The 36th Gilroy Garlic Festival kicks off Friday at Christmas Hill Park and I’m ready for it.
Past sports editors of the Gilroy Dispatch have gone toe-to-toe with a former Garlic Queen, and after some peer pressure from my much loved colleagues, I decided to bring the “Beat the Queen” competition back.
While what exactly I’ll be doing is still to be determined or which former queen I’ll be facing, I do know she’ll probably be in better shape than myself. My physical activity is limited to chasing my dog around the yard when he decides not to listen (which happens on basically on a daily basis).
But don’t be fooled, I can be quite feisty when it comes to competition.
While my athletic career has been over for longer than I’d care to admit, I was a very passionate soccer player—earning myself the nickname of “Mighty Mouse”—and cheerleader. I grew up with four brothers and was constantly striving to prove to them that I could do anything they could, if not better.
It’s safe to say I have a few competitive bones in my body.
There’s been talk of ending the competition with a flame-up showdown. I would be lying if I said this didn’t scare me.
Last year was my first Garlic Fest and I, along with numerous other festival-goers, watched in awe as the Gourmet Alley Pyro Chefs ignited huge blasts of fire and avoided engulfing themselves in the flames, too. Here’s hoping I can duck out of the way in time. Here’s hoping my opponent will also be a flame-up rookie so at least there will be some level playing field.
One of the other stops I made sure to make during last year’s festivities was Olam’s free garlic ice cream booth and it was…interesting. All I can say is I hope there isn’t a “who can eat the most garlic ice cream” challenge. I can feel myself turning green at the thought.
Whatever my competitor and I end up doing, make sure you swing by and check it out. The fierce battle will take place at 5 p.m. on Saturday—stay tuned for the time and details of our events. Until then I’ll be crossing my fingers the Garlic Queen doesn’t school me too badly.
