Contestants eat their way to wins at Stars and Stripes Festival in Carson City
The second annual Stars and Stripes Festival proved to be a fun-filled afternoon of games and food, including hot dog and watermelon eating contests, held Saturday at the Carson Mall.
“We were really happy with the turn out," said Chelsea Lavender, event coordinator and marketing manager for the Carson Mall. "Everybody had some fun and it was really family-oriented; that’s really important for us.”
The hot dog eating contest was split into two groups for men and women. Both the winning contestants said they were out there just to have fun.
“I’m just the type of person when there’s something like this, I just go for it,” said 17 year-old women’s champion and Carson City resident Soi’johniqa Moore about the contest.
The men’s competition winner, Casey Peterson, is now a back-to-back champion, having won the competition last year.
“I won last year so I stuck with the same strategy," the Carson City resident said. "I liked this year way better than last.”
Children competed under different age groups in watermelon eating contests Saturday, too.