"competitions" news and stories

North Carolinan chili. Photo: Zen, Flickr

If Texans weren't too tough to cry, the latest news out of the International Chili Society might set them to sobbing.

The cookoff-sanctioning organization has announced that the World's Championship Chili Cookoff will be held east of the Mississippi River for the first time in its 42-year history. The October event in Charleston, W. Va., represents the final slippage of the Southwest's grip on what was once a thoroughly regional foodstuff: A "bowl of red" has officially become an all-American dish.

"People have really latched on to it," ICS Executive Director Carol Hancock says of chili's pervasive popularity. "They just enjoy something they can do that's relatively inexpensive."

While there are nearly as many origin stories for chili as there are top-secret recipes for it, most agree it got its start in Texas (where, according to "The Food Lovers Companion," it is considered "a crime" to add beans to the meaty dish). The Lone Star State creation, whether pioneered by hungry vaqueros or indiscriminating jailhouse cooks, found its way to Southern California, where more than a dozen devotees gathered for a chili throwdown in 1967.

This summer your mobile phone (you call them cell phones in the States, dont you?) does more than just act like a camera or - oddly - a phone as it can take you away! Texters all across the USA and Canada can win a trip to New York City, or the ultimate grand prize – a trip to Costa Rica, by joining Starbucks Summer Pursuit and using their phones to answer trivia questions.

Those joining in will receive three questions each week that they can answer with a text or picture message submitted with their phone. It's a nationwide scavenger hunt, but the answers may be right in your own home. Semi-finalists and a guest get to use New York City as their playground in a final scavenger hunt to win a Grand Prize vacation to Costa Rica.

The game ends August 11, 2006, so it's not too late to register! Text the word "Summer" to 66268 to get started in the race to win these fantastic getaways. Or, visit www.StarbucksSummer.com to register and learn more details. Or read all the buzz on the associated blog.

Source