Published: May 07, 2009 04:04 pm      

PHOTO GALLERY: Hot Diggity Dog!

Lady Demos go to the dogs to raise anti-cancer funds

Some might call Sean Millikin a law dawg but Saturday he was top dog after downing nine hotdogs and buns in ten minutes to win the Hot Diggity Dog hotdog eating contest that benefited the Relay for Life cancer fundraising drive.

The Cumberland County sheriff's deputy was the on-odds favorite. Afterall, he stands about six-foot, five-inches tall and had plenty of storage space.

His closest challenger, Crossville Police Lt. John Bilbrey made it a race to the finish line, downing eight in the ten-minute competition. Bilbrey, however, was recognized along with his wife as having raised the most funds through sponsorships. They raised $1,265.

The small courtroom of the courthouse was briefly turned into a dog pound as ten stout-hearted contestants with hearty appetites tackled plates stacked high with hotdogs to claim king, or queen, of the hotdogs. The event was moved inside because of Saturday's rain.

This didn't dampen the enthusiasm of the audience who shouted out their encouragement as contestants scarfed down as many of the all-American treats as they could stomach. While contestants didn't bark, it appeared some might be close to barfing.

Contestants seemed to have put in plenty of forethought prior to the competition. Millikin's approach was to slip the dog out of the bun, squeeze the bun into a glob of dough and down it. One or two tried the old dip-the-bun-in-the-water trip.

Then there was Judy Grahams Swallows who might have been there for the meal. She slathered her dogs with condiments and never really challenged for the lead. However, she seemed to enjoy her mid-day meal.

Jeremy Thompson was a Cumberland County Fire Department entrant and some thought, because of his youth, he might be a dark horse in the dog chomping competition. Try as he might, he couldn't keep up with the big dogs.

Cindy Cooper was emcee for the event and her running ad libs were worth the price of admission. It was a precarious position for a trained nutritionist but she kept the crowd laughing and in the competition. When she and the crowd counted down the final seconds, some contestants crammed into their mouths what was left in their hands and were given credit for that final dog.

Afterwards, leftover hotdogs were offered to the spectators but there were few takers from among those who witnessed the faux pas in dining etiquette.

In addition to Millikin and Bilbrey, the field was rounded out by Gene Hall, Leonard Hollender, Barbie Brown, Jamie Sharp, Jeremy Thompson, James Threet and Hunter Brown.

The event was co-sponsored by the Cumberland County Democrat Women's Club and Cumberland Medical Center with proceeds going to the Relay for Life 2009. A check for $2,000 represented proceeds from the day of fun and indigestion.