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By thamike.com
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"Extreme Sleeping" Sweeping The Nation

TOLEDO, OH - A new "extreme" sport has caught the imagination of the nation's youth, as this weekend's packed Toledo Convention Center can attest to. The sport in question: "extreme sleeping."

The brainchild of Toby Hocker, 27, from Wheeling, West Virginia, extreme sleeping involves one contestant who has to outsleep his or her opponents over a twenty-four-hour period (allowing for an hour-long break so contestants can rest up). The rules are simple, and the game has swept up many "x-treme" athletes to sing its praises.

"I thought skateboarding was the ultimate high," skateboarding legend Tony Hawk told reporters Tuesday.

Sleepers
Winkin'And Blinkin' On The Nod At An
Extreme Sleeping Competition

"But this is the ultimate rush: it's you versus not just your opponent, but your willpower. Can you stay asleep on command, or do you have to wake up at some point? If you can't answer that question, you might want to test yourself."

Hocker allegedly came up with the game when he was let go from his bagboy position at Piggly-Wiggly and had time to kill. Hocker and his roommate, Paul Schack, then proceeded to sleep into the next day, with a $20 wager on whoever slept the longest. Hocker won easily, clocking in at eighteen hours straight to relative lightweight Schack's ten. Hocker knew right then that he was on to something.

"I knew right then that I was on to something," Hocker told this reporter, "so I thought, 'hey, this could be something.' I'm a big believer in seizing the moment, so I went back to sleep to see if I could beat my old total."
After a dramatic pause, Hocker added, "And I did...twenty-four hours!"

Organizers at the event have established a series of ground rules for the competition: contestants are to consume non-caffeinated beverages before entering the competition area, they can bring pillows from home but blankets and mattresses are provided for them, and restroom breaks do not count if they keep at least one eye partially closed. Also, the lights of the gymnasium-style amphitheater where the contest is held will be dimmed so that a laser show can be set up for entertainment during the hour-long break that contestants are allowed.

In accordance with the original Hocker model of the game, some contestants who cannot sleep without a television and/or radio on will be housed separately from those who require absolute silence in order to nod off. Special observers will patrol the areas to ensure that no one is cheating either by "napping" or burying their heads in pillows to stay awake.

The competition, the first in a nationwide tournament that will make several stops across the country this summer, is set to air on ESPN-100 (The Scrabble Network) in lieu of their normally scheduled Scrabble tournaments. In addition, a "celebrity" edition of extreme sleeping will air in June, featuring Billy Dee Williams, Horshack from "Welcome Back, Kotter," and Cousin Oliver from "The Brady Bunch" as contestants.

Written by Faux-Newz Staff Writer
Trev Danger, Washington Correspondent (It's a Living)


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