Visalia's Pablo Martinez to compete at Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest: 'Cowhide on steroids'

Eating dozens of hot dogs on the Fourth of July holiday in New York has become a tradition for Pablo Martinez.

The Visalia native is set to compete in Monday's 2022 Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest at Coney Island in Brooklyn.

That appearance will mark the eighth time that the 2003 Redwood High School grad is competing in what participants call the "World Series" of competitive eating.

This year's contest is returning to the iconic Nathan's Famous flagship restaurant in Coney Island. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 and 2021 contests alternated locations.

Joey Chestnut, of Indianapolis, is the defending champion for the men. The San Jose State alum downed 76 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes in last year's event.

A total of 16 men and 13 women will be competing in the 2022 contest. Martinez, 36, is the only participant from the state of California and is ranked 21st in his division. The annual event is nationally televised every year on ESPN's platforms. The men's competition will be broadcasted live on ESPNEWS at 9 a.m., with a re-airing at 1 p.m. on ESPN2.

"I don't think there's something comparable to it," Martinez said of the atmosphere at Coney Island during the competition. "I mean, you walk on stage, on the surf, and the stairwell in Brooklyn, in Coney Island, and there's a sea of people as far back as you can see. 40,000 people crammed together like a sardine can. I don't know if it'll be like that this year because of COVID, but in the past, pre-COVID days, it's just amazing. The crowd, everyone is just there to see you guys, us. It's like a tradition. Everyone on the Fourth of July in New York all go to Coney Island, and they all want to be there and see history made, typically with Joey breaking another record. I'm just glad to be on stage with everybody and share that experience. It's really phenomenal."

One Visalia sporting event does remind Martinez a bit of Coney Island on July 4, though.

It's the annual rivalry Cowhide football game between Redwood and Mt. Whitney high schools.

Growing up in Visalia, Martinez attended the Cowhide game "all the time" and was usually left mesmerized by the ambiance of the crowd.

"It's Cowhide on steroids," Martinez said. "Again, you talk about 30 or 40,000, just in terms of mass people, it has a very similar energy as Cowhide where everyone is on their feet, cheering their favorite team on. Everyone's excited to be there."

Inspired by the Travel Channel show "Man v. Food," Martinez got into competitive eating 11 years ago.

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On his 25th birthday, Martinez drove to Fresno to take part in a breakfast challenge at Batter Up Pancake.

Martinez completed the "Grand Slam Challenge," eating a 25-ounce pancake the size of a large pizza, a 10-egg omelet and two cups of country potatoes with a pound of cheese all in under 45 minutes. At the time, he was only the third person to finish the contest. The previous two were professional eaters.

Martinez's competitive eating career took off soon after, and he turned pro the following year and qualified for Nathan's in 2013.

Martinez's personal record for consuming hot dogs in a competition is 30. His record for at-home training is 35.

On Monday, he is aiming to eat as many as 30-plus hot dogs and buns. His goal is to average six to seven hot dogs in a minute.

What's it like to consume all that food?

"As you can imagine, it's not very fun," Martinez said. "It's pretty miserable at the end. We've really trained our bodies to push it to the limit, you know. I really do consider, people kind of laugh when I say this, but I think of competitive eating as a sport. Most people think you can go on stage and eat 20, 30 hot dogs, but if you've ever done that, they'll tell you it's not that simple. It does take training. It does take discipline. There's a lot of preparation that goes into Nathan's. We really do put in a lot of effort and time, preparing ourselves for that contest."

Throughout the years, Martinez has developed his own hot-dog eating technique.

What is it exactly?

"The way I do it is the two dog, two bun technique," Martinez said. "I get two dogs, eat those first then dunk the buns in water or flavored water, which is what I use. I get those soaked, eat those two buns and then repeat the process over and over again."

Does Martinez ever worry about the long-term health effects from eating competitively?

"Absolutely," he said. "If it ever became a health thing for me, I would absolutely drop it in an instant because it's not worth it. There are two things, either if it's a health thing or when it stops being fun, I would stop. When it stops being fun or it becomes a health issue, I would actually quit the next day, and I wouldn't have any regrets. I've done this for almost nine years now, and I've had an amazing experience. If this was my last competition, I would be fine. I'd be happy with it."

Major League Eating, which conducts the Nathan's hot dog eating contest, covers travel and lodging accommodations for qualifiers, Martinez said.

Has he gotten rich from competitive eating?

"No," Martinez said. "This is a hobby. I don't make any financial benefits. If anything, I probably lose a little bit of money doing it, but you know, I don't do it for that. I do it more for the camaraderie that I've established with the other eaters. This is a family. It really is a tight-knit family. We're all there for a purpose. I've grown really amazing relationships because of competitive eating. That is the main reason why I go back every year and try to qualify every year. It's that I get to be with my friends, and with people who I consider my family. I also get to be on stage on Fourth of July. That's really a cool experience in itself."

Vongni Yang is a sports reporter for the Visalia Times-Delta/Tulare Advance-Register. He covers Tulare County sports. Follow him on Twitter @Vongni. To support his continued coverage of local sports, subscribe today.