Teen Named 'Fastest Texter In The Country'

By Michael Lopez

You may think you have fast iPhone fingers, but can you pump out 360 key strokes per minute? 16-year-old Austin Wierschke can and he's got a trophy from LG to prove it!

Every year, LG holds the official U.S. Texting Championships in New York City. 14-year-old Brianna Hendrickson had been the reigning champ, but this past week her crown was stolen by Wierschke. Austin wailed through the typing challenges, sending out complicated messages in just seconds. He was even able to key in texts while blindfolded.

When it came time to announce the winner, Hendrickson and Wierschke were literally neck-and-neck. High School Musical’s Ashley Tisdale was on hand to distribute the award and a $50,000 check to the teen with the fastest fingers.

Austin explained that he was nervous at first, then a little shocked when Tisdale revealed his name.

"I'm extremely nervous," he said while waiting for the final results. "I'm getting ready to hear [Brianna's] name."

But it was Austin who got the oversized check, leaving Hendrickson with the title of second place. Don't feel too bad for Brianna though, she's already gotten a bit of MTV fame. Her story was prominently featured on the August documentary Thumbs, which delved into the world of texting.

Thumbs scored quite a bit of attention for the network, not only for its in-depth coverage of the LG Championships, but for its explorations into the habit's addictive nature. Teens and texting has gotten quite a bit of press lately, particularly because of the alarming amount of deaths related to messaging behind the wheel.

New commercials have even been popping up to help young people understand how dangerous this epidemic has become.

"People in our culture, especially young people, have never known an era that didn't include cellphones and texting," Ad Council CEO Peggy Conlon said. "One thing we are addressing is the compulsion (to text while driving)."

So the moral of the story is, fast fingers can equal big bucks…as long as you use them in the appropriate setting.

Are you “addicted” to texting? Sound off in the comments or @MTV3.

Tags Ashley Tisdale, Austin Wierschke, Blogger: Michael Lopez, Brianna Hendrickson, iPhone, MTV, Technology, Texting, Texting Championships, Texting While Driving, Thumbs