BREAKING AND ENTERING
Script with timecodes

00:24 I am a bit of an oddball. I mean, even among my friends, who are pretty open-minded.
00:31 We have a little vandalism with the ball now and then. I know of one time that it was set on fire by some high school students. It didn’t burn.
00:42 I try to keep my mind on other things because the only time I really need to focus is when they start to fall accidentally.  And then it’s - you know - your adrenaline rush, and you go and you stop them.
00:54 It’s not a highly skilled activity like a gymnastic routine that you have to stay on.  You pretty much just have to get in there and do it.
01:04 The first ever, no one had ever done this, was they hooked up an EEG to my brain, and they wanted to figure out why.
01:10 It was actually harder proving the record than it was beating the record because there’s a lot of stuff you’ve got to do.
01:16 I had, like, literally, like, half a page in the book. Great big picture. Horrible picture, but I was in there and my name was in there. So noone can take it away. It’s in print. It’s there, it’s done. You can’t take it away.
01:26 There’s only one of these that exists. This is a handmade belt, hand-crafted. WFD, world’s fastest drummer. The numbers are correct. 2006.
01:39 TITLE: Chump Change Productions
01:42 Terminal velocity is only after a couple hundred feet and this is above that, so I know what it’s going to feel like. And it hurts.
01:49 TITLE: And Red Bag Media
01:53 I want to put this thing so far out of reach. I want to be in triple digits for a long time, and I feel good enough to do it. I’m pushing to challenge myself.
02:02 TITLE: Present
02:06 It’s just not the same thing if you’re talking to people, saying,
“Yeah, I’m the second best joggler in the world.” It’s like - yeah, how many are there? Two?
02:13 TITLE: A film by Benjamin Fingerhut
02:29 So I’m living dangerously every day trying to keep these things as safe as possible.
02:34 On the Rikki Lake Show when I did the 911, my tongue bled quite a bit and swelled up.
02:38 They say, wow. There’s the world’s fastest banjo player. Can you autograph this?
02:46 It feels good. Well worth five hours of time.
02:49 Right…
02:57Why was I fascinated with the Guinness Book of World Records? There was just something in me that was attracted to it. I just would read it all the time. I remember reading it under the covers at night, my mom would yell at me, “put that away already.”
03:06 LOWER THIRD: Most Records Held at the Same time by an Individual: 101
Ashrita Furman, Jamaica, Queens, NY
03:13 When I was born it was a time that records were being broken. Roger Banister’s record was broken the same year I was born. There were some other records that were broken. The Guinness Book was actually conceived four days before I was born. I mean, there’s just sort of a feeling. I don’t know, maybe that’s it. I just don’t know the reason, but there’s something about it. Maybe the sense of perfection, of being the best in the world at something, that appealed to me. But whatever it was, I just had this tremendous fascination with it.
03:21 LOWER THIRD: Largest Hula Hoop: 16’5” Diameter
Minimum 3 Rotations
Ashrita Furman, Jamaica, Queens, NY
03:46 It started way back in 1951 with then the head of the Guinness brewery, Sir Hugh Beaver who was on a hunting trip. A discussion arises in the party as to what the fastest game bird is. Is it the plover? Is it the grouse? No one really knows quite what the answer is. So he thinks to himself, wait a minute, wouldn’t it be marvellous to have a book or compendium which kind of isolated, or highlighted, all these facts: the fastest, the tallest, the biggest.

03:58 LOWER THIRD: Stuart Claxton
Guinness World Records Chief Adjudicator
04:16 “Wherever people congregate,” - this is what he says -“Wherever people congregate to talk they will argue, and sometimes the joy lies in the arguing and would be lost if there was any definite answer,” and he ends: “how much heat these innocent questions can raise. Guinness, in producing this book, hopes that it may assist in resolving many such disputes, and may, we hope, turn heat into light.”
04:22 TITLE: First Edition, The Guinness Book of Records, 1955
04:37 As with our own book right now, which is of course this, it’s a snapshot of history with all its superlative facts and feats.
04:48 TITLE: George Hood, Aurora, IL, Longest Static Spin Cycling Marathon
04:50 I want to thank each and every one of those folks in the room today who have partnered with me over the last several months in support of what has become known around town as “the event.”

04:54 LOWER THIRD: The George Hood 100 Hour Spin for Kiwanis Kids
World Record Attempt, 5 Seasons Sports Club

05:05 And I hope this event creates in each and every one of you a memory that will last a lifetime. I’m proud to be a part of this event. I’m proud to be riding for Kiwanis Kids, and even my own three. And most of all, I’m proud of the friendships we’ve made.

05:05 TITLE: Stationary Spin Cycle Marathon Rules:
·    Cyclist earns 5 minutes of rest for every hour on bike. Break time can be accumulated.
·    Cyclist must pedal at least 12 miles every hour.
·    On-site medical personnel maintain the right to stop event if deemed necessary.

05:25 Stay by my side, as I will yours, during some of my darkest and loneliest moments on the bike this week. Mr. MC, prepare to sync and start clocks on my mark. Thank you.

05:49 Yes. I amaze myself sometimes with the things that I do, and what I set out to accomplish.

05:49 LOWER THIRD: George Hood
Spin Cycle Marathoner

05:58 RUNNING CLOCK: 00:00:00-00:00:13

06:09 Of course you’re always going to have your detractors out there, your people that are envious and jealous of you anyway because they can’t do it. But they really could if they tried. But yeah, you’re going to have those. But by and large I just amaze myself with the good that I bring to the table. And it’s - and I stay very well grounded. It’s not always about me.

06:31 TITLE: Michal Kapral, Toronto, Canada, Fastest Marathon While Juggling Three Objects (“joggling”)

06:38 Pile Driver! Body Slam!

06:46 My brother is among the best jogglers in the world. He currently holds the world record.

06:47 LOWER THIRD: Dr. Moira Kapral
Michal’s sister

06:57 Can you help me with this?

07:00 Well, I knew that he was running fast, and that day that he broke the marathon - the marathon goes by our street, which is very close to here, so it’s about the halfway point -

07:00 LOWER THIRD: Dr. Raymond and Maureen Kapral
Michal’s parents

07:10 It’s not. It’s the beginning. Anyway.

07:15 - in any event, I saw him coming down the street about a kilometre ahead of everyone else and I thought “this is quite amazing.” So that was my first indication that he was really quite good.

07:30 What’s happening, brother?

07:31 Not much.

07:34 A day in the life of a record-holder.

07:35 That’s right. Pretty boring, actually.

07:40 When I read the Guinness Book when I was a kid - I think I was 11 or 12, my sister and I read it all the time - we were constantly looking for records to break. The joggling, I actually did read that, and think -

07:41 LOWER THIRD: Michal Kapral
Joggler

07: 54 “One day I want to break that record and get into the book.” And hey, I did it.

08:02 They’re huge.

08:03 TITLE: Steve Spalding, Dallas, TX, Longest Distance Catching a Grape in the Mouth from Land

08:04 Now that won’t go down your throat. It won’t fit.

08:07 Well, I don’t know.

08:10 You think you’re going to catch it how far?

08:13 How’s that?

08:15 You see how bigger that thing is than the other one?

08:19 I don’t see how that can go down your throat.

08:23 That’s a monster grape.

08:25 No you can’t have any, Spikey.

08:28 Here Spike.

08:29 But remember this thing is coming 70 miles an hour.

08:31 Watch this. See if he catches it.

08:33 He’s not going to catch it. He’s not grape dog.

08:38 TITLE: Grapefest, Grapevine, Texas

08:40 He’s known for catching grapes in his mouth. He’s with us today attempting to break his own 3-minute speed catching record. Let’s hear it for the grape guy.

08:50 My ultimate goal for this whole grape catching thing is to have the record for the highest catch, the farthest catch, and the fastest catch, speed.

