By Chris Jones
Glenn Karnes had heard warnings.
Chugging a gallon of milk in one hour was unsafe, almost impossible. But that did not stop Karnes from attempting the ultimate test.
As many were hitting the dance floor Tuesday night at the Flint Hills Publications Workshop, a chosen few walked to the Holiday Inn parking lot hoping to witness history.
“I first wanted to try it because it looked like fun and seeing that almost nobody has ever accomplished it, I really wanted to give it a shot,” Karnes said.
The challenge consists of taking a full gallon of milk and drinking it all in an hour. Throwing up before finishing – a reversal of fortune -- results in disqualification.
Karnes was hoping for greatness, but also preparing for the aftermath.
“When I started chugging, I felt really confident,” he said. “I was taking some taking big gulps, but then I looked in the jug and almost all of it was still there.”
As he crossed the half-way point, friends and onlookers watched and cheered.
“I didn’t want him to stop so I had to keep cheering him on and tell him to keep going,” said Andover High sophomore Jacob Highfill. “He looked like he was doing really well, and I hoped he would actually do it.”
The 10-minute mark passed. Most of the milk chugging had been replaced with moans, groans and massive stomach pains.
“I really started to cramp and it felt like my stomach was overflowing,” Karnes said. “I really wanted to throw up.”
As bright lighting flashed in the night sky, the drinking ceased and the half gallon that Karnes had drank returned.
“Right when I was about to throw up, I could feel the milk coming back, but after it happened I felt a large weight had been lifted from my stomach,” Karnes said.
The release might have been great for Karnes, but it sickened onlookers.
“After it happened, I was so disgusted I just had to leave because I was afraid I would do it to,” Andover High junior Kaitlyn Deyoung said.
While Deyoung avoided any repercussions, Highfill was not so lucky.
“Right when I saw it happen, it was just so sick I couldn’t hold myself back, it just happened,” Highfill said.
Even though Karnes was now disqualified, like a true champion, he continued on toward the finish line.
“I just didn’t want to give up, everyone was watching and I wanted to finish like a champ,” Karnes said.
Though Karnes did not finish the coveted Gallon Challenge, his determined will and amazing spirit inspired many.
“You gotta follow your dreams and live life every day,” Karnes said. “Hopefully, I inspired kids everywhere to follow their dreams.”
Chris Jones is a junior at Andover High School and a student in the advanced writing class at the Flint Hills Publications Workshop.
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