Oktoberfest 2005 – sausage kings

It’s taken be awhile to write this up, but before heading off to Boston I hit the Oktoberfest at Oaks Bottom Park with some friends. It was the usual good time, singing, beer, brats, beer, and cup pyramids. Until we went off to the big tent, where we found more singing and beer. And some yelling. And then it happened. They called for participants in the sausage eating contest. Two humans formed a tag-team style pair of consumers…the one feeding sausage to the other, and then switching after the first is completed. The goal: finish the your sausages the fastest. Fatty footlong babies. After finally talking Buck into joining me, we took the last spot at the table. As if I knew what I was doing I showed him hand signals for faster and slower. I didn’t.

The MC started the contest, I grabbed the sausage and fed it to Buck. Too much, already we were having a setback. These suckers are the tough smoked variety! The other teams were making progress, but poor Buck was gagging while he chewed. A bit of a mess ensued and I was wearing some of his sausage…not much thankfully, but that helped us to become a favorite among the kids. Inspired, Buck forced down that unfortunate first bite, we communicated a new strategy, and got back on our horse. errm, pigs. To add to the surreal nature, the entire German music group sang ‘It’s a Small World’ over and over and over again. It kinda faded in and out for me, drowning in the intensity of competition. He made good pace, gaining on the competition, we knew we were in trouble, periodically sipping off of his beer…I’d finished mine on the way up. Buck finished his sausage, we were in the middle of the pack. I got to work and quickly realized that with small bites I wouldn’t have to waste precious time chewing. And these babies required some mastication. Our group got in nice and close and yelled for us. So I grabbed Buck’s sweet barley nectar and started taking small bites and swallowing them whole. He needed a drink. I denied him his own beer….oh the sacrifices we make! The sausage went down fast! And in the end, we won! The prize, other than bragging rights, was a set of knives, a t-shirt, a cd, and a game. And passes to Oaks Bottom. Pretty sweet!