08:54 LOWER THIRD: Steve Spalding
“The Grape Guy”

09:08 So we have a couple of things that we’ll get. And then, once I get all those records together, and I have them all, then we might look at speaking engagements, maybe a book writing, I don’t know. Who knows where it’s going to go by then.

09:33 TITLE: Most Grapes Caught in the Mouth in 3 Minutes: 129.

09:41 This is a passion for him. When he starts thinking about it, he won’t stop. He won’t stop until it’s done.

09:43 LOWER THIRD, Denise Spalding
Steve’s wife

09:49 He just always had a passion about looking at that book and seeing that these people had set world records and that was something he said he wanted to do. Yeah. “I want to be in the book.” That’s what he’d say. “I want to be in this book, mom.”

09:49 LOWER THIRD: Ed and Molly Spalding
Steve’s parents

10:02 This is his passion. This is what he does. If he’s not working, it is about grapes - catching grapes. And that is what makes me laugh and what I think is so absurd, because this is what he’s really into. Period.

10:03 LOWER THIRD: Scott Spalding
Steve’s brother and grape thrower

10:14 I don’t claim to be the world’s greatest. No. I will be though. It’s just a matter of time. It just takes time. I mean what’s the guy’s name. Picasso? That guy didn’t do it in a day. It took him a little bit of time to draw all those paintings.

10:34 Grape guy!

10:39 I’m Linda Clover. I’m the caretaker of the largest ball of twine in Cawker City, Kansas. I have new figures for the largest ball of twine. We just had people adding twine. There’s 17,953 pounds of twine in the ball of twine. And there are 7,883,567 feet of twine in the ball of twine.

10:42 LOWER THIRD: Largest Ball of Sisal Twine: 7,883,567 feet
Cawker City (originators, 1953), Cawker City, KS

11:12 LOWER THIRD: Most Whip-Cracks in One Minute: 222
Chris Camp, Springfield, IL

11:19 My kids love the show. They like having a dad who is an entertainer. I don’t get introduced, “this is my dad.” I get introduced, “this is my dad. He’s the whip guy.”

11:32 I want them to have the book one day that has their dad’s name in it, so their grandkids can say that their dad was Guinness World Record holder. I think ultimately that would be really cool.

11:48 LOWER THIRD: Most Basketballs Spun Simultaneously: 28
Michael Kettman (holds 2 add’l spinning records), St. Augustine, FL

11:49 You read the book. You want to be in the Guinness Book of World Records. You want to set a mark, something you can say you’re the best in the world at. And mine just happens to be basketball spinning.

12:01 Holy Mackerel, look at that.

12:06 When I was practicing to break this world record, I practiced literally 12 to 15 hours every single day because I was unbelievably obsessed with this. I skipped school. I was a latchkey kid at the time. So, of course: “Yeah. I’m going to school. Bye.” And I’d hide in the bushes. Then mom and dad would go to work. And I’d spin basketballs all day. That’s what I did. It took me 23 days non-stop practice, and then I was able to tie and then beat the world record.

12:38 We are 12 hours completed. The time is 7:00 p.m. We started 12 hours ago. I was going to go for 13 hours. I may go for a little bit more. There’s no reason to stop just yet. My bottom is fine and I’m feeling good.

12:45 RUNNING CLOCK: 12:01:50-55

12:56 He stopped in here one day and said, “do you want a piece of this? I’m going to be riding 86 hours and breaking the world record,” for his first spin. And I said, “piece of what, sir? What is this that you want a piece of this?”

12:59 LOWER THIRD Preston Boros
George’s trainer and bike shop owner

13:11 My first attempt at this particular record, I did in fact spin for 91-plus hours. However, due to some issues with regard to the log book, Guinness World Record officials denied that attempt, merely on a technicality. Obviously, with those that were here, and with the footage and so forth, certainly doesn’t dispute the fact that the record was in fact broken, so it’s kind of a second chance by design, and raising more money for yet another charity.

13:24 LOWER THIRD: George Hood
Spin Cyle Marathoner

13:39 Kathy, you wrote the numbers down, didn’t you?

13:42 Yeah.

13:44 My role with George’s group is, I guess we’ve called ourselves the hood crew now. My main function is the monitoring of the log book to make sure the entries are correct, and that there’s no discrepancies this time. Secondary functions are to make sure that his fluids are kept up, and when certain things need to be done I’ll just go in there and fill in the spot.

13:50 LOWER THIRD: Kathy Lewendowski
Custodian of the Log Book

14:08 RUNNING CLOCK: 16:23:45-16:24:00

14:09 I mean, I’m still here. You all go home and crawl into that nice warm bed. Make yourself a nice cup of warm milk. I’m still here. Go ahead, have a good time.  Don’t do it on my account.

14:25 Annika this is yours. Laryn, this is yours.

14:29 This is like the best soup I’ve ever had.

14:32 Dianne and I have had a few arguments about how much effort is going into the whole record-breaking joggling thing, because it hasn’t generated one cent for us. And, we’re trying to raise two kids, and make a living. There’s a bit of a struggle where I have had to justify my records and the time I spend joggling.

14:37 LOWER THIRD: Michal Kapral
Joggler

14:49 Some people gamble. Some people do drugs. I guess I joggle.

15:06 There were times when Michal’s training would put certain strains on our relationship. There were times I’d wake up in the morning at 4 or 5 and he wouldn’t be there. And I would wonder - where did he go? And then I’d realize – “oh, he’s probably gone for a joggle”.

15:20 So yeah. There were times when it was a bit of a strain. But we’ve spent some time discussing scheduling and I think we’re finally…the last year’s been good.

15:25 LOWER THIRD: Dianne Kapral
Michal’s wife

15:31 It’s always funny when you have an argument about joggling.

15:37 He has a cow in his bed. Would you like to have a big cow in your bed?

15:41 No. But I do like cows.

15:45 Yeah. Just not lying in your bed at night? Oh dear oh dear, I cannot hear.

15:51 Yeah. I did a lot of my training very early in the morning in the beginning, all of it actually. At about 4 in the morning before it even got light. And a lot of it was because I didn’t want to interfere with family time, and because I didn’t want anybody to see me, because I sucked.

16:12 There were a lot of times when I questioned my sanity and my motivation. I’d sort of get this vision of myself looking down at myself from up above going like, “what are you doing?” You know, I’m there at 4:15 in the morning with these three balls, dropping them constantly. I just remember - drop, drop, drop.

16:32 It’s sort of the perfect metaphor for life because it is funny, it’s entertaining, but it’s also heart-breaking. It can be unbelievably painful, and pretty dramatic and amazing. It’s not simple. It’s not just clowning around, but it’s obviously not serious like other sports.

16:52 It can make people laugh, but it can also be like, “Wow,” you know, a lot of people tell me, “you’re an incredible athlete.” I get that when I’m running. “You’re an amazing athlete.” And I love hearing that.

17:05 Spike no. There he goes. (laughs)

17:14 A lot of people call themselves the grape guy, but it’s all wine related, you know wine makers and things like that. I think I’m the only one with the grape guy moniker with grape catching.

17:23 I just looked it up and said, “that’s a cute little name.” A lot of guys go by “the travel guy” or “the plant guy”. And I figured “grape guy” just falls in line with that. I have a logo that’s on my website. I have monogrammed shirts and hats and towels and all that kind of junk. It just works out.

17:26 LOWER THIRD: Steve Spalding
“The Grape Guy”

17:45 He’s always caught things in his mouth. He’s always done that. He did that during college with candies and cookies and whatever else. And we’d always throw stuff across the room to him like a seal. It’s always fun to throw something at someone’s head. So, he’d always done that.

17:48 LOWER THIRD: Scott Spalding
Steve’s brother and grape thrower

17:58 He just had something on his mind, he just wanted to be famous for something.

18:01 LOWER THIRD: Ed and Molly Spalding
Steve’s parents

18:04 Everybody started to understand that Spalding is the freak. He’s the one that can catch them all. And I thought, “okay, this is what I’m supposed to be doing.”

