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Keith McCord ReportingWe know a lot of you like to have a late night snack before bed, but probably not this kind of a snack!
Participants were at the Utah State Fair today for the "2006 World Sausage-Eating Championships!"
Winning a first place blue ribbon at a state fair is a big deal!
Joey Chestnut didn't win one for the fattest hog, or the biggest squash. Joey is a competitive eater. Today he took first place for putting away 29 Italian sausages in 10 minutes.
Joey Chestnut/ 2006 World Sausage Eating Champion: "The sausages had a spice that I'm not used to, so I was getting a little bit nauseous faster than I usually do. I had some bad burps, but overall it went pretty smoothly."
These were Colosimo sausages, made here in Utah, specifically for this event.
Joey and the others here are members of the International Federation of Competitive Eating. They participate in about 100 events like this every year.
Are they athletes? Well, they certainly train like other athletes.
"I usually don't eat for a day and a half. When I'm getting ready for a contest I don't eat for a day and a half, so I'm physically hungry by the time the contest comes. I just train my body to accept that much food at once, the same way a runner trains to run 26 miles."
There are approximately a thousand competitive eaters who travel the circuit each year. The first, second and third place winners at the Utah State Fair compete against each other all the time.
Patrick Bertolletti, 21, knew he'd be a big eater when he was a kid!
Patrick Bertoletti/ Chicago Resident: "I think you're born with it. I think when I was five years old I could eat more than everyone else that I knew."
But after putting away so much food, how do they feel afterward?
Third place winner, and retired CPA, Rich "The Locust" Lefevre says, not a problem!
Rich "The Locust" Lefevre/ Henderson, Nev. Resident: "No, usually not. A couple of times after a contest I've been sick, but most of the time I feel great."
Just fun and games? Hey, these guys compete for money.
Joey Chestnut made 15-hundred dollars today! He's made 40-thousand this year alone just by eating. Next week, it's the pulled-pork sandwich contest in Omaha.
