Competitive Eating Anyone Can Love

As we've gotten older, we've attempted to eat a little healthier; we're turning 32 next week, and the body doesn't quite bounce back the way it used to. But we remain a sucker for the corndog. It's a hot dog dipped in lard; what's not to like? (In Mattoon, we call them "pronto pups," by the way. It's a Central Illinois thing.)

The only way a corndog could be improved upon, we'd think, would be if they could make it erotic. Sadly, some Iowans disagree.

The erotic corn dog-eating contest at the Iowa State Fair might have to go away. The competition, which is organized by a Des Moines area radio station and tends to draw a raucous and appreciative crowd, is too tasteless, according to at least one fair board member. After the topic came up Monday during the board's critique of this year's state fair, fair manager Gary Slater said he hasn't seen it himself. "I just heard it was kind of disgusting," Slater said. He quickly added: "It was nothing that was sanctioned by the fair."

Hey, Barack Obama? John Edwards? You guys really want to catch up with Hillary? You're gonna have to win Iowa, which means you have to go by the erotic corndog eating contest. Sure, you might find it beneath your dignity, but politics, it's a tough racket.

Fair Board May Banish Erotic Corndog Eating Contest [Des Moines Register]