Chicago man wins Brat Eating Contest for fourth year at Brat Days
Chicago man is now a four-time champion
SHEBOYGAN — Pleasant weather treated attendees for the 56th annual Brat Days at Kiwanis Park but it felt more like much slimmed down version of Bratwurst Day.
Frank Wach of Chicago downed 15 brats Saturday to win the Brat Eating Contest. He received his trophy at Brat Days, his fourth win since 2019. Last year, he won by eating 14 brats in 10 minutes. In 2022, he ate 16 but his record was set in 2019 when he dominated by eating 17 brats.
This year’s festival saw a number of changes. The first was the quiet cancellation of the Brat Days Parade. WKTS News was the first to report on the parade’s cancellation after the Jaycees failed to pull a parade permit this year. Second, the festival was held on Saturday, making it a one-day event only. Historically, the event was also held on Fridays. The third and the most controversial change was erecting a fence around the Kiwanis Park and forcing attendees through one entrance. According to the Sheboygan Jaycees, the new security measures were forced on them by the Sheboygan Police Department and the Department of Public Works. Attendees were also subjected to ID and bag checks.
After the Brat Eating Contest, singer Pat McCurdy took stage to perform. This year’s headliner was High N’ Dry, a Def Leppard tribute band from Boston, Massachusetts. Once the envy of the country, Brat Days has turned into a small town one day carnival.
No attendance figures are released by city officials or event organizers. The Jaycees do not release how much was raised during Brat Days. Jackie Quasius, former President of the Jaycees, previously stated the budget for Brat Days is around $200,000. In 2024, the Sheboygan Jaycees awarded a total of just $3,515.09 among four local charities from that year’s event.
Bad math
Despite the Sheboygan Jaycees marketing this year’s Brat Days as the 72nd annual, it was actually the 56th year Brat Days was held. The first event was held in August 1953 and ran for 13 years until being cancelled in 1966. Had it been held that year, it would have been the 14th annual. The Sheboygan Jaycees won approval from the Common Council to hold German Days in 1969 but they said it would be different than Brat Days. That festival was held for eight until the Jaycees organized an 8-day festival called Sheboygan Days in 1975.
The following year, Sheboygan Days was trimmed to four days. In 1977, the festival was a one-day event at Kiwanis Park. In 1978, Brat Days returned in honor of the city's 125th anniversary. In advertising and news coverage, it was marketed as the 14th annual Brat Days. In 2008, it was incorrectly advertised as the 55th annual Brat Days and ever since then, the Jaycees ran with the incorrect number.
The festival was every August until being cancelled in 2020 due to COVID-19. It returned for 2021 and 2022 but was cancelled again in 2023 after it reported losing money after holding Brat Days the year before.
Since there was no summer festival organized by the Jaycees in 1966, 1967, 1968, 2020 and 2023, those years can not be counted and considered when marketing the event. Therefore, 2025 marked the 56th edition of Brat Days and the 68th year that the Sheboygan Jaycees have organized a summertime festival.
Follow WKTS News on Facebook and Instagram for the latest local news.