May/June 2005-In the News

The "Vacuum" nailed down another Chicken Wing title at the Third Annual Spicefest in Ft. Wayne Indiana by consuming 2.91lbs of meat off the bone. The "Vacuum" again proves that he is among the best Wing Eaters in the United States by defeating a group of fine athletes. In addition, Lyle battled temperatures in the mid nineties and dry wings (however delicious). In a very close 2nd was Chris "The Juggernaut" Patton, also referred to as the "General of Chicken Wings" because he is a distant relative of General George Patton, finished with 2.85 lbs. Perhaps the biggest story of the day was Rookie phenom Ian "The Invader" Hickman who finished with 2.80 lbs of meat eaten off the bone. The "Invader" who hails from Lexington Kentucky, only previous experience was the "All You Can Eat Buffets" and Steak Houses in Lexington where he nearly earned himself a life time banishment because of his eating conquests. The "Invader" may have pulled off an upset if it wasn't for a rookie mistake of pouring water on his wings thus adding an additional weight to his totals. The Indianapolis Colts Cheerleaders were on hand to escort the Food Warriors on stage and provide cheer and inspiration. Master of Ceremonies and Competitive Eating's #1 MC, Arnie "Chowhound" Chapman provided color and commentary during this championship event. The Spicefest is an annual event whose title sponsor, The Great American Spice Company is the world's largest spice store. Their were plenty of activities (live bands, bake-offs, raffles, Car show, etc.) to make this event a top notch festival. Also, their was a guest appearance by Ft. Wayne's own Fawn Leibowitz who appeared in National Lampoon's Animal House. Special thanks to Mad Anthony's of Ft. Wayne Indiana for providing the Wings and their hospitality to the Eaters during and after the contest. All proceeds of this event will go to the Hoosier Burn Camp in affiliation with the North East Indiana Burn Council which offers a camp experience for victims of burn injuries who are between the ages of 8-18.

Day two of the Spicefest featured The World Corn on the Cob Eating Championship where spectators were treated to a World Record performance by the charismatic and electrifying Dave "Coondog" O'karma who ate an amazing 31 cobs of corn in 10 minutes and finishing with a total of 4.1 lbs of corn eaten of the cob. In second place was Ghanana Ohio native Mark "The Vacuum" Lyle who ate 3.9 lbs of corn off the cob for 2nd place. In a surprise, Ft. Wayne resident Javier "Oh My Gosh" Gasnhrez finished third by consuming 3.41 lbs of corn off the Cob. Comedian & Writer Pete "Snickers" Lafucia amused the spectators by providing humor and commentary during the contest.

Final Results: The Great American Chicken Wing Eating Championship
Mark "The Human Vacuum" Lyle -Ghanana Ohio 2.91lbs; Chris "The Juggernaut" Patton-Blacklick Ohio 2.85 lbs; Ian "the Invader" Hickman-Lexington, KY 2.80 lbs; Bob Menefere- Ft. Wayne IN 2.37lbs; Joseph Jefferey- Ft. Wayne IN 2.08lbs

Final Results: World Corn Eating Championship
Dave "Coondog" O'Karma-Cuyahoga Falls Ohio 4.1 lbs; Mark "The Vacuum" Lyle-Ghanana Ohio 3.9 lbs; Javier "Oh My Gosh" Gasnhrez-Ft. Wayne IN 3.4 lbs; Ian "The Invader" Hickman-Lexington KY 3.3lbs; Chris"The Juggernaut" Patton- Blacklick Ohio 2.7 lbs

6/23/05- Coondog toasts then coasts to victory at the second Quick Chek qualifier with 4.5 italian subs Second place went to rookie phenom Chris "The American Schlesinger" with 3 7/8. Fairview's own Pedro Montes captured a spot in the final round by consuming 3 2/3 subs. There was an exceptional group of eaters at Fairview today: Percy "Have No Mercy" Constantini, Greg "the Almighty" Allen, Charlie "Eats the Most" Santos, John "he Deconstructor" DeChristofaro, Johnny "Delicious" Desharnais, Jorge Rodriguez, Dorothy Alvarade, and Alex "the Big Amigo". These guys were all solid performers and AICE would like to thank them for their effort; we hope to see them in future eating events.

