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ELKHORN-Three minutes. Thirteen doughnuts.
Think you could chow down that many morning morsels in that little time?
Walworth County Jail Training Sgt. Howard Sawyers didn't think he could, either, but he did. In doing so, he earned the title of world champion doughnut-eating cop.
"The secret for eating doughnuts is dunking them in water," said Sawyers, who finished third in the competition last year. "You do a semi-circle of water cups half to three-quarters full. You rip 'em, you dunk them and you shove. And you do that as fast as you can for three minutes."
By averaging one doughnut down his gullet every 13.8 seconds, Sawyers won the world champion title at the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association convention last month in Arlington Heights, Ill.
The Elkhorn resident blamed his third-place finish in 2005 on not soaking the first doughnut.
"It took so long to eat that first half dry," he said. "You have to chew and chew when they're dry."
But doesn't the water take the taste out of the blue-frosted cake doughnuts?
"When you have 13 doughnuts in three minutes, you're not worried too much about taste," Sawyers said. "You're not eating for the quality of the food at that point."
Besides racing for the prestigious title and a plaque for the wall, Sawyers raced for serious prizes.
The win netted him a free street survival training seminar-valued at $400-and a Sig Sauer .40-caliber pistol, which has a $969 suggested retail value, Sawyers said.
"That alone is enough to glutton yourself for one outing," Sawyers said. "I normally don't go around eating 13 doughnuts very often."
Or ever again.
Sawyers hasn't eaten a doughnut since the competition last month, and he surely won't eat any with blue frosting again. At least not until next year.
Corrections Officer Cory McGuire thinks otherwise. He's challenging his new world-champion boss to another no-holds-barred doughnut-off as soon as Sawyers is ready. McGuire beat Sawyers nine doughnuts to six in an in-house competition a few years back.
"I'm kind of excited about (the opportunity), and I'm ready to challenge him again," McGuire said, boasting that he won't even need to dunk the doughnuts to win against the world champion.
"I'm just a fast eater," he added.
McGuire might eat those words faster than he rips into a doughnut. Sawyers has lost 50 pounds since that in-house competition, which made more room in his stomach. He's on a strict physical training regimen to lose another 50 pounds to help for the next international contest.
"I've made room. It's all about making room," Sawyers said.
Sawyers also has a good coach for his competitive eating. Lt. Dave Gerber entered the contest, ate one doughnut, then encouraged his colleague to beat last year's champion, Leo Selb, a police chief from Woodbury Heights, N.J.
"I sat between Howie and the chief and kept telling him (Howie) he was behind to get him to go faster," Gerber said. "He was always ahead, so it was a lot of mind games."
Sawyers will use the next year to get fit and keep his mind concentrating on the 2007 competition.
"I would like to retain my title next year, and we'll take it from there," he said. "I was able to eat 13 without getting sick, but one more might be just enough to make it not worth it anymore."
Think you could chow down that many morning morsels in that little time?
Walworth County Jail Training Sgt. Howard Sawyers didn't think he could, either, but he did. In doing so, he earned the title of world champion doughnut-eating cop.
"The secret for eating doughnuts is dunking them in water," said Sawyers, who finished third in the competition last year. "You do a semi-circle of water cups half to three-quarters full. You rip 'em, you dunk them and you shove. And you do that as fast as you can for three minutes."
By averaging one doughnut down his gullet every 13.8 seconds, Sawyers won the world champion title at the International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association convention last month in Arlington Heights, Ill.
The Elkhorn resident blamed his third-place finish in 2005 on not soaking the first doughnut.
"It took so long to eat that first half dry," he said. "You have to chew and chew when they're dry."
But doesn't the water take the taste out of the blue-frosted cake doughnuts?
"When you have 13 doughnuts in three minutes, you're not worried too much about taste," Sawyers said. "You're not eating for the quality of the food at that point."
Besides racing for the prestigious title and a plaque for the wall, Sawyers raced for serious prizes.
The win netted him a free street survival training seminar-valued at $400-and a Sig Sauer .40-caliber pistol, which has a $969 suggested retail value, Sawyers said.
"That alone is enough to glutton yourself for one outing," Sawyers said. "I normally don't go around eating 13 doughnuts very often."
Or ever again.
Sawyers hasn't eaten a doughnut since the competition last month, and he surely won't eat any with blue frosting again. At least not until next year.
Corrections Officer Cory McGuire thinks otherwise. He's challenging his new world-champion boss to another no-holds-barred doughnut-off as soon as Sawyers is ready. McGuire beat Sawyers nine doughnuts to six in an in-house competition a few years back.
"I'm kind of excited about (the opportunity), and I'm ready to challenge him again," McGuire said, boasting that he won't even need to dunk the doughnuts to win against the world champion.
"I'm just a fast eater," he added.
McGuire might eat those words faster than he rips into a doughnut. Sawyers has lost 50 pounds since that in-house competition, which made more room in his stomach. He's on a strict physical training regimen to lose another 50 pounds to help for the next international contest.
"I've made room. It's all about making room," Sawyers said.
Sawyers also has a good coach for his competitive eating. Lt. Dave Gerber entered the contest, ate one doughnut, then encouraged his colleague to beat last year's champion, Leo Selb, a police chief from Woodbury Heights, N.J.
"I sat between Howie and the chief and kept telling him (Howie) he was behind to get him to go faster," Gerber said. "He was always ahead, so it was a lot of mind games."
Sawyers will use the next year to get fit and keep his mind concentrating on the 2007 competition.
"I would like to retain my title next year, and we'll take it from there," he said. "I was able to eat 13 without getting sick, but one more might be just enough to make it not worth it anymore."
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