MLE 2007: Stuck in the Starting Gates

The 2007 MLE season has seen many changes, with exciting new twists and turns and fierce competition so far. No that doesn't sound right, let me re-phrase that: the 2007 MLE season is building momentum with the institution of new rules and restrictions, new contests, more exposure and uncovering new talent. No-no, that doesn't quite capture it. Okay, how about this: the 2007 MLE season has brought exciting new changes, a new point system, a new name, a new network television deal and open competition. Hmm, somewhat true but just doesn't quinch it either. Okay, last try: the 2007 MLE season has been full of anticipation with a new network deal and a new look but has yet to deliver any lasting excitement due to lack of activity and exclusivity. Yes, this feels more accurate.

Alright, I don't want to come out harsh but honestly I have been a bit dissapointed or at the least a bit restless with the MLE season so far. There have been some very promising changes in the circuit; the new point system was announced early in the year - a new way to position eaters against each other and further incentive for all eaters 1-10 to perform well in every contest. Unfortunately, the point system has yet to deliver the excitement that I believe it can because there have been very few contests, the IFOCE has not updated the standings since the third contest of the year, and there has been no indication as to what the point system will reveal at the end of the season. Some of the problems may be associated with a member of the IFOCE that was very involved in the point system leaving but that is just my speculation.

The new deal with Spike TV is definitely promising with four televised events planned for this year - 1 event per quarter. The first was held during St. Patick's Day weekend with Pat Bertoletti (a fitting name) taking the title impressively beating an overheated Joey Chestnut in the 5-minute jalapeno finale. I thought the contest showed very well on TV with the Sheas, Crazy Legs and Eater X starring as commentators. Honestly, I thought it was a good show and the next shows will only get better.

Of course, what I did not like about the Spike TV show was that only the top 8 ranked eaters were invited to compete; similar to the scenario with the Philly Wing Bowl 15 held in early February, where only 5 top ranked eaters were selected to eat by the IFOCE. I know that if I want to be involved in these invitationals, I need to improve my current ranking of 14 and break in to the top 8 to have a better shot, but honestly open competitions are much more exciting in my opinion and is what our growing sport needs more of to get more eaters exposure and experience.

The IFOCE has morphed its image into a new name for the eating circuit: MLE (Major League Eating) and with this have revealed a new website at MLE.com . I like the look of the new website and I definitely approve of the interactivity features, but it is still a long way from finished and I am still not sure what is going on with the whole Bunnettes angle. I am not sure that the seemingly large focus on Bunnettes, if they ever do materialize on the website, will be a step in the right direction towards legitimacy for our sport. I will hold off my final judgement until I see the actual product though.

Last year at this time (April 8) there had already been 14 open competitions sanctioned by the IFOCE. This year, to date, there has only been 4 open competitions and 2 invitationals (Wing Bowl was open to Philly residents only) . The lack of activity and the blank screen for upcoming contests has been depressing for an active and hungry eater like myself.

Obviously, the loss of Golden Palace as a sponsor late last summer was unexpected and it has been difficult to find sponsors to fill the void in the first few months of 2007. The impact of such limited activity early in the season could be a big factor as things start to pick up. Most of the eaters in the top 8 have still been fairly active but everyone else has basically been waiting for the contests to start popping.

It will be interesting to see if eaters 9-25 and beyond have been maintaining their competitive eating shape and if anyone will come out ready to challenge those in the top 8 or if the gap between them (us) has gotten even bigger. Juliet Lee was the only person to make a splash in the IFOCE ranks in the past few months in my opinion but she has not had enough opportunities either to see where her ranking should really stand. According to the new Hall "Hoover "Hunt rankings this year, Juliet should be somewhere in the top 15.

The Nathan's season began with a strong showing by Chip Simpson pounding down 39.25 dogs in a rain soaked Sunrise, FL. But May and June will be the true testing ground to see who will be a contender and who will be a pretender this year on the Nathan's and MLE circuit.

It has been nearly 4 months since I have dawned the CE table, by far the longest layoff of my now one-and-a-half year old career. I have actually signed up for every contest that was offered this year but have yet to be able to make an appearance. I am eager to get back to the table and prove I am ready for the challenge of this new season. I will be breaking out of the starting gates on April 28 at the Stockton Asparagus Festival. My first qualifier for Nathan's won't be until June, all of the qualifiers I signed up for are in June. My diet is heavily weighted with hot dogs right now and I am feeling good about the numbers I will put up this season.

A few new upcoming contests were just posted on the IFOCE website last week which was a relief and a great sign. with Nathan's and Spike TV coming in to focus as well, I think we are just experiencing the calm before the storm right now. Regardless of what happens this season, I will be grateful once again to just be a part of it all and carrying on in this bizarre yet meaningful journey with some of the most interesting and genuine characters in the world. See you all soon...