The Association of Independent Competitive Eaters and Italia Unita announce the first Annual Italian Sausage Eating Championship on July 16th in East Boston. This will be a 10 minute Italian Sausage Eating contest featuring America’s best Italian American Competitive Eaters. In addition to professional Eaters Gentleman Joe Menchetti (New England’s #1 Competitive Eater) World Beef Tongue Eating champion Dominick “The Doginator” Cardo from Pennsylvania along with Pennsylvania State Chicken Wing Eating Champion, Pete “Broken Wing” Maurizio there will be a determined group of local Eaters seeking to win the $500 bounty for first and capture the prestigious title of “World Italian Sausage Eating Champion”. AICE Founder and Chairman Arnie”Chowhound” Chapman believes this event will be a grand celebration of Italian Pride & Tradition. “Italian American’s, long known for their love of culinary delights and zest for eating will see this two forces come together in this World Championship Event… Don’t’ be surprised if a local Eater pulls an upset and makes Boston proud”.

6/21/05- AICE has been invited to the east coasts biggest Italian- American celebration: The Italia Unita Festival held in East Boston. AICE will be seeking to crown the World Italian Sausage Eating Champion. It has been rumored that the best three Italian-America gurgitators {Gentleman Joe Menchetti, Dominick 'The Doginator' Car do and Pete 'Broken Wing' Maurizio} will be battling for top honors along with cash and prizes-

AICE Chairman, Arnie Chowhound Chapman (who is now claiming Italian Heritage) states that there is "no doubt that these three eaters will have their work cut out for them and will face a stiff challenge from local eaters".

Italia Unita is a non profit organization that proudly celebrates Italian culture. Italia Unita was created in 1995 through an entirely volunteer effort and is still managed by a staff of volunteers. Throughout the years Italia Unita coordinates and promotes many events in an effort to maintain the level of appreciation and pride in Italian Culture. Working with other organizations or agencies they celebrate and promote Italian culture. Their signature event is the annual Italian Festival held in East Boston (the weekend of July 15-17, 2005).

6/19/05- It was a big weekend for Coondog O'Karma, as he won the Byesville Coal Miner Festival Pizza eating contest.
Coondog, in town for a family reunion, ate a medium Domino's pizza in 87 seconds to destroy the field. Second place went to an

un-named local yokel, and third and fourth went to Coondog cousins, Mark and Nick Komlosi.
"Byesville is small town in the Appalachian foothills right by the W. Virginia border so there's a good chance that the second place finisher was a relative, too!" The ever entertaining Coondog exclaimed when informed the O'Karma clan had just missed a clean sweep.
Hee-haw for the O'Karma boys!

6/18/05- Congratulations to Coondog O'Karma for winning an Ohio Press's Excellence in Journalism Award. Coondog's article on competitive eating, "Dog Eat Dog," published in Cleveland Magazine, won first place in Single Essay against the state's top writers.
Coondog will have another piece about his recent trip to Japan in the coming August edition of Cleveland Mag.

6/17/05-AICE has recently received noticed from Chris "The Juggernaut of Eating" Patton that he will be attending both of the Competitive Eating Events at the Spicefest in Ft. Wayne Indiana. Spicefest may have to be renamed "Eatfest" in honor of the many great food warriors that will be on hand!

6/16/05- Quick Chek's First Qualifier in Bridgewater NJ: Jeremy "More than Baloney" Maloughney advances along with Dominic "the Doginator" Cardo and Gentleman Joe Menchetti. GJoe topped all eaters with five 6" Italian subs followed by the Doginator with 3 7/8 and More than Baloney, from Sayerville, NJ with 2 3/4. Just barely missing qualifier was Matthew "Eats Plenty" Santisi with 2 2/3. Kudos to Piscataway, NJ's John "The Reaper" Rakowski, Jervy "Fuguan" Green and Tiffany Meyer from Plainfield, NJ for their participation.

6/13/05- AICE and Peggy O'Neill's announce the Second annual 4th of July Coney Island hamburger eating contest
Even though the event is held in Coney Island this eating contest is no freak show. Hamburgers will be eaten old fashioned all american picnic style. No dipping dunking or desecrating of america's favorite picnic icon.
Gentleman Joe Menchetti will be back at Peggy's to defend his title and his right to wear the Prestigious Peggy O'Neill's meat jacket for another year. On line Registration Form

Is there another american out there that can unseat Gentleman's Joe's well dressed keester from the Coney Island picnic stage?

