Liz on eating challenges
(Thanks Liz) Liz has written a post for urbanhonking/truefan about eating challenges and the IFOCE ban on those smorgasborgs. Liz relays the following offer from Heart Attack Grill owner “Dr.” John Basso:
Basso is offering the $10,000 dollars for the person who can beat Joey’s time, he says, because he knows he’ll see $11,000 in business as a result. His dream right now is to have Kobayashi, the world’s #1 ranked eater, come in and claim that money. He says after Joey did the stunt, he had someone teach him the correct Japanese phrasing in the hopes that the Kobayashi would hear the challenge he broadcast over the television. “And if someone can beat Kobayashi’s time, I’ll give them $12,000,” he said. Though for now, that challenge will have to be put on the shelf.
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KevinRoss said
February 9, 2007 @ 8:47 pm
Very well written article Liz. I do understand where IFOCE is coming from with this policy, they want to protect their franchise. But then again, if their eaters get press for doing a mammoth restaurant challenge, it sure would seem as though that would boost the popularity of their brand as well, get more fans and restaurants interested, and lead to more people that want to host (and pay for) actual eating contests. But I have no marketing background at all, so maybe I’m off base here. But to a lament, it seems like it would help the brand, not dilute it. But in the end it is THEIR brand, not mine, so it is up to them.
Of course, it is very sad for eaters like me who had hoped to follow in the footsteps of our eating heroes and endure these “rites of passage”. I am glad to hear Denny’s is open to talk’s to work with the IFOCE and come to an agreement/deal. Maybe this is a blessing in disguise. Maybe these restaurants will start negotitating deals with IFOCE where there will be sanctioned challenges, and start offering more prize money and such, so that everyone is happy. Maybe if more fans such as Liz take issue with it, they’ll soften their policy. Maybe they will revise the policy to exclude restaurants with historical eating challenges (i.e. those that had challenges in place before the ban was instituted). There is a lot of maybes! But it seems apparent that many eaters, fans, and restaurants are not happy with this new ruling. So I really feel confident that over time, some sort of compromise will be reached so that everyone is satisfied.
BTW, I wanted to point out for the record, I am not the person quoted in that article as wishing to remain anonymous. I didn’t want anyone to get confused about that.
MEGA MUNCH said
February 10, 2007 @ 11:44 am
As I said over on True Fan, some of the best competitive eating writing and research yet. Thanks for the insight, Liz.
Here’s why I think these individual challeges might not impact the IFOCE brand or the sponsors as much as we think. The “IFOCE brand” that the sponsors are paying for is the EVENT — the stage, the 40 foot long table, the 14 eaters, the witty emcee, the gaudy trophy and the oversized check. Those are the things that draw a crowd and attract the media. Restaurant challenges just don’t pack the same energy. That being said, maybe a better solution to this would be setting limits on how many IFOCE eaters can participate in a challenge at the same time. If four top-ranked eaters walk into a restuarant, that might begin to resemble an EVENT. But if only one tries it, it’s personal, and the only buzz generated is limited to a few blogs and maybe 50 words in a small town newspaper. If that.
anonymous said
February 10, 2007 @ 12:07 pm
Liz Mega and anyone else . Restaurant challenges mean zero dollars in the shea’s pockets. Bottome line is what’s in it for them? Dont rack your brains out trying to formulate different equations as to why they banned it.
Gentleman Joe said
February 10, 2007 @ 12:11 pm
What they are paying for is the publicity that one of these events generates. The stuff you mention is just the necessary evil of how to get that publicity. If they could get the same buzz with dogs or pigs (actual) eating they would do that.
Mega, the chances of you making out w/Kate are about the same as my being the father of Anna Nicole’s daughter, which I am claiming by the way.
Barack Obama declared today… that he is the father of DannieLynn
KevinRoss said
February 10, 2007 @ 1:49 pm
MegaMunch: “But if only one tries it, it’s personal, and the only buzz generated is limited to a few blogs and maybe 50 words in a small town newspaper. If that.”
That’s a good point. I think they very much overestimate the buzz/publicity an eater doing a restaurant challenge would bring. There’s a big difference between a solo eater just having some fun and a top eater bursting in with cameras trying to break the record time.
And Joe, I believe I was the one that said I’d like to make out with Kate. Mega just said it was 100% likely. I like those odds!
beautifulbrian said
February 10, 2007 @ 2:49 pm
I know a little bit about this business because i worked for a similar type PR firm in the mid 80’s .Forma communications AKA SHOP magazine. A trendy upper east side fashion magazine which was filled with restaurants , boutiques and other new biz that were suckered into buying $387 worth of 1/4 page ad space believing it would help bolster their business. The rest of the magazine featured layouts of some of the top models posing for the mag while getting paid from their modeling agency. The owner or i guess you can call him chief editor’s name was Nick Monjo. He hired two or three phone people to make cold calls and generate leads while two field people were forced to brace any kind of weather in an attempt to sell these leads. I was one of the freelance writers and i had firsthand witness to all the bullshit that went on in that sanitation dump looking office that resembled a rat infested crack den. The models assumed they were visiting a ritzy park ave office and they end up going to hell and back. The reason i bringing all of this up is the comparison of Shea communications with Forma communications. Both are rn in similar fashions. The Nancy Goldsteins, Kate Stelnicks and Matt Rizz are sort of like the inside field people.The “eaters” are in essence the “Models”. Nancy Kate and Matt have similar functions in cold calling prospective clients or sponsors restaurants food chains etc to get them interested in competitive eating. In turn George Shea Dave Baer , Ryan Nerz etc etc would host the event and hopefully would drum up enough biz or media hype for the establishment to succeed. Whoever generated the ESPN alka seltzer lead or the goldenpalace.com lead got a rather hefty well deserved commission. I am by no means implying that Shea communications was or is anything like Forma communications. however most PR firms AKA “communications” usually generate biz through selling ad space and work on commission structure. Times have changed and im sure 1985 if the cost of 1/4 page ad space for an upper east side mag was $387 it must be triple that amt in 2007 . I will also say this , although i have never been invited to IFOCE headquarters from the pics it looks like a palace compared to the dump i worked in years ago. For those of you that think im just a gossip columnist blogger practicing journalism without a degree ,after reading this commentary you might come to the conclusion im not as dumb as i look .
beautifulbrian said
February 10, 2007 @ 3:00 pm
Some of you might get the wrong idea in thinking i am trying to get my “digs’ on the Shea’s with my previous comment. Not the case at all. I was merely making a comparison as to how PR firms sponsors and ad agency’s work. The person i worked for just happened to be ripping people off and paying his staff paltry wages . If Shea communications IFOCE headquarters were a flash in the pan shclock organization they wouldnt be headlining ESPN on July 4th and would not be the subject of countless news stories and competitive eating documentaries. I am proud to be part of the IFOCE no matter what goes on. AND THATS FOR THE RECORD!
Keep Dreaming said
February 10, 2007 @ 3:29 pm
Do you think any of the women that frequent this site would be interested in making out with Kate Stelnick?
MEGA MUNCH said
February 10, 2007 @ 5:03 pm
Ha! I meant it was 100% likely that I’d do it if she let me. Not 100% likely that either of us has a shot at it.
KevinRoss said
February 10, 2007 @ 7:22 pm
Okay; fine! Be a realist. See if I care!
anonymous said
February 10, 2007 @ 7:57 pm
MMMM keep dreaming that was very sexually thought ful of you. I am sure many women would love to make out with kate stelnick. Yes yes yes