Competitive Eaters Gather for Thickburger Battle

The Midwest's most determined eaters will gather at Seymour's 15th Annual Burger Fest on August 9, 2003 to vie for the title of 'Hardee's World Thickburger. Eating Champion.' The contest, sanctioned by the International Federation of Competitive Eating, will feature Hardee's new Thickburger, a 100% Angus beef hamburger that weighs over a half pound when fully dressed.

"We are thrilled to visit the Home of the Hamburger and celebrate with this important contest," said Brad Haley, Executive Vice President of Marketing at Hardee's Restaurants. " This is an important festival for any burger lover, since the Thickburger competition will identify the individual who is most passionate about the noble burger."

The Hardee's Thickburger contest will be a 10-minute all you can eat hamburger competiton. Competitors will be presented with multiple Thickburgers, freshly prepared and topped with leaf lettuce, tomato, red onion, ketchup, mustard and mayonnaise. They must complete an entire burger before moving on to the next.

"Hamburgers are loved worldwide and we are eager to set a new world hamburger eating record in Seymour," said Richard Shea, president of the IFOCE. "At a half pound, the Thickburger is so large that it may indeed be the one item to challenge competitors who are used to eating dozens of hot dogs and scores of oysters in these contests."

The Hardee's Thickburger Eating Contest will occur at 1pm Saturday, August 9th during Burger Fest , which occurs on Depot Street in downtown Seymour, WI. The contest is open to individuals over 18 and is limited to 20 competitors. Those interested in competing can visit Hardee's locations in Green Bay, the Fox Cities and surrounding areas for an application. E-mails can be sent to burger@ifoce.com.

Hardee's Food Systems, Inc., headquartered in St. Louis, is a wholly owned subsidiary of CKE Restaurants, Inc. of Santa Barbara, Calif. CKE Restaurants, Inc. (NYSE:CKR), through its subsidiaries, franchisees and licensees, operates over 3,200 restaurants, including 1,000 Carl's Jr. restaurants, 2,181 Hardee's restaurants, and 97 La Salsa Fresh Mexican Grills in 44 states and in 14 countries.

Seymour, WI is the "Home of the Hamburger" and site of the Hamburger Hall of Fame that pays tribute to hamburger inventor Charles Nagreen. According to local legend, Nagreen served the first burger in 1885 at the Outagamie County Fair.

Seymour celebrates the invention of the hamburger every year during Burger Fest. It includes making of a "big burger," a hot air balloon rally and entertainment. Kids will especially enjoy the "The Great Hamburger Meet," which features a ketchup slide, bun toss and hamburger-eating contest, as well as the "world's largest hamburger parade."

The IFOCE, the governing body of stomach-centric sport worldwide, recognizes select eating titles including the Nathan's Famous July 4th Hot Dog Eating Championship in New York City, the World Buffalo Wing Eating Championship in Buffalo, and the Acme World Oyster Eating Championship in New Orleans. Members of the eating community desire each of these titles and the bragging rights they provide.