18:12 And that’s when I looked in the record book and found the grape catching thing.

18:18 [fast talking]

18:26 There you go.

18:27 The Larry King Live people called me up and asked me to break the record. And I said, “what if I don’t break it?” And she goes, “Larry doesn’t care if you break it or not, as long as it’s on the show.” So I figured what’s the worst that happens? The worst that happens is that I look like a fool on national TV. The best that happens, I break a world record. So I called up Guinness and asked them what I have to do, and they said it has to be something from Shakespeare of the Bible. Me and Shakespeare never got along, so I had a prayer that my mom taught me, the 91st Psalm, so I’m reading it. I sounded like somebody from the Exorcist.

18:30 LOWER THIRD: Fastest-Talking Woman: 603 words per minute
Fran Capo, Putnam Valley, NY

18:55 I’m reading it really fast. My five hours came. They took me in a limo. I went on the Larry King Live Show that night and broke it doing 585 words a minute. And I re-broke it in at the Guinness museum in Vegas doing 603.2 words a minute, which is 10 words a second. Actually 603.2 words in 54.2 seconds, which is actually 11 words a second, but I always say 10. But you know what? Let’s go for the 11, that’s what it really is. Okay.

19:16 I was at period in my life in the 80’s, I had gone through a divorce. And I just kind of felt worthless basically. I needed to do something. I felt like there was something out there that I could do. I needed to do the most impossible thing I could think of. It could’ve been eating bicycles. It could’ve been climbing Mt. Everest. It could’ve been anything. I just happened to be a drummer so I thought, I guess if I were a lumberjack I would’ve stayed awake for 738 hours cutting trees. So being a drummer I stayed awake 738 hours playing drums.

19:47 LOWER THIRD: Longest Drumming Marathon: 738 hours (30 days, 18 hours)
Book McAfee (1981), Nashville, TN

19:55The funny thing about the 720 goal was, it was actually 320 - it was a misprint in the book. So when I turned in mine they congratulated me for beating it by 400 hours. I said, “no, I beat it by 18”, and they said, “no, the record was 320”. I said, “well, the book said 720”. Again, that just shows you the power of the mind in reaching goals.

20:23 Now I’m ready for reciting pi.

20:26 LOWER THIRD: Most Digits of Pi Recited from Memory: 67,890
Chao Lu, Shanxi, China

20:47 LOWER THIRD: 3.141

20:39 I think that humans are created with two major responsibilities. One is to challenge the nature and the second is to challenge ourselves.

20:50 LOWER THIRD: 3.14159265358979323846264338327950288419716939937510582097494459230781640628620899862803482534211706798214808651328230664709384460955058223172535940812848111745028410270193852110555964

21:08 LOWER THIRD: Fastest Mile While Pushing an Orange with Nose: 22 minutes, 41 seconds
Ashrita Furman LaGuardia Airport, Queens, NY

21:18 I was terrible at gym. I used to cut so much that my mom had to come to school to convince the vice principal to graduate me because I had cut gym class so much. I was one of those nerdy guys. I was smart in school, but I just hated sports. And I wasn’t good at it. And you don’t want to do what you’re not good at.

21:54 Semi-eventful run. A drunk guy tried to steal one of my balls. But I just did a move sideways and avoided him. A few girls were clapping and cheering, which is always nice. A bunch of cars honked their horns. Another day home from the office.

22:15 Being short as a kid, as funny as it sounds, I think it gives you a bit of a complex. I think I still have that leftover, trying to catch up. And my sister is almost 6 years older. So I was always trying to catch up with her.

22:23 TITLE: Toronto Marathon 1999

22:30 I always liked sports, especially endurance sports. And I had this thing where I liked to suffer in these endurance sports. And I think part of that is trying to make up for, not insecurity, but problems that I had with allergies and asthma and being short, trying to overcome all this stuff. It’s like you feel like you want to prove to yourself, more than anybody, that you can do something that’s really hard.

22:31 TITLE: Toronto Marathon 2005

23:02 RUNNING CLOCK: 30:22:01-30:22:12

23:11 This is the hub right in here, the command center bathroom right in here.

23:19 I treated it earlier in the last break and the medicine seems to be kicking in so it’s helping out quite a bit. I was doing fine out there. Just a little powder to freshen it up a bit.

23:361 Not bad for 30 hours on the bike.

23:38 Physically I don’t know what’s going on inside your body, I’m not a doctor. Your heart, your kidneys. Everything. Sleep deprivation in itself. But knowing this guy, he’s not going to fail. I would be really surprised if he stopped those pedals and said I can’t do this anymore.

23:44 LOWER THIRD: Paul Oggerino
Operations Manager and friend

24:02 LOWER THIRD: 3 am practice spin
George Hood’s residence, 5 weeks before event

24:05 I can’t just hit snooze and stay in bed. I have to get up and train. I can’t gaff off a morning. I rationalize it – actually, this will go to the mental discipline of being able to stay up as part of the sleep deprivation. I look at it that way and force a smile on my face, knowing I’m doing the right thing. But the neighbours, I’m sure, must think I’m nuts.

24:55 I like to be engaged. My trainer did an interview with a reporter for a paper and said quite frankly that George likes attention. He feeds off of that. And I do. Most normal people do. When you’re doing something beyond the norm, you need everything it takes. So you feed off that energy from people.

25:27 My legs were achy and getting sore, just normal wear and tear. I took care of my bottom a little bit, just taking one hour at a time right now and pushing through the night.

25:27 RUNNING CLOCK: 35:45:22-35:45:32

25:52 I guess it is a talent in a way, because I don’t practice. I do it once or twice a year, I might practice the before an event so I don’t make a fool of myself if I’ve forgotten how to do it. But other than that, it’s like breathing to me.

26:12 He wants to practice before a gig. I can’t even get that word out when he calls these things gigs.

26:18 LOWER THIRD: Scott Spalding
Steve’s brother and grape thrower

26:18 I spend approximately zero hours ever practicing or even thinking about throwing grapes. It just simply never happens.

26:25 The overall attitude: I’m like, “hey Scott let’s go practice this thing, we’ve got Grapefest coming up next week.” He’s like, [sigh] “What time, where?”

26:32 We do the Grapefest every year. I think he starts at 6:30 and he wants me there at 5:00. You’ve got to be kidding me. I’m going to be there right when some dude is saying, “Steve Spalding the grape guy,” and I’m going to walk in there with my little bag of grapes, start chunking. And when he’s done, wave and take pictures, then back in the car.

26:49 There are other throwers. It’s just really lucky to have my own brothers being really good at this.

26:55 I don’t think I’m holding him back, because where else is he going to go with it? He may be able to catch it better if I threw to him more, but I can’t see spending any time practicing doing this.

27:08 If we practiced this thing just once a week for a year, we’d be in the – oh my gosh, probably the 90-grape range, if I had to say.

27:23 Spikey, you’re a cool dude. You’re a cool dog.

27:33 LOWER THIRD: Most Dominoes Toppled: 111,111
Robert Speca (originator, 1974), Philadelphia, PA

27:38 The ones like these that I travel with are just in my basement. The other 280,000 are in my mom’s basement. She’s got some room there. They’re all stacked up against the wall up to the ceiling. They just sit there usually, waiting for the day when somebody says, “we’re going to set off the world record.”

28:03 3-2-1

28:03 LOWER THIRD: Most Cherry Stems Tied With Tongue in 1 Hour: 911
Al Gliniecki (holds 3 add’l cherry stem records), Gulf Breeze, FL

28:09 As far as my tongue size, it’s just normal and flexible. The thing about it is that it just doesn’t get tired.

28:18 I’m not going to elaborate on that.

28:28 I’m going to pick it up.

28:32 Now let’s see. Hello?

28:35 Every person can have a world record for something. You can be so good at something that you can be the best in the world. Even being a good person, that’s quite a skill. And some won’t make it to the list of records, but they still may be a great inspiration for people around you. And by using that gift that you have, the talent, by being the best at something, you actually make the world a better place.

