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Volume CXXXIII, Number 3 |
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90 Pizzas eaten fast
DAVIN MICHAELS
STAFF WRITER
This past Wednesday evening, Residential Life sponsored
a pizza-eating contest in Smith Union. The event was co-sponsored by Papa
Johns, one of the two most prominent pizza-vending facilities in the Bowdoin
community.
Papa Johns had three major executives at the event to vouch
for the company and run the competition. There was also a dancing pizza,
who mysteriously refused to be interviewed by the Orient and traveled
around the union during the competition, causing the competitors to add
pizza to their list of fears, right after clowns.
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| Students race against their gag impulses and each other at the pizza-eating contest. Ninety students aimed to eat a pizza each. (Hans Law, Bowdoin Orient) |
The contest consisted of 90 students and 90 pizzas. The
teams were in groups of three, and in order to win, all three members
of the team had to finish their entire pizza first (note: one pizza equals
approximately eight slices) and stand up when finished. In addition to
all of the competitors, an impressive 100 or so bystanders crowded into
Smith Union to watch the grueling competition. The competitors ranged
from huge 6'7" football players to tiny 5'4" freshmen. As one
individual pointed out, "You have to have a big brain to win, not
a big stomach." The results showed that while many Bowdoin students
get enough practice using their brains, their stomachs had a harder time
dealing with such pressure.
Last year, Res Life put together a donut-eating contest
that did not get as much publicity, but was still an entertaining event-especially
due to two individuals who began the contest by piling the donuts into
a bag and running out of the Union like renegades. This contest had costumed
individuals and students who ate with forks and knives and matching napkins.
It was quite a sight, complete with students who turned green after the
competition and needed assistance exiting the union.
There were some very interesting strategies among the competitors.
Some soaked their whole pizzas in water and sucked them down their throats
in massive dollops, some took all the cheese off first, and some left
the crust to the end and then stuffed them down their throat.
Many of these people finished their pies, but none of them
won. For many, it was a battle of self-determination and personal goals.
It is safe to say that Bowdoin students are very motivated and try to
challenge themselves in all of their endeavors. Pizza-eating and hurling
are no exceptions. Many left the competition hungry; others will not touch
a pizza for the next two months.
The winning prizes were cash, and those that came in first
place were also given a free pizza a month by Papa Johns for the rest
of the school year. First place went to Jesse Minneman, Tom Bresnehan,
and Nick LaRocque. Dan Jaffe, Tim Cashman, and Dan Campbell all received
second place, and third place went to Jarrett Young, Greg Berry, and Brandon
Casten. Congratulations to all of the winners. You are role models to
all of us.
The question remains: did anyone hurl? Last year, the audience was disappointed
to find competitors with strong stomachs. This year, the audience was
not disappointed, and many of those who did not win flooded into the bathrooms
afterwards to be sick. For the bystanders, Papa Johns sold pizza for $1
per slice. When the crowds started to disappear, free pizzas were tossed
out to students.
It was a very entertaining event that certainly brought
the campus together. It makes one realize what college is really all about:
live life to the fullest and then vomit it right back up again, Animal
House-style.
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