They Might Be Alive

On the IFOCE website there is a new news story. A year in review for 2007. The date on it is 1/1/08. So yeah it is old news but it may show a sign of life at the IFOCE world headquarters. That is news in itself.

As the counter in the sidebar shows, it has been a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time since any contests have been announced. Almost 4 months! Eatfeats.com picked up on the counter, and there has been new talk about the situation (I guess you can call it that). The anonymous Rhonda Evans posted "her" thoughts, and I could not agree more.

It seems to me that since the Fed demands eater loyalty, and makes virtually no exceptions for eaters to eat at extra-IFOCE contests, they need to reciprocate just a bit and allow eaters to participate outside the currently dormant organization. (This probably doesn’t apply to Joey and Pat B., however, since they would have too much to lose.)

Perhaps an announcement would be appropriate to explain both the reason for the current state of things / lack of contests in the IFOCE, as well as future initiatives. I think your devoted eaters have a right to know IFOCE. I think the eaters’ fans would also like to know what’s cookin’.

I know I would.

Anyway, you’d better be careful, as it seems to me that timing is right for an new (professional) organization to emerge that REALLY takes CE as seriously as its participants and really cares about its members. MLE has the talent, but the organization is run by those who manage it foolishly. It’s time for a change.

I have never liked the clause in the contract saying that signed eaters can only take part in IFOCE-sponsored events. That seems stupid. What is so bad about letting me, or any other 20+ or 15+ or whatever eater eat in any contest they want? Not an AICE-sponsored event, I can sort of see why that would possibly be detrimental. If some dude beats a ranked eater in some local pie eating contest then he might check out the IFOCE website and maybe even sign up for a contest. He might tell his friends, and on it goes. Yes, getting the IFOCE name out there is bad. Superbad.

Rhonda is on the mark about an announcement. Rich, George, Kate, what is going on? Someone reads eatfeats.com so you know how many of the anonymouses (but they are loyal anonymouses I bet) feel, so spill it.