Bob's Photo Journal
Filming the second season of Glutton for Punishment was a fantastically grueling experience. I put my hands into the jaws of giant catfish, threw myself down an insanely steep hill in pursuit of a speeding wheel of cheese, paddled a 250 kg pumpkin a kilometer, and tried to keep my cool while forty-thousand bees crawled all over my face. And that was the easy stuff! And even though the episodes you see on TV are pretty action packed, I thought I’d share some behind-the-scenes pics that didn't make the cut, and a few of my favourite moments. Enjoy!
- Bob
Episode 1 : Haggis Hurling
Left: This is my actual competition shot. I think it was the hat that held me back.
Right: The judges verify that I am conforming with the Scottish tradition before allowing me to continue.
Episode 2 : Beekeeper Games
Left: This guy makes everything else that happened at the games seem like child's play.
Right: This photo captures the intensity one feels as the bees crawl all over your face. It was not fun, and try as I did, I couldn’t even fake it.
Episode 3 : Cheese Rolling
Left: At this point, the cheese is rolling at about 50 miles per hour. It's so close, yet so far away (As am I. In fact I am so far away, I am out of camera range.)
Right: Chase Armitage is an expert in Parkour, the art of moving through any environment using only human power. In this shot, he makes his grand entrance.
Episode 4 : Okie Noodlin'
Left: In the show you see plenty of fish being caught, but most of our time was spent like this, wading around, catchin nothin'.
Right: Learning the hard way that unlike professional wrestling, this stuff really hurts.
Episode 5 : Sidewalk Egg Fry
Left: Somebody please call the fashion police. BTW, we really did buy that suit at a thrift shop. It’s amazing what a few cans of spray paint can do… or perhaps it’s not really that amazing.
Right: The donkeys in Oatman really are wild, though they are quite friendly - that is, when you have something to feed them.
Episode 6 : Garlic Braiding
Left: Bruno takes one look at my technique and realizes his crown is safe.
Right: Perhaps the Hawaiians are on to a better thing.
Episode 7 : Watermelon Seed Spitting
Left: If you read Greg Lindstrom's mind, what he is saying is "stick with cooking".
Right: Emily instructs me to put some body language into my spit. What you don't see is that after the shot, she mocks me.
Episode 8 : New York Street Vendor
Left: Whoever said "if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere" obviously never pushed a hot dog cart up Broadway.
Right: After being a vendor for a week, I will never look at street vendors the same way. It is really hard, really thankless work. The fact that these men and women put up with long hours and lots of grief shows that they are often more evolved than the customers who take them for granted.
Episode 9 : Pike's Place
Left: Even though Nate (Wide Receiver with the Seattle Seahawks) had no idea how he was coerced into appearing on the show, he was one of the nicest, most accommodating athletes I have ever met.
Right: Incoming!
Episode 10 : Pumpkin Racing
Left: Did you hear the one about the restaurant on mars? Great food, but no atmosphere!
Right: This was one really wacky pumpkin carving party. Check out the hats!
Episode 11 : Corn Husking
Left: Moments after this shot, the combine nearly plowed me down. I actually had to dive out of the way.
Right: When they say these combines are as large as a house, they ain’t kidding.
Episode 12 : The Perfect Steak
Left: Who's got a Marlboro?!!
Right: Attempting to ride the mechanical bull gave me a new appreciation for Debra Winger.
Episode 13 : Fugu: The Fish that Kills
Left: Exclusive Fugu night auction where bids are made with hand signals carefully concealed under the auctioneers special hand shroud to keep individual bids secret. Each crate can fetch up to $3,500 - that’s $1,000 per kilogram!
Right: Tojo shows me the difference between farmed and wild fugu.