Some passion for the McDonald’s McRib and a little video dexterity earned Sawyer Frye, 22, a trip to Germany and $10,000. The Carthage, N.C., man won the grand prize in McDonald’s “The Legends of McRib” contest, designed to help fans cope with the end of the cult item’s limited time offering.
Frye’s winning video, judged by an expert panel, fit the criteria of the contest, which called for a depiction -- embellishment encouraged -- of the McRib that was bigger than life and worthy of its legend.
Frye’s video was titled “The Legend of the Last McRib.” It begins when he picks up the phone as a voice-over says, “I remember it like it was yesterday. A friend of mine called me and told me that all of the McRib sandwiches of the world had been eaten and the recipe … stolen.”
The camera cuts away, Frye’s phone falls to the ground in slow motion, and his journey to seek out the world’s last McRib begins.
His story will be animated into a motion comic produced by McDonald’s digital advertising firm Tribal DDB and will debut on select video channels after the New Year.
The grand prize included a seven-day, six-night trip to Germany, the only country in the world that offers the McRib sandwich year-round.
McDonald’s originally introduced the McRib in 1982 as a limited-time offer, and then brought it back in 1994. It has since sporadically popped up a regional level, including in McDonald’s Greater Southwest Region, which gave the item a farewell tour in 2006 shortly before its limited time expired.
The McRib’s latest run began Nov. 2 and is now over. At this time, it is unknown whether it will return to the national menu.
Frye’s award-winning video can be seen online.
