All You Need To Know About the 2008 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest

If you are baffled by Kobayashi's being as skinny as Lindsay Lohan while simultaneously being better than the Fridge at eating Tube-steak, this primer is for you. Who: The Competition is put on by Nathan's Famous Corporation who supplies the hot dogs and venue. In order to gain entry into the contest a competitor must compete in a qualifying event. No contestant can compete in more than three qualifiers in a given year. Also once a competitor has won a qualifying contest they may not compete in any others that year. Currently there are 23 qualifying events held internationally. Last years Winner was Joey Chestnut with 66 hot dogs. Chestnut upset the incumbent champion Kobayashi who had held the title from 2001 to 2006. Kobayashi's nickname is "the Tsunami". Cool! For Competitive Eaters this is the Super Bowl. What: Chicken butt! ...No really, the hot dogs probably have chicken feces in them. Where: Each year the hot dog eating contest is held on Coney Island. Coney Island is best known as the backdrop for the weirdest gang related movie of all time. It also is a board-walky, beach island in New York city. I hear there is great skee ball. When: Every year on July fourth since 1916. The first contest was won by James Mullen, who ate 13 hot dogs (what a puss). Since 1916 the competition has been taken much more seriously and is actually considered by some to be a sport. Some don't see it as a sport but rather they see it as a sign or symbol of the watering down of American culture in to gluttonous, 10 minute, ADD-friendly events. meh. Those people probably were nerds in high school. Why: Because who cares about starving kids? NO ONE! "cause people are starving to death and that's just not ballin' to me" How: Most competitors use the Solomon method. That means that they rip the actual frankfurter in half then eat it. After that they eat the bun. YUM! Eating the dogs and buns separately was pioneered by Kazutoyo Arai and is sometimes referred to as the "Tokyo method" or "Japanesing". Another well known technique is to dip the hot dog and bun (or sometimes just bun) in water to help it go down. If you find yourself eating a hot dog his summer and need it to slide down your pie-tube a little faster consider your options: 1. cold, refreshing, (preferably hoppy) beer OR 2. lukewarm tap water. hmm... Is this a part of the Summer Olympics? Well not yet. Although many of these eaters seem more athletic than synchronized swimmers. Will I get laid if I'm good at this sport? Doubtful. Does a piece of America die every time a foreigner wins a hot dog eating contest on July fourth? Yes. Without question. Oops! I forgot to segue to the end! Well there you have it. An almost sport that is pretty gross and makes me want to vomit. Have a great fourth of July and good luck staying out of the emergency room!