anyway, I thought it should be noted that we truly are in a golden age of gluttony, as measured by the annual July 4 hot dog eating contest in Coney Island, the most prestigious competitive eating event of the year. this tournament had been held for decades and the world record was 25, until Kobayashi showed up in 2001 and doubled it with 50 (!).
it took other people six years to catch up, Kobayashi won six straight titles, until Joey Chestnut reclaimed the mustard belt for the US in 2007, forcing down 66 hot dogs in the 12 minute time limit. the last two years, these two have been pushing each other to even more disgusting heights. the contest was shortened to 10 minutes last year, but that didn't stop Chestnut from somehow cramming in 68 hot dogs yesterday to beat Kobayashi by 3 1/2.
so, in 2000, the alltime world record was 25 hot dogs in 12 minutes, and now it's 68 in 10 minutes. now that's progress!