28:35 LOWER THIRD: Smallest Telephone: 1.8 x 0.3 x 0.8 inches
Fr. Jan Piotr Krutewicz, Zion, IL

28:09 I can hear somebody on the other line and I think you did dial the wrong number. It’s the world’s smallest telephone. It is. We can talk, and now we can hang up.

29:25 RUNNING CLOCK: 56:03:30-56:03:51

29:45 George loves attention. One of the things I remember when George and I first met and were talking, he was like, “it’s always about me. It will always be about me.” I said, “okay, fine.”

29:47 LOWER THIRD: Kathy Lewendowski
Custodian of the Log Book

29:58 Kathy is the custodian of the records as I’ve termed it. So she’s been very helpful. She was very inspired by the first event and to that extent I’m very happy she’s involved. Because the event obviously did something for her, as it did for countless other people.

30:13 It’s pretty funny. A lot of people have asked us if we’re married. I always say no, we are just friends. Every time, more and more people have asked, and he seems to get a little more upset with it.

30:24 She’s a friend. We met a couple of years ago. We’re not close. We don’t spend time together. But she’s definitely involved in this event and I’ve kind of relied on her and I know when to expect her there. She knows her role.

30:40 He’s admitted to me that he likes having me there, but I’m not sure if it’s me he likes having there or if he likes having someone there. It just so happens it’s me, and he has to take it for what it is.

30:55 I’m not paying anybody. I make that quite clear from the get-go. I can’t pay you. At best I might be able to get you a cup of coffee, maybe a t-shirt, but I can’t pay you. And they understand that from the get-go. I’m not getting paid so I can say that in good faith.

31:09 Why do they do what they do? I sense that they are moved by the experience.

31:14 You know, maybe like the Pied Piper, he’s played a tune and we’ve all jumped on board. Part of it, I think, is because – it’s the feeling. It’s the feeling that so many people are involved, so many people from different places that have come together for this, and I think that’s something I wanted to be part of.

31:28 LOWER THIRD: July 4th Parade Promotion
2 weeks before event

31:40 George is an inspiration in a way where you look at him and you see what he can accomplish. Not everybody in the world can be this close, I guess I should say, to something like this.

31:50 LOWER THIRD: Paul Oggerino
Operations Manager and friend

31:52 There are no agendas here, as much as people sometimes might try to find one, there are no agendas. I’m doing a world record attempt for personal achievement, but in conjunction with trying to make this fundraising effort bigger than life.

32:07 It’s not because of my personality. I’m part of it, but it’s the event. That’s the spirit I’ve built with these things, and they’ve become bigger than life. But, you know, that’s what I’ve been about, trying to do something unique so that they’ll never ever forget.

32:26 We believe in what he does, as crazy as it seems, and some people might think there’s something wrong with us, those followers, you know. But we’ll see what happens.

32:42 RUNNING CLOCK: 69:24:03-69:69:24:45

32:47 It’s about 4:30 in the morning. And we just came out of a rest break. Actually, I took a little nap there. I want to have a little energy going into Friday, which is today, knowing what I have to do tonight again. To survive this night was critical and I’m just going to wait for the sun to come up and we’ll call it a day. Just going to kick it and get this day finished.

33:36 We both had numerous things in the paper, pictures in the paper. On the internet. The internet has gone crazy with it. The Best Damn Sports Show, we’ve been on that. We’re both going to be going on that again soon. MSNBC has ran stuff on us.

33:37 LOWER THIRD: Most Phonebooks Ripped in 3 Minutes: 55 his, 21 hers
Ed and Tina Shelton, Escondido, CA

34:52 The Today Show. Oh. I was a Jeopardy question a couple of weeks ago. And it was the thousand dollar question. And the question was, in 2006 Ed Shelton ripped 55 of these in 3 minutes, and the guy got the answer right. Jeopardy.

34:13 Ready, set, go.

34:16 LOWER THIRD: Fastest Mile on a Kangaroo Ball: 15 minutes, 3 seconds
Ashrita Furman, The Great Wall of China

34:50 I remember. We got a call from a reporter after Michal set the world record in 2005 for the world’s fastest joggling marathon. And the reporter said, “the record has been broken.” And we said, “what?”

34:52 LOWER THIRD: Dianne Kapral
Michal’s wife

35:09 I figured I’d have it in the bag for a while and then three months later I got a call from a reporter saying, “how do you feel about this guy Zach Warren breaking your record?”

35:09 LOWER THIRD: Toronto Marathon 2005

35:20 So we found out about Zach Warren and that he had run a faster time than Michal by about 40 seconds from a reporter.

35:33 Michal emailed him and congratulated him and challenged him online to a race.

35:38 No.

35:39 Isn’t that what happened?

35:40 No he called me.

35:45 Almost the first reaction I had to it was, I challenge Zach to a duel.

35:52 Michal goes and breaks the record in Toronto. I break it in Philadelphia and then he challenges me to a duel in the press and we meet up in Boston and knock each other down.

35:54 LOWER THIRD: Zach Warren
Joggler

35:54 LOWER THIRD: 2005 Toronto, Michal 03:07:46.
35:55 LOWER THIRD: 2005 Toronto, Michal 03:07:46.
35:57 LOWER THIRD: 2005 Philadelphia, Zach 03:07:05

36:02 I ran a 2:58:23 and he ran a 3:06:45, and I figured with that much leeway that I’d have the record for a little while, I thought I could relax. And then this guy Michal rises up again, I can’t stop him, and he breaks my record on a flat course in Toronto. So I have to get him back.

36:03 LOWER THIRD: 2006 Boston     Michal 03:06:45
Zach 02:58:23

36:14 LOWER THIRD: 2006 Boston     Michal 03:06:45
Zach 02:58:23
                        
36:16 LOWER THIRD: 2006 Toronto Michal 02:57:39
     
36:21 You know I just have to break it because he’s my friend, and I just can’t let him have that record very long.

36:26 If I break it in Philly, he’s going to challenge me to another joggling duel in the press. He’s just not going to give up, that guy, you know?

36:33 I think on Sunday we’ll be watching. And I wouldn’t be surprised if he breaks it. And I don’t like to see people not meet their goals, so if he breaks it, great for him. But I think Michal’s going to come right back.

37:48 I can’t wait to see the result. If he can break that I’ll be really happy for him because I know what he has to go through to do that.

37:02 TITLE: Philadelphia Marathon

37:06 Today is the perfect day to break a world record. If I don’t break it on this perfect day I’ll have to find another perfect day.

37:34 TITLE: Official Time 2:15:15, Zach beats Michal’s record by 5 minutes, 24 seconds.

37:53 Hey, buddy man. How you doing?  I think I got it.

38:01 I asked him if we were on for a duel, and he said, “yeah.”

38:05 Are we on? For another duel? Alright. You got it man.

38:12 Yeah. He was just really excited.

38:16 Chip time, 2:52:15. That’s good.

38:23 Yes. 2:52.

38:26 This will be my fastest marathon period. So, that’s great. That’s really good news.

38:33 I think Michal is going to have a tough time with this one. That’s just my guess. Yeah. I think Michal’s going to have a tough time.

38:48 LOWER THIRD: Most Concrete Blocks Broken in 1 minute: 700
Narve Laeret (Holds 9 add’l block-breaking records)
Vestfold, Norway

38:52 I break blocks, concrete blocks, with my hands and with my head.

39:58 It’s short lived, the joy, because just after you set a world record you have a real rush and you’re satisfied. And you get a certificate saying you’re the best in the world. And 5 minutes later you’re just thinking about the next record and how can I achieve more than the last one.

39:17 Some day I probably won’t do it anymore because my body is too old or out of shape, but as long as I’m up and running I’m going to keep on breaking records.

