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CNN Live Today

Americans Celebrate Holiday With Lawn Mowers and Hotdogs

Aired July 04, 2002 - 13:23   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Here's the mandate from the president of the United States: Get out and enjoy the Fourth of July holiday. That's exactly what we're going to do. We are going to show you quite the diversity of holiday traditions out there.

Our Jeff Flock is live from Lisle, Illinois, where they are already starting to rev up the lawn mowers. I don't here them just, though, Jeff. We're going to get back to you in a second.

Then there's our Maria Hinojosa. She's live from Coney Island, where folks there are in hot dog heaven. But let's begin with Jeff now. Hi there, Jeff.

JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Fredricka. We wanted to wait so that I could actually hear you, because when they actually start this thing up we won't be able to. It's a little bit of a cross between the Indy 500 and "Hee Haw," I think.

This is Bruce Kaufman, you're about ready to give the signal to start this heat, is that right?

BRUCE KAUFMAN: We're ready for all systems mow here in the Staville (ph) National Lawnmower Racing Series.

FLOCK: Now I don't want to get in your way. Go ahead and do what you got to do, and then we'll do it again.

KAUFMAN: Ready set, mow!

FLOCK: What are they doing right now?

KAUFMAN: We've got a Le Mans start. We're going to go with 20 laps here in the Staville (ph) Series. It's racing in several classes, speeds up to about 50 miles per hour.

FLOCK: These guys are really cooking along. I know you can hardly hear me. Hopefully they can hear us at home. How fast did you say, again?

KAUFMAN: These mowers are going about 50 miles an hour today. They could top out at about 65, but on this track here in Lisle, about 50 miles an hour.

FLOCK: Oh, my God. Now, we've got one of your guys out there who we tried to hook up with a microphone, and I don't know if it's possible to race and talk at the same time, and we're going to try to link up with him in just a second, but what possesses these guy?

KAUFMAN: Mostly a combination of a little bit too much free time, and good old fashioned American fun.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know what these people are doing here. They've got on (UNINTELLIGIBLE) with a yellow flag up.

FLOCK: What was it like out there? What's it like out there?

KAUFMAN: I don't know if he can hear us. We're trying to reach Al Bitterman (ph), one of the top veterans on the Staville Series (ph) out of Lake Zurich, Illinois, and he's riding a Feed Green machine with his top speed at about 52 miles an hour.

FLOCK: Wow. Now, what's the idea? Do these guys make a lot of money on this tour? How does this work?

KAUFMAN: There's no money involved at all. It's for pure trophies, glory and bragging rights.

FLOCK: Spin me around here and look at what we're seeing out. What are the names of some of these machines?

KAUFMAN: Well, we've got Weedy Gonzalez. We've got Mr. Mow Jangles. We've got Tiny Freddison (ph), we've got the Bertrand Machine. We've got Terfinator, Sodzilla and Bodacious.

FLOCK: This is -- maybe it's a little cross between championship wrestling and the Indy 500.

But some of these guys take this pretty seriously, don't they?

KAUFMAN: You bet. It's very serious. It's a lot of fun, but serious at the same time. We've been doing it about 11 years and (UNINTELLIGIBLE) it's fantastic.

FLOCK: Bruce, come on over with me one second. (UNINTELLIGIBLE) I just want to see how fast they're going, Bruce, as they scream past here. How fast is that guy going right there?

KAUFMAN: Right now he's probably going about 35 miles an hour at this track here in Lisle.

FLOCK: And I got to ask you before we get away here. This is the Fourth of July. You've been doing this for several years. Have you done anything different on this Fourth. It looks like America is just doing what it would typically do despite this year.

KAUFMAN: Well, absolutely. This is typical for us, because we're at the Eyes of the Skies festival in Lisle every 4th of July. But of course 9/11 is in our mind. We're one big family and we're thinking of our fellow Americans today. You bet. FLOCK: I hear you, Bruce. And I'll tell you, I'm going to try to, if I can wave Al Bitterman (ph) down. Do you see Al out there. Where is he?

KAUFMAN: There he is.

FLOCK: Hey Al, can you slow down? Hey, Al!

He gave us a wave, anyway.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Boy, that corner is slick down there.

FLOCK: You know, I can't hardly hear him, but I think he said that corner was pretty slick.

KAUFMAN: Absolutely. Al's getting his bearings. It's going to be a long day of racing here at Lisle, and Al's going to be one of the hot shots today. You bet.

FLOCK: OK, Bruce, I appreciate it very much. Thank you for this unique look, and I'll tell you. Have you got the national championships coming up? When's that?

KAUFMAN: Labor Day weekend. The big mowdown. The Staville (UNINTELLIGIBLE) Finals, Mansfield, Ohio.

FLOCK: Excellent. Well, I think, Fredricka, you see this. If you can perhaps even hear me, America really kind of doing what it would typically do in these kind of typically -- almost typically American pursuits, which is do things like jump on mowers and run them around.

