- Pizza Race II -
Just when the pizza delivery guys
thought it was safe to slow down
Hx Molly Pepper
Staff Writer
We wanted the “Second An
nual At Ease Pizza Race 1 ' to be
as much like the first as possi
ble, so despite cries from staff
members of “extra cheese this
time” and “call someone differ
ent” we called the same contes
tants as last year: Domino’s,
Pizza Hut and Double Dave’s.
Because we weren't as rich as
we were last year due to state
budget cuts, we ordered the
smallest pepperoni pizzas each
place would deliver.
Dawn Butz, an unfortunate
Battalion staff writer who was
in her wrong place at our right
time, made the call to Pizza
Hut on the Night News phone.
At Ease co-editor Tricia Parker
called Domino’s on the City
Desk phone and I called Double
Dave’s from the At Ease phone.
We all started dialing at exac-
tly 1 p.m.; Dawn and I hung up
at the same time but Tricia had
to make two calls because I ac-
cidentlv gave her the wrong
number for campus delivery.
Then the waiting started.
Staff members who had noth
ing to do were still hanging
around, waiting for a free
lunch. The suspense of who
would arrive first was just too
much for me so I started taking
bets on which one it would be.
Karl Pallmeyer, greatly loved
columnist, Loren Steffy, Opin
ion Page editor and Danny La-
Brv, clerk, all bet two pieces
that Domino’s would be here
first and Double Dave’s would
be here last.
Dawn Butz had the guts to go
against popular opinion and
bet three pieces that Double
Dave’s would be here first.
As soon as she said it, Bobbin
Crum, the Domino’s delivery
person walked into the news
room. She arrived 21 minutes
and 20 seconds after Tricia
started dialing the phone to call
her (remember, Tricia was the
one who had to make two
calls).
Bobbin, who drives a Pinto
and doesn't break the speed
limit, had come all the way
from the Domino’s on Texas
Avenue next to Fajita Bitas. She
said most of the job is “just try
ing to stay out of other people's
way.
“Yesterday I just about got
run over three times," she said,
foil-filled box in hand.
In fact, delivering pizza can
be so hazardous that Bobbin
says the company will pay for
its employees to take defensive
driving.
Almost exactly five minutes
after Bobbin arrived, Robert
Taylor, the Pizza Hut 'delivery
person came in.
When told he had just come
in second in the “Second An
nual At Ease Pizza Race” he
said casually, no doubt to hide
his shame, “That’s just the way
it goes.”
Robert used to work for
Domino’s but switched to Pizza
Hut when he moved to Bryan.
Robert, who drives a com
pany truck to deliver pizzas,
said he breaks the speed limit
everv chance he gets and parks
illegally all the time.
“In fact,” he says, “I might be
getting a ticket even as we
speak."
So Tricia handed him a check
and he ran out the door.
Double Dave’s finally arrived
36 minutes and 35 seconds af
ter the initial phone call. The
delivery person was Robert
Brooks and when told he came
in third in the “Second Annual
At Ease Pizza Race" he asked,
“Do I get a prize?”
When we told him that third
place was also last place he said
“I wasn't aware that I was com
peting or I would have been
here a lot quicker."
Robert doesn't break the
speed limit or park illegally
when delivering pizzas because
he rides a bike. (How about pe
destrians, Robert?)
He’s been delivering pizzas
since September but only a
month for Double Dave’s — he
used to work for Pizza Hut.
The race was over, but
people in the newsroom were
still eating and talking pizza so
I decided to prolong the fun for
a while with a taste test.
A diverse panel of unbiased
judges known to have a wide
variety of musical, cultural and
culinary tastes was assembled
to decide which pizza was best.
The panel consisted of our
resident radical columnist and
pizza authority, Karl Pal-
Imever, the slightlv more con-
servative but still radical Opin
ion Page editor, Loren Steffy,
the head of this operation and
the person writing the checks
— At Ease co-editor Tricia Par
ker and of course myself, an as
piring actress and brain sur
geon currently serving as a
lowly staff writer.
Rating the pizzas on a scale
of one to three with one being
the best, the votes came in
unanimous: Double Dave’s was
number one, Domino’s was
number two and Pizza Hut was
number 16.
I asked the panel for some
comments to help clarify their
decisions in the minds of our
readers.
Commenting on a slice of
Double Dave’s pizza, Karl said
“The crust is nice and chewy,
the cheese is a fine blend of
mozzarella and American, the
pepperonis are nice and warm.
It’s one of life’s finest pizzas.”
“It has a marvelous bou
quet,” Loren said of his Double
Dave’s slice.
Karl added later, “It has a
quality worth waiting for.”
“Pizza Hut’s looks like they
pulled theirs out of the freezer
and heated it up,” said Danny.
“But Double Dave’s will serve
no pizza before its time.”