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JAMIE THOMPSONThey came with televisions, sleeping bags, tents, air mattresses and laptops on a parking lot mission to wait for free chicken.
ST. PETERSBURG - Before the sun rose Wednesday morning, Cassidy Perry pulled his Jeep Wrangler into a parking lot off Tyrone Boulevard. It was still empty.
Yes, he thought.
Perry, 30, and his friend, Doug Weaver, 37, planned for two weeks to camp out for the new Chick-fil-A restaurant opening, hoping to get a year's worth of free weekly combo meals. The company awards them to the first 100 customers at every opening.
Perry and Weaver, city employees for Pinellas Park, unloaded two lounge chairs, a 19-inch television, a Sony PlayStation 2 and a generator purchased during last year's hurricane season.
They registered, snagging No. 1 and No. 4, and started the 25-hour wait for the opening at 6:30 a.m. today, 2471 Tyrone Blvd.
"Yes, our wives and children think we're crazy," Perry said. "They expect nothing less from us."
Dozens joined them, bringing tents, sleeping bags, air mattresses, laptop computers, cardboard tables, DVDs. They turned the parking lot into a makeshift campground as the founder and chairman of Chick-fil-A, Truett Cathy, passed out coupons for free sandwiches.
The opening was of particular importance to Cathy because his 27-year-old grandson, Andrew, will run the restaurant, his first in the family business.
By 5 p.m., 137 people had registered for the free meals. The first 100 people were guaranteed coupons, and the others were hoping to win the meals in a raffle this morning. Chick-fil-A employees planned spot checks throughout the night, and only those who stayed kept their spots in line.
Among them was Johnny Yanchunis, a 19-year-old University of Florida student who was on his 12th Chick-fil-A opening.
When asked what number he received this time, Yanchunis looked down.
"It's kind of embarrassing," he said. "113."
He arrived about 2:30 p.m., missing the first 100.
Yanchunis said he already has collected enough coupons to eat free Chick-fil-A for the rest of the year, and said he held the record for the most openings, until a man up north bested him by attending 13.
"I don't know his name, but I heard he has a private plane and can fly wherever he wants," Yanchunis said, adding that he and his friends had endured long road trips, a flat tire and a speeding ticket to attend openings.
Yanchunis planned to stay up all night. And then, after a long, cold night, he hoped to collect his coupons and return to UF, until the next time. He already was hearing rumors about another opening this spring.