Chinese American Student Association hosts 'Fear Factor' challenge

Five challenges, five teams and five barf buckets lined with scented trash bags were in place when 15 Ohio State students competed to see if fear was a factor.

CASA held this event not only to see who could chow down on nauseating foods, but also to let people know that the organization is there and members can have a good time.

Karen To, a sophomore in nursing and one of the event coordinators, said the event was promoted not only to CASA members, but also to other students on campus. Advertisements were sent out through e-mails, Facebook and invitations. All guests were encouraged to bring friends.

Although the popular show "Fear Factor" picks food items mainly for the upchuck effect, CASA also intended to educate the participants on delicacies from different cultures.

Paul He, a senior in biology and president of CASA, said "We hope that people will be exposed to a culture that is really different than their own and possibly open their minds up a little more."

The night started out with pizza, socializing and consent forms that the 15 competitors were required to sign. The forms stated, "As a willing participant in this cultural event, I hereby understand the risks that are associated with ingesting strange and exotic foods."

The competitors were divided into five teams of three and given colored bandannas to designate the teams. During each challenge, one member per team would sit in one of the "hot seats" placed in front of the room and eat exotic cuisine.

The first challenge had the comical title of "romantic dinner for two."

One team member was blindfolded while another fed them the food item with chopsticks. Teams were timed on how fast they could devour a dinner plate comprised of a pickled lemon, cooked jellyfish and pig tongue with wasabi wrapped in seaweed. Although some contestants spit up the mushy remains of the dinner, none of them used their entire barf bucket.

Referred to as the "1000-year-old egg," a duck egg was the next item on the menu for the event. Evan Liang, a freshman in engineering and a competitor in this challenge said "A lot of people eat it so it's got to be good for you. Maybe, I think."

Members also raced to eat the skin off cooked chicken feet, but some competitors went above and beyond and started eating the bones. Another challenge included a murky soup members called "fish diarrhea." The soup contained fish paste, pickled plums, plum tea, grime from pickled lemons and water from the chicken feet container.

The final challenge had competitors eating a "mystery pie." The pie contained fresh durian, a fruit known for its strong and almost repellent odor, whipped cream and an Oreo cookie crust. While most of the contestants looked green when they smashed their faces into the pies and licked up the slimy, fresh durian, one contestant actually asked for another one.

The night's last challenge had team members place their hand inside a "mystery box" and points were awarded for how long they could stay inside. From worried faces to looks of ease, all members were able to defeat the mystery box. The box contained many tiny crickets.

He said the night turned out as well as expected.

"Everybody was laughing, being loud and having fun," he said. "That was our goal."

In the end, the red team won the CASA Fear Factor with the quickest time for all the events. Each team member was awarded a $30 gift card to Barnes & Noble and the bragging rights that fear was not a factor.

Sierra Reyes can be reached at reyes.221@osu.edu.