USA: New York man attempts to set marathon record for typing

Record ID: 731561

  • Title: USA: New York man attempts to set marathon record for typing
  • Date: 4th July 2007
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) NORMAN PEREZ SAYING: "I was actually using my computer in a coffee shop, which I visit daily and this gentleman named Keith swung by and saw me. Then he saw that I kept going on the computer and going on the computer and he asked me 'How long can you stay on that thing for?' and I told him probably days, and he said 'I bet you you can't' and that's basically all this is, is a big bet." VARIOUS OF COMPUTER SCREEN AND PEREZ TYPING ON COMPUTER KEYBOARD (SOUNDBITE) (English) NORMAN PEREZ SAYING: "They gave me this device called Letscrol, and no carpal tunnel, no pain, no nothing, so that's working. The only thing I have to do is kind of focus. The hardest thing I'd probably say, is like talking to 20 or different people at one time." COMPUTER SCREEN WITH TEXT VARIOUS OF PEREZ WITH WOMAN MASSAGING HIS NECK AND SHOULDERS (SOUNDBITE) (English) NORMAN PEREZ SAYING: "Marriage for one. Other ones are just plain not nice. Just saying 'I hope you lose', or 'I hope you don't fall asleep in the keyboard' and a lot of encouragement though. That's kind of surprising to me. Coming into this I thought people would say 'Oh yeah, this is kind of a waste of time'. But I got a lot of people helping me out. I've got a bunch of regulars. They're all coming in. Some come in at noon and some come in at 8 in the morning, so that'll basically help me out,"
  • Embargoed: 19th July 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
  • Reuters ID: LVAC99ZKARJ1DFR7A49Y2CN4VGIZ
  • Story Text: Computer geeks often spend hours on end tapping away on their keyboards, but a man in New York is taking this obsession to a new level. He's trying to establish a new Guinness Record for continuously typing on a computer. Behind a New York store front window Norman Perez might go unnoticed by most passers-by. A man sitting before a computer, busily tapping away at his keyboard.
    But what Perez is attempting to do is far from ordinary. He's attempting to establish a new Guinness Record for the longest time continuously typing at a keyboard.
    How did Perez get the idea to try this stunt? Basically someone dared him to try.
    An actor from California by trade, Perez began this attempt on Monday, June 25th at 12 pm (EDT) / 1600 GMT. As of Thursday (June 28), he has logged over 60 hours and says he has no signs of carpal tunnel syndrome.
    "The only thing I have to do is kind of focus. The hardest thing I'd probably say, is like talking to 20 or different people at one time," said Perez.
    Perez is staying awake by chatting with strangers online. He says some hacker-types have tried to shut down his instant messaging account, but most are supportive ; one woman even proposed to him.
    To establish the record, Perez is allowed to take 5 minute breaks every hour. He expects to wrap up the attempt on Friday (June 29) logging about 96 hours at the Keyboard. Perez can then only hope his hard-won record holds up.
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