39:29 I’m a left handed person, been that way my whole life. But my left hand will not produce a snap needed to break the record. Here’s an idea of what I can do with my left hand.

39:31 LOWER THIRD: Loudest Finger Snap: 108 decibels
Bob “Snap Daddy” Hatch, Pasadena, CA

39:45 Now here’s my right hand.

39:50 As a kid, you see the Guinness Book, and you read it, and you see a lot of interesting things. And I never really gave it much thought of getting in it myself until people always told me how loud my snap was, which came from my dad’s side. My grandfather was very loud.

40:08 I’ve given out challenges on radio shows and no one has ever accepted it. So after several tries to have someone to compete with, it hasn’t happened yet. So I’m still waiting.

40:22 Cool day today. It’s about half throttle.

40:35 I got an email from Paul Tavilla’s nephew. Here’s what it said. “Hi Steve, I can respect your accomplishments, but honestly I truly believe that my Uncle Paul Tavilla is a legend in himself. I think you two should set up something and settle this once and for all as to who the real grape catcher is. Keep in mind that he’s 71 years old and still has it going.”

41:04 Many people ask him, “Paul, how did you ever get into catching grapes in your mouth?”

41:09 TITLE: Paul Tavilla self-promotional video 1992

41:16 As long as Paul can remember, he always threw things up in the air and caught them in his mouth.

41:28 LOWER THIRD: Shawmut Bank Building, Boston, MA 1985
520 feet, 5 inches

41:32 Steve, if you’re listening to this, I don’t know you. I’m quite sure you’re a gentleman, and you’re a nice person. But you’re talking to the champ. And if it wasn’t for me you wouldn’t even be in this thing.

41:43 He wouldn’t know anything about a grape if it wasn’t for me, OK? So I’m the one who made you famous, not you. You didn’t make yourself famous.

41:43 LOWER THIRD: Paul Tavilla
“The Grape Catcher”

41:49 These are the 7 records that I received from Guinness so I put them all in one frame. These are 3 records that I caught on the ground from a football field. And these 4 are from buildings.

42:02 Of what I’ve seen him catching grapes, he goes all over the place. I don’t do that. I don’t go after grapes. I don’t do that.

42:10 I don’t go all over the place.

42:13 He moves his body around. That’s not how you catch grapes. I’ll teach him.

42:18 He’s talking to the master when it comes to that stuff.

42:20 How many did I catch from the side? You see from the side? And I showed it to you. I’m trained to do that.

42:27 I’m not afraid of it. I know the science of catching it and how to do it with my eyes. I’m not the champ for nothing.

42:34 I’m not boasting. I’m good at what I do.

42:41 He’s hacked off, the bottom line is, because I’m going after the record that he’s had forever, which never existed. That’s what is so bogus about this. He’s upset over something that he never had in the first place. And that’s just crazy to me.

42:50 TITLE In Steve’s ongoing quest to claim every grape-catching record, he will attempt to break Paul Tavilla’s land distance record of 327 feet, 6 inches.

42:58 The reason why I don’t think he broke the record initially is because, it’s more of a common sense thing. If you can find that someone can throw a grape 110 yards, that’s just outlandish to me. I don’t see how that’s possible. Two, there’s no video from Guinness. He didn’t have a video of it.

43:10 LOWER THIRD     Tavilla’s record
327 feet

43:17 There’s just three or four different things. And I talked to my SMU Physics people. They did it on paper. The human body, you can’t do it.

43:25 So Steve didn’t believe that anybody can throw it 109 yards, apart from his own experience. He tried it and couldn’t do it. And so I spent a couple of hours this week just running that through the computer to see what it what it looked like, and if it was possible to do that. Or what it would take to do that.

43:25 LOWER THIRD: Paul Krueger
SMU Engineering Professor

43:44 We’re going to try to distil it down to its basics. What we’ve got is this sphere.

43:49 Now lift, if we’re able to get lift, will help us a little bit because it can counteract gravity.

43:53 Except that now there’s a different coefficient.

43:57 6 over 1 plus the square root of the Reynolds Number.

43:59 37.8, 37.7 degrees.

44:03 Acceleration and gravity versus drag.

44:07 With a giant strong man and ton of wind, yeah I think you probably could. But that would be some kind of man that can throw a grape one hundred miles per hour though.

44:17 I just don’t see it happening. I don’t see anybody throwing it that far. I just don’t get it. Nah. I don’t see it at all.

44:25 They said no device is allowed to throw the grape. It has to be from human hand. Well, I said you might want to consider a rule change with this record because now we’re trying to find people who can throw it that far.

44:36 You’re not testing the longest grape catch. You’re looking for the longest grape throw. That doesn’t seem right. So I’m thinking you should consider having some sort of device and you can decide what the device should be. They considered it and they said, “okay. We will allow a non-mechanical device to launch the grape.” So I’m looking at one of those long three-man slingshots.

44:59 TITLE: Trial Grape Launch, 7 days to record attempt

45:01 Okay. Here we come. 1, 2, 3.

45:06 I don’t give a damn what it is. You don’t get help from any machine to throw any grape to a man. That’s not breaking a record. That’s not human achievement. It takes two people. The man that throws it gets into Guinness. And the man that catches it gets into Guinness. The guy that uses a slingshot should not get into Guinness.

45:27 The slingshot should go into the Guinness Book of World Records.

45:29 I’m glad that Guinness at least came to the party and said that you shouldn’t be tested on your ability to find a thrower. You should be able to get it there however you can and be able to catch it. That’s the whole thing. And they’re right about that.

45:42 If he uses a slingshot, I want it documented with the news there that can watch what he did and where it was shot from. There’s no way, I’ll put him away. Trust me. I’m 73 years old and I’ll stick him up my behind. Trust me.

45:59 I think because of Tavilla’s personality and the way he’s handling this, it’s kind of making me react to it a little bit differently. Because basically I’m kind of quasi-being attacked. So, in a way I have a right to defend myself.

46:11 I can adjust. I can be an ass if he wants me to be. I just think it’s goofy to go through all of this. But, yeah. If he wants to go to war, we go to war.

46:22 We’re gonna do this. The old man is going down. The old man is going down.

46:30 LOWER THIRD: Most Drum Beats in One Minute: 1,071
Johnny Rabb, Nashville, TN

46:36 Everyone loves a world record, I think. I don’t care if it’s the two big guys on two motorcycles from a long time ago, the world’s biggest twins on bikes or whatever that’s called. I don’t know how they trained for that record or if they just were themselves. But it definitely helps to have it, because when it comes down to, let’s face, it – “world record holder, Johnny Rabb, is going to be appearing at so-and-so,” what’s happened is not only the drummers come out to see what this is about, but then the public also - it’s a public interest story.

47:13 RUNNING CLOCK: 81:34:36-81:34:53

47:23 You see, folks, I’ve got a real good excuse. I’ve been up for about four and a half days now. I’ve only had about 15 minutes of sound sleep. I awoke from that with such energy that I just haven’t stopped. When you’re awake for so many days, things slow down. You have a hard time multi-tasking and things are a little blurry and remembering what you say from one point to the next.

47:53 The attention I had as a kid, I’ve always liked it. It goes with wanting to know that what I was doing was good enough. I had to have people pay attention to it and give feedback.

48:07 I think as a kid I wish my dad would’ve let me play basketball on the team more than he played the other guys.

48:20 I just dealt with it. I think it all goes to the fact that I wasn’t good enough and had to always strive to be better, to be the best.

48:29 His father was the coach of the basketball team that George was on and never let George play. I asked him about it, and said, “George, your dad never let you play?” And he’s like, “no, I sat on the bench the whole time because I was never good enough.”

48:38 TITLE: George Hood Sr. arrives at the event.

48:48 Now it all makes sense to me when I look at the things he does, or has been doing, since I’ve known him, is to prove “I am good enough”.

