Iron Pony 2019: Cupcake Eating Contest

[SteelEagle]

 

* Cupcake Eating Challenge *

Rows upon rows of wooden tables were arranged in the shade provided by a large tree, with ponies moving too and from them at regular intervals, supplying the tasty treats that make up this event: cupcakes. Mountains of cupcakes had already been piled up on the tables in preparation for the opening of the contest, watched over by the judges to ensure that nopony tried to take any without permission. A light breeze carries the scent of the baked goods around, tantalizing the noses of passersby and anypony downwind of the event.

Three ponies were seated at a table in front of all the cupcakes, ready to take on names and entries with great, welcoming smiles on each of their faces. Who wouldn't be happy with being paid in all the cupcakes you could eat just to write down names and numbers, after all? Attached to the front of the sign-up table is a large sign, announcing the blatantly obvious name and the rules of this particular event.

Cupcake Eating Challenge

1. Time limit - 30 minutes

2. Please help keep the contest area clean!

3. Have fun!!!

As you're looking over the sign, one of the ponies at the table calls out "Come one, come all! Come on over and join in on the Iron Pony Cupcake Eating Challenge! Show off that stomach of steel by eating as many delicious cupcakes as you can, as fast as you can, and see if you have what it takes to be an IRON PONY!!"

Rules

1. Every competitor (OC) is allowed only one post (attempt).

2. Players may participate with multiple OCs; however, only one entry per player will be judged. Please clearly label the post you would like to be judged at the top.

3. This event is open for one week - don't miss your chance to eat ALL of the cupcakes!

4. All board and WoE RP rules apply - please keep posts appropriate for all ages!

Judging

No actual time limit is imposed on you, as the writer, for completing your post. The event will be judged solely based on the quality of your post. There will be a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. Important aspects being judged will include:

Structure: Spelling and grammar will be looked over for major errors and inconsistencies. The visual appearance of the post will also be judged (Colors that are hard to read won't make this any better for either of us!), as well as the logical flow of ideas from one to another.

Content: The post should be of an appropriate length; not too short or too long. It should also encompass the entirety of your character's entry, and should actually be an entry into the event that follows the rules.

Creativity: This is the most important part of judging. Does your character have a unique approach to tackling the event? What sort of struggles do they have, and how are they overcome? Does your character develop through their thoughts and actions? Is your post entertaining, well thought out, and original?

[RainbowFoxxy]

 

"Cupcake eating contest?!" The dragon exclaimed when he looked over the list of contests being offered in the Iron Pony competition. "I didn't know there was a cupcake eating contest!"

 

He flexed her arm muscles and grinned. "I've been training all year for that event!" He glanced around, noticing various ponies hide smiles behind hooves. "Ok maybe it's not real training... buuuut not just any dragon can down an extra large sapphire surprise cupcake from Sugar Cube Corner in one bite!"

 

Spike giggled to himself as he trotted towards the area the event was to be held in. When he arrived the dragon bolted up to the ponies running the contest. He glanced over the rules.

 

"30 minutes complete the round. Got it! Don't make a mess. Understandable. Have fun!! I'm the king of fun!" He shouted with excitement.

 

"Uhh," He waited for one of the ponies taking down names to pay him attention. "It's Spike the dragon." The pony eyed him and then wrote down his name.

 

"You've read the rules, please take a seat! Good luck!" The pony gestured to the long wooden table that was laden with sweet treats!

 

"This is amazing!" Spike took a seat right in front of a giant heap of cupcake. It was so humongous he couldn't see over the top! "Get ready to see Spike the Great and Glorious in action!"

 

One of the ponies at the entry table nodded to him. "30 minutes! Ready go!"

 

Spike set to with a will! One, two, three cupcakes were tossed up! One, two, three, cupcakes were snapped into his mouth by a lashing forked tongue. The dragon chewed, enjoying the flavor. 

 

"Yummm! Triple coconut chocolate crunch!" He licked his lips and gazed bout for a second helping. "I wonder if they made any cupcakes with dragons in mi-" His words were cut off as a rather sparkly pile of treats caught his gaze. "They did!" He launched himself towards the gemstone studded cupcakes.

