Lombard couch potato champ prepares to defend title next week
Jason Pisarik is no stranger to lounging.
In fact, the Lombard man is a certified champion.
He's got two trophies in a case in his living room to prove it.
And come next week, Pisarik will be sprawled out on a recliner at ESPN Zone in Chicago trying to "three-peat" his crown as the ultimate couch potato.
"It's the one nice thing about being the defending champ -- I know I'm going to be invited back the following year," Pisarik said Wednesday from the comfort of the couch in his Lombard home.
The 34-year-old accountant outlasted three opponents last year by eyeballing a wall of televisions at ESPN Zone for nearly 40 hours.
The year before, he beat a separate crop of opponents after 32 hours of lounging.
The point of the contest, now in its sixth year, is to watch TV for as long as possible without falling asleep or quitting.
If Pisarik or the three other contestants get up to so much as cheer on a team, they're done. If they fall asleep, they go home.
They can eat and drink as much as they want. But bathroom breaks will be limited to one every eight hours.
A victory comes with its respective spoils: a high-definition television, a recliner and a trophy with a fresh potato on top.
The original potatoes from Pisarik's first two trophies are long gone.
But every now and again -- when company visits the Lombard man's home -- Pisarik will spike replacement spuds on top of his two prize trophies.
"It's in an area of the house where a lot of people can see it," Pisarik proudly admits. "It's not tucked away nearly as much as the diplomas."
Pisarik will certainly be the elder spud at this year's contest, which begins at 10 a.m. Tuesday.
The three contestants include a 27-year-old attorney, a 24-year-old real estate agent and a 28-year-old construction worker.
The contestants were selected among more than 100 hopefuls who submitted 200-word essays on why they'd make the ultimate couch competitor.
Jon Cline, the construction worker who will join Pisarik next week, wrote a poem titled "The New Champ," which playfully takes jabs at the two-time champion.
"Forty hours was just a halftime score," Cline said, echoing a line from his winning submission. "I don't like to finish second. I want to be the champ, and I'm ready to sit at least three days."
All the smack-talk, however, doesn't faze Pisarik.
"That is a pretty poem," he said after reading Cline's submission. "You don't win a contest like this on the strength of an essay. I'm sure all the competitors think they're going to win. We'll just have to see what happens next week."