48:50 LOWER THIRD: Kathy Lewendowski
Custodian of the Log Book

48:58 Many of the folks around here are going to come here to Five Seasons and try to keep my butt up, my sore butt up, for the next – my last – overnight experience. In the meantime several key supporters from here will be going to pick up Mr. Scott Christie from London who will be here. He’ll be here this evening for a brief from the staff.

49:37 And tomorrow he’ll adjudicate this thing right here at Five Seasons, and there will be no mailing of documents and all that other stuff. We’ll just adjudicate it right here and be done with it. And everybody will be happy.

49:42 TITLE: Guinness representative arrives from London.

49:48 We introduce our special guest. from across the pond in London.

49:53 It’s really interesting whenever you turn up for a record. For this one, when I turned up, I got told that I was going to have a police escort and I thought they were being a little bit funny about it. It’s amazing how much respect people have for Guinness World Records - and rightly so.

49:57 LOWER THIRD: Scott Christie
Guinness World Records Adjudicator

50:08 A big round of applause for Mr. Christie, folks.

50:12 Every year I go to around about five or six events. It’s kind of like celebrity, because people are so desperate to do this. I mean it is a real cachet to get a Guinness World Record all around the world. They know that we’re there with our Guinness World Records adjudicator’s cap on, and if we see anything, even though they’re there, even though there are lots of other people there, we have to say, “sorry, that’s not the record.” We have to say that.

50:40 Hey George, how you getting on?

50:42 How am I getting on? I’m very, uh . .

50:45 You’re looking good for a guy who’s been cycling for 86.5 hours.

50:50 He’s done 80 hours.

50:52 That’s correct.

50:54 You do realize with the time you’ve done you have now officially broken the Guinness World Record for the longest time cycling on a stationary bike.
 
51:09 Now obviously, later on when you’ve come to your final time we’ll do another official presentation, but just to let you see, this is now officially a Guinness World Record. Congratulations, George.

51:29 Now, you’ve got to keep on going.  You’re still 100 hours on the bike.

51:34 Yes Sir!

51:35 Now what we also need is all of you all is to really help him to get to what he wants to do. He’s already a world record holder. Let’s see him set a record that nobody else can beat. So keep on going. Ladies and gentleman George Hood Guinness World Record holder.

52:07 I have so many of you to thank. I’ll have remarks for you tomorrow. We know what we have to do, let’s go to work.

52:17 RUNNING CLOCK: 86:34:11-86:34:34

52:25 I want to spin for a hundred hours, that’s a century ride. That should equate out to about 109 hours. Total time. So I have a lot of work to do ahead of me.

52:43 It’s hard to believe at first when you realize, I don’t know, there’s, what, 6 billion people in the world, 6.5 billion people in the world. It feels good, and it’s a cool feeling when you get that certificate in the mail, to go, “Wow, I’m the best in the world at three things now.”

52:43 LOWER THIRD: Longest Bag-Punching Marathon: 36 hours
Ron Sarchian (holds 3 add’l kicking and punching records), Encino, CA

53:03 Like I said, for 36 hours this is pretty much, you know, what I did.

53:10 It would be nice if a cheque for $100,000 came with the certificate. That’s what my friends always say: “You’ve got to find a way to make money with those things.”

53:23 Ready? - Yea!  - Hold on!

53:31 We both agree, you know we’re both on the same page, maybe we should find something that I could channel my energies into that will actually make some money, because it gets to the point where you’re putting so much effort in to it.

53:47 You get a lot out of it, a lot of people have raised a lot of money for charity.

53:52 But, um, it’s hard to live when you’re struggling to keep up with the finances and spending all this time joggling.

54:05 It becomes a bit irrelevant at a certain point.

54:12 In some ways, we’d like to finally see it come to a rest. And to a conclusion.

54:20 I don’t think you or Zach want to be the one to say, “All right. It’s yours.”

54:26 LOWER THIRD: Dianne Kapral
Michal’s wife

54:28 Yeah, it’s hard to do.

54:34 Thanks a lot, David.

54:33 All right everyone, as if running a marathon isn’t difficult enough.

54:38 Right?

54:39 Try doing it while juggling. And it’s not just kind of some spoofy thing going on - it’s “joggling” as it’s called, it says here on the balls. Now you guys do this for charity.

54:47 This is Michal Kapral and this is Zach Warren - they’re going to duel it out for the World Record, right?

54:54 That’s right.

54:54 In joggling, right?

54:55 That’s right. Zach holds the World Record right now: 2 hours and 52 minutes

54:59 And 15 seconds.

55:00 And 15 seconds.

55:07
TITLE: Jogging Marathon Rules
·    Joggler must juggle every step.
·    If Joggler drops a ball, he must resume joggling from behind the drop point.
·    Joggler may use any three objects, provided they are juggled in a cascade pattern.

55:23 TITLE: Salt Lake City Marathon

55:32 TITLE: world record pace -00:40, 23 miles remaining

55:43 TITLE: world record pace -01:54, 20 miles remaining

55:51 I feel pressure, because it’s again me chasing Zach’s record, just like it was in Boston. And the fact that Zach beat me soundly last time, I think there’s a lot of pressure now for me to take the record back, and I don’t know if I’ll be joggling another marathon. This could be my last chance.

55:59 TITLE: world record pace -02:10, 17 miles remaining

56:26 TITLE: world record pace -02:17, 14 miles remaining

56:30 You can’t do these things forever, so you can’t joggle forever and you know, everything has its natural ending and this - if it seems like it to him - that’s fine.

56:43 TITLE: Michal takes the lead at the water station.

56:49 I don’t think I’ll miss it. I think, in some senses it’s going to be a relief, because he’s a little obsessed. And I love seeing his commitment to something, but it just never seems to stop!

56:56 TITLE: world record pace -01:58, 10 miles remaining

57:08 TITLE: world record pace -01:03, 7 miles remaining

57:08 It’s starting to take its toll, and just dominating my life, so this might be my last shot.

57:32 TITLE: world record pace -00:26 to +00:07, 3 miles remaining

58:42 TITLE: Official Time 2:53:28, Michal misses the record by 1 minute, 13 seconds.

58:55 I missed the record, but I did my best. I gave it absolutely everything I had and there was no way I could have run faster today.

59:08 Around 22, I pulled ahead when he stopped again, and then he never caught up. But I just couldn’t catch his record - so I guess I won the battle, but he won the war.

59:10 TITLE: Official Time 2:57:02, Zach finishes 3 minutes, 34 seconds behind Michal

59:22 At mile 24, I just said, I can’t be doing this again. It’s too much.

59:30 Beautiful course - I wish I, uh, I wish I weren’t hallucinating, I could enjoy it more.

59:35 I wish your record was 2:54. At the end I was like “Why did Zach have to run 2:52! I just need another minute!”

59:43 When I see him coming and the cheers come out, how do I feel right then? I feel - I always feel very proud. And excited! Just really excited. I usually just want to scream and yell loud enough so that he can hear me. Because I want him to know that we’re there.

59:59 I only missed the record by a minute and a bit which is, I feel actually great about that. And, uh, yeah. I gave it everything I had. This is a tough business, trying to break this kind of record. You can’t win them all. I, uh, I guess I gotta be happy with what I did. And I’m not sure if I’ll do this again. Honestly.

01:00:26 TITLE: Michal finished the marathon in 13th place overall. Zach finished 18th, but his record would stand.

01:00:34 Number 2, “What was government by intimidation as originally in the Oxford English Dictionary? Was it “cult”, “coup”, “dictatorship”, or “terrorism”?

01:00:39 LOWER THIRD: Longest Radio Trivia Broadcast: 30 hours
Wilson Casey, Spartanburg, SC

01:00:42 When you set a world record, the common myth is that Guinness is going to write you a half-a-million-dollar cheque or something. No, they don’t! You don’t get anything - just the satisfaction that you were there, and did that. And I commend anyone, even if they don’t set a record, but to try! At least you tried. I mean, to me, that’s what life is, it’s trying. If you don’t try, I mean, it’s over.

