Pie Eating Contest Is All Consuming Affair [VIDEO]

Haylee Shrimpton and Lindsey Phaneuf were detemined to win the Roundabout Diner's first-ever pie eating contest on Tuesday evening after four other participants bowed out.

Shrimpton chose to eat her banana cream pie right down to the pie tin after breaking through the crust whereas Phaneuf chose to concentrate more on the whipped cream. For almost an hour, the two ladies were in a dead heat to see who could consume the most pie as a crowd of onlookers cheered them on.

The first-time event coupled with a classic car show also benefitted the Prescott Park Arts Festival, accoridng to Christa Phaneuf, a server at the diner who was the pie eating contest's master of ceremonies. Pie eating contest participants had to pay a $20 fee to compete and the winner would receive a free pie once a month for six months prepared by the diner's chef Ashley Schafer.

But make no mistake, this was as a serious a competition as any hot dog eating contest one might view on ESPN and it had the same intensity as a Bruins overtime playoff game.

Under the watchful eye of judges Rachel Forrest, food writer and restaurant critic for the Portsmouth Herald, and Salina McIntire, the membership and events coordinator for the Greater Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce, six pie eaters sat down and got their faces right into it.

Todd Sweet of Kittery, Maine, was disqualified after he lifted his hands instead of keeping them securely under his behind. Steve Workman, also of Kittery, bowed out early so he could man his iPod and play tortuous tunes that ranged from "Food, Glorious Food," and Neil Diamond classics like "Sweet Caroline."

Cassie Aspen of Portsmouth also quit the contest early on, but the most prolific exit was by Brenda Gilman who decided to give Christa Phaneuf a pie in the face.

Ultimately, the winner was decided by a small scale. Shrimpton's left-over pie weighed in at 165 grams compared to Lindsey Phaneuf's pie that came in at 346 grams. Shrimpton came out on top.

Christa Phaneuf said the diner will hold similar events on the last Tuesday of each month through October to benefit other Seacoast area non-profit groups including Crossroads House in Portsmouth, the Richie McFarland Children's Center in Stratham and the Wings and Hoofs therapeutic riding center in East Kingston.