Competitive eater Humble Bob Shoudt finds time to give a quick interview while waiting for his shuttle to the Krystal Square Off.
The lobby of the Sheraton Read House hotel in Chattanooga, TN, is a hive of activity at the moment as competitive eaters start working their way down to catch a shuttle to Ross’s Landing for the Krystal Square Off V. While hanging around, the eaters have found some time to get in some last minute preparations and media opportunities.
We spotted Humble Bob Shoudt out in the lobby giving a quick interview. Juris Shibayama was mingling with friends and family, and Pat Bertoletti was seen in Starbucks filling up his cooler with boiling water, which he hopes will be the perfect dipping temperature by the time he gets up on stage in about three hours.
All the eaters had to have their stage needs in their bins by 11:45, so what is done is done at this moment. The shuttle leaves at 12:15 to ferry the eaters down to the where they will meet up with the grand entrance cavalcade, the details of which still remain secret.
The competitive eater's bins are packed and ready for the trip down to the Riverfront, awaiting their opening on stage.
The KSO blog crew will be on hand to reveal the secret of the eater’s grand entrance and to provide posts and instant Twitter updates throughout this afternoon as we get closer to the big event. So, stay tuned and make sure to bookmark us and come back often.
While at an autograph signing at the Hixson Krystal, Competitive eater Patrick Bertoletti posed with a copy of the Chattanooga Times Free Press that has a picture of him, Joey Chestnut and Takeru Kobayashi on the cover
As part of the events over the Krystal Square Off V weekend, competitive eaters Joey Chestnut, Takeru Kobayashi, Patrick Bertolettiand Humble Bob Shoudt went out to the Krystal restaurant in Hixson, Tenn. to sign autographs during the “Sample Saturday” celebration, where customers get to try out Krystal menu items for free and enter to win a $100 gift card.
Fans came out to see their gustatory heroes and get their official Krystal Square Off V event guide signed by four of the best eaters in the world. Once again, both Chestnut and Kobayashi were asked how many Krystals they were planing to eat tomorrow, and both said that they were looking to set a new record and were aiming around the 110 mark. Looks like it’s going to be a close, tense rematch tomorrow. However, even if just for an hour, all four got to hang out with their fans and relax for a little before going back to mentally prepare for the pending showdown.
Here is a quick video of the autograph signing and you can check out some photos here.
Competitive eating fans have chimed in and most so far think Joey Chestnut won't repeat as the Krystal Square Off champ.
The fact that Joey Chestnut is the current hamburger-eating world record holder and reigning champ doesn’t seem to carry much weight with readers of the popular competitive eating site EatFeats.com. Consisting mostly of dedicated speed-eating aficionados and pro gurgitators, the site’s readerbase has so far picked Japan’s Takeru Kobayashi over Chestnut by more than 2-to-1 in its latest poll to win Sunday’s Krystal Square Off V World Hamburger Eating Championship. Three-time Krystal Square Off king Kobayashi has received 23 votes to Chestnut’s 10 the last we checked.
All but three eaters–Crazy Legs Conti, Tim Janus and Rich LeFevre–have received at least one vote so far. Even the yet-to-be-picked12th Eater received a vote, proving that the scientific validity of an open web-based poll may be somewhat questionable.
Click here to cast a vote for who you think will take down the biggest Major League Eating event of the year this Sunday in Chattanooga.
Joey Chestnut on his way to winning Krystal Square Off IV in 2007. His victory earned him an automatic seat at this year's championship.
Being the defending Krystal Square Off champ has it disadvantages.
In an interview with The University Echo, the 2007 Krystal Square Off winner Joey Chestnut said that by not having to qualify for this year’s final he doesn’t know exactly what to expect this Sunday in Chattanooga when he defends his title against three-time KSO champion Takeru Kobayashi and nine other eaters, including the No. 2-ranked gurgitator in the world Pat Bertoletti and last year’s runner-up Humble Bob Shoudt.
When asked if he will break his record of 103 Krystals in eight minutes, Chestnut said:
“It’s possible. Quite possible. I don’t know because I didn’t have to qualify, so I haven’t eaten real Krystals in a while. It’s tough when you don’t have to qualify for a contest as big as the Krystal Square Off Finals, because there’s a lingering doubt that you’re not fully prepared.”
