world record news stories on Newser

Man Sets Record Surfing Tallest Wave Ever

Kevin Spak — Fri, 11 May 2012 13:10:05 CDT

American pro surfer Garrett McNamera has done something no other man alive has done: surfed a 78-foot wave and lived to tell of it. Guinness World Record has declared McNamera's wave the tallest ever surfed, topping the previous record, held by legendary surfer Mike Parson, by just one foot, the...

New World Record: Longest Bridal Train

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 09:28:39 CDT

The bride who wears this gown will have to start her procession to the church about two miles away: The Guinness Book of World Records on Monday recognized a 1.85-mile-long ivory train on a silk and lace gown as the world's longest, beating the previous record held by a...

Woman Sets Paragliding Record ... at Age 101

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 08:57:03 CDT

A 101-year-old Utah woman who ushered in her birthday with a tandem paraglide ride last year will soar into the record books today. Great-great-grandmother Mary Hardison has been officially recognized as the "Oldest Female to Paraglide Tandem" by Guinness World Records. She has supplanted a 100-year-old woman from Cyprus who...

Daredevil Leaps From 13 Miles Up

Rob Quinn — Fri, 16 Mar 2012 02:02:43 CDT

An Austrian skydiver fell farther than anybody has fallen in 50 years yesterday, but he's still only halfway to making a record. "Fearless" Felix Baumgartner rode a pressurized capsule 13.6 miles up—as high as 57 Empire State Buildings and more than twice as high as commercial aircraft go—...

Man Dies Trying to Set World Record

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 12:21:23 CST

Janaka Basnayake's world record attempt went tragically and terrifyingly wrong Saturday: The Sri Lankan man was attempting to set the record for longest time spent buried alive, but he was pronounced dead shortly after being unearthed. Friends and family helped to bury Basnayake in a 10-foot-deep trench sealed with wood...

One of World's Most Interesting Men Is Dead

Kate Schwartz — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 10:48:15 CST

He may not be the Dos Equis man, but John Fairfax arguably has the most interesting obituary in the world. The New York Times' piece on Fairfax, who died Feb. 8 from a heart attack at the age of 74, begins by reminding us of Fairfax's most famous feats: rowing...

Male Couple Kisses for 50 Hours

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 13:34:05 CST

A male couple in Thailand spent more than two days kissing to break the Guinness World Record for longest kiss. The competition began Sunday in Pattaya, and ended, fittingly enough, today on Valentine's Day. Couples had to stay in a space measuring one square meter, could only take water and...

Skydiver Plans Jump From Edge of Space

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 11:46:01 CST

If you have a fear of heights, don’t read on: An Austrian adventurer plans to jump from the very edge of space later this year, falling from the dizzying height of about 23 miles. (That's 120,000 feet; for comparison's sake, consider that the average passenger plane flies at just...

Woman Skis Solo Across Antarctica

Kevin Spak — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:55:06 CST

British adventurer Felicity Aston became the first woman to ski across Antarctica today, finishing a 59-day, 1,084-mile trek across the continent, the AP reports. She made the trip using only her own muscle power, something no person traveling alone has ever done—though a couple managed it once. She...