 

Four and five down the hatch they went. "Spared no expense! Ruby dust and garnet frosting!" Spike took a breath. "Whew! Is it hot out here?" He was starting to sweat just a little. Could it be the cupcakes were already going to get the best of him? Nope, Spike roused himself to the challenge! He would not be defeated this quickly!

 

"Emerald and mint!" The sixth cupcake was slurped into his mouth. He chewed and swallowed, looking around for what might be next!

 

When he reached his twelfth cake he sat back and patted his stomach. It was certainly looking rounded out! Suddenly a huge green fire burped escaped him!

 

BUUUUUURP! 

 

The dragon covered his mouth. "Oh my gosh, so sorry about that!" His cheeks blushed in embarrassment. What would Twilight say about her number one assistant acting in such a rude way? Then he shrugged. It was a cupcake eating contest after all... not an etiquette contest! The burp had freed up valuable cupcake room!

 

 Thirteen and fourteen, down they went! He lifted the fifteenth one, a slightly green look coming over his already green complexion. 

 

"Wow, these are soooo good and I'm soooo full! I gotta try you though." He marveled at the cake in his claw. Rainbow colored with a variety of sparkling sprinkles and gems. "So delicious..." 

 

The clock was winding down... ten seconds, nine, eight, seven...

 

"Gotta eat yah rainbow cake!"

 

Six, five, four...

 

In went the rainbow treat. It was so good but the little dragon was super full. He swallowed it down just as the clock went to zero.

 

"Yum," Spike breathed the word and sat back, ready to fall right out of his chair!

[tacobob]

 

 

 

This one is ready for judgement.

 

 

Smolder slowly made her way past the assorted tents and exhibits that made up the IRON PONY. After running through a rather intense and muddy obstacle course, she was starting to get a little peckish.  Thankfully there were an assortment of food wagons that were offering all kinds of tasty treats for those who were watching the events, along with those who were part of the actual competitions. From a wagon that sold sixteen types of macaroni and cheese, to one that had waffles with pretty much everything on top. There was so much to choose from, but the dragon only had one stomach. What to do?

 

As she tried to figure out what to eat, the young dragon spotted cupcakes. And not just an few waiting to be sampled at the Sugarcube Corner booth,  or even ones to be sold, there was an freaking mountain of the frosty, sweet delights! And not only were they free, they were part of a contest. One had to out-eat the other contenders to win. What a day to be alive! They never had anything like this in the dragon lands.

 

After signing in,  she noticed a familiar sight. It was Spike! Her little purple pal. Her brother from another mother! He was going to compete.  “Heya Spike.”, she found a seat near the small dragon and waited for the contest to be begin. No matter what the outcome, this was all win-win. If she didn’t gain first prize, she would at least get to enjoy a few cupcakes with a friend. He had found the right spot, as they had a pile of dragon-friendly cupcakes with an sign warning non-dragons not to touch! The Cakes thought of everything!

 

"Good luck oh' Great and Glorious one..", the dragon smirked back at the smaller fellow just as the contest had begun! Now what cupcake would she want? There were so many! Chocolate cupcakes with fresh strawberries on top! Peppermint cupcakes! Pumpkin cupcakes! This was not helping her win! She needed to grab one and get to munching before she fell behind the others!

 

The first one was an Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel cupcake. Tasty. But it took awhile to properly finish off. She needed to grab the simple ones. The chocolate and vanilla ones. The ones baked in Dullsville. Thankfully there was a decent sized batch nearby. She could work on those. Shoveling them into her maw would just be messy. She would try tossing them in, one by one! This was also a good idea at first, but after missing the first two times, the judges started to get a little cranky. Cupcakes should not be wasted!

 

Spike seemed to be having a good deal more fun than she was having. He was trying all kinds of treats, but that was wasted calories! After hitting a dozen, the dragon tried simply snatching up with the cakes with her tongue. This got old rather quickly. She had powerful lungs. How about breathing a cupcake into her mouth? This might have been a good idea, but along with a cupcake, she also managed to almost inhale a few leaves and someone's sandal.

 

10....9....8......Come on! She could still cram a few more in.......7....6....5...4....Stomach is starting to feel a bit queasy......3...2....1.....

 

The contest was over! Yikes! They were right. Too much of a good thing.....Gives you an upset stomach.....

