Can you ever eat too much fried chicken?

On Saturday, May 2, Jerry Short, Brookville, and Wade Rummel, Connersville, tested their limits by sampling the delicacy at 30 Chicken Trail participating restaurants scattered across four Indiana counties – Franklin, Dearborn, Ripley and Decatur.

They arrived at their sixth stop, the Brau Haus in Oldenburg, sporting Chicken Gauntlet 2009 T-shirts at 11:30 a.m. after already eating in Liberty, Laurel and Metamora.

The slogan on their backs? “We’re the Zen of Hen.”

The “friends for years” have competed in all three Canoefest Great Chicken Fry-Off contests, coming in second last year (first in livers and first in hardware, by the way). They will be back again at this year’s cut-throat competition in Brookville Saturday, June 27.

The men thought it would be cool to hit all 30 spots in one day. Might they be trying to pick up tips from restaurants involved in the Fry-Off? “Absolutely!” beamed Rummel. “We’re trying to see the seasonings they use,” divulged Short.

The pair said they were not judging the chicken, just savoring it. “They’re all very good,” Rummel said diplomatically.

They weren’t worried about getting too full. “We’ve got room,” reported Rummel. “I’ve eaten two pieces at every place so far,” said Short, a dark meat man.

No word yet on how the duo were feeling May 3.

“What began as a project to promote our restaurants specializing in fried chicken and bring business to the area has now become a mania,” raved organizer Suzi Collier, who can be reached at 812-584-5710 with questions about the trail or fry-off. The Chicken Trail list can be found at www.canoefest.org, then click on “Chicken Trail Blasts Off” on the right side of the home page.

Fried chicken lovers are challenged to eat at 12 of the 30. Those who succeed automatically become judges at the Great Chicken Fry-Off. They also get free admission to the Metamora Corn Maze this fall.

“Just as we had hoped, people have traveled far and wide just to try the Greatest Fried Chicken in the Known Universe. So many people have decided that this sounds like a fun idea that 3,500 guides have already been distributed,” according to Collier.

Cindy Ziemke, Brau Haus owner, said the recently created trail has brought “a huge response. It’s been fun for the area. Everybody knows fried chicken is the thing around here.”

Debbie Blank can be contacted at 812-934-4343, Ext. 113; or debbie.blank@ batesvilleheraldtribune.com. To comment on stories, visit batesvilleheraldtribune.com.