SAN MARCOS PUBLIC LIBRARY 625 E. HOPKINS ST. 512-393-8200
Q. Didn’t San Marcos host a Chilympiad in the early 70s? What happened to it?
A. The cook-off started out as a “town and gown” event when the San Marcos community celebrated the return of the students to Southwest Texas University (now Texas State). It continued every third weekend in September for 33 years. But it wasn’t just a cookoff. While chili was the highlight, a parade, beauty contest, air show, arts and crafts, music and other festivities were part of the world’s largest CASI-sanctioned (Chili Appreciation Society International) cook-off in the State.
According to the San Marcos Public Library’s local history file on the Chilympiad, it all started in 1970 with the first annual cook-off. It was an auspicious beginning with almost 15,000 people in attendance. One year later, in the 1971 souvenir program for the event, the General Chairman of the Chilympiad wrote, “This state-wide project reflects the progressive thinking of the citizens of San Marcos. It is a program that brings the spotlight of publicity to San Marcos as a wonderful place to work, to live and to relax. It is a symbol of friendly people, working together in an atmosphere of good fellowship and fun with sincere dedication to build a greater and more responsive city.”
In 1973, the fourth year of the Chilympiad, the San Marcos Community represented the times by naming Vietnam Prisoner of War Thomas Storey as the grand marshal of the parade. As it was reported by the San Marcos Record at the time, Major Storey was “a man who made the switch from weed soup in the Hanoi Hilton to sizzling chili without a tear.”
By 1974, according to that year’s event program, the Chilympiad had the “lofty purpose” of conducting an “annual statewide Chili Contest” on the grounds of Aquarena Springs. The “lofty purpose” included such notables as rattler chili, which slithered its way into the competition when Mike Park killed a thirty-pound snake on the Wenger Ranch in Wimberley. A few years later, the event was held at the Hays County Civic Center because it had grown too big for Aquarena Springs. But, the contest still was an allmale affair. It wasn’t until 1975 when 117-year-old Genoveva Gutierrez, the oldest woman in Texas, was allowed to enter the contest. She broke a six-year tradition of male chauvinist “chilidom” by participating in the cookoff. But they only changed the rules for women over 100.
The 1980s saw the addition of a Chilympiad trail ride and dog relays. Fiddling contests, a staple of the celebrations, continued as did tennis and water polo contests, the beard-growing contest, clogging exhibitions and firetruck pumper races. The event grew into the 1990s adding more chili and more attendees. The Chilympiad reached its peak, as far as entrants, in 1995 with 592 cooks registered to participate. The last cook-off was scheduled for September 15, 2001, but was cancelled because four days earlier the World Trade Center was attacked and destroyed. Vendors had to be reimbursed which led to a deficit for the nonprofit organization that hosted the event. The hosts attempted to resurrect the event after that, but circumstances and low volunteer participation sealed the demise of the festival.
The festival’s passing wasn’t the end of its influence in San Marcos, though. Always a donor to the community, the festival sold off its assets and donated them to local charities. In 2005 checks were presented to the Hays County Food Bank, Salvation Army, San Marcos High School, and Viva! Cinco De Mayo.
In addition to the information included in this article, a few chili recipes were included in the San Marcos Public Library’s Chilympiad file. Here is one included in the third annual Chilympiad commemorative program:
2 pounds ground meat or chili meat
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tsps. Comino (cumin)
1 large can tomato juice
1 teaspoon salt
3 tbsp chili powder
Cook meat, onion and garlic in large skillet until done and lightly browned. Add salt, comino, chili powder and tomato juice. Simmer slowly 2 hours.
For more recipes, check out the San Marcos Public Library’s extensive cookbook collection.
Suzanne Sanders is the new columnist for the Library. She is the Community Services Manager for the San Marcos Public Library and came from the Austin Public Library in 2015 after having served there as a librarian for over 20 years. She gratefully accepts your questions for this column.
