State Senate battle between Kim, Wiener moves to ‘Pokémon Go’

S.F. Supervisor Jane Kim hunts for Pokémon creatures in Lilac Alley in the Mission District with help from team members in a competition against Supervisor Scott Wiener. S.F. Supervisor Jane Kim hunts for Pokémon creatures in Lilac Alley in the Mission District with help from team members in a competition against Supervisor Scott Wiener. Photo: Leah Millis, The Chronicle Buy photo Photo: Leah Millis, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 9 Caption Close State Senate battle between Kim, Wiener moves to ‘Pokémon Go’ 1 / 9 Back to Gallery

Here is the latest proof of “Pokémon Go’s” cultural reach: Two San Francisco politicians battled each other Saturday to see who could catch the most creatures that don’t really exist.

The contest involved Jane Kim and Scott Wiener, two supervisors now running for the state Senate seat that represents San Francisco. And if the face-off was all in fun, the way it was conducted offered a glimpse of the two candidates’ campaign styles — as well as the extent to which the smartphone craze has permeated the local landscape.

“You don’t realize how many people are playing until you’re part of it,” Weiner said as he waited for the results to be tallied from the two-hour quest. “I’d be near groups of people staring at their phones, sneak a peek and then realize it’s ‘Pokémon.’”

Kim challenged Wiener to the contest not long after the “Pokémon Go” app, created by local firm Niantic, became a frothy sensation in a summer dominated by more ominous news. Wiener had rebuffed other challenges from the Kim campaign, such as a pledge to avoid “defamatory attacks,” but agreed to this one promptly.

Saturday, as the supervisors waited to begin their competition at the 24th Street BART Station in the Mission, they spun their own versions of past challenges. Wiener dismissed them as “political grandstanding,” while Kim called her initiatives “serious challenges.”

This time, though, “our campaign was just having fun,” Kim said. “This just seemed like a way to lighten things up, and take part in a national craze born here.”

According to Kim, the extent of her preparation work before Saturday was “a 20-minute training (Friday), but I didn’t really understand it.” Wiener applied himself more earnestly: “I tried to practice so I wouldn’t make a fool of myself.”

The two approached the contest differently as well.

The rules agreed on were straightforward — each candidate would have two hours to catch as many Pokémon as possible. They could also be assisted by three teammates. They could go wherever they wanted, but couldn’t buy anything on the app along the way to boost their numbers (the Pokémon version of steroids, apparently).

When the (figurative) starting gun sounded, Wiener and his threesome piled into a supporter’s car and headed to the Ferry Building, where they spent more than an hour chasing down whatever it is that hovers in the Pokémon-charged air.

“I just went where my team told me to go,” Wiener said afterward. “One of the secrets I’ve learned in life is to realize that I only know so much.”

Kim and her team, by contrast, relied on a ground game — walking briskly to Lilac Alley between 25th and 26th streets, where the murals apparently are infused with Pokémon of all sizes and shapes.

“This is a really good location, with a lot of Pokéstops and lures,” explained Noelle Duong, a volunteer coordinator for the Kim campaign. “We thought it would be faster than driving somewhere in San Francisco.”

Asked if having a novice on the team was slowing them down, Duong’s campaign sense kicked in: “No! She’s awesome sauce. Jane urges us on.”

At times, though, Kim looked a bit befuddled — as when she stopped mid-sentence to exclaim, “I got something that looks like a big deal, because it looks humongous.”

Two hours after they went off in different directions, the two teams were back at the 24th Street plaza. Scores were tallied and the winner was — Team Kim, with 738 points to the Wiener quartet’s 674.

Besides bragging rights, the challenge included a wager: $500 from the loser to the winner’s charity of choice. Wiener donated $500 to At the Crossroads, a nonprofit that works with homeless youth. Kim agreed to pay off as well, with a $500 contribution to Project Open Hand, which provides food to people in need.

“This shows that walking is good for you,” Kim said, referring to the decision to focus more on neighborhood efforts than the lure of the downtown destinations. The other thing she learned? “I totally get now why people playing this walk into things.”

John King is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jking@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @johnkingsfchron