Chris Machado and Drew Gamble are dancing like they’ve never danced before – 40 hours straight with hopes of setting a world record and helping a good cause.

At 5 p.m. Monday, the two Mountain View High School teens stepped onto an interactive video game called Dance Dance Revolution Extreme at Space Balls Arcade in the Bend River Mall.

As techno music started and strobe lights pulsed, Machado, 16, and Gamble, 17, started to dance. A crowd of about 30 people cheered in support.

Currently, no record is set with Guinness World Records for the amount of time spent on Dance Dance Revolution Extreme, Machado said.

To play the game, people stand on a platform. There are four arrows around them in a square. They look at a video screen and it tells them which arrow to step on with their feet.

Think ”Simon Says” for the feet.

Players must keep up with the fancy footwork or they will fail that song.

Machado and Gamble can’t fail a single song if they want to set a record.

”This game is actually really good for you,” Machado said. ”We both have low heart rates.”

Both Machado and Gamble have played the game for about a year, ever since it came to Space Balls Arcade.

Machado, who is now slim, said he has lost 90 pounds since he began dancing. He said he plays the video game for seven hours two days a week or a few hours every day.

”The old me could eat the new me,” Machado said.

Machado and Gamble said they read rumors online that the unofficial record was set by two teens from Washington state who spent 36 hours playing the video game.

The two said they have been in contact with Guinness World Records to make sure they follow the strict guidelines to be able to set an official record.

One of the many guidelines is that the two teens can only have a 15-minute break every eight hours, Machado said. They also have to have two witnesses who are 18 or older and not related, during the entire 40 hours.

Machado and Gamble said they asked Space Balls Arcade owner Dan Chase if they could use his facility to set the record.

Chase said he thought it was a good idea, but he wanted to make it a fund-raising event. He suggested the two teens help other teens in Bend.

Community members were able to give a flat donation or pledge a specific amount of money for each hour the teens danced, Chase said.

The money raised will be donated to Grandma’s House. It’s a faith-based, nonprofit, outreach program for homeless or abused teens who are pregnant, parenting or plan to give their baby up for adoption. Chase said he is a volunteer at Grandma’s House.

He said he hopes the event can raise a couple thousand dollars.

Woody Medeiros, executive director for Grandma’s House, said the money will be used to help expand the live-in facility from six beds to 10 beds.

”All of us are so proud of them,” Medeiros said. ”The girls are so honored that they would do something for them.”

Chase said people can still pledge money at any store in the Bend River Mall.

Machado and Gamble said they were happy to help a good cause.

The two said they weren’t nervous about attempting to set a record. If Machado and Gamble make the 40 hours, they will be finished Wednesday morning. But both said if they can keep dancing they will.

The teens came prepared with trail mix, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and pretzels. In between each song, they both gulped down water.

They also scouted out which bathrooms they could run to during their short breaks.

”We’re trying not to have caffeine until we’re desperate,” Gamble said.

Ailey Kato can be reached at 541-383-0387 or at akato@bendbulletin.com.