A confident Kobayashi told the same reporter, “I definitely can break the record, and I could have done it two years ago.” In 2006, Kobayashi defeated Chestnut by downing 97 Krystals. It was the Japanese eater’s third consecutive win in Chattanooga.
While Chestnut has not had his legendary jaws chomp down on a Krystal since 2007, Kobayashi has had the advantage of being in Krystal country for a full week now and rumor is he’s been ordering 100 Krystals at a time in Atlanta-area Krystal restaurants. Last week, just 24 hours before eating 89 Krystals at the Birmingham qualifier, Kobayashi had consumed 100 Krystals in under eight minutes in his hotel room.
So tell us what you think: Will Chestnut’s year-long hiatus from the small, square hamburger hurt his chances this Sunday or will the defending champ rise to the occasion and extend his reign over Kobayashi?
Takeru Kobayashi's 89 Krystals in eight minutes in Birmingham beat Joey Chestnut's all-time Krystal Square Off qualifier record.
If anyone had any doubts about Takeru Kobayashi’s chances to reclaim his Krystal Square Off World Hamburger Eating Championship title next Sunday in Chattanooga, the legendary gurgitator put them to rest Saturday.
In front of a massive Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham crowd covered in a sea of Blazer green, Kobayashi showed why he’s the sport’s legendary master of mastication as he won his seat at the finals in Chattanooga by devouring 89 Krystals in eight-minutes. His closest competitor, Steve Ramirez of Aurora, Mo., ate just 24 Krystals, about what Kobayashi gulped in the first 70 seconds of the contest.
Kobayashi’s mark is an all-time Krystal Square Off qualifier record, besting Joey Chestnut’s 87 Krystals at last year’s trials in Tuscaloosa, and it sets up a competitive eating battle for the ages when the two gustatory giants face off for the sport’s top title and its unprecedented $20,000 first place prize at Krystal Square Off V on Sunday, Sept. 28.
It’s worth noting that this was the first time Kobayashi has competed in a Krystal Square Off event since he won the championship in 2006, and he made 89 Krystals looked ridiculously easy, experimenting with technique along the way and slowing at the finish, reminiscent of Usain Bolt’s 100-meter Olympic gold medal performance in Beijing a month ago, but without the showboating. And sans the gold Pumas spikes. Kobayashi opted for some camo-colored high top Chucks instead.
And while Kobayashi’s 89 on Saturday was impressive, even more so is what he did the day before. After making the rounds with the local media on Friday, Kobayashi walked from his Birmingham hotel to the nearby Krystal restaurant and ordered up 100 Krystals, which he then gobbled down in under eight minutes. Yes, 100 Krystals. With plenty of time to spare. Considering Kobayashi will be in Krystal country all week, with lots of time to practice with the small, square hamburger that will decide it all, it’s all but certain the century mark will be broken once again–perhaps shattered, and Humble Bob Shoudt, who a few weeks ago said that no one will be near 100 Krystals this year and called Chestnut’s world record of 103 Krystals “unbeatable”, might just be eating some humble pie along with his Krystals next Sunday in Chattanooga.
For more than 250 photos from the Birmingham qualifier on Saturday, click here.
Look for a full video of the event on the blog soon. In the meantime, check out a 3-minute video of the contest on AL.com here.
Is Joey Chestnut's 103 Krystals world record one for the ages? Humble Bob thinks so.
It won’t be 120.
It won’t even be 100.
No, Humble Bob Shoudthas changed his prediction on how many Krystal hamburgers the winner of Krystal Square Off V will put down on September 28, and it’s far less than the number he threw out during our podcast interview with him two weeks ago, just ahead of the Chattanooga Qualifier.
Calling last year’s World Championship a “perfect storm” and expecting much hotter conditions at this year’s final, Shoudt states on his website that his prediction of 120 Krystals was grossly inaccurate and that he thinks the winner will eat no more than 92 Krystals, 11 shy of Joey Chestnut’s world record performance last October, which Shoudt calls “Beamonesque,” a reference to Bob Beamon’s long jump record that stood for nearly 23 years. And it’s even less than the 97 Krystals Takeru Kobayashi gobbled up to win Krystal Square Off III in 2006.
“No one will be anywhere near 100. The perfect storm of Krystal IV will not be repeated,” declares Shoudt, who ate 58 Krystals at the Chattanooga Qualifier two weeks ago. His personal best is 95, which he did at last year’s final.
In reaching his new prediction, Shoudt says he’s thoroughly studied video from the past two year’s finals.
