It’s been a rather cultured, civilized kind of week here at USA Travel Guide, so for Friday I thought we’d do something a little different: competitive corn eating. It’s a little last minute, but if you happen to live in southeastern United States, here’s a great idea for this weekend.
Technically, the 2009 Sweet Corn Fiesta in West Palm Beach, Florida has lots to offer – games, rides, live music, dance, and free admission to Yesteryear Village, a restored historic community from early Florida – but I’ve got my sights set on one thing and one thing only: seeing someone eat thirty-plus ears of corn in twelve minutes. Why would someone do such a thing? Why else? For the glory!
Sweet corn is actually a feared adversary in the world of competitive eating. The slimy exterior, the tricky architecture, the juicy shrapnel – this is no light weight food. This makes the standing record even more impressive. Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas shucked the world last year (ba dum pshhh) with an expectation-shattering 32.5 ears of corn in twelve minutes, falling just two ears short of the world record. Think about it: how much of a mess do you make eating just one ear of corn? Now imagine eating over thirty in a very brief sitting. This is a true test of championship endurance and resolve.
The Sweet Corn Eating Contest is an International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE) event, so people really do pay attention to this thing. There’s also a corn shucking contest for the kids, but that’s just to subliminally ingrain them with labor skills.
You can sign-up for the contests on-site, but registration closes early, so don’t be late. Of course, even if you can’t compete, you’ll have fun aplenty on the spectator side.
The 2009 Sweet Corn Fiesta takes place this Sunday, April 26, at the South Florida Fairgrounds in West Palm Beach, Florida. General adult admission is $7 and bestows unlimited access to games, rides, activities, contest viewing and Yesteryear Village. As with any good food festival, there’s loads of food starring the crop of the day, sweet corn. Learn more about this South Florida event.
West Palm Beach is a drive market destination for Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Jupiter, Cocoa Beach, Cape Coral, even Tampa or Daytona Beach if you really want it. You can drive in to the festival (parking is free, btw), and then head out, but we say make a weekend of it. Consider a stay at the Hilton Singer Island Oceanfront Resort, just a few miles from the fairgrounds on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. If the kids are coming along, book the “Kids are King” package for a fun Saturday activity on the cheap.
Have fun, and eat on, soldiers!
Related Posts
- Fright Nights at South Florida Fairgrounds
- South Florida Staycations – Hollywood Beach
- Summer in South Florida: Golf Vacations
- Spoleto Festival USA – Charleston, South Carolina Events
- Spring Break 2009 Beach Vacations – Singer Island, Florida
- South Florida Entertainment – Dania Jai-Alai
- South Florida Vacations – Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge
Loading ...
One Trackback
[...] to the “cropload” of excitement to be found on the fiesta grounds – in particular, the Adult International Corn Eating Contest where you can challenge the 2008 Corn [...]