Hot Climbs and Hot Chicken
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Only in Nashville is there an event that combines eating and climbing. Climb Nashville presents Hotter Than Chicken, a comp where consumption of fiery wings counts towards your climbing score. The heat in your belly is sure to give you a kick in your climb.
“It started off as a joke,” said Jonathan Brandt, creator and mastermind of the comp. “Like it was just a community competition. But people loved it.” Four years later the event has sponsors like Black Diamond, Hattie B’s Hot Chicken, Tesla and Subaru, to name a few. There are $8,000 in cash prizes for the pros and $15,000 in prizes for the citizen competitors.
Hot chicken is an original Nashville dish. Said to have been created as punishment for an unfaithful husband, hot chicken as been around since the 1930s. Hatti B’s version is mean, with a blend of habanero, ghost peppers and scorpion peppers.
Hotter Than Chicken kicks off on August 3 with a 15-minute window to eat as many pieces of hot chicken as you dare. Every piece multiplies your score.
“It’s horribly spicy,” said Brandt. “Most people eat maybe one to three pieces. People are crying and there’s snot everywhere.”
Immediately following the eating window, competitors have two and a half hours to climb in a traditional redpoint format. Each competitor’s top five climbs are scored. Winners will receive prize packages from sponsors. “Not sure what the packages will in them have this year,” said Brandt. “But last year they were huge. Like a crash pad, a harness and a pair of shoes.”
Not only does chicken consumption boost one’s score, it also helps those in need. Climb Nashville is partnering with Second Harvest of Middle Tennessee. For every piece of Hot Chicken consumed, climb Nashville will donate one meal.
Don’t eat meat? There’s a veggie option that’s just as spicy.
The open category qualification round begins Saturday morning. No chicken will be involved in this portion of the comp. The top six competitors will move onto Fire Finals Saturday night.
Fire Finals will involve three boulders, and competitors have four minutes per problem. When they’re in between boulders, competitors will sit at a table facing the crowd and have the opportunity to eat chicken to multiply their score.
In addition to the cash money, the male and female pro winners will each receive a ClimbAxe, made by Climb Nashville member Adam Fisher.
“With a head forged from mid-century steel, a handle made of 100% Tennessee Hickory, and a wedge of 3,000 -year-old fossilized Irish bog-wood, these axes are representative of the steel nerves and fiery spirit demanded of an HTC champion,” states the Hotter Than Chicken site.
Last year’s winners were Zach Galla and Francesca Metcalf. Who will take on spicy chicken and boulders this year?