dog competition at Nathan's is that organizers insist he stay out of other contests.

"They want complete control over me," he told the Daily News. "I just want to compete and do what I love. They are trying to take away my freedom."

Kobayashi, 32, says he makes his living competing in nausea-inducing food contests around the world.

He said he remains hopeful that a settlement can be reached before Sunday and that he will be able to reclaim the mustard-yellow title belt.

"I want to be in it more than anything. I am hoping they will change their mind," he said. "If I compete, I guarantee I'll win."

Event organizer Richard Shea said the exclusivity clause has been in place for years and he was perplexed why Kobayashi was balking now.

"He competed under these terms for years and now he is saying no," Shea said. "His saying this is like Tom Brady saying he'd like to be in the Super Bowl, but not in the NFL."

Event organizers announced earlier this week that Kobayashi wouldn't participate because of "an impasse" in contract negotiations.

Dubbed "The Tsunami" for his whirlwind-sytle of consuming tube steaks, Kobayashi leapt to global fame in 2000 when he won the championship with a world record-shattering 50 dogs in 12 minutes.

He held the title for six years before losing to Joey Chestnut, who scarfed down an amazing 66 hot dogs in 2007.

Chestnut has held the title since then, although Kobayashi has always been a close second.

Kobayashi said he is continuing to train as if he is going to compete this weekend, wolfing down at least 10 to 15 hot dogs a day.

"I want to be there more than anything," he said.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/brooklyn/2010/07/01/2010-07-01_dont_gag_me_sez_hot_dog_eatin_star.html#ixzz0sgkSggbI

Now that's funny! Do you think he eats hot dogs on the grill when he's not stuffing his face with them?

What "ruined" this sport(?) for me....all right, I confess, while I like to eat I consider this to be a disgusting waste of food, but what ruined things for me was that CSI episode where they had a victim or a killer (sorry, I forget which) that had a disease that was perfect for competitive eating. That is, he never received that brain message telling him to stop eatting, so he was always hungry/always ready to keep eatting.