6/12/05- Quick Chek Italian Sub Contest Update:
Quick Chek's First Qualifier on June 16th in Bridgewater NJ is promising to be a Subtacular Showdown as New England's Number #1 Competitive Eater, Gentleman Joe Menchetti faces off against World Beef Tongue Eating Champion Dominic "The Doginator" Cardo. In a recent showdown between these two food Warriors, Gentleman Joe got the better of the two. However, The "Doginator" is a wily veteran who is determined to revenge the loss. The "Doginator" originally from Brooklyn but now makes his home in Bartonsville Pa. is a retired NYC Correction Officer and currently owns a delicatessen where he has plenty of materials to practice. Gentleman Joe, coming of a string of decisive victories will be going into this competition with a great deal of confidence and momentum. However, a determined group of locals from Bridgewatwer and the surrounding community will make these guys work for the right to go on to the finals in Readington, NJ on July 30th. There are a few spots left for anybody wishing to try their luck at Italian Sub Glory should hurry up and register!

Quick Chek's 2nd Qualifier, which will take place on Thursday, June 23rd will feature the electrifying Coondog O'Karma from Akron Ohio along with rising star Chris "The American" Schlesinger from Bohemia, NY. CoonDog, one of the most well known personalities in Competitive Eating, has competed against and beaten America's elite Gurgitators. Coondog, arguably the best Speed Eater in America holds the World record for the 1 minute Donut Challenge where he inhaled an amazing 13 donuts in one minute. In addition, Coondog is regarded by many as the #1 Pizza Eater in America and holds the Frank's Red Hot National Chicken Wing Title. Chris "The American" Schlesinger, in only his first competition involving solid foods tied the great Dominic "The Doginator" Cardo. "The American's" only previous experience in competitive matters of the stomach, was during his only year spent in college where he earned the title of "Undefeated Keg Cup Beer Slammer Champion".

6/11/05- Gentleman Joe Does It again! Gentleman Joe Menchetti captures Long Island Roast

Beef Title and establishes new standard for Roast Beef Sandwiches by consuming an awesome 7.5 Sandwiches in only 6 Minutes. At the first Annual Roasty’s Long Island Roast Beef Eating Championship. Joe’s victory was never in doubt after the first minute of the six minute contest. GJoe got off to a quick one sandwich lead and never looked back.

In second place was Dominic “The Doginator” Cardo and Chris “The American” Schlesinger with a respectable 5.5 sandwiches each. In third place was Arnold “The Beef Terminator” Goldstein from Oceanside NY with 5.0 Sandwiches. . Honorable Mention goes to Shelby “The S Express” Tancer and 18 year old Tim “The Tank” Lagudi and Phillip “Never full” Hoffman who ate a respectable 4.5 sandwiches apiece. They were closely followed by by Ian “The Gobbler” Goldberg who downed four sandwiches. Other finishers of note were Angelo “Beef Baron” Amendolare (3.75) and Nick “The Nut” Romanelli (3.5), Dan “Just Dan” Marshall (3.0).

Bernie Fiedler, the eldest participant, apparently misunderstood that he was in a Competitive Eating contest and thought the event was a Senior outing. Bernie managed to eat one of the delicious Roast Beef Sandwiches with no regrets. The things that some people will do for a delicious Roasty’s Roast Beef Sandwich !

Kudos to Patrick "The Human Garbage Disposal" Valencia, Jim "the Beef" Saridis and Angelo "Monga" Monilettc for participating -they learned it isn't as easy as it looks!

Congrats to Tina Sharkey for winning the 'guess the number of sandwiches eaten' contest and to all the winners of the Roasty's Roast Beef trivia contest.

{picture insert- Owner and Founder of Roasty's Bruce Golden and Gentleman Joe Menchetti)

The Great American Spice Company & Great American Festivals are proud to announce on Saturday, June 25th there will be The World American Hot Wing Championship followed on Sunday, June 26th by the World Sweet Corn Eating Championship both sanctioned by the Association of Independent Competitive Eaters.

Both of these events will feature a Pro-AM format (Professional & Amateur Eaters). Ft. Wayne Indiana, Spicefest along with the Association of Independent Competitive Eaters will have the honor and privilege of crowning the next World Hot Wing and Sweet Corn Eating Champions. There will be great Prizes for the winners (To be posted soon). Proceeds from these events will benefit the Hoosier Burn Camp.

Everybody is wondering if the next “Champions of Chomp” will come from Indiana and bring pride and honor to America’s heartland? Or will the next World Hot Wing & Sweet Corn-On-The-Cob Eating Championships be gobbled up by one of the several well known Food Warriors who are eagerly seeking to add one of these prestigious titles to their long list of eating accomplishments? Whatever the outcome, it will be one heck of a food fight!

