Sophomore wins Jeep in Kiss Off

At 3:30 a.m. Sunday, sophomore Dan Balanoff was the last person standing in the 2001 Jeep Kiss Off. About 250 people had gathered on the front yard of the Delta Upsilon fraternity to see the end of the contest, which began at 6 p.m. Friday.\nAfter 33 and a half hours kissing the 2001 Jeep Wrangler SE, Balanoff came out victorious over the 24 other contestants and won the Jeep.\nTickets are sold in the weeks previous to the Kiss Off, and 25 contestants' tickets are drawn from those sold. Ten runners-up are also chosen in the event that one of the 25 does not show up. \nThe annual event, sponsored by Delta Upsilon and Pi Beta Phi sorority, raised more than $2,000 for The Rise, a branch of the Middle Way House.\nSophomore Brad Bennett, the event's chair from Delta Upsilon, explained the rules of the challenge.\n"The contestant must be standing, with their hands behind their backs, and obviously kissing the Jeep," Bennett said. "And every six hours, they get a 15-minute break."\nAt midnight Sunday, the contestants unanimously voted to finish the contest on one leg. The remaining nine contestants began dropping quickly, Bennett said.\n"They all wanted to get it over with," Bennett said. "We had to put a fence around the vehicle at this point," so the judges could see the contestants through the mass of people around the Jeep.\nSophomore Pi Beta Phi members Erin Nightingale and Brooke Eastman said community support was a factor in the success of this year's event. They said they could not believe the amount of help Bloomington organizations provided.\n"We definitely had a lot more people get involved than last year, and we really appreciate it." Nightingale said. "It really means a lot to us, and we want to thank everyone."\nEastman said the community's effort made her house's job easier. \n"We didn't have to ask for anything," she said. "Businesses and organizations from around Bloomington pretty much donated everything, which is so great. It just shows how much people care."\nWeather cooperation was also a pleasant change from last year's rain and cold conditions.\n"Last year, it was snowing and so cold," Nightingale said. "I'm so happy that it's been nice and warm."\nBennett agreed and said the warm weather contributed to the overall atmosphere.\n"This year it was more of an event this weekend," Bennett said. "A lot of greek houses were involved."\nThe runner-up title went to sophomore Justin Shaw, and third place went to last year's winner, junior Jeff Browne. Shaw was the high ticket bidder as well.\n"Half the fun of this philanthropy is slowly watching one person emerge to win a new Jeep," Bennett said. "It was amazing at the end"