PHILADELPHIA (AP) – A 22-year-old man ate 173 chicken wings in 30 minutes, setting a record at the annual Wing Bowl.

Joey Chestnut, of San Jose, Calif., bested a field of 27 eaters Friday to take the title and top prize, a 2006 Suzuki Grand Vitara.

The 14th annual Wing Bowl was open only to competitors who had never before participated in the event. That meant 100-pound Sonya Thomas, who set the previous record of 167 wings in 2004, was excluded. Thomas, who is known as the “Black Widow” on the competitive circuit, won the World Grilled Cheese Eating Championship earlier this week.

Chestnut, a project engineer for a construction company, took second place. He qualified for the Wing Bowl by downing a gallon of milk in 41 seconds.

Forget candy, send lobster instead

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) – An Australian company is making seafood sexy by selling gift-wrapped lobsters as a Valentine’s Day present for kitchen-challenged romantics.

The “Romance Pack,” a ribbon-wrapped gift box that can be mailed to customers, includes a three-course meal of two ready-cooked lobsters, six oysters and two heart-shaped chocolates for dessert, all packed in ice.

“All the man needs to do is supply a card and a bottle of champagne, and there’s the gift,” said Amanda Way, director of Clearwater Fisheries in the southern state of Tasmania. Way said the package, which costs $75 plus postage, was designed to bring couples together over a romantic dinner.

Drug suspect lays rock with police

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) – Deputy Ed Johnson was in uniform. He was also sitting in a marked patrol car. So he was surprised when a man approached him and allegedly offered to sell him some cocaine.

Michael Garibay, 34, of Orlando, walked up to Johnson’s car at a gas station Friday and asked the Orange County deputy if he was “straight,” arrest records say. When Johnson said that he was, Garibay asked, “Do you know what that means? … It means do you want to buy some cocaine.”

Johnson said “yes,” and Garibay pulled out a plastic bag containing several pieces of flat white rock substances and asked for cash, records show. The deputy took the bag and arrested Garibay after the contents tested positive for cocaine, according to the records.

Report: Car rally squawks at keas

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) – Organizers of a vintage car rally reportedly have hired karate experts to protect the vehicles from marauding native parrots.

About 40 members of a local karate club have been enlisted to protect the 140 classic cars due to visit an alpine village near Mt. Cook on New Zealand’s South Island today, the New Zealand Press Association reported Friday.

The karate experts will protect the cars from keas, native parrots that have been known to be destructive in their search for shiny items, the news agency said.

Denis Callesen, manager of the nearby Hermitage Hotel, said bird lovers need not be concerned the karate experts would use martial arts moves on the parrots, which are a protected species. Their job would simply be to scare the birds away, he said.

Local wildlife ranger Ray Bellringer said the karate experts were unlikely to deter the keas. “They will fly around and laugh,” he said.

The best method to prevent keas from damaging vehicles was to squirt them with water pistols, he said.