Saturday, November 3, 2007

invention of the week - Wedgie-proof underwear

Answer to wedgies enjoys brief fame
Friday, November 2, 2007 3:29 AM
By
Matt Tullis
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

(picture to right)
Justin and Jerod Serovich receive a laptop for showing Ellen DeGeneres their invention, the Rip Away 1000. The 8-year-olds from Columbus taped the talk show Wednesday." THE ELLEN DeGENERES SHOW


Where there's a wedgie, there's a way ... to Hollywood.

This year, 8-year-old twins Jared and Justin Serovich were working each other over with the schoolyard bully's staple when their mother, Julie, caught them in the act and took them to task.
Julie's partner, Judy Kimberly, sarcastically suggested that someone should invent wedgie-proof underwear.

The boys, good students who excel at science and math, took the challenge seriously.

They created the "Rip Away 1000" for the central Ohio competition of the 2007 Invention Convention -- and earned an invitation to The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

Show spokeswoman Amy Prenner said producers are always looking for unique stories, and the Serovich boys' underwear filled the bill.

This afternoon, the third-graders at Gables Elementary in Columbus will share the stage -- and their creation -- with young inventors from Connecticut (the AAF, a solar-powered air freshener) and Iowa (the Privy Prop, a toilet-seat opener).

"We're getting a lot of mileage out of underwear," Julie Serovich quipped by phone yesterday from Los Angeles, where today's segment of the syndicated show was taped Wednesday.
Jared and Justin's project was among the finalists at the regional invention competition, which encourages creative solutions to everyday problems.

"We took some old pairs of underwear and cut the bottom and side seams and put in Velcro," Jared explained.

Added Justin: "When the person tries to grab you -- like the bully or the person tries to give you a wedgie -- they just rip away."

The boys haven't needed to use the Rip Away 1000 at school.

After all, they're the ones giving each other wedgies.

The Ellen DeGeneres Show will air at 4 p.m. today on WCMH-TV (Channel 4).

source [Columbus Dispatch] via [Gizmodo]

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