Sean Crosby, Thon chair for Penn State Hazelton Campus, admitted he'd found a way to tell time in the middle of an entirely clock-free Thon.

"I kind of know what time it is. I've been keeping track of the moralers because they have shifts. I can make a good guesstimate of the time based on which moralers are here," he said. "I'd be nothing without my moraler, but I'd kind of like a hot fudge sundae."

All dancers found their own ways of passing the 48 hours of this year's Interfraternity Council/Panhellenic Dance Marathon.

Friday, 10 p.m.

Thon 2003 was only a few hours old and the dancers were just getting warmed up. Most participants had already devised some creative ways to entertain themselves.

Erin Lindsay (senior-marketing and international business), who was dancing for Zeta Tau Alpha sorority, worked on crossword puzzles with a few other dancers.

"It's a competition to see who fills out the most. It passes the time when you're waiting for food and your color hasn't been called yet," Lindsay said.

Lindsay's plans for the rest of the weekend included playing with Robby, her organization's Thon child, perfecting the line dance and ravaging the food.

"We're thinking it won't get too bad 'til tomorrow night -- smooth sailing 'til then," she said.

Ted Madden (sophomore-recreation and park management), a dancer for Alpha Kappa Lambda fraternity, was entertaining a small crowd by doing loop-the-loops, the one yo-yo trick he's perfected.

"I've got a hacky sack, too, but I haven't busted that out yet," he said.

Saturday, 7:30 a.m.

While the rest of Penn State's campus slept, the dancers inside Rec Hall were still going strong. Having just passed the 12-hour mark, the main complaint was tired feet.

"My feet are a little sore. The tennis balls are very good," said Krista Dolak (freshman-elementary education), who was dancing for Women's Chorale. Dolak was referring to one of the tools dancers use to massage their aching feet.

Other dancers passed the time by playing with toys.

"I was playing bouncy ball, but unfortunately it died on me," said Tim Fuhrmeister (senior-management science and information systems), who was dancing for Sigma Chi fraternity. "It ran out of air."

Nicole DeSouza (freshman-sociology), Fuhrmeister's moraler, said her job so far had been easy.

"My dancers are great. They haven't really asked me for anything," she said. "I'm sure as time goes on, and they get more delusional, they'll start making some crazy requests."

Saturday, 5 p.m.

While light rain tinkered on the pavement outside Rec Hall, spirit inside the building remained bright and cheery.

"I feel fine right now, surprisingly," said Jessica Moore (sophomore-premedicine), a dancer from Dubois Campus. She wore a brightly colored sunflower hat to keep her spirits up.

"I still have a lot of energy, but my feet are starting to hurt," she said as she squatted down near a friend to try and relieve some of her leg pain.

Other dancers started to exhibit other kinds of physical ailments.

"I'm incredibly hoarse from yelling so much," said Elisabeth Fuhrman (senior-human development and family studies), who was dancing for Kappa Phi service sorority. Fuhrman said she liked to get involved with the sing-a-longs, even though they made her voice deteriorate, because they helped keep her alert.

Dancers even resorted to child-like games to help keep themselves and others awake.

"I'm just going around shooting people with water guns to keep everyone awake," said John Coyle (sophomore-forensics) who danced with the Delaware County Campus team. "I'm still really energized."

Sunday, 9 a.m.

As the final home stretch approached, dancers were starting to feel the physical and mental ailments set in.

"My arch is killing me and I feel like I can't even stand up anymore," said Kyle Petaja (senior-letters arts and sciences and electrical engineering).

Petaja, a dancer representing the Penn State ski team, said he went to the training room a few hours earlier to have his foot's arch taped because it was throbbing. After the trainers took care of his injury, he fell asleep shortly before returning to the dance floor, he said.

"Honestly, I don't even remember walking back here to this table," he said while leaning on the table and munching on a banana. "In fact, I'm not even really sure what's going on right now."

Annie Chang (freshman-finance), a dancer with South Halls Residence Association, said she was still optimistic and mentally intact.

"I can see daylight," she said as she glanced at the crack of light coming in from the front doors. "So, I'm confident that I'll be able to survive."

Other students tried to remind themselves of their original motives in order to stay awake.

Thomas Abella (junior-management and international business), wore a T-shirt with "SleepIs4TheWeak" on the back. He said even though he was worn out, his motto still held true.

Sunday, 7 p.m.

With glazed eyes and blank stares, dancers held strong through the last hours. The ending line dance was performed and soon the final moments arrived. The capacity crowd at Rec Hall seemed revived as it roared the final ten second countdown and then sat down with a collective thud at the finish. More cheers and screams filled the hall as the fundraising totals were announced.

But soon, weary dancers, committee members, friends and family shuffled out of Rec Hall and headed for home, eager to crawl into bed for a long, much deserved rest. Thon was over for another year.