.jpg)
Photo courtesy the Bottle Inn
Competitive eaters consume all kinds of food, from the healthy to the horrifying. But an annual competition in Dorset, England pushes our beloved sport into the realm of terrifying physical abuse, as gustators battle to consume the most leaves of Urtica doica, the herbaceous plant more commonly known as the stinging nettle.
The leaves and stems of this plant are fringed with needles that inject a chemical compound of boric acid and acetylcholine that hurts like the dickens, causes redness and numbing, and can last for up to a week. Certainly not the kind of thing you want to put in your mouth - and yet, on Saturday, sixty-five people stepped up to the plate to claim the title of King of the Stingers.
Everything about the World Stinging Nettle Eating Championship is unusual - instead of food being measured by weight, eaters are given stalks of the plant, from which they must pluck and eat leaves as quickly as possible. The winner is determined by the competitor with the greatest length of clean stalk. Eaters also have a full hour in which to consume leaves, far longer than most other contests.
The contest began in 1986 after an argument between two farmers over who had the worst nettles in their field spun wildly out of control. As beer-fueled squabbles tend to do, it ended up with the two men chowing down on the noxious nettles while the assembled bar patrons looked on in horror, and some enterprising soul decided to repeat the incident each year. Now the contest draws crowds of over a thousand people to rural Dorset.
This year's winner, Mike Hobbs, managed to choke down a staggering 48 feet of the nettles to claim the title. His face burning in pain, mouth numb, and green drool oozing from his face, Hobbs may not be the most handsome man on the block, but who else can say that they're King of the Stingers? And this year also saw a Queen - 40 year old Mel Lang matched Mike nettle for nettle, with 48 feet of her own.
I'll find some video of this year's competition, but until then enjoy this report from last year, courtesy of the UK Mirror.
Comments
Jesus effing christ, what? Is this some kind of effing joke? I think I'm going to move to the UK and start a world smashing yourself in the nuts with a croquet mallet championship.
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!