[Pretzelparty]

 

This was probably not the most elegant of competitions that Yanhua could have inserted herself in, but some part of her (the chef part) couldn't resist trying some Equestrian confectionaries of various styles. Some of the tourist magazines she'd been going through had said that Ponyville was home to one of the best family of Baker's in the country! Nevermind that little spot in the pamphlet seemed to have been paid for by the Cake family. Still, the corrupting influence of advertising aside, She couldn't really resist the delicious scent on the air. 

 

Perhaps such an display of her 'iron stomach' as the announcer so eloquently put it,  might not be the best impression of the eastern lands she was supposed to be representing along with Feng today. On the other hoof: Free food and a chance to see if there was something she could learn from the westerners. Pushing any anxieties on Feng watching her aside, Yanhua approached the stand and made her application. Then took her seat at her table, the competition was pretty stiff it seemed. Two dragons in the running? Dragons in Equestria were supposed to be able to eat minerals. She could only imagine how quickly they'd be able to tear through warm dough and she soon didn't even need to let her mind do the work as Smolder and Spike began. 

 

"Oh my..." She said almost sounding intimidated, "Speed hm?" She seemed to be wrapped up in her own thoughts for about a second before the announcer pony asked her if she was still up for continuing.  With a mischievous chuckle she nodded, "Stand back a moment please."  

 

Yanhua sucked up a deep breath through her nose, her chest puffing up before she unleashed a large puff of minty green colored smoke and flame. It wasn't hot and didn't even seem to hurt. It functioned not unlike a unicorn's telekinesis and with such 'oomph' put into it the kirin  managed to launch the table up into the air  few feet... along with the big pile of cupcakes! The crowd at first had a bit of panic but soon that mass of green flame rose up above the kirin turning into a flashy miniature vortex that caught the falling cupcapes. At the small bottom of this funnel of magic sat the kirin with her mouth open. 

One popped out and she chomped it down, noting each flavor that met her tongue as it came down and swiftly chewed then scarfed them down with a surprisingly ravenous intensity. The magical whirl of fire diminished along with the cupcake pile held inside. In no time at all it was down to the final mote of flame and the final pastry that was snapped up with a contented smile from the royal chef. 

 

"Those were amazing! Do you have any I could take home? Oh! could I meet the bakers. I'd love to get some pointer---... Oh, Hang on." She noticed a rapidly growing shadow appearing on the announcer's nose. Just as it was about to come down on his face she lunged forward and snapped it up with a grin, "There we go!" 
 

Edited July 1, 2019 by Pretzelparty

[Blueblood]

*Submitted for Judging*

 

"Go Yanhua!  Long Guo number one cupcake eater!"

Just as Yanhua had been there to cheer Feng on through his feats of athleticism, Feng Yinhaitao thought it only fair to cheer his friend on through her feats of culinary consumption.  All in all, he had to admit it was an impressive performance.  He'd seen her breath magic at work, but always in a controlled environment; the Imperial Kitchens not exactly being a safe place for a qilin to go all out on the dragon breath.  Here though?  It was a display showing off the ability of a dragon-pony better than he felt he could do.  Longma were more physically than magically strong as a rule.

 

As Yanhua finished up, Feng got off the bleachers to greet her.  "That was amazing!  I don't know if I'll be able to top that, but given how much you liked it, I just have to give those cupcakes a try myself!"  Thankfully, signups were always open for spur-of-the-moment competitors, a commitment to giving the common challenger a chance that Feng really had to admire.  It reminded him somewhat of the Celestial Bureaucracy back home; the exams to join the civil service were always open every year to anypony, qilin, or longma who chose to give themselves a shot.

 

After a quick word from the announcer, the audience would hear:  "And from the same far eastern lands, Feng Yinhaitao!"

 

She got it right!  Third time was the charm!  Grinning, he took a seat and immediately began chowing down.  Not being a master of breath magic, he took the relatively mundane route of scooping any delectable-looking pastries in his primary feathers and shoveling them towards his maw.  He favored the fruitier treats, chowing down on the strawberry ones for a bit, before discovering- a small batch of plum cupcakes!  He didn't even know they made those!  The taste of the jelly filling even reminded him of the orchards in his home village, cut into a little crest in the mountains... Wonderful.  Such a shame no other contestant would taste such delights, but then, all previous contestants had ignored that little pile, no doubt thinking it either not the ideal flavor, or one that would slow them down.  Their loss, as far as Feng was concerned.

