Mike Nafziger has always liked to eat.
Whether it's eating a whole 72-ounce T-bone steak in Texas to get it free or taking the dares of friends, the 28-year-old Fremont man is up to the task.
Last Sunday, he entered his first competition for the International Federation of Competitive eating. Consuming 3 pounds 10 ounces of pulled pork at the World's Smoked Pork Competition at Bluff's Run Casino had him within 2 ounces of fourth place in his first shot at competitive eating.
"A lot of the professional guys do a lot of practicing," Nafziger said. "Not me, I just went for the free food. I've always eaten a lot anyway."
At 6 foot 1 inch tall and 320 pounds, he beat three professional eaters, who tour the country in an attempt to win enough contests to earn a living. The grand prize in that competition was $2,000 and Nafziger just missed out on winning the fourth-place prize of $250.
Now he's going to take that experience to try to eat the most grilled cheese sandwiches at one of 15 regional qualifiers for the World Grilled Cheese Eating Championship at the Nebraska State Fair. The event will be held at 3 p.m. today on the Nebraska Stage with $1,500 in cash prizes and the winner receiving a trip to the world championship in Los Angeles.
"He's a rookie, but he competed well at Bluff's Run," said Nancy Goldstein, spokesperson for the International Federation of Competitive Eating. "He loved it so much, he's hungry for more competition."
Nafziger is preparing a bit more for his second competition in a week, especially after meeting some touring professionals at the pork-eating competition.
"Now that I know a bit more, I've been practicing on the grilled cheese," Nafziger said. "I've gotten down three grilled cheese in a minute."
He'll have 10 minutes Saturday to woof down sandwiches, an amount of time he said he should be able to finish at least 13.
Goldstein said the world record is held by Sonya Thomas, a 5 foot 1 inch, 105 pound female who ate 25 sandwiches in a competition earlier this year. The Fremonter said he would love to beat that mark, or at least win the competition to have a chance at $20,000 in prizes in the Los Angeles finals, but he's being realistic about his expectations.
"You can only eat so much before you hit a wall," Nafziger said. "You're disqualified if you have a 'reversal of fortune,' but I've never made myself sick. In the pulled pork competition, I ate 3 pounds in the first five minutes, but the other 10 ounces took the last 10 minutes."
While Saturday will be his second competition in about a week, Nafziger's love of beef is what normally spurs his eating passion.
A few weeks ago he took the challenge at the Nebraska Beef Company in Omaha by attempting to eat a 64-ounce prime rib in less than an hour. Not only did he complete massive piece of meat, a salad, dinner roll and two side dishes, the executive chef from the Nebraska Orthopedic Hospital in Omaha completed his feat in the quickest time ever - 13 minutes. He also received the meal gratis.
"People were watching and trying to psych me out, but it didn't work. Growing up and being a Nebraska boy, steaks have always been my thing," Nafziger said. "The eyes of the waiter when I asked for a piece of cheesecake for desert ... he almost hit the floor."
Goldstein said standard grilled cheese sandwiches will be the fare today with each one consisting of two pieces of white bread, two slices of American cheese and toasted with butter.
"GoldenPalace.com is holding the 15-stop grilled cheese circuit in honor of the Virgin Mary grilled cheese sandwich (with a purported image of the Virgin Mary on the toast) that will be part of the tour," she said. "You never know who could win. We're always looking for new eating talent."
Nafziger said he might dip the sandwiches in water or he might ball them up, both legal in the competition.
"I'm trying very hard to win," he said. "Grilled cheese is kind of like a staple growing up and I think I'll do well."
For more information, visit www.statefair.org or www.ifoce.com.
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