Lobster Roll Winner Tastes Victory While Trying Lobster Rolls for 1st Time

Most of the contestants in Saturday's Hampton Beach Seafood Festival Lobster Roll Eating Competition had a set training regimen to prepare their bodies for hastily ingesting pounds upon pounds of mayonnaise-covered lobster and bread.

Some ate only crackers or light meals to keep themselves hungry. Others exercised, including Hampton Union Staff Writer Nick Reid, who ran a zombie-themed 5K race just hours before the competition.

Not many eaters enter a competition featuring a food they've never even eaten before. That's exactly what James Burgess did, though.

En route to winning the contest and eating the most lobster rolls in its four-year history.

Burgess, 42, of Thompson, Conn., knocked off defending champion Sao Young on Saturday by eating 14 lobster rolls in 10 minutes — the only 14 lobster rolls he's eaten in his life.

“[What was in the rolls] was a little more than I expected, but I made out all right, I think,” Burgess said with a smile. “It was rough toward the end, but I did it. I made it through.”

Young, of Lowell, Mass., finished in second place with 13 rolls. He and Burgess were neck-and-neck through much of Saturday’s competition, which sponsor Tom McGuirk of McGuirk’s Ocean View said had one of the largest and most enthusiastic Seashell Stage crowds he’s ever seen.

Burgess, now a lobster roll fan, also ate 14 hot dogs during his victory in the competition qualifier at McGuirk’s earlier this summer.

"That was rough, too," said Burgess, who won $600, a wrestling-style championship belt, and an automatic bid in next year's lobster roll competition for Saturday's first-place finish.

Young took home $250, while Craig Hooper, 23, of Malden, Mass., and Tim Downing, 31, of Medford, Mass., tied for third place after eating 11 rolls.

Video from Saturday's competition is included above. Seafood Festival resumes Sunday at 10 a.m.