Burrito goes down the hatch in 52 seconds

LACONIA — Burrito Me’s signature offering is something to be savored, but those in a contest for $100 were virtually inhaling rice, chicken, beans, tortilla shell and picante on Thursday.

Eric Olson downed a large burrito in 52 seconds to take the prize.

His secret? Plenty of water and don’t waste time chewing.

“I would add water and it would help me to swallow it,” Olson said. “I’m glad I didn’t choke and die, honestly.”

The competition wasn’t pretty, table manners were thrown out the window and there were some pained expressions afterward, but the 37-year-old health care worker from Athol, Massachusetts, said he felt fine.

“I feel like I didn’t eat anything,” he said. “I haven’t even had time to process the food yet.”

He dedicated his victory to his friend, Tim Ponusky, who was injured in a serious motorcycle accident. Ponusky was on hand when Olson previously competed and finished second.

The favorite in the competition was Big John Churchill, who has won the event several times. He and Olson finished about the same time, but then Burrito Me owner Reuben Bassett bellowed that they needed to down remaining burrito crumbs, and Olson displayed a clear mouth first.

At 6-foot-5, 320 pounds, and wearing a black Radiohead T-Shirt, Churchill, who works for a ball bearing company, cuts an imposing figure.

He said that if he won, the $100 was already spoken for.

“I will give it to my wife like I do every year,” he said. “She demands it.”

He came to the competition hungry.

“I intentionally wanted to be extra hungry this year,” he said. “Hunger is a driving force in my life.”

Another contestant, Mike Greer, who works for a chimney company, had a different pre-competition regimen. He was sipping a beer.

“It helps grease the wheels,” he said.

Well after Olson collected his money, a few of the contestants, including the only female and a man wearing a black fedora, continued to munch on their burritos, which were provided by the restaurant on the house as part of Motorcycle Week festivities.