Each contest will be limited to 30 entries per event, so early entry is strongly advised. Registration via the web does not guarantee a spot in the event and confirmation is necessary. Entry Fee for each event is $15- To Register for this event you may go to Spicefest

W

orld Hot Wing Eating Championship; Saturday, June 25th:

When we say “Hot Wing” we mean that the wings will be so hot that the local Fire Department has been commissioned to oversee the contest. (Really!) This will be a 13 minute event. (10 minute endurance round followed by a three minute speed round). There will be a maximum of three rounds where the top three finishers from each round will go on to a final 3 minute speed round in order to determine The World Hot Wing Eating Champion. The Chicken Wings will be so darn hot you may scream out words that your mom told you never to say! The total amount eaten will be determined by weighing the meat eaten off the bones (The fairest and most accurate way to determine how much was eaten). Also, all finalist of each round cannot leave the competition area until the end of the contest. Tell your family & friends to “Stand Back” because they risk burning their nostril hairs from just smelling the sauce!

World Corn-On-The-Cob Eating Championship, June 26th:
Are you man or woman enough to rotate a bushel of corn-on-the-cob across your teeth to become the World Corn-on-the-Cob Eating

Champion? have you always felt that you can eat more corn than anybody in the entire universe? No more bragging, it’s time to show the world that you can.

This 12-minute all-you-can-eat contest will feature ears of Florida sweet corn-on-the-cob. All contestants will be required to eat the corn without the assistance of utensils (Hands only!). Beside prizes and a handsome trophy the winner will receive title of World Sweet Corn Eating Champion. Their will be no controversy or confusion in determining the next “Niblet Ninja” because the corn will be weighed before and after the event for each contestant. The person that has eaten the most weight in corn from off the cob will be the winner.

6/2/05- The Second Annual Independence Day Hamburger Eating Competition will take place on July 4, 2005 at Peggy O'Neill's in Coney Island, Brooklyn. Gentleman Joe Menchetti will be defending his title and the right to keep possession of his golden spatula and meat jacket. Rumor has it that Gjoe has been sporting his meat jacket in his hometown in CT.

6/1/05- AICE and Quick Chek Food Stores Inc will join forces to bring you an Italian Sub Eating Contest featuring their original Italian Sub. This event will be a Competitive Eating Extravaganza featuring some of America's best competitive Eaters along with a determined group of local Eaters seeking to claim their share of the $1,300 in prize money and the prestigious title of "Quick Chek Original Toasted Italian Sub Eating Champion".

In attendance will be New England's Number one and undisputed Eating Champion, Gentleman Joe Menchetti, World Beef tongue Record Holder and Hot Dog Eating Extraordinaire, Dominic "The Doginator" Cardo, the electrifying Coondog O'Karma who holds many titles including the World Record for one minute Donut challenge. Also, the number 11 th Ranked Eater in the Nation, Mark "The Human Vacuum" Lyle and Queens NYC Matzo Ball Eating Champion " Skinny" Scott Soifer who is ranked 15 th in the country by the Association of Independent Eaters. There will be free spectator contest, music and a whole lotta fun! The final will be staged at the fantastic Quick Check NJ Ballooning Festival on the last weekend in July. Contest is July 30th at 2:30pm.

5/30/05- Gentleman Joe Menchetti takes biggest weiner eating title! Gjoe easily defeated all-comers in capturing the 1st Annual Stahl-Meyer 30 Inch Hot Dog Eating Contest at Schnack in Brooklyn. The Stahl-Meyer 30' hot dog was specially made by Stahl-Meyer for this inaugural competition. In addition, a specially crafted bun/roll (more difficult to eat than a traditional hot dog bun) was made by a local bakery to accommodate this 30" monster. Gjoe gobbled down the frank in an amazing 1 minute, 30 seconds. In a distant second was ChowHound Chapman finishing out at 2 minutes, 10 seconds. It was quite evident to all the spectators, media (Channel 7, Channel 9 and Brooklyn Cable) and the great folks at the Shcnack eatery that GJoe's desire, passion and love for the 30" weiner was unparalleled. GJoe takes home $300 and lots of other cool gifts. All eating participants received $25 gift certificates to The Schnack. Additional sponsors include: NY Water Taxi, American Stevedoring, Jever Pilsener Beer & Caputo's Bakery.