“Using this footage and a lot of time, I now have a very accurate count of the five times that people have eaten 90 + Krystal burgers in 8 minutes,” states Shoudt. “[W]hen I look at the footage and my records, it finally dawned on me. Last years Final may never be repeated. Do to the later, cooler, quicker environment that the contest was held and the fact that Joey, Pat and I peaked at the same time, we were able to do something that I do not think will be repeated.”
Read all Humble Bob has to say about his predictions for this year’s Krystal Square Off and get his personal take on his disappointing qualifier performance at the Chattanooga Qualifier on Aug. 28 here.
Don't let his charming smile and dapper appearance fool you, Kenny "The Regulator" Hammontree is one mean eating machine, as viewers witnessed this morning on WDEF.
This morning ahead of the Opening Ceremony for Krystal Square Off V, The Krystal Company’s senior marketing coordinator Kenny Hammontree, better known as “The Regulator” on the competitive eating circuit, faced off live on television against WDEF News 12 meteorologist Brian Smith in a 30 second Krystal eating contest.
Major League Eating’s venerable George Shea and professional competitive eater“Humble” Bob Shoudt were on hand to officiate.
Competitive eater Humble Bob Shoudt is looking to cruise to victory this Saturday in Chattanooga.
When it comes to the Krystal Square Off V World Hamburger Eating Championship, talk is cheap. The only thing that matters is who puts away the most Krystals by the time the clock strikes 8 minutes.
With that said, what competitive eaters have to say along the tour is often priceless, and for this reason alone, krystalsquareoff.com is introducing a regular series of audio podcasts featuring your favorite eaters talking trash, squashing (or starting) rumors and sharing their perspectives on anything and everything in the world of competitive eating.
Today, we’re getting things started with “Humble” Bob Shoudt, who will seek to earn a birth to this year’s final at the kick off qualifier this Saturday. During our interview, Shoudt proves less-than-humble about his chances to win it all this year and shares why he considers the Krystal Square Off “better than the Olympics.” He also let’s us know what we can expect from him Saturday (may not be the century mark, as we mentioned), whether he’s in it for the money and who he thinks will be joining him in the top three at this year’s championship.
Click below to listen to the audio interview.
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Humble Bob looks to improve upon his previous mark of 95 Krystals at the kick off qualifer this Saturday.
We can confirm that “Humble” Bob Shoudt, the number-five ranked competitive eater in the world, will compete in the kick-off Krystal Square Off V qualifier this Saturday in Chattanooga.
And rumor is he’s planning to throw down the gauntlet with at least 100 Krystals in eight minutes.
Shoudt’s personal best is 95 Krystals in 8 minutes, which won him the bittersweet title of runner-up at last year’s World Hamburger Eating Championship after losing to Joey Chestnut’s world-record breaking 103 Krystals.
Shoudt is the clear favorite to win this first of seven regional qualifiers. He’ll go head-to-head against a total of 12 eaters, including SuperPaul Barlow (ranked 37th), Larry McNeil (ranked 38th) and five amateur hopefuls who will be selected on the spot.
While we know Shoudt is focused on winning Krystal Square Off V, which he recently proclaimed the “Super Bowl of competitive eating” and an event “bigger than the Olympics”, we’ll have to see if his eyes are bigger than his stomach when it comes to eating 100 Krystals or more.
We’re also a bit curious as to whether the ribs he devoured this past weekend in the Ash Creek Saloon contest to claim his first-ever victory over Chestnut will still be sticking to his bones, affecting his gurgitating greatness. Shoudt ate 6.8 lbs of ribs in 12 minutes to Chestnut’s 6.6 lbs.
Shoudt’s quest for the century mark and a coveted seat at the Krystal Square Off V World Hamburger Eating Championship final table will kick off at 3:00 p.m. on the Main Stage of the Southern Brewer’s Festival at the Chattanooga Riverfront.
We recommend arriving early to claim your ground in the front row if you want to witness this possible history in the making, or you can stay tuned here at krystalsquareoff.com, as we’ll post all the results.
Below is a complete list of eater’s set to compete in the Chattanooga Qualifier on Saturday:
“Humble” Bob Shoudt
Larry McNeil
Steve Spinosa
Rick Schumacher
Rick Petralia
SuperPaul Barlow
Mike Nafziger
Brian Smith + 5 amateurs chosen on the spot
