AP HOT DOG CONTEST A USA NY

Competitors at the first-ever Nathan’s Famous Women’s Hot Dog Eating World Championship gorge themselves against the clock and vie to break the female world record of 41 hotdogs and buns set by Sonya “The Black Widow” Thomas, right, Monday, July 4, 2011, in Coney Island. Over 40,000 fans descend on Surf Ave. to watch the annual gastronomic spectacle.