The Great Pepper Challenge

It all started with a Youtube show Taz watches and has us all hooked on now. Good Mythical Morning. It is so funny and if you haven't met Rhett and Link, you should take some time to do so...they are hilarious!!  So, on one episode they do a hot pepper challenge.  They start with a low ranking pepper on the scoville scale and go up to a habanero. The scoville scale ranks on how many heat units a pepper has.  It starts at 0 and goes up to 2,200,000 with the hottest pepper, the Carolina Repper.   Taz has been wanting to try this for a long time.  So I found a Red Fresno pepper at Wal Mart which ranked 3,500-10,000 on the scale.  I bought one and brought it home.  Now Rhett and Link have to go 2 min. without eating or drinking anything to help cool the heat, so we figured we'd do the same for Taz.  He ate the Fresno and didn't even make it 1 min before he dove into the ice cream and then downed the bread trying to get the burning to go away.  Cynjyn, Garry and I had a good laugh at the whole thing. 

Then, the next day, his friends were coming to spend the night and I went and bought some more Fresno peppers and some serrano peppers.  The serrano's rank 10,000- 23,000 on the scale.  We warned them we were having this little pepper contest and most of them were in.  Charlie was reluctant because he wasn't feeling well, but somehow they talked him into doing it.  Becca and Cynjyn were in too.  We started with the Fresno Pepper.  They all look happy and ready to start. 

Seconds after the eating and they are looking a little less enthused. 

Charlie and Marcus are trying to get it down, Ryan is saying it's not too bad.

Andrew, Michael and Taz think Ryan's crazy. 

Cynjyn starts to feel the burn.

Now they all are and they are up and dancing around with Garry timing them for ten min. until they can cool the burn.  Cynjyn is holding her ear saying it's burning her ear!

Still feeling the burn.

Now the ice cream cones into play.  We made them immediatly eat a sarrano after that.  They all said that wasn't even hot and was like eating a pickle compared to the fresno.  Then they begged me to go to the store and get habanero peppers so they could try those.  100,000-350,000 on the scale are those babies.  So Garry and I ran to WM at 10:00 pm and grabbed some habanero's and some more ice cream. 

Charlie, Marcus and Michael aren't so sure they want to do the habanero, but Ryan, Taz and Andrew do.

Cynjyn sit's this one out, but Becca is willing to try a tiny bite.  Ok, the before group pix and they look ready and willing. 

Then they get it down and all the fun is over!

That heat kicks in and they have to go 10 min!!  Notice in the background Charlie, Marcus and Michael who immediately went to the sink and expelled their peppers!  Ryan is Snapchatting the whole thing.  Garry's videoing and I'm taking pictures. 

Taz starts to sweat and turn red and his eyes are watering. 

Andrew gets up and does push ups and physical activity to take his mind off the pain.

Cynjyn is consoling him and getting a good laugh and deciding she is grateful for her decision to not partake. 

Becca is eating ice cream way before 10 min.  Ryan and Taz are still waiting it our, Charlie is having some ice cream even though he didn't even swallow the pepper.

Finally they make it 10 min and dive into the ice cream.

Taz can't move and Andrew is still doing those push up's even after the ice cream.  Ryan is standing over the sink unable to move.

Marcus spent the 10 min. fanning his mouth and then had to sit down.

Michael is so done!

Then a half an hour later I go into the hall and Ryan and Taz are spent and Andrew say's he's not too bad!

Now, Rhett and Link do another episode where they do a Ghost Pepper and have to wait 10 min, so that's where we got the 10 min from since they say at about 6 min. it reaches it's peak burn.  A ghost pepper is 855,000-2,199,999 on the scale.  We can't find a ghost pepper anywhere in town, so luckily we just did the habaneros.  Then those crazy boys Rhett and Link do a Carolina Repper pepper!  The hottest pepper in the world.  Luck for my boys, we can't find those anywhere either.  So, the next morning Ryan asks Taz how he's feeling.  He says ok.  He asks him how his night was, he says ok.  He asks him if his body expelled the pepper yet, Taz says yes.  He asks him if it was as hot going out as it was going in...he says yes!  I loved hearing this conversation!  It was a fun night for us spectators, and I think the boys actually had fun too.