After the Wisconsin Badgers beat the Purdue Boilermakers this Saturday, a crowd of nearly 100 formed at Library Mall to watch professional eaters shove as many slices of Ian’s Pizza into their mouth as they could in 10 minutes. Contestant Molly Schuyler won the pizzeria’s National Pizza Eating Championship, eating 12.9 slices in 10 minutes and claiming a prize of $1000.
Each slice of Ian’s Pizza weighs 8.5 ounces. This means that winner Molly Schuyler consumed 6.85 pounds of Ian’s cheese pizza. In 10 minutes. This kind of thing can only be called dignified. As the event’s emcee put it, “Competitive eating is pretty infectious.”
As the contestants proved themselves as utter badasses onstage, a band played casual blues riffs behind them. This deft combination of music and people shoving gratuitous amounts of lukewarm cheese pizza into their faces made for a glorious, almost transcendental sight.
University of Wisconsin senior Eric Dahl (pictured), who eats under the name “Silo,” competed in the pizza-eating challenge. He eats one 10-pound meal a day and ranks highly on All Pro Eating rankings. He eats competitively to fund his education at UW. On Saturday, he came in fourth place, eating 8.9 slices. This feat earned him $100.
