Bug Bowl gives people chance to face fears

By Kelsey VanArsdall
Staff writer

Cricket spitting, cockroach racing, chocolate-covered grasshoppers, crickets and mealworm stir-fry were only a few of the attractions at this year's Bug Bowl.

Each tent had a different theme, and it was hard to tell if the aromas around the food tents were from hamburgers and hotdogs or fried mealworms. It is no doubt that this weekend was definitely a buggy time for many families in Lafayette and West Lafayette.

"These two days give families a chance to come out, see the Purdue campus, enjoy the weather and have fun while their kids learn," said Cassie Szczudlo a freshman in the School of Liberal Arts.

Szczudlo is an Entomology 105 student who volunteered to help broadcast for Bug Bowl radio. Bug Bowl Radio played songs throughout the day and held contests with games and prizes for children.

Those who were daring enough were given the chance to taste a wide variety of bugs, which were baked in about every way imaginable. There were chocolate covered bugs, bugs in brownies and bugs with rice, veggies and seasonings to make stir-fry.

Alison Wayland, a freshman in the Undergraduate Studies Program, was the mealworm stir-fry chef. "I chose to volunteer and cook the mealworms because I like to see the reactions on peoples faces," she said. "Most people are squeamish when it comes to tasting the stir-fry, but it’s actually good."

Bug tasting was not the only attraction at Saturday's Bug Bowl. Another popular event was the cricket-spitting contest. Cricket spitting is like throwing the discus, only the participant is spitting a cricket from his or her mouth and trying to send it as far as possible. Dan Capps set the world record of more than 32 feet. Capps came to the Bug Bowl to "size up" any possible competition.

"The secret to cricket spitting is to spit the cricket out of your mouth in a spiral, head first," said Capps.

People of all ages were conquering their fears of the six-legged insects. In addition to little kids, several students tried their turn at bug spitting. Amy Ewing, a student in the school of Nursing, spit her cricket 8 feet 10 inches.

"It didn’t taste like anything, but it was disgusting. It was soft and I could feel the legs on my tongue," she said as one cricket leg lingered on her lip.

Entomology professor and bug enthusiast Tom Turpin stated the rules of cricket spitting to the audience and all the participants. When it comes to the Bug Bowl, Turpin is the man in charge of it all. His favorite event is cockroach racing, but mostly he loves watching the children learn about bugs.

"I like to see their faces when they’re holding the insects, it’s so amazing to see kids learning and having fun at the same time," said Turpin.

And that is certainly what the Bug Bowl is all about, learning, having fun and conquering those creepy-crawly fears.

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