Miles Travelled: 6,001
Miles Hiked: 90.7
Current Location: Amarillo, TX
“There is nothing on that plate but gristle and fat.”
- Roman Craig referring to what remained during Chet Ripley’s attempt to eat the Old 96er in the movie The Great Outdoors
We had the car packed and left Grand Canyon before sunrise with the intention of getting at least 500 or 600 miles in today. When we were planning the trip my brother told me that if we did not visit at least one location featured on the television show Man vs. Food that the trip was pointless. If you are not familiar with the show, the host, Adam Richman, visit cities throughout the U.S. to take on various eating challenges.
As we drove through New Mexico (which battles Kansas for most barren and boring state) we saw a billboard for the Big Texan in Amarillo, Texas. On Man vs. Food Adam visited the Big Texan and took down the 72 oz. steak challenge. There is a motel right next to the restaurant and it is right off of I-40 so we figured we would spend the night there and give the challenge a try.
The challenge involves eating a 72 ounce steak, baked potato, salad, 3 fried shrimp and a dinner roll in 1 hour or less. If you beat the challenge the meal is free. Here is the food once as they set it out on the table.
I did not feel great but when I saw everything laid out I thought that I had a decent chance. I started plowing through the steak and eating random bites of the side dishes here and there. I was half way done in about 20 minutes.
When I started I thought I was tearing into the toughest part of the steak but it turned out to be the choicest. I began to hit some serious gristle and tough meat which really slowed me down. At the 30 minute mark I finished off the roll, shrimp and all but a few bites of potato and salad. I probably had 24 ounces of steak left but I was definitely winding down. I made one last push but there was so much crap on the plate I asked the waiter how much of that needed to be eaten. He indicated that about half still had to be put away.
So it was not the sides or being full that did me in, it was the toughness of the meat. I called it quits with around 9:00 minutes left. When you quit they weigh how much more you had to go. My remainder was around 10 ounces. I might have gotten it done if the meat was better but unlike the great Chet Ripley, I just did not have it in me to finish off the gristle and fat. LD agreed that the steak was not that great.
We had a few beers and then went back to the motel. I felt fine and did not really go through any of the stages of suffering that usually accompany an eating challenge. I give credit to anyone who can polish that off in an hour, it takes a special skill.
