CHARLESTON, W.Va. — 4th of July activities at the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta officially kicked off at 10 a.m. Friday, but the Tudor’s Biscuit World Hot Dog Eating Contest got folks feeling as patriotic as ever before the evening festivities began.
Josh Pantry, a Charleston-based country artist, who opened for the Regatta’s Thursday night concert with Carly Pearce, signed up for the contest. He says being a part of Regatta was something he always dreamed of.
“It was amazing. I don’t know how we’re going to top that. Everything else the rest of the year probably won’t hold a candle to that. That was my dream, that was on my bucket list,” Pantry said. “I found a Facebook post one year ago I posted, ‘Josh Pantry Regatta 2025, I’m speaking it into existence.’ It was a pretty cool moment.”
Tyler Springer, a native of the Capitol City, gave the contest a go for the first time Friday. He says his training regimen came from AI.
“I got onto ChatGPT and said, ‘I’ve got seven days to prepare for a hot dog eating contest. This is my goal. What should I do?” Springer said. “It gave me a day-to-day training plan, and I just tried to stick to that. It’s interval training. A lot of hot dogs, some hot dogs, stretch the tummy. All the stuff.”
Clifton Clark placed third in the 2024 contest, finishing with 16 hot dogs. He says he comes to Haddad Riverfront Park with an empty belly.
“I come in hungry,” Clark said. “I do stretch my stomach. It’s been just research and apparently a lot of water drinking and carbonation.”
Isabelle Melton, a goalkeeper on the Concord University women’s soccer team, said she signed up for the contest on a whim for fun. She says she wasn’t afraid of the much larger opponents.
“No intimidation honestly, I’m just ready to have fun,” Melton, the St. Albans native said before the race. “I think life is so serious, and I think this kind of reminds everybody not to take it too serious.”
Melton says she prepared by watching the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on TV, where Joey Chestnut took home the crown for the 17th time with 70.5 hot dogs eaten in 10 minutes.
“I watched a lot of Joey Chestnut,” Melton said. “Obviously, I’ll never be as good as him and if I put down 70 hot dogs, I would be thoroughly impressed, and I’d probably be on the floor.”
The evening 4th of July celebrations at the Regatta will be headlined by KC and the Sunshine Band performing at 8 p.m.
On Saturday, Busta Rhymes will headline the free concert and Jefferson Starship will round the event off on Sunday night.
Pantry says the Regatta, which was brought back in 2022 after a 13-year hiatus, is the best festival for West Virginians to enjoy.
“It’s bigger, better and just as good as ever. It’s so special,” Pantry said. “It’s the biggest festival in the state of West Virginia and it shows.”