The love of technology motivated 20 couples Wednesday to lock lips for a chance to win an Apple iPad mini.
As part of what was called the Wildcat Kiss-Off, the last couple standing — er, kissing — won one of the trendy tablets.
More than 100 couples signed up to participate in the Valentine’s Day competition. Twenty of them were randomly chosen, said coordinator and Wildcat Tech assistant manager, Ben Taylor.
“This is the second time we’ve held this,” Taylor said. “The last competition lasted four hours, so we could go that long or even longer again this time.”
Each couple stood facing each other over a table with their hands behind their backs and an unwrapped iPad mini between their lips. Some of the couples closed their eyes while others stared at each other.
Four minutes into the competition, Bianca Haro and Blas Reyes’ box hit the table.
“I think we started off the wrong way,” Haro said. “We were puckering up to the box and I see some of the couples actually holding it with their mouth open. That couple over there looked like they’re eating their box.”
Reyes said it was hard to swallow with the iPad smashed against his mouth.
“It was a fun activity, though,” he said. “But it was kind of hard.”
The competition, sponsored by Wildcat Tech and Campus Stores, was held in the middle of the Shepherd Union Building. Hundreds of students passing through between classes commented that their jaws hurt just looking at the couples.
After nearly 30 minutes into the competition, Spencer Ferguson and Emily Schumacher felt the iPad slipping from their chin.
“I tried to readjust it but it just kept slipping,” Schumacher said. “You get kind of tired standing there in one position for a long time, but it really was a lot of fun. It’s a fun activity for Valentine’s Day.”
One hour into the competition, 14 couples still remained. While some looked like mannequins and had hardly moved a muscle, others were trying to bend down to relieve pressure on their backs or stretch their legs behind them.
Several couples held strong for nearly four hours. But at three hours and 50 minutes, Lorenzo Bindrup and Markie Ashburn were the last couple standing. They will each take home their own iPad mini.
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