Jan 19, 2017

KVSC’s 50-Hour Trivia Weekend Gets Swept Up in a Torrential Storm

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – The 38th annual Trivia Weekend presented by KVSC 88.1FM at St. Cloud State University will flood the airwaves Feb. 17-19. Each year, a different theme is selected to pay homage to popular cultural phenomena. This year’s trivia theme will leave teams running for cover as Trivia Storm: 50 Hours of Torrential Trivia tears through the nation. Trivia Storm will test teams’ knowledge on all things weather related.

The campus radio station at St. Cloud State organizes the annual 50-hour marathon featuring more than 450 trivia questions quizzing teams listening on the radio and Internet. Aside from a wealth of theme-based questions, there is a broad range of additional questions on pop culture, science, sports, visual trivia, audio trivia, history and more. Approximately 2,000 trivia buffs will play on more than 60 teams.

“Trivia runs the gamut from chaotic at 11 p.m. to oddly calm at 4 a.m. Imagine a blend of radio hosts, a lot of technology, more than 40 hourly volunteers, a TV station, a couple thousand people competing while sleep deprived and you get a pretty interesting stew of creativity, stress, kindness and problem solving—on both sides of Trivia Weekend,” said Jo McMullen-Boyer, KVSC Station Manager.  

Throughout the years, KVSC has relied on hundreds of volunteers to staff the 32 trivia telephone hotlines. In 2016, nearly 60 teams played in the three-day contest. With the growth of Trivia Weekend, volunteers have become very important in making the event possible. Approximately 40-45 volunteers are needed each hour to operate the contest—for 50 consecutive hours. Volunteers work on the phone hotlines where teams call in their guesses, co-host the radio shows, work in scoring and point dispute roles, produce audio segments, host UTVS Television productions, run for food for volunteers and many other jobs.

“I’m excited to see all the volunteers who return to KVSC and SCSU. It’s our winter ‘family’ reunion and we would not be able to put on this competition without our volunteers. I’m also curious to see if Mother Nature will do anything to match our Trivia Storm theme on the actual weekend,” McMullen-Boyer said.

Trivia contest rules require teams to register by 4:30 p.m. Feb. 17, the Friday of Trivia Weekend. The contest begins at 5:00 p.m. and will conclude at 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 19. Teams create a name and don their rain slickers from a team headquarters as they prepare to venture out into the hailstorm of questions that is Trivia Storm.

Wrapping up the 50-hour contest is an awards ceremony in Ritsche Auditorium at SCSU beginning at 8:00 p.m. on Feb. 19. The winning team receives the coveted Minnesota Masters of Trivia Traveling Trophy. The golden urn (trophy) shows the names of the winning teams over the past 38 years.

Following the awards ceremony, exhausted players and volunteers head to the Red Carpet Nightclub in downtown St. Cloud to celebrate surviving another Trivia Weekend. The Shake A Hamster Band takes the stage and performs their new theme-based numbers as well as some of the favorites from previous years.

KVSC encourages trivia enthusiasts from all over to pull together friends and family members to create a team or to consider becoming a phone bank volunteer for the weekend. The entire contest is also streamed live online. For information on registration and volunteering, visit www.kvsc.org/trivia_news.php.

KVSC 88.1FM, the Voice of St. Cloud since 1967, offers listeners an alternative format without commercials. KVSC features a diverse variety of music as well as news coverage and community events. The staff of KVSC 88.1FM is comprised of students and community volunteers.

Thank You Underwriters

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