And by the way, just in case you were wondering, they have taken the cutting blades off, so no one will be injured, at least not from a cutting blade, anyway.

WHITFIELD: All right. Well, that's good news. Jeff Flock, I was looking out there for our friend Mabel (ph). She's the president's new best friend. She was known to have been on her sitting lawn mower, prepping for the president's visit in Ripley, West Virginia. Well, maybe she'll make it to the Labor Day weekend competition, since that's coming up.

FLOCK: I'll tell you, there's a lot of competitions. These guys love to race.

WHITFIELD: Yes. They look like they're having a good time. All right. Thanks a lot. I hope you have the earplugs out there, too. All right. Jeff Flock, from Lisle, Illinois.

All right. Let's head on up to Coney Island, New York, and that's where our Maria Hinojosa is, where they were eating a whole lot of hotdogs and washing it down with something out there. I guess water, right, Maria?

You got a new reigning champion? MARIA HINOJOSA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know what, actually, Fredricka, that right. And let me tell you, water is actually a really important part of the technique.

Let's look at the video of the new and second-time world champion hotdog eater, Takeru Kobayashi, who beat last year's record of 50 hotdogs. This year, 50 and a half hotdogs in 12 minutes. As you can see, just really scarfing them down there, chugging them down, throwing them back, washing it back with water.

I think the trick about Takeru is that he really never takes a break. I mean, he would stop to just wipe nose, it meant that he was stopping for a bit. Now with us today here is actually the person who placed second in the contest. Let's see if we can get back to the picture here, and what you should know is that Eric Booker (ph), whose nickname is "Badland" -- I have to actually get up on this little stool here, Fredricka, because otherwise I just wouldn't be able to reach him. You are 6'5"?

ERIC BOOKER: Six-five.

HINOJOSA: And how many hotdogs, second place winner?

BOOKER: Twenty-six-and-a-half.

HINOJOSA: Twenty-six-and-a-half hotdogs, which is pretty food for you. Last year you did...

BOOKER: Last year I did 19. But I was unfocused. When Kobe hi, you know, three minutes and hit 20, you know, I was just flabbergasted. So I made my goal to just stay focused this year. Just me and the dogs. Nothing around me mattered. If Kobe ate 80, I will still be concentrating on what I had to do for myself and the USA.

HINOJOSA: Now a lot of people, of course, wonder how is it -- the question that everybody wants to know -- how do you keep it all down?

BOOKER: Oh, it's just years of training. You know, basically you have got to have the capacity of doing this. I drink a gallon of water in about three minutes. Three minutes is -- I mean, a gallon of water is eight pounds of capacity. Also eat cabbage a month leading up to the competition. A cabbage, as you know, it's filling. It's not fattening. I can't go to a buffet, as large as I am. I need something that's healthy. So I eat a cabbage. I eat about eight to nine pounds at a time. It was about three heads, you know. Three nice size heads.

HINOJOSA: A lot of people, they might not know about the fact that, you know, international food eating competitions are a big deal. That is, of course, the second place trophy being held up by Eric's son, Aryan (ph). But food competition is becoming a real sport.

BOOKER: Oh, yes. It's the fastest growing sport. It's going to be the new sport of the new millennium, like George Saye (ph) says, this is baseball in 1820. It's going to be something great.

HINOJOSA: What do you think the fascination is? Some people would look at this and say, you know, that's just a little over the top. There are people who don't have anything to eat, and here we are gorging ourselves.

BOOKER: You know, I can't say much about that. But what I can say is that people are interested. They like the competitive edge. There's a lot of competition up here. These guys are top gurgitators, top athletes. You know what I'm saying? Just the fact that they want to see, how can these guys get all this food down? You know what I'm saying? That's the fascination.

HINOJOSA: And let me tell you Fredricka -- thank you, and congratulations to you. You know, I am learning a lot about food competition. And check this out, Fredricka. Actually a magazine called the "Gurgitator." An international federation of competitive eating magazine. Everything you wanted to know about how to stuff your face. I guess there's no nice way to say it.

WHITFIELD: I'm sorry. Give that to me one more time. Did you say regurgitator?

HINOJOSA: No. The "Gurgitator." The "Gurgitator." There is none of that. The "re" would change it very much.

WHITFIELD: Yes, that's what I was wondering. OK. Well, you know what? Those guys really are something. And if this is the new American tradition, or at least that's the forecast, that is really scary.

HINOJOSA: But actually, Takeru Kobayashi, who is the winner now, he was telling me that in Japan this has become quite a thing.

They not only have hotdog eating contests, but they're also doing sushi, noodles, steak, and he's the champ, and a big star in Japan and a star right here on Coney Island.

WHITFIELD: So those were the warm-up acts for him.

HINOJOSA: That's right.

WHITFIELD: I can see noodles, that's easy. All right. Just practice. Practice. Maybe next year. Huh, maria?

I don't think so. OK. Maria Hinojosa, thank you very much, from Coney Island. Appreciate it.

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