Florida Man Triumphs at Key Lime Pie Eating Championship

A Florida resident achieved victory at the World Famous Key Lime Pie Eating Championship by overcoming the whipped cream as his biggest challenge. Kevin Renly, a 62-year-old from the Florida Keys, won the annual competition held on the Fourth of July in Key West. He devoured a 9-inch Key lime pie topped with whipped cream in just 59.6 seconds without using his hands.

Participants in the competition were required to eat the pies hands-free, though they could use goggles and dive masks. Renly, who had finished as runner-up in 2024 and 2025, refined his strategy to secure this year’s win. “You didn’t have to eat the cream,” Renly explained. “So, I thought, ‘How am I going to get rid of the cream real fast?’ I took my shirt off, dove into it, and came up with the whipped cream on my chest.”

“How are you going to eat the crust?” Renly asked. “That’s the worst part, because it was just so dry. No problem. We’ll just flip it upside down and eat it that way.”

This event is part of the five-day Key Lime Festival and adds a tropical twist to Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest. It drew hundreds of spectators and featured 25 contestants diving face-first into whipped cream-laden pies. Renly, who co-owns Southernmost Bees with his wife, Julie, celebrated his “third time’s the charm” victory with the added significance of sharing his win on his wedding anniversary.

Renly also aimed to keep the championship trophy in the Florida Keys. “I sat there watching and thought, ‘Wait a minute. All these people come from out of town and they take this trophy home,'” he said. “This trophy needs to stay here locally, so some locals have got to keep it here.”

The Key lime pie became Florida’s official pie in 2006. Traditionally made with Key lime juice, sweetened condensed milk, and egg yolks, it features a graham cracker crust and is topped with whipped cream or meringue. After his triumph, Renly set his sights on making history by becoming the first to repeat a win. “No one’s ever repeated for a win,” he noted. “Now I’ve got a new goal — to be the first repeat.”

Peter Burke, the lifestyle editor for Fox News Digital, covers various lifestyle topics, focusing on food and drink.