Mass. hotel gladly welcomes gerbil horde

BOSTON, May 20 (UPI) -- A hotel in Bedford, Mass., was temporarily overrun by gerbils this weekend as the establishment played home to an American Gerbil Association event.

As part of the group's New England show, judges and tourists came to the Bedford Plaza Hotel to view the furry rodents and name the most physically fit of them gerbil champion for the year, the Boston Herald said Sunday.

Included on the annual event's agenda Saturday were hamster track races and contests to test the animals' cardboard-chewing abilities.

"We like to think of the females as figure skaters and the males as quarterbacks," judge Amy Paben said.

The unusual Gerbil Olympics did draw in the curious like Massachusetts resident Brenna Chaplain.

"I love going to random festivals." the 26-year-old told the Herald. "Plus, they're educational."