01:01:08 The correct answer is… what do you think? It was “terrorism”. Oooh, terrorism.

01:01:15 Ready. Set. Go.

01:01:16 LOWER THIRD: Most Apples Cut Mid-Air with a Samurai Sword in 1 Minute: 27
Ashrita Furman, Jamaica, Queens, NY

01:01:22 You know, recently there was an interesting case where I heard that there was a young girl, I think an 8-year-old girl, who was going after this pogo stick jump rope record. And now, that was a tremendous conflict with me, but I think, “OK, if this kid breaks this record there’s no way, I can’t do it. I just can’t do that.” But, as it turns out, she did a different record. Jumping rope on a pogo stick - I think longest time continuously. It wasn’t for the record I have - the most jumps in a minute. I don’t know - but I wouldn’t have done that.

01:01:52 fifteen, sixteen, se-, seventeen

01:02:01 LOWER THIRD: Fastest Banjo Player: 210 beats per minute
Todd Taylor, Palm Bay, FL

01:02:05 That was good, yeah!

01:02:08 To prepare for something like the World Record - when I did it, I worked on it for probably 7 months, of playing nothing but that song, over and over and over.  Playing Duelling Banjos over and over and over and over for 6 months, every day, for 4 to 5 hours a day, and did nothing else but that. And, you know, there’s just a lot of these records that’s out there, that people prepare for to do the same thing. And I mean, it’s pretty . . . a lot of people don’t understand that. How much it takes, that time that it takes to do that kind of stuff.

01:02:51 RUNNING CLOCK 99:33:59-99:34:25

01:03:08 I just want to finish, man. I want to go home.

01:03:17 I’m very sore. There’s considerable chafing going on, that’s manifesting itself in a very sore ass. You know, there’s just no getting around it. I want to be ready to finish strong for these kids and this whole event. I guess now the end’s in sight, no? I suppose, right.

01:03:41 It’s a suffering pain. Because it’s not like it’s a short jab, it lingers. And I’m very sore. I’m sore and I’m tired. It’s just so sore.

01:04:55 My parents - growing up as a kid - I was an achiever at age 8! I was always trying to do things to please my parents, you know - and still, nothing was ever good enough. Nothing was ever good enough!

01:04:10 And I kept trying, you know. Did this. Did that. Got the lead in the school play. Became president of my fraternity. Nothing was ever good enough. “Well, why can’t you be like so-and-so.” Because I’m me! You know?

01:04:29 And now, I’ve kind of set myself apart and I think that’s probably a huge psychological reason why I do what I do, and why I’ve done what I’ve done. I’ve always pushed the envelope. Looking back over my shoulder, you know - are mom and dad happy?

01:04:47 [SONG LYRICS] Hello neighbor, good day friend. / It’s been a while since we crossed paths like this. / My feet are moving, you’re sitting still. / I feel I’ve arrived when you ask me where I’ve been. / All those towns look the same. We’re all trapped despite our better ways. / Are we lovers or just ghosts. /  It seems to me we’re a little of both.

01:04:56 TITLE: Kiwanis Kids arrive at the event to support George.

01:05:59 RUNNING CLOCK: 99:99:57-100:00:05

01:06:09 3, 2, 1, 0. There he goes!

01:06:17 I raised my kids in the circus. And doing this, this is the best show in the circus, so their Daddy was, when they were little, a hero to them. The one that’s talked about. I’ve signed old ladies’ Bibles. And for a minute or two you’re something special to them and I like being able to do that.

01:06:19 LOWER THIRD: Longest Distance Traveled as a Human Cannonball: 185 feet, 10 inches
David Smith, Owatonna, MN

01:06:53 The whole point is for me is like, my spiritual quest. I’ve somehow gotten into this thing where I use the Guinness Records to make progress in my spiritual life. It’s a discipline for me. It’s a way to use my meditation practice to really focus in and really be one-pointed.

01:06:59 LOWER THIRD: Longest Time Juggling Underwater without a Drop: 48 minutes, 36 seconds
Ashrita Furman, Auckland, New Zealand

01:07:13 LOWER THIRD: Fastest 8K Stilt Walk: 39 minutes, 56 seconds
Ashrita Furman, Xiamen, China

01:07:15 It’s a whole process, starting a record. Not being able to do the record at all, like starting from zero, and then figuring out how to do it, practicing, and getting better and better at it and then finally breaking the record in the end.

01:07:17 LOWER THIRD: Fastest Mile While Balancing Milk Bottle on Head: 7 Minutes, 47 seconds
Ashrita Furman, Jamaica, Queens, NY

01:07:22 LOWER THIRD: Most Milk Crates Balanced on Chin (by weight): 88 Pounds
Ashrita Furman, Jamaica, Queens, NY

01:07:30 And the records are so hard for me, that I never actually know whether on any given event I’m actually going to break the record or not.  So really it’s always a big question, so when I do break the record I’m totally thrilled.

01:07:44 It’s very difficult to become jaded or bored when you work for Guinness World Records. And there are moments where do you kind of, stop yourself, I think, particularly in the role of a judge sometimes, and you’re just like “What’s going on here exactly? How is it that I’m here at the centre of all this action and these people are doing amazing things?”

01:08:00 LOWER THIRD: Stuart Claxton
Guinness World Records Chief Adjudicator

01:08:11 It’s more than just Guinness World Records, it’s about people coming together to do something special and different, and come hell or high water they’ll come about it.

01:08:27 Well, I slept fine, but I got up this morning, you get the little butterflies going on. I guess it’s just like any other sporting event - I played sports my whole life - so you get up before game day and you get the same feelings...

01:08:42 TITLE: Land Distance Grape Catch Rules
·    Grape may not be altered to aid its flight
·    Grape must be thrown and caught on level ground
·    Grape must be launched by the human hand or a human-powered device   

01:08:42 So I kind of know how it’s going to feel. But my main concern is going down the throat. Hopefully one of these will be the one that is launched out of that slingshot in to my mouth. And me living through it. But we’ll see.

01:09:02 I don’t think Steve will ever stop doing it. I mean, there’s no reason for him to stop doing it. Again, this is what he does. He just won’t. And he’s fortunate enough that he has a wife that just kind of goes, “Whatever. Go play with your grapes.”

01:09:12 LOWER THIRD: Scott Spalding
Steve’s brother and grape thrower

01:09:14  LOWER THIRD: Launch #1

01:09:22 He always thinks that everyone has some hidden talent. Well, I guess he found this one and said “Hey! I can do this better than anyone.” Yea, honey. Yea you can.

01:09:25 LOWER THIRD: Launch #9

01:09:32 LOWER THIRD: Denise Spalding
Steve’s wife

01:09:36 LOWER THIRD: Launch #18

01:09:40 If there’s a record legitimate for Guinness Book of World Records to have anything to do at all with grape catching, he’s got somebody else down the back of his neck, and that’s me.

01:09:47 LOWER THIRD: Paul Tavilla
“The Grape Catcher”

01:09:55 Part of what gives him the ability to break the records is that he is absolutely single-minded. He’s got a one-track mind. He doesn’t listen to anybody else. He doesn’t care what other people say. Listen, I bust his balls more than anybody. I mean, it is at Christmas, it’s at Thanksgiving - I’m looking forward to Thanksgiving just for the fact that I can bust his balls. To me, that’s part of my sport - to be able to do that. You know, it’s grape catching! So that’s just the way it is. No, he just has a passion for it, that’s his thing.

01:10:27 Uh, it hit about the 8 yard line.

01:10:28 I will guarantee you, as I feel today, he’ll have a job on his hand trying to beat me, trust me. He will not put me out in that area. Never.

01:10:41 LOWER THIRD: Launch #27
01:10:50 LOWER THIRD: Launch #34

01:10:51 Did you see it?

01:11:12 Well, I didn’t see it.

