Jalapeno-Eating Contest Ends in Hot Mess

The night’s most squeamish moment came when a fan got sick at halfcourt during a jalapeno-eating contest before the start of the fourth quarter. An unfortunate close-up was shown live on the scoreboard. Fans reacted with disgust. For his efforts, the fan won a year's supply of food at a local fast-food chain. (Kobe Bryant’s back problems are Lakers’ biggest pain in 105-85 loss – latimes.com.)

While thankfully I couldn’t find the video of this action (yet), I did find this:

I will say that I am not  a fan of contests that are derivative of the Survivor bug eating contests.  I think some find these amusing, but they have such a negative impact on the people who don’t share that perspective to be worthwhile editions to a good game presentation.

While a hot dog eating contest might push the limits, I am not as steadfastly opposed to something like that….but contests that are stomach-turning and have a high risk of a vomiting contestant just aren’t worth it.

Which led me to this clip:

It didn’t give me the gag reflect to watch this.  Watching this guy is actually impressive….now consider how the average fan might fare.  He threw down 5 dogs in 30 seconds, but how interesting will it be watching your fan eat 2 hot dogs in 60 seconds?  So unless you have found iron-stomached pros you run the risk that even a contest without an unhappy ending may not be that compelling.

Final thought as I make the case against eating contests of any ilk. If you have a sponsor, they have to be aware that the contest may end with a curtain call of their undigested product on the court.

I welcome your comments, making the case for or against.  Share your best or worst (wurst?) stories….but please no “after” photos.

-Cudo

Tags: eating contest, food contests, hot dogs, jalapenos, spurs