On November 2nd, McDonald's will be selling the legendary McRib sandwich at outlets across the U.S. for the first time in 16 years. It'll be available for only "six weeks or so" according to the Chicago Tribune. The McRib — a boneless pork product conglomeration pressed into a rib-cage shaped patty and slathered in barbecue sauce — is a thing of great wonderment and worship for its fans as it only appears, infrequently, at McDonald's whim. Like a comet. Or a ground-up Sasquatch. A random meat comet!

The original novelty sandwich, It's so popular that there are Facebook groups and even a McRib Locator so that fans may report sightings and hunt them down. The exclusivity and the random regional reappearances are intentional, however. McDonald's knows it has a rabid fanbase, and turning the release of a simple sandwich into a promotional event is marketing gold. They know they have something special on their hands, but still, they keep it in limited supply. “It doesn’t sell well all year long because people get tired of it,” said McDonald’s USA President Jan Fields.

One man loved them so much that he used the McRib Locator while visiting his parents in Nebraska and "bought six of the pork sandwiches, ate one right away at the restaurant, and carried the rest home to Burnsville, Minn., in an ice-packed cooler." Do they still remain there?

Couldn't America just, like, eat some ribs instead? Is anyone a fan of this thing?

· Meet the tireless hunters of the McDonald's McRib [Tribune]

· All McRib Coverage on Eater [-E-]

· All McDonald's Coverage on Eater [-E-]