 

As the final seconds clocked down on his cupcake consumption, Feng used his wings to sweep up all the crumbs, ball them up, and take them all down in a final bite before the bell rang.  Washing them all down with a glass of milk, he trotted back to Yanhua, feeling a comfortable weight in his middle.  "Mmm, those were good.  Gotta say, though, I still prefer your custard-filled buns as my treat of choice.  Guess steamed pastries a weakness of mine."  And with a chuckle, he made his way to the pavilion, first round of events done for now!

[SteelEagle]

The judges watched the competitors closely, all of them excited by what they saw. The dragons put on a nice show and Feng seemed to enjoy all the variety ins tore this year, but Yanhua had practically inhaled them! As some ponies staggered off and others simply rolled off their chairs, the judges started releasing their scores up to this point:
 

Spike: 16 Cupcakes
Smolder: 16 Cupcakes
Yanhua : 18 Cupcakes
Feng: 17 Cupcakes 

[GoldenDaze]

*Submitted for Judging*

 

 

Golden Daze had to try out this contest. She just had to. Her curiosity got the best of her, again, for the millionth time. Well, maybe it wasn't much of her curiosity, but the sweet smell of the delicious cakes that practically dragged her tall body over here. She couldn't just stray away from free cupcakes. That would be like walking away from a cute puppy that was begging to be pet.

 

And that would be a crime.

 

So, the dorky Pegasus pranced on over to the booth, signing her name down and smirking at the three ponies in front of her. Her golden eyes stared down at the rules, rolling her eyes at the easy text. "Ha- this will be a piece of cake," the mare said aloud, obviously intending the easy pun just for laughs. Or just to laugh herself. She always knew it was fun to entertain herself. 

 

As such, speaking of entertainment, she watched as two dragons and two ponies she's never seen in her life go out there and eat a ton of frosted covered mini cakes. The silly mare was actually blown away from how good they were at smothering down those sugary treats. Daze knew she was going to have some really tough competition, but who didn't like a fun go round of eating the most cupcakes in 30 minutes? The Pegasus sure did. Though, she didn't even think of what the gut wrenching aftermath could be... Especially with a sensitive stomach. 

 

Suddenly the loud speaker turned on, making Daze look up at it. "Next up, from the incredible Cloudsdale, Golden Daze!" The mare smiled at her name, of course feeling the same sensation of when she's about to fly for a race. The mare loved the eruption of fans all across the stands, the anticipation of competing, it was so accelerating to her. So, as her heart raced, she flew up to the cupcake table and looking at the mountain of cakes. The first thing she thought was, 'This is going to be so awesome,' but when she really thought about it, what escaped her lips left a bad taste in her mouth. "I'm going to have the fattest sugar crash of my life." 

 

The word 'go!' echoed off the sky as she dove right into some easy flavored ones. Chocolate and vanilla. She hoped she could mouth down those quicker than the rest. Though there wasn't much of them, she still ate them as fast as possible. She really wished she had some water, though, as the cake was getting stuck in between her gums and teeth. That wasn't a very nice feeling. It was like chewing on from really old gum that was starting to disintegrate. It was that gross. 

 

Daze was becoming slower and slower, as the flavored cakes crashed in her face one by one, causing her stomach to grumble in annoyance. This was a competition though, and the stubborn mare was a competitor. Winners don't lose, and going by that moto, she garbled down a couple more cupcakes, tasting more diverse flavors. Strawberry, apricot, even watermelon. Who makes watermelon flavored cupcakes? It was jelly filled. That was a huge plus. The jelly actually got some of the old cake out of her gums. 

 

But soon enough, by Daze's luck, the timer went off and she slumped over, her tummy big and round from the cakes she ate. Her tummy growled again at her, and she looked at no pony in particular, "I think I know why they call it an Iron Pony contest," she mumbled, standing up slowly, "You really need an iron stomach for this stuff." Excusing her joke, she sluggishly walked away from the table, trying not to lose anything she just consumed. "Note to self, never do that again"