THE FUTURE OF THE DOG AND THE BUN

On the morning of July 4th, I had a spontaneous craving to head down to the original Nathan's on Brooklyn's Coney Island. That is, to bare witness to the 92nd annual hot dot eating contest. Normally I'm not game for shock-and-awe sporting events like these because I have viewed them as Jackass-like foolishness that friends organize amongst themselves in a backyard setting. And YouTube would be their only hope to get their act noticed.

Nonetheless, with all the buzz over the personal bout between Joey Chestnut and six-time defending champ Takeru "Tsunami" Kobayashi (pictured above), I thought to myself, The hot dog eating contest is what living in New York City is all about -- a unique (perhaps cultural) experience. I called a few friends, but all of them preferred to watch it on ESPN. I briefly leaned that way thinking about the one-hour train ride to Coney Island while seriously doubting my destination. A hot dog eating contest? No way... But I ended up shocking and awing myself, discovering a different sports perspective that I believe will one day contort the Olympic dynamic.

For my first bite, I was immediately stunned at the hot dog eating crowd -- more than 35,000 of an international mix. (The next day I read that organizers said this year's event may have been one of the contest's most successful.) Fans waved American and Japanese flags to show their support for Chestnut and Kobayashi, and held signs such as “Eat Just Eat!" I eavesdropped on several conversations and sensed that the people around me were here for the event because they sounded familiar with the pre-story. This was definitely not a walk-up crowd; this was a seasoned (no pun intended) sports crowd that had been following the sports pages.

While the final countdown was being called, there was a tremendous roar from the onlookers filled with nationalistic pride for the combatants. Once the mouth-stuffing began, the announcer kept a running, auction-like dialogue going with the fans. I felt like I was at a boxing event at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, which is exactly where this event should take place looking ahead. The event has become an institution in Coney Island, but it can become an investment -- a major investment -- in Las Vegas. It can afford to move away from ESPN and attract a pay-per-view deal. And simply being in Vegas, the amount of financial royalties surrounding the hoopla and the actual event would ring up like a slot machine jackpot.

When you factor in modern-day sports fan culture and the increasing popularity of niche sports like poker and BMX biking (which was recently named the newest Olympic sport debuting in Beijing next year), the future of the dog and the bun is clear: There is a growing market for the sport, whether or not you’d puke at just the thought of it being considered a sport. Here’s some history for you: At the turn of the 20th century, the four most popular sports were baseball, boxing, horse racing and track and field. At the turn of this past century, only baseball maintains that position along with basketball, football and hockey. So there might be a new sports scenery forming as we speak.

Nowadays, sports fans can’t get enough of the underbelly of mainstream sports, from competitive eating to the Perez Hilton’s of sports reporting. Just like how everyone is coming out with their own website and trying to prove their content is better and fresher than their competitors, new “sports” are stealing headlines ever so slightly but ever so evidently from the established sports that have been around for years. I believe this is the case because in the last decade since player salaries have skyrocketed and scandals have plagued America’s pastimes, regular sports fans have built an intense love-hate relationship with aloof and egotistical mainstream athletes. It’s also harder for fans to relate to the day-to-day luxurious and multi-million dollar facade of major league playing fields.

Enter in these backyard sports, like hot dog eating, and suddenly any regular Joe Some has found a new sports connection and a more feasible chance to become a niche professional athlete one day. Will hot dog eating ever be an Olympic sport? Well, with the power of online message boards and social networking, fans could definitely make a strong case. Just look at what’s going on in Hollywood right now. Studio executives are all over web 2.0 interacting with movie aficionados to get their thoughts on pre-productions.

After my hot dog eating experience, I’m not planning on joining a competitive eating online forum. But it sure piqued my future viewing interest. I think one day I’ll be tuning into the Backyard Olympic Games, satisfying a newly-found crave.