Woman wins #LongLoafChallenge 2018

The timer clocks click off at the start of the #LongLoaf Challenge for nine contestants who accepted the dare to eat their way through a Long Loaf Set of a 16-inch sandwich with half a kg of tasty Golden Fries within 16 minutes.

A keen audience capturing a photo memento of the
#LongLoafChallenge contestants at SDS Cafe, Paradigm Mall

It’s a contest of wills where each contestant is determined to polish off all the food from their platters served in the SDS #LongLoafChallenge 2018, in the shortest possible time.

Eight men and one woman bravely chomp their way through a 16-inch sandwich stuffed with slices of ham, chicken, smoked duck and fresh vegetables, and a side of half kg tasty Golden Fries coated with salted egg – all to the cheers of supporters and onlookers.

In a speed-eating contest like this, contestants are eating under pressure, chewing and swallowing with the help of gulps of water and where every bite takes them closer to winning the bragging rights as the SDS Champion Long Loaf Eater.

Rainbow Kumi [Left] with Iranian, Reza Dash
[2nd from Left] and other contestants at the event

All eyes are on the sole female contestant, Tng Mei Fong, better known as Rainbow Kumi, who earned the reputation as a gifted Female Champion Eater since 2016.

Rainbow, 27, who drove to Johor Baru with her husband and 3-year old son from Malacca this morning, is no stranger to eating competitions.

In 2016 she discovered her skills in speed-eating when she downed more than 30 hot dogs in a Hot Dog eating contest in Kuala Lumpur. That same year, she emerged as the Female Champion at the Muar Big-Eater Contest.

In 2017, Rainbow was crowned Champion in the Food League SG Spice Contest, holding the record for finishing 4.2kg of Chicken Rice in 30 minutes and 41 pieces of Seremban Siew Pau in 30 minutes!

Long Loaves with a side of Golden Fries, ready to be served

Led by Michelle the event Master of Ceremony (MC), the crowd is roaring – with cheers of utter surprise – as they witness how Rainbow is making rapid progress, eating her way through the 16-inch sandwich in less than four (4) minutes into the contest.

It’s amazing how speedily and systematically she manages to eat while the contestants seated to her left and right are chewing steadily and still have a large portion of their sandwich and fries left on their platters!

Held at the SDS Bakery & Café at Paradigm Mall, Johor Baru, the event is attracting passers-by and shoppers who are happily distracted by the excitement happening among the contestants.

All smiles and ready to start the speed-eating contest!

The MC draws our attention to Rainbow who has already eaten her sandwich and is feeding on the fries with the help of her bare hands, counting down the seconds in which her food is fast disappearing!

In just four minutes and seven seconds (4.7 minutes!), Rainbow polished off all the food and emerged Champion of the SDS #LongLoafChallenge event!

While Rainbow receives her Champion’s award of a Drape and Certificate from SDS Marketing Manager, Alice Loh, the other contestants plough on, undeterred and ever determined to become the first runner-up.

As the men eat their way through the sandwich and fries I cannot help but notice how they seem to have a somewhat gentlemanly way of competing…

Eating their way through the contest!

The time limit of 16 minutes for this contest is almost up when the MC spots the contestant seated at the far right of the long table, who is finishing his pile of fries…

As the timer clock ticks its 16th minute, 22-year old Kua Zhi Jian from Skudai, polished off all the food on his platter to become runner-up of the SDS #LongLoafChallenge.

The time is up and while the other contestants do not win any titles, they can give themselves a big pat on the back for giving this difficult challenge a try.

For taking part in the contest, they each enjoyed a complimentary meal and are presented with a complimentary Voucher to savour a cappuccino brew at SDS Cafés.

We are the champions - Rainbow Kumi
[Right] with Kua Zhi Jian

It’s truly astounding to witness how Rainbow beat eight other contestants in such a short time! And to understand her better, I sit her down along with her husband, Tan Wei Yong, for a chat.

Speaking in a mix of Mandarin and English, she tells me that this morning when they arrived from Melaka at about 9am, they enjoyed a local breakfast.

Rainbow, who has a naturally large capacity for food, said she enjoyed two packets of nasi lemak and two packets of mee siam with her teh tarik or traditional pulled milk tea.

Having just completed this speed-eating challenge, Rainbow tells me that her stomach feels only 10% full and she is ready to have a spot of lunch!

She and her husband were married in 2012 and they have two children, a 6-year old daughter and a 3-year old son. She said Tan encourages her to eat and over the years, she soon discovered her ability to eat a lot of food.

Tan chips in with a laugh, saying that when she was expecting, she could eat even more!

From her experience in various eating contests, Rainbow has gained much confidence to take on various eating challenges. In fact, next Sunday she will be joining a hot dog eating contest in Malacca.

Think you can do better? Then take up the challenge!

Rainbow confessed that she was feeling unwell today. At the start, when she assessed the food on the platter, she thought that it should take her about five minutes to finish it.

But she emerged the Champion when she accomplished it in only 4.7 minutes!

Other champion eaters from the SDS #LongLoafChallenges held at various participating SDS café outlets from now till end June 2018 and Rainbow, will join the Grand Finale Championship in July, where the ultimate winner will enjoy 1-year’s supply of complimentary SDS Dining Vouchers!

The SDS #LongLoafChallenge is organized in collaboration with McCain Food Inc, one of the world’s largest producers of frozen potato French Fries and potato specialties.

Think you can do better? 

Then take up the #LongLoafChallenge at participating SDS café outlets at AEON Tebrau City, AEON Bukit Indah, AEON Kulaijaya, AEON Bandar Dato Onn, KSL City, Taman Johor Jaya, JB City Square, Taman Universiti, Taman Perling and Kota Tinggi.

A winners’ chart will be updated regularly on the SDS Official Facebook fan page.

Follow the SDS #LongLoafChallenge 2018 on http://bit.ly/sdslongloafchallenge18