During the 14 Wing Greenwood walk-around before the Christmas break, the 404 (Long Range Patrol and Training) Squadron command team duo was asked to participate in a current online trend, the “One-Chip Challenge.” The object is to eat a single, very spicy Paqui tortilla chip and wait as long as possible before eating or drinking anything. The single chip is rated at 2,000,000 on the Scoville Heat Unit scale (a jalapeno pepper is rated 2,500 to8,000 units).
Slots were sold within the unit on a 50/ 50 as to how long they would last, with half the proceeds going to the winner and half going to the Upper Room Food Bank in Kingston. In the presence of the 14 Wing Headquarters staff (because who would want to miss this?), Lieutenant-Colonel Josh Christianson and Chief Warrant Officer Jean Plamondon bravely unwrapped their chips, and, holding them in a gloved hand, sent it down the hatch.
“It started fairly well,” Christianson said after the event, “but, after about 30 seconds, the heat started building.”
Both contestants quickly turned a bit red and, wiping the sweat from their brow, gazed longingly at the two litres of milk sitting in front of them. While Plamondon seemed to be enduring it fairly reasonably (the chief lasted almost an hour before watchers told him he was done), our beloved CO was starting to show signs that he wasn’t doing as well, asking the timekeeper how far along they were more and more frequently.
Afterwards, Christianson admitted he and Plamondon had asked what the longest bet was, and they had resolved to beat it so they could turn over the full amount to the food bank. The longest time wagered on was five minutes and 20 seconds and, at 5:30, the CO decided he had enough. Happily tearing off the cover of his jug of milk, he was momentarily panicked by the second seal, but finally downed a good swallow – only to find, in his own hoarse words, “it didn’t help at all!”
As the CO recovers from his ordeal, on behalf of the Upper Room Food Bank, 404 Squadron members would like to thank all who donated, and a special thanks to those two brave warriors who were “Ready to Fight” on behalf of the less fortunate in our community.
