Ice-cold consumption

As early as 9 a.m. Saturday, tailgaters gathered in the parking lot of Pinch Penny Pub hell-bent on defying Mother Nature.

More than 1,000 Corona cases and almost 300 pounds of limes later, all that was left of the fifth annual Polar Bear Party was a head cold, a soiled T-shirt and memories for between 2,000 and 3,000 partiers.

Pinch Penny Pub General Manager James Karayiannis said the party - in which bar's beer garden uncharacteristically opens for a winter day and serves Corona exclusively - shattered previous year's records.

"It's been confirmed to me several times that no single bar has ever sold anywhere near this much Corona (in a day)," Karayiannis said. "People love it and take pride in it."

Amber Delehanty, a junior from Alton studying information systems technology, said she and her friends made the trek to Pinch soon after waking up.

"What's the phrase, you got to bite the hair of the dog that bit you, because we were hung over," she said with a laugh.

She said she drank nothing but Corona in the 13 hours that followed.

"It's $1.50!" she said.

Karayiannis said the idea for the party began in late 2000 when Corona workers approached him looking for a way to build sales early in the year and he decided to open up the beer garden.

"You're opening on a really cold day, so what's the most warm weather thing you can think of besides a frozen drink?" he said. "It's a Corona bottle."

He said the irony of drinking Corona on a cold day has attracted more people than he would have ever imagined.

"It's not what we originally started out as," Karayiannis said. "It started out as a fun thing - open up the beer garden, see how many people will be out there and just have a little fun out in the cold - and now its almost uncontrollable."

He said each year the event has grown substantially, but this year had by far the largest growth.

"It's kind of like Mardi Gras on a really small scale where the behavior that goes on, it's not what we intended for the party," Karayiannis said. "It has taken on some characteristics that we're not too happy about."

He said problems included an abundance of broken glass and people not having access to restrooms.

"People think it's an accomplishment to finish a beer, so I should throw my beer down," Karayiannis said. "I don't get it."

He said the bar is considering expanding the event to become a festival-like atmosphere that would include more than just the bar to avoid these problems.

"Something that Carbondale could be proud of as a community and market it towards other campuses and other towns, just to show that if you know what you're doing and you've got a grasp on it that it doesn't have to be out of control like Halloween," Karayiannis said.

Scott Wrigley, a junior from Decatur studying food and nutrition, said overcrowding and broken glass did not stop him from enjoying the party.

"I think mostly what it is, is just being out with friends and the experience, because no one wants to be out in the cold drinking in the first place," he said. "I think that's the whole thing. Plus $1.50 Coronas."

Sean_mcgahan@dailyegyptian.com 536-3311 ext. 254