Filed under: Celebrities, Health, Alternative Energy

This New Year's Eve, the world famous dropping ball (I'll do my best not to make puberty jokes) in Times Square will be powered by people who can't afford a gym membership ... as well as a few celebrities who stopped by for a photo-op.

That's because, according to our friends at Holidash, Duracell has set up a fleet of six fancy stationary bikes (dubbed "power rovers") that feed their pedal-powered electricity directly into the giant copper-tops that will illuminate up the iconic 2010 numerals at the stroke of midnight.

Anyone who wants to donate a few extra calories is welcome to drop by the Smart Power Lab, located at 1540 Broadway from now until 3PM on New Year's Eve. Think of it as a free spin class.
According to Duracell's calculations, they'll need about 32,000 Watts to power the numerals for 30 minutes on New Year's Eve. If that sounds like a lot of power, just imagine how much power the energy-hogging New Year's ball gobbled up before it was retrofitted with 32,000 LEDs two years ago.

If it's going to take a bribe to get you on a Power Rover, Duracell has that covered. As a reward for breaking a sweat at the Smart Power Lab, Duracell is providing visitors with the opportunity to sample the latest releases on Xbox, recharge their mobile devices, and take pictures with a life-sized replica of the 2010 numerals.

What happens if New Yorkers fail to meet the challenge and the ball doesn't get enough power? Pandemonium? Rioting in the streets? Will calendars all over the world get stuck on December 2009?

Duracell hasn't exactly been forthcoming with it's backup plan, but hopefully they have a contingency to ensure that the flow of space-time continues interrupted.

Times Square Ball Goes Green With Pedal-Power originally appeared on Green Daily on Thu, 31 Dec 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

 

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