Eating Krystals an athletic event
|
This solicitor obviously has me confused with someone who has wealth. Truth be told, I’d gladly pay $4.95 a week for this service if it’s willing to show me where my wealth is in the first place.
As for things on the odd, strange and curious side, how about that gun safety instructor in Bloomington, Ind. It seems David Toumey was teaching a group of students how to safely handle a firearm when, you guessed it, he shot himself in the leg.
Toumey said he was showing the students how to check to make sure their weapon was unloaded when the gun discharged.
Meanwhile a group of aspiring, young gun owners has been scarred for life. They might actually grow up thinking guns are dangerous.
But the big news this coming week surrounds the World Krystal Eating Championship. For those of you who have been living under a rock, there is a crucial qualifying round for the championship this Wednesday at the Tennessee State Fair.
In case you think this burger eating championship is a joke, the grand prize is $10,000. That means it really does pay to shove food down your throat.
But here’s the part that I really find amusing. For the first time, this burger eating championship is being sponsored by the International Federation of Competitive Eating.
Yes folks, the IFOCE is really an organization because I can’t make up stuff this ridiculous.
The IFOCE conducts more than 70 events each year, including the famous Hot Dog Eating Contest in Coney Island, N.Y. The IFOCE considers competitive eating a true sport, going so far as to call its participants athletes.
I don’t necessarily call a 360-pound man who can eat 20 Krystals in two minutes an athlete. I believe glutton is a more appropriate word, but the IFOCE can have its fun.
And just in case you’re sitting at home making fun of these eaters as I am, the IFOCE warns that competitive eating should not be taken lightly (pardon the pun). Participants just don’t walk up and choke down 34 hot dogs in two minutes without a fair amount of training.
This training, so the IFOCE says, can be rigorous. Athletes are forced to push themselves – and the wall of their stomach – further than they ever thought possible.
With that in mind, I’m sure it won’t be long before competitive eating finds its way to the Olympics. I only hope it’s the winter Olympics so contestants are forced to wear plenty of clothing.
Without further ado, I bring you this week’s Business Pulse.
Raceway Market is officially sold
After nearly 12 years in the saddle of the busiest convenience store in town, Randy Marsh has sold Raceway Market. The deal was finalized Thursday and Mike Sheth is the new owner. Mike is also the owner of McMinnville’s Best Western which used to be Holiday Inn Express.
“It’s going to be good to finally have a weekend off,” said Randy. “I haven’t had weekends off since I was 13.”
Randy admitted the non-stop hustle and bustle at Raceway Market was a little much to handle. I can understand what he’s talking about because every time I walk in the store there are customers everywhere.
Much of that has to do with the cheap gas as Raceway usually has the lowest price in town. And much of the business is also because of the food.
“When I first took over, we sold about 10 hamburgers a day and 20 sandwiches,” said Randy. “Now we’re feeding 500 a day. And it wasn’t too long ago we fed almost that many just for breakfast.”
Randy has accepted a job as district manager for Racetrack Petroleum, which means he will still be affiliated with the store. He will oversee gasoline operations at 27 Raceway stores in Tennessee and Kentucky.
Randy’s wife, Karen, stopped working at the store several months ago. She now works at Dr. del Valle’s office as an LPN.
As the new owner of Raceway, Mike says he doesn’t plan any monumental changes, although he did say he thinks the store can do even more business. Mike wants to sell lottery tickets, which Randy tried briefly before ending lottery sales.
“My son just graduated from Warren County High School last year and he got a lottery scholarship,” said Mike. “That’s one reason I feel a need to give back and support the lottery.”
Chick-Fil-A says no plans for McMinnville
There have been sightings of a Chick-Fil-A van in McMinnville prompting the question, “Is Chick-Fil-A thinking of locating a store here?”
After talking to a representative from their home office in Atlanta, the answer is Chick-Fil-A is probably not coming soon.
“It could be that someone was in town scouting out the area,” said Jennifer Lee from the company’s public relations department. “That happens before we get the official word, but I haven’t heard anything yet about your area.”
As is usually the case in the business world, Chick-Fil-A won’t comment on sites it’s considering. The company will only make an announcement once a deal is done.
One perfect example of this policy is Lowe’s. I had been writing stories about Lowe’s coming to McMinnville for probably six months before the company issued me an official press release saying something like, “Hooray! Lowe’s is locating in your town.”
As for Chick-Fil-A, the company is scheduled to open 73 new stores this year and already has 60 new stores scheduled to open in 2005.
That means it still looks a ways down the road before McMinnville would ever get a store, if it gets one at all.
Alas! New donut shop has arrived
I could tell you about how badly McMinnville needed a new donut shop, but it’s far more convincing to tell this little story.
“We opened at 4:30 this morning,” said C&K Donut manager Sokha Phan. “When I went to open the door, someone was there waiting.”
That’s not a bad reception for the first day of business, which was Friday for C&K Donut located on Chancery Street. The donut shop opens at 4:30 a.m. every day except for Sunday when it opens at 6 a.m. That means one of the owners, Cheav Hong Chhim, has to get there at 12:30 a.m. to start making the donuts.
If the first day of business is any indication, C&K Donut is going to be swamped. In addition to heavy foot traffic in the store, C&K also has a drive-thru window. Tell me that’s not a donut lover’s dream.
Sokha and Cheav are originally from Cambodia. When Cheav came to the United States, he became a baker by trade. He has donut shops in Murfreesboro and Lebanon, but I was still curious how he found his way here. Sokha had the answer.
“There are a lot of people in McMinnville who work at Nissan,” said Sokha. “They would stop by the store in Murfreesboro and tell us that they didn’t have a donut shop in McMinnville anymore. So that’s why we decided to come.”
Gee, maybe you really do get what you ask for.
But the burning question in my mind was directed toward Cheav, who probably made 100 to 200 donuts while we were talking. “Just how many donuts do you eat a day?” I asked. Said Cheav, “I don’t really count.”
Tennessee Grill parks in Northgate Shopping Center
Many of you may remember the Tennessee Grill back when it was located on Chancery Street. Based on the number of phone calls I received when Tennessee Grill closed, I know at least some of you remember.
After a summer stint at Nashville Speedway, the Tennessee Grill is back in McMinnville – and this time owner Don Kriegel says his location in the parking lot of Northgate Shopping Center is permanent.
“The speedway was OK, but they really didn’t draw the type of crowds we were expecting,” said Don. “It was a Thursday, Friday, Saturday thing, but the only day they had any people was Saturday so that basically gave us one day a week for business.”
Don also said it was difficult for him and his wife, Lynn, to travel up to Nashville while their daughter, Emily, is still in school. They wanted to stay closer to home so they worked out a lease agreement for that portion of the parking lot. They had added an eye-catching caboose and have several tables set up inside a white, picket fence for eating outside.
As for weekly specials, the Tennessee Grill is selling all-beef hot dogs for $1 every Thursday. And every Friday is free fry Friday with the purchase of any specialty sandwich.
Don says he will offer chili and soup when the weather turns cooler. He will also have a cell phone in the next couple weeks for take-out orders, although he doesn’t have the number available at this time.
And if you’re wondering about the annual Fraternal Order of Police carnival which takes place in the Northgate Shopping Center parking lot, that’s a good question.
“They’re welcome to set up all around me,” said Don. “But I’m not moving.”
That’s all folks
What a week it’s been in Business Pulse. All this work has made me a bit hungry so maybe I’ll try to eat a dozen Krystal burgers real fast.
On second thought, I’ll stick with writing this business column. So call me up and tell me your business news at 473-2191 or send me an e-mail at standard@blomand.net.