Dill is again the top dog in Maine Hot Dog Festival eating contest
DEXTER — The timer was nearing the end of the five minutes allotted for competitors to scarf down 10 hot dogs in the eating contest of the eighth annual Maine Red Hot Dog Festival on Saturday, Aug. 9 in downtown Dexter.
With six seconds left, defending champion Alan Dill of Lincoln finished his 10th and final hot dog to earn top honors for the second year in a row and third time in four years, avoiding judges having to determine who had the fewest bits left on their plate to declare the 2025 champion.
At 12:30 p.m. the eight eating contest entrants took their places on the stage. Before the clock began, Dexter Town Manager Trampas King told the crowd “Now what we’ve been waiting for, right here is the hot dog contest.”
EVERYONE’S A WEINER — The eighth edition of the Maine Red Hot Dog Festival was held in downtown Dexter on Saturday, Aug. 9, serving as a fundraiser for the Dexter Development Association which sponsors the day along with a number of other corporate partners and it is designed to attract a large number of people to the town where they will see all that Dexter has to offer and to simply have fun. A hot dog eating contest was held as eight entrants raced to see who could consume 10 hot dogs the fastest. Alan Dill, second from right, of Lincoln won by scarfing down his 10 hot dogs in just five minutes.
King thanked the Maine Red Hot Festival volunteers, saying they put in a great deal of work for the event that serves as a fundraiser for the Dexter Development Association which sponsors the day along with a number of other corporate partners. The event is designed to attract a large number of people to the town where they will see all that Dexter has to offer and to simply have fun.
King also thanked Dexter’s fire and police departments for everything the agencies do leading up to and during the festival.
“We give them 10 hot dogs and they have five minutes to consume them,” King said, with the first to finish all 10 being declared the winner. The top eater wins $50 and a hot dog trophy.
THREE-TIME WINNER — Alan Dill of Lincoln repeated as the Maine Red Hot Dog Festival eating contest winner with his 2025 trophy joining those from last year and in 2022.
“Remember there’s no losers, only wieners!,” King proclaimed.
As the contest entrants got down to business, they employed different strategies. One opted to eat all the hot dogs first and then consume the water-soaked buns in an attempt to finish before Dill.
With the half dozen seconds left, Dill set down his cup of water and raised his arm as the judges declared him the victor to join his 2024 and 2022 titles.
HANDS NOT REQUIRED — Kids race to eat their cupcakes in the older of two contest divisions during the Maine Red Hot Dog Festival on Aug. 9 in downtown Dexter.
After accepting his prizes and letting his food settle, Dill said he was unsure what to expect this year after having had all his teeth taken out shortly before Thanksgiving. “So this is my first year competing without teeth,” he said.
“(I’m) surprised that I won again but as we say here at the Maine Red Hot Dog Festival ‘everyone’s a weiner’ and we certainly all were in the competition today,” Dill said.
“I was going between two techniques and I finally went back to the technique that has served me well in the past and that is to eat two hot dogs, eat a couple more hot dogs,” he said, with buns being dunked in water.
CUPCAKE CHILDREN — The four entrants in the younger division of the children’s cupcake eating contest in Saturday’s Maine Red Hot Dog Festival.
Dill has also won hot dog eating competitions at the Bangor State Fair and the whoopie pie contest at the Maine Whoopie Pie Festival in Dover-Foxcroft. In 2024 Dill was the first of 10 entrants to consume six whoopie pies, doing so in a time of 63 seconds.
He has a living room shelf topped with various trophies.
“This is a wonderful festival, the volunteers always do a wonderful job,” Dill said. “It’s one of the best, well-run festivals that I have seen over the years. I am very proud to be here.”
CUPCAKE PRETEENS — The five entrants in the older of two divisions in the children’s cupcake eating contest in the 2025 Maine Red Hot Festival on Aug. 9 in Dexter.
Festival organizers said about 4,500 W A Bean & Sons red snappers were sold during the festival. A post on the event Facebook page explained the hot dogs are packaged by weight and not count, but 4,500 comes to an average of 1,285 per hour before all were sold. Plans are being made to accommodate the increased numbers for 2026.
MUSICAL ACT — Julia Gagnon and her finance and musical partner Nate Haven perform at Dexter’s Maine Red Hot Dog Festival, opening their set with “Proud Mary”.