Chili dog diet

J's World, by Jeremiah Bartz

Goodbye powerbars, hello chili dogs?

See ya later Gatorade, how ya doing hot chocolate?

After a Mat-Su Miners game earlier this week I now have to wonder how important diet is to the modern athlete and if Charles Atkins is really full of it.

About 10 minutes before the first pitch of the Mat-Su Miners on Wednesday, about a half dozen members of the Oceanside Waves -- Mat-Su's opponent -- stood in line at the concession stand.

They were not there for a bottle of Gatorade, or even a bag of sunflower seeds. Each was standing in line for chili dogs, nachos and hot chocolate. While the Miners were warming up on the field, a crowd of Oceanside players carried handfuls of chili dogs and massive cups of hot chocolate back toward the dugout. With the first pitch just minutes away, players leapt for their nachos, rather than their gloves.

How could an athlete play nine innings after chili dogs and nachos, without suffering minor bloating or even major problems? The thought even makes me naucious. And hot chocolate and nachos, that's an odd combination. Kind of like beer and cereal. Scratch that, everything goes good with beer.

At that moment I thought sure the Miners had it. It was like money in the bank. Time to call the bookie. I figured the Waves would be crashing the concession stands mere innings later looking for maalox and extra toilet paper.

But no, they proved me, and probably everyone who has produced a late-night talk show about nutrition or sold an Atkins friendly meal, wrong. Powered by their nachos and chili dogs, Oceanside promptly put six early runs on the board and defeated the Miners 7-4.

Maybe Atkins was a nut? Nothing more reputable than the guy who peddles the rotisserie oven that can cook an entire pig in 12 minutes. Maybe chili dogs are the fuel for the modern day athlete and major leaguers are secretly buying stock in Johnsonville, Hormel and Nalley. Or maybe a cold Alaska night does bizarre things to the gastrointestinal system and that was the only way the California boys could stay warm? Even if it does work, I am not ready to recommend to Miner head coach Mike Buchmiller that he needs to have a gallon of chili and a gross of hot dogs on hand before every game. Oceanside's only source of pleasure late Wednesday night could have been the win, as they most likely suffered from tremendous stomach pains.

Pre-game chili dogs could be the basis of the next wave in nutrional fads, or Oceanside's nacho-fueled win could just be a fluke. Either way I am still waiting for the Atkins-friendly chili cheese dogs.

Jeremiah Bartz is the Frontiersman sports editor rambles on a weekly basis in the J's World column and as Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke said, "It's J's World and we're just lucky to be living in it."