01:11:13 LOWER THIRD: Launch #43

01:11:22 If he can do it, I can do it better. I know that for a fact. And that’s not bragatocious. I know what I can do.

01:11:31 LOWER THIRD: Launch #59

01:11:31 All right, right at you, right at you.

01:11:37 TITLE: 334 feet, 2 inches, 6’8: farther than Paul Tavilla’s catch

01:11:57 The old man went down. The old man is down.

01:12:02 TITLE: The use of the slingshot was deemed a legal aid to Steve’s world record attempt.

01:12:05 TITLE: The use of the tennis balls was not.

01:12:09 TITLE: Steve’s world record attempt was consequently denied by Guinness World Records

01:12:15 TITLE: Paul Tavilla’s land distance world record of 327 feet, 6 inches still stands

01:12:49 TITLE: Toronto Marathon, 6 months later

01:12:56 Never trust anything anyone says after they’ve just finished a marathon.

01:13:00 I thought of that minute - and however many seconds - many times, as soon as I finished. And when about the pacing, and how I pushed it a bit too hard to try to keep up with Zach, and I thought: I know I can do better than that.

01:13:20 Dianne was actually the one who came to me and said, “look, you were one minute off, that’s too close. You have to do it again. Do it in Toronto. You’ll be at home. Give it another shot.”

01:13:35 And so here I am.

01:14:10 TITLE: Official Time 2:50:09, Michal reclaims the world record.

01:14:30 So happy!

01:15:18 RUNNING CLOCK: 110:33:18

01:15:31 TITLE: George takes his final break.

01:15:46 Boy, I outta just walk out the front door and catch a cab and go the hell home. You know what I’m saying?

01:15:51 I set the new record last night and tonight I’m going to set the new record at 111 hours, and it’s over.

01:16:00 What George gets out of the event it’s kind of like, they like me. They really really like me. He gets those moments of people liking him and making him feel better about himself.

01:16:02 LOWER THIRD: Kathy Lewendowski
Custodian of the Log Book

01:16:24 I think deep down inside he’s got to prove something that sticks in there, until maybe he dies - saying, “I’m around, and this is what I accomplished, and I have it, year after year of proof.”

01:16:38 LOWER THIRD: Preston Boros
George’s trainer and bike shop owner

01:16:43 It gives that permanent record that people can reach out and grab a hold of that they might not otherwise be able to because you can’t reach out and touch my certificate. But you can reach out and touch a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records.

01:16:57 The certificate is in my house. The book is throughout the world. I think that’s where he’s coming from. Maybe it’s all part of that drive, or that fame, that you want when you’re that type of personality.

01:17:00 LOWER THIRD: Paul Oggerino
Operations Manager and friend

01:17:13 It’s a temporary fix of a deeper need. He gets that rush and he feels good about everything, but then it’s over with.

01:17:31 The happiness with the event is in the moment, but it’s fleeting. He’s chasing it.

01:17:53 For one moment in time I had the record and was able to get published. And that just has some meaning.

01:18:05 It’s over now.

01:18:09 You’ll never, ever, experience anything like you experienced tonight.

01:18:18 I’m just happy and proud to have been part of your life. And for Kiwanis, you’re welcome.

01:18:30  RUNNING CLOCK 110:10:01-111:11:11

01:19:19 TITLE: 16 days later, Tasmanian Eddy Kontelj broke George Hood’s record.

01:19:22 TITLE: By 21 hours.

01:19:23 Eddy will now dismount the bike for the final time.

01:19:38 My name is Eddy Kontelj. I am a bike rider. This is what I do.

01:19:49 Go nuts!

01:19:50 I love you.

01:20:16  TITLE: 10 months later, George Hood reclaimed the record at 177 hours, 45 minutes.

01:20:33 TITLE: And George was finally published in the Guinness World Records book.

01:20:413 Why do I break world records? Because I can.

01:20:45 And, it sets me apart for that one brief moment in time. If I can have that glory for that moment then I want it. And I take it and I enjoy it, knowing full well that somebody else is going to come along and break it and move on.

01:20:58 It’s given me a sense of peace with regard to what I’m capable of doing physically and emotionally on behalf of others. It’s certainly brought even an understanding of my home life - growing up - as far as understanding why. Why have I done what I’ve done? And to just get that validation where, you know, I am doing the right thing.

01:21:24 TITLE: Soon after recapturing his world record, Michal accepted a job as editor-in-chief of Canadian Running Magazine.

01:21:30 TITLE: Michal is currently training to set another marathon record, running backwards.

01:21:37 Here we go. There it is. The record for the fastest marathon while joggling three objects is held by Michael Kapral, Canada. It looks great except for the misspelled first name. Maybe I’ll have to get some whiteout. To be framed - once I get one with my name spelled right.

01:22:03 TITLE: Paul Tavilla continues to hold the land distance record in grape-catching, which Steve has presently abandoned.

01:22:09 Instead, Steve will attempt the vertical record – and is avidly searching for helicopter pilots willing to drop grapes.

01:22:15 Well, here’s our merchandise, various shirts, towels, hats.

01:22:20 This is one of our very first shirts.

01:22:22 This was our first high-end shirt. It’s - oh gosh - 100% cotton.

01:22:28 You can see it’s a monster towel…

01:22:30 This is the hat.

01:22:32 Open mouth, insert grape. Repeat.

01:22:36 No, I haven’t sold anything. Except the ones I bought myself, of course.

01:22:46 My dad, for a while, he always does this thing - and I love him to death - but he’s like, “Hey, nice to meet you. You know, he’s the world’s fastest drummer.” And I’d be like, “Dad!” Because it would be at the barber, where old men are reading newspapers or something. But what makes me happy is that my dad was proud. And that’s cool.

01:23:07 We all share the same trait, in that we don’t give up. No one can tell us that we can’t do something. Because we’re going to stop what we’re doing and prove you wrong immediately.

01:23:20 It really gives you confidence that you can journey to try other things and new things.

01:23:26 If I ever get too far away and get hit by things and start getting stressed out or depressed then, yeah, I have to settle down a little bit and go back and look at the record in the book and think, “that that was really difficult to do, and you got through that, so this is not impossible and you can get through this.”

01:23:42 I’ve often said, if I ever had to be tried by a jury of my peers can you imagine what the jury box would look like? The longest nails, the longest hair. You’ve got the guy pogo sticking in the corner…

01:23:55 Some of the parishioners here know. Some do not, which makes it so nice when they find out and say, “Oh Father, I can’t believe you’re in the record book.” It makes them very happy, and makes me also happy.

01:24:09 I would definitely go after my son if he broke it. At least it would be in the family, but still, it’s my record.

01:24:16 The only thing that’s going to stop me really is death. I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing until either the cops drag me out of here or I drop dead.

01:24:26 We’ll always rip phonebooks. I’ll be in a retirement home ripping up the phonebooks. It might not be as fast or as good or as clean, but I’ll do it. And I know she will too.

01:24:41 You’re going to go out and you’re going to do pretty much anything it takes, you know, next to wrecking your body, to get these things done. And I think Olympic athletes are the same way. They just want to do the best job that they can. 

01:24:52 People want to see that someone can put themselves out on a limb, set themselves high goals and reach them. I think that’s inspiring. And I think everyone in the book of records should get that recognition, because it’s really tough to get in there.

01:25:08 I keep going back to eating a bicycle. I love that record. A guy ate 15 bicycles - or a bicycle in 15 days. It’s great. If that’s what he wanted to do and he accomplished it, it’s a wonderful thing. I just hope he got something out of it besides an upset stomach, and if he did then he’s way ahead of the game.

01:25:33 I never want to stop breaking records. I’m grateful that I’ve been able to go this long. And I hope I can just keep going forever. I’d love to keep going for as long as I can, as long as I live.

01:25:40 LOWER THIRD: Highest Score Bowling Backwards: 199
Ashrita Furman, Jamaica, Queens, NY

01:25:46 I’d love to die doing a Guinness record.
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