Hundreds show up for veggie dog contest

It was "Hot Dog Heaven" in Downtown Austin Sunday as hundreds turned out for an eating contest.

Its become a 4th of July tradition in recent years, but Austin does it with a twist.

Those are Veggie Dogs they're gobbling down - a little healthier than the real thing. There were divisions for singles and doubles - the doubles contest saw a repeat championship by two eaters who say this year was even tougher than last.

"The Dogs were actually a lot harder to eat this year, so we didn't eat as many - which gave it a little more edge, but you know, we came out on top...I feel horrible, but grea," said one contest participant.

"I gotta give it up to Mike for switching up the dogs....really threw a curve at us. Made it a lot more interesting and a lot more fun," said contest participant.

Eaters say they "trained" for weeks leading up to today's event - eating lots of lettuce and drinking lots of water to stretch their stomachs.