WI State Journal: Stuck in a truck to win a truck

[bigtalkradiofan]

My Preface Note - I always wonder with these types of promotions: from the contestants point of view: even if you win the prize - you still have to pay taxes on it, you lost wages from work/or burned vacation days, plus you don't get to see/spend time with your family for several days - does the post-tax value of the prize really outweigh the costs in the end? In my view, most likely "no."

http://www.madison.com/wsj/mad/top/index.php?ntid=314331

FRI., NOV 14, 2008 - 8:40 AM

Stuck in a truck to win a truck

TOM ALESIA
Wisconsin State Journal
608-252-6122
[email protected]

Since Oct. 2, Lisa Thompson and Tommy Kempfer have sat — and sat and sat and sat — in a truck that hasn't moved.

They are the two remaining contestants from eight entrants in an outrageous Madison radio contest called Stuck in a Truck, a mind and body test of tedium.

They get 10-minute breaks every three hours. Otherwise, they sit in the truck around the clock. There is little room. They sleep sitting up or in a position that resembles advanced yoga. They can meet their spouses outside during the brief breaks. They get no reading materials, DVDs or computer access. Each day crawls past.

To the last person sitting in the truck, a new but well-lived-in Ford F-150, worth almost $30,000, awaits. Second place gets nothing. So they sit while every moment is Webcast live by the contest's organizer "Star Country" WMAD (96.3 FM) at www.963starcountry.com. ...

[Click link above for the complete newspaper article.]

 

[Darrel M]

I didn't hear about this contest until reading the article (goes to show you how much I listen to Star Country), but I figured that CC Madison would do such a stunt. CC Madison had a similar stunt on Z104 a few years ago with a Toyota/Scion van, but unlike the current promotion, at least that contest had Survivor-like challenges (about one per week) to seemingly keep the contest in a manageable time frame.

For the benefit of Kayser Ford (since they're certainly paying a lot for this stunt) and for the contestants' well-being (not to mention their livelihood), the station should think about some sort of a quick-yet-fair conclusion, instead of "[lasting] till December" as suggested in the article. Rock Paper Scissors perhaps? I recall a radio station in Vancouver, Canada, used that game to end a similar stunt about 10 years ago (and doing it on a big stage to boot, during an NFL pre-season game in Vancouver).

As for the sales tax question, I certainly agree that any money they could owe on the truck for one reason or another certainly doesn't justify subjecting yourself to such a stunt. If one of the remaining contestants won yet faced financial hardship either personally or professionally (the article stated they are both self-employed), I wonder how quickly they would sell the truck for cash.

My Preface Note - I always wonder with these types of promotions: from the contestants point of view: even if you win the prize - you still have to pay taxes on it, you lost wages from work/or burned vacation days, plus you don't get to see/spend time with your family for several days - does the post-tax value of the prize really outweigh the costs in the end? In my view, most likely "no."

http://www.madison.com/wsj/mad/top/index.php?ntid=314331

FRI., NOV 14, 2008 - 8:40 AM

Stuck in a truck to win a truck

TOM ALESIA
Wisconsin State Journal
608-252-6122
[email protected]

Since Oct. 2, Lisa Thompson and Tommy Kempfer have sat — and sat and sat and sat — in a truck that hasn't moved.

They are the two remaining contestants from eight entrants in an outrageous Madison radio contest called Stuck in a Truck, a mind and body test of tedium.

They get 10-minute breaks every three hours. Otherwise, they sit in the truck around the clock. There is little room. They sleep sitting up or in a position that resembles advanced yoga. They can meet their spouses outside during the brief breaks. They get no reading materials, DVDs or computer access. Each day crawls past.

To the last person sitting in the truck, a new but well-lived-in Ford F-150, worth almost $30,000, awaits. Second place gets nothing. So they sit while every moment is Webcast live by the contest's organizer "Star Country" WMAD (96.3 FM) at www.963starcountry.com. ...

[Click link above for the complete newspaper article.]

 

[bigtalkradiofan]

My Preface Note - I renew my question, from the contestants point of view...

You have to endure 55 days (nearly 2 months) of sitting upright in a stinky truck with flood lights shining on you 24/7 and the station's music blaring throughout.

In this case, the two contestants each get:
* A $10,000 coupon toward a car.
* $1,000 coupon toward a mattress.
* A trip for 2 to Las Vegas.

But the contestants still have to:
* Pay income taxes on the value of your prize-winning (because the IRS considers prizes "income").
* You lost wages from work/or burned vacation days.
* Plus you missed seeing/spending time with your family for several weeks or months.

Does the post-tax value of the prize really outweigh the costs in the end? In my view, most likely "no."

http://www.madison.com/wsj/mad/top/316163

FRI., NOV 28, 2008 - 8:27 AM
Payoff accepted; stuck in a truck no more
TOM ALESIA
Wisconsin State Journal
608-252-6122
[email protected]

After 55 days, a Madison radio station stopped its endurance contest that kept two entrants sitting in a truck, with short breaks every three hours, in order to win a new $30,000 vehicle. The contest ended Tuesday after the station offered both contestants $10,000 toward the purchase of a car, trips for two to Las Vegas and $1,000 for a mattress.

[Click link above for the complete newspaper article.]