Greetings SURGE Fans and welcome to the 75th edition of SaveSURGE News! We give you the latest information from the world of SURGE.

Sightings Report
There have been 2 new SURGE Sightings reported since the last edition of SaveSURGE News. They are in Chicago, IL & Massillon, OH.

Sadly, there were 3 deletions in Florence, KY; Niles, OH & Monroeville, PA.

Currently, there are 149 SURGE Sightings listed. Thank you SURGE fans!

Visit SURGE Sightings at: http://savesurge.org/surge/sightings.shtml

Avery Speaks with Midwest Coca-Cola Bottling Co.
On Wednesday, November 26, 2003 SaveSURGE.org Co-Webmaster Avery Lund sat down with Ray Seco, a representative of the Midwest Coca-Cola Bottling Company (a member of the CCE Bottling Group) to discuss our beloved SURGE. Avery has provided us with a transcript of that discussion for all SURGE fans to enjoy. Below you will find an excerpt of that interview:

Q. Have you heard of SaveSURGE.org?
A. Who hasn't? <laughs> But seriously yes I have. You would be surprised at how many people at CCE have at least heard of your site. The first time I heard about it was when a bottler in Milwaukee forwarded a letter to me from a SURGE fan who mentioned your site. Since then I have continued to hear about it quite often.

Q. How do you feel grass roots groups like ours can do to influence a large corporation like Coca-Cola?
A. Well I don't speak for Coke but as far as CCE is concerned we are very observant of what our customers tell us. We figure for every letter we receive there are 100 other people who feel the same way but never write us. Letter writing and phone calling really shows us your dedication. I think you guys have lots of power. I mean here I am speaking to you.

Q. Does their work (the i3 Productions spec work logo) have anything to do with a potential re-launch of the brand?
A. Well the fact that Coca-Cola is putting money into the project sure suggests to me that SURGE is not going to disappear.

This is just a small portion of the transcript. To read the full story, visit:
http://www.savesurge.org/surge/avery_ccemidwest.shtml

There are several positives that can be taken from the interview and it is definitely something you don't want to miss. It is becoming more and more apparent that SURGE is indeed on the minds of Coca-Cola and its bottlers. We have to keep writing those letters and making those phone calls and, if we do that, we may just be sipping on our favorite soda once again!

One of the most important quotes from this entire interview would have to be:

"Another big thing is talking to potential customers like Subway or Burger King. Bottlers don't simply make syrup, they need customers to buy it. If a major chain took up your cause they could help you immensely."

This means that we definitely must continue our efforts to bring SURGE to places like Subway (see below).

A huge thank you goes out to Avery for all of his hard work on this project!

Tell Subway that you Want SURGE!
As we informed you in the last edition of SaveSURGE News, Subway Restaurants have signed an exclusive agreement to serve Coca-Cola products in their 20,000+ stores worldwide. This is a great opportunity for SURGE fans everywhere to convince a major restaurant chain that serving SURGE in their fountains will be worth their while!

We are asking each and every SURGE fan to contact Subway and let them know just how much we'd all love to see SURGE at their restaurants!

You can write to Subway via their website at:
http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/Applications/CustServ/frmCustomerService.aspx

Or, find your local Subway and let them know how much you want SURGE: http://subway.com/Applications/locator/index.aspx

As Mr. Seco pointed out in Avery's interview (see above) we can make a difference so let's bring SURGE to Subway!

Kid Caliente's "Shock Tha System" hits SURGE Multimedia
SURGE fans will know our great friend Kid Caliente as an active member of the SaveSURGE.org Bulletin Board. He is a very musically gifted and he shares that gift with us in his new instrumental entitled, "Shock Tha System". The song is absolutely beautiful and, if you listen closely, you will hear a little something from SURGE's heyday sprinkled throughout the song!

"Shock Tha System" is a must-listen for all SURGE fans! Check it out right now in SURGE Multimedia:
http://www.savesurge.org/surge/kidc_shockthasystem.shtml

Thanks to Kid Caliente for creating such an incredible song, I can't stop listening to it!

SURGE Uniform Shirt Auctioned off - The Bidding is Fierce (and High!)
A SURGE Uniform Shirt that was worn by a Coca-Cola employee during our favorite soda's 1997 launch is being auctioned on eBay - and is fetching quite a high price!

When it was first listed in our $URGE on eBay section on 12/1/03, the price a mere $5.99. As this edition of SaveSURGE News is being written on 12/5/03, the shirt is now up to a whopping $79.99! And, there is still over 1 day of bidding left on the item.

To view this auction, visit:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3642030379&category=20184

Egil Sheds Some Light on URGE
SaveSURGE.org recently received a letter from Egil, who lives in Norway and is a big fan of SURGE's Norwegian cousin, URGE. He wrote in to tell us that he enjoys visiting SaveSURGE.org and he is happy to know that SURGE hasn't disappeared from the USA. However, he is afraid that someday URGE will be discontinued or become very difficult to find as SURGE has in the USA.

He also sent a picture of URGE to show us the soda's orange-ish color. From the photos we had seen previously, it was difficult to tell exactly what color URGE really was (at times, it appeared to be an almost brown color). Thanks to Egil for clearing this up!

Egil also shared some very interesting information about URGE's advertising campaign. Apparently, Coca-Cola used some of the exact same commercials that aired during SURGE's 1997 USA launch in Norway as well! The only difference was that the SURGE in the American version was switched with URGE for the Norwegian version.

Egil tells us that commercial 1 and commercial 2 from this SURGE Multimedia page were used in Norway:
http://www.savesurge.org/surge/john_commercials.shtml

Thank you Egil! We hope that URGE lives on forever in Norway!

Egil's picture of URGE is available at:
http://www.savesurge.org/surge/egil_urge.shtml

Poll Results - If Subway sells it, we will buy it!
The latest SURGE Poll asked you: If SURGE was served at Subway, how often would you purchase it?

55% - Every day
25.3% - Several times a week
13% - Once a week
5% - Once a month
1.4% -Never

Total Votes: 138

The overwhelming majority of SURGE fans who voted have vowed that they would visit their local Subway multiple times per week if SURGE were available in their fountains. Now it's our job to convince Subway to give us what we want!

You can write to Subway via their website at:
http://www.subway.com/subwayroot/Applications/CustServ/frmCustomerService.aspx

Or, find your local Subway and let them know how much you want SURGE: http://subway.com/Applications/locator/index.aspx

That's all the time we have for this week. Thanks to all of you for your love of SURGE!

Sincerely,

Eric Karkovack
Co-Webmaster
www.savesurge.org