Watercooler Stories

Event to test rollercoaster endurance

OSLO, Norway, April 25 (UPI) -- Entrants to this weekend's rollercoaster riding championship in Norway will be given a chance to survive 14 hours daily on the park ride for an entire week.

Contestants such as Jannicke Dragvoll will attempt to endure the lengthy days on six separate incarnations of the fabled amusement park ride. The 24-year-old admitted her family was curious as to her reasoning, Aftenposten reported Wednesday.

"My family just shook their heads," Dragvoll said.

Dragvoll added that the task of riding rollercoasters for 85 hours during an entire week, 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, did not seem too daunting due to her thrill-seeking side.

"I love roller coasters! I love anything to do with adrenaline, and after doing the world's highest bungee jump in South Africa I want even more high adrenaline experiences," she said.

Aftenposten said the event, which will present its winner with a California trip for two, starts this weekend outside of Oslo at the Tusenfryd amusement park.

Chinese not happy over bird choice

BEIJING, April 25 (UPI) -- China-Japan relations may be on the mend but on selecting their national bird, some Chinese feel the choice of the Japanese crane is for the ... birds.

Actually, they have nothing against the endangered bird itself but its Japanese association is not sitting quite well with some, reports the China Daily.

The recommendation for making the crane the avian symbol of China has come from the State Forestry Administration, the report says.

The Chinese name for the white-feathered, red-crested bird -- which has long symbolized peace and long life in China, Japan and Korea -- is Dandinghe. That may be a mouthful, but for some Chinese its Japanese association is even less palatable.

On cyber message boards, many who remember Japan's treatment of China during World War II, have expressed resentment over SFA's choice.

"It is definitely unacceptable," said a wildlife photographer. "Although dandinghe is considered a symbol of longevity, it's not reasonable to pick a 'Japanese' bird as the icon of the country," the report said.

Yuan yang, or Mandarin duck, now appears to be vying with the Japanese crane for the honor.

The final decision will soon be made by the State Council, the report said.

Aussie cop cleared of theft from criminal

MELBOURNE, April 26 (UPI) -- An Australian police officer has been cleared of stealing money from a Melbourne underworld figure.

Detective-Sergeant Barry Gipp had been accused of stealing the bank passbook of George Williams during a search of his home and then withdrawing $6,250 from his account the following day.

Williams, who had been arrested with his son Carl on suspicion of manufacturing drugs, had told the court he had seen a police officer looking through his bank book in his bedroom during the search in November 1999.

However, he could not not positively identify the officer, the court was told.

Gipp's lawyer told the court his client did not dispute that he was one of about nine police officers who searched the house that day but he denied stealing the passbook or withdrawing the cash from Williams' account.

The detective punched the air and members of the gallery clapped when the not guilty verdict was read out.

Man gets second DUI charge on way to court

HARRISBURG, Pa., April 25 (UPI) -- A man in Pennsylvania's Susquehanna Township has been charged with driving under the influence after crashing on his way to court to face an identical charge.

Anthony R. Lilly was driving to court to face a DUI charge when the 74-year-old's alleged drunken state prompted him to crash into a guard rail, the Harrisburg (Pa.) Patriot-News said Wednesday.

Court records showed that Lilly's newest DUI charge on Tuesday represented his third drunken driving incident but he later downplayed the accident.

"All I know is that I must've bumped something," Lilly said. "It wasn't bad. It wasn't a collision or anything. I know the tire is flat and the headlight is damaged."

No one was injured, including Lilly.

Lilly had been on his way to a judge's office at the time of the accident to discuss a Feb. 8 DUI charge that involved him colliding with a parked car.

He told the Patriot-News that his most recent troubles would likely prompt officials to curb his drinking.

"I'll have to quit," he said. "They're going to force me to stop."