Owner Harry 'the Hawk' did a good job as MC and judge. Eaters were required to eat the hot dog using traditional picnic style rules

(no mushing, mashing, separating). This is the second eating contest within the last year sponsored by Schack. Harry hopes to make the hot dog eating contest a Brooklyn tradition.

All six contestants had to earn their way into the Memorial Day final by winning a qualifier during the previous weeks.

5/29/05- Gentleman Joe easily wins Hardee's Slammers Eating Contest in Myrtle Beach, SC. Gjoe downed 21 Hardee's slammers (mini burgers) in 10 minutes. Gjoe got out to a comfortable lead after the 4 minute mark therefore cruising the last 6 minutes. Second place winner ate 12 slammers in the allotted time. This event was conducted at the Myrtle Beach Pelicans (minor league team) Coastal Federal Field stadium.

5/25/05-See Adam “Tiny” Goldstein (3rd place), Skinny Scott Soifer (2nd place),Gentleman Joe Menchetti (1st place) today May 25th at 12:30pm on the Food Network's show 'All American Festivals' Episode FE1F13-

At the Long Island Pizza Festival in Farmingdale, top pizzerias vie for the prestige and title of best pizzeria on the Island. Watch as they battle for oven space, and heavyweight pizza eaters battle full bellies. Mamma Mia!"

5/23/05-Got a Beef? Roasty's will help you settle the score on June 11th where they bring you the Long Island Roast Beef Eating Championship. This event will be sanctioned by the AICE. Several well known eaters will make the journey to Oceanside, New York to claim the prestigious title of Roast Beef Eating Champ. This event is opened to all Roast Beef Lovers. Event starts at 11:00 am.

If you are interested in this contest you better hurry up and register because seats at the table are filling up. Call the AICE food phone at 516-632-9794 or complete our on line registration form. First Place is $500!

5/16/05- Congratulations to Gentleman Joe Menchetti on being the World Pastrami Eating Champ! Second place went to Mark "the Human Vacuum" Lyle and third to Skinny Scott Soifer. Gurgitators washed down their sandwiches with Dr Brown's Cel-ray soda. GJoe consumed close to four of the world's famous 2nd Ave Pastrami 1/2 pound sandwiches in 10 minutes. Spectators participated by answering trivia questions about 2nd Ave Deli and pastrami and also guessed the amount of sandwiches the top three eaters would consume. Fyvush Finkel was the celebrity judge.

5/9/05- Congratulations to the TriState Titans (Gentleman Joe Menchetti, Dominck 'The Doginator' Cardo, Arnie ChowHound Chapman) for their victory at today's team burger challenge finishing the monster Zeus in 1 hour, 10 minutes and 52 seconds. They were the only team to finish the entire burger in the 1 hour 15 minutes allotted time. Little Eaters (Neo Zambus, Hirm Vera, Strathis Zambus) came in second devouring 9.75 pounds and All Out Eaters (Chad Wallace, Steve Slota,Jr, Jerry Wallace) from All Out Drain and Sewer Service in Ringwood, NJ finished third eating 9.25 pounds.

The event raised $1000 and brought in lots of needed items for Operation Shoebox to send oversees to our soldiers.

Article Courier News c-n.com written by staff writer Chad Weihrauch : Burger Kings; eaters gather at Hunterdon diner in race to down 12.5 pound burger called "Zeus"

5/8/05- Special thanks to the Knoche family, Linden family, White family and Debie Fehling (techbots.com) for their generous donations to Operation ShoeBox.

5/6/05- Overeaters: Have we got meals for you A slew of restaurants around the country challenge gourmands with meals of mammoth proportions.

By Les Christie, CNN/Money staff writer. AICE chairman Arnie Chapman was interviewed for article.

5/5/05-if you haven't heard, Denny's has raised the bar by creating a 15 pound hamburger.

5/1/05 -Broken Wing Maurizio wins Pittsburgh Cheese steak Title at South Side Steaks in Pittsburgh! Big Pete almost double last years totals by consuming 7.5 10 inch cheese steaks. Second place finisher was IFOCE member Big Brian Subich. Broken Wing got off to an early lead by quickly consuming 4 cheese steaks within the first 5 minutes. Having clearly separated himself from the competition and having victory at hand, AICE eater Pete Maurizio coasted the remaining 10 minutes for an easy victory.

AICE: A competitive eating organization with a heart ... as big as its stomach!