Pittsburgh students to flush 386 toilets and urinals at once

PITTSBURGH - PITTSBURGH - The Pittsburgh Penguins are giving 250 students a pass to the john.

In what may be a flush of epic proportions, the hockey team is asking the students to test the toilets in the new Consol Energy Center arena.

Dubbing the event the "Student Flush," a takeoff on their popular "Student Rush" ticketing program, the Penguins will have those participants and others simultaneously flush all 386 toilets and urinals in the new arena at 4 p.m. on June 10.

Penguins spokesman Tom McMillan said the testing was required in all new arenas and stadiums to ensure that the plumbing is up to the task before the rest rooms get their first event-related workouts.

"If (something's) going to happen, we'd rather find out in June than in August or September," he said. The facility is slated to open in August.

As McMillan put it, such testing is "normally something you do behind the scenes." The Penguins, however, decided to turn the testing on its, er, head and appeal to their young fan base to help out.

"I don't know that anyone has ever done a promotion around the required simultaneous flushing of the toilets in a new facility, but we thought we could have some fun with it," Penguins President David Morehouse said in a statement.

So far, many students seem to be flush (sorry) with excitement over the prospect.

The Penguins sent out a notice to more than 15,000 fans enrolled in their Student Rush Text Alert program at 11 a.m. Tuesday offering them a chance to enter a drawing for the prized flush. After four hours, the team already had received more than 1,000 entries. Students have until noon Thursday to enter.

James Santilli, the team's vice president of marketing, wasn't surprised by the response.

"If 5,000 will sit in the pouring rain to watch (a playoff game on the outdoor screen), I don't think they're averse to flushing a few toilets," he said.

In all, 125 students will be selected for the big flush and they each will be asked to invite a friend to help out. The only requirements: at least 18 years of age and the ability to work a toilet.

The event also gives the Penguins another opportunity to reach out to the young fan base they have worked hard to cultivate. "The added perk is that 250 kids get a glimpse of the new arena before anybody else," McMillan said.

They will be joined by another 200 helpers. Participants will be assigned to one of 32 groups for the flush, an exercise that is expected to take about 45 minutes from start to finish.

For their efforts, participants will get a free T-shirt featuring a Student Flush logo on the front and a current or former Penguins player's name and number on the back. They also will be served pizza and soft drinks afterwards.

Santilli said the Penguins believe the event marks the first time anyone has invited members of the general public to test the toilets at a major sports facility.

By Tuesday afternoon, the Student Flush already was making news on the CBC in Canada and on ESPN. McMillan was interviewed for the network's SportsCenter program.

"My big chance to be on ESPN in my life and it's about the flushing of toilets," he said.

(E-mail reporter Mark Belko at mbelko(at)post-gazette.com.)

(Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.)