FloTrack Beer Mile World Championship 2015 is in the history books, and it ended with new beer mile world records for both the men and women.
Lewis Kent and Erin O’Mara topped the previous beer mile world record for the men’s and women’s runners respectively during the FloTrack Beer Mile World Championship held on December 1, 2015 in Austin Texas. It was the second year for this event and, once again, it ended with record setting finishes.
“It’s all about chugging. It’s about being able to drink and then just go”, said Andrea Fisher, an Austin native who finished second on the women’s side. “I knew it was going to be tough when I got a warning after my third beer foamed over.”
For those who are unfamiliar, the Beer Mile is a race involving beer drinking, hustle, and a strong stomach. The rules are simple. Participants must complete a full mile run around an even, quarter mile track (4 laps), but must drink a full, 12 ounce beer (must contain 5 percent alcohol by volume or higher) after each quarter mile. Those who can drink quickly and run without experiencing much stomach upset have a distinct advantage. If anyone spills part of a beer, they receive a warning. If anyone cannot complete the beer drinking portion of the event by drinking all four beers, then he/she is disqualified.
Oh, and if your stomach doesn’t cooperate and you end up heaving, you are forced to run a penalty lap, adding another quarter mile to the run and another beer. That pretty much assures you will not win the race.
O’Mara, the winner among the ladies and the new world record holder, is no stranger to the sport of running. She participated in the 2012 U.S. Olympic marathon trials and she dominated the FloTrack Beer Mile World Championship, leading from the beginning thanks to her beer drinking prowess. She downed her first beer in only eight seconds, about two seconds faster than the next fastest beer drinker. O’Mara finished the race with a time of 6 minutes, 8 seconds- a full 9 seconds faster than the previous record of 6 minutes, 17 seconds set last year by Beth Herndon.
On the men’s side, Canadian Lewis Kent beat his own Beer Mile record, finishing in 4 minutes, 47 seconds and beating runner up finisher Corey Gallagher by just one second. Fast beer drinking was, again, part of Kent’s winning formula. He finished his first beer in only 5 seconds,
Bragging rights are part of winning any Beer Mile event, but there are financial incentives as well. Kent and O’Mara each received $2,500 for winning the race, plus another $2,500 bonus for breaking the world records. Not bad for a few minutes of running and four bottles/cans of beer, wouldn’t you say?
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