I’m pretty sure he didn’t cross antipodal points because he was already disqualified due to staying stuck for more than two weeks.
Oh yeah
That is just silly he must have ridden the furthest of any unicyclist though I don’t remember his full route, Im sure he got all the way around. Guiness is not important. He is one of those peeps that unicyclists look up to. He is a hero in my eyes.
Seeing this thread for the first time. Why is Guinness making the rules for world records in unicycling? In the past they have requested guidance from the unicycling community (IUF, USA etc.) but perhaps they didn’t get enough information or response. Guinness doesn’t make the rules for competitive unicycling, the IUF does. Some of Guinness’ requirements are in line with other records of the same type (like riding around the world) but when it comes to specs on the unicycle, they should be getting that from us. “Stock, unmodified” unicycle? Nobody uses those for endurance records, probably in any sport. Someone from the IUF might be able to correct some of this.
I fully agree with Guinness’ restrictions on tall unicycle records; every since that guy from New Jersey almost killed himself riding the 31’(?) unicycle in 1981 or so, That Guinness-imposed rule makes perfect sense. Though they missed the mark with Steve McPeak’s 101-footer, where you could clearly see the crane holding the unicycle under tension the entire time Steve rode it. Steve still holds the record of a 40’ unicycle on a tightrope, and that’s a very impressive record. His unicycle used to be on display in the museum at the bottom of the Empire State Building in New York City (maybe it’s still there; you have to look up).
In Steyr Misaki Uchida set new World Records in the 100m, 400m, as well as in the 50m 1-foot.
Let’s just say I went through the GWR certification process partly to spark a discussion; I paid less than 10 €, and most of all, I waited for months and months…
I sent them a complete application, mentioning my involvement with the IUF World Records Committee and road race rulebook committee, and I provided them with photos of the unicycles used in road races; the V-shaped frame is sold by @jaco_flans .
Honestly, Guinness World Records impressed me when I was a kid, but for a while now I’ve felt that they don’t make much sense.
Yes, and there were plenty of others, especially regarding the jumps. We’re going to have our work cut out for us on the committee. ![]()
I guess GWR, like pretty much every business, has become progressively worse. Being charitable, they are probably bombarded with hundreds of applications per day with a notable number being unverifiable, delusional or fraudulent.
Not really sure how important it is to get them to accredit records anymore, who buys/reads their books now and their website is “bad” enough to deter casual readers. As long as there is a consistent standard being kept for unicycle records and they are recorded somewhere that should be good enough whether or not GWR is involved.
Guinness have become harder and harder to deal with. When I first did the 24hr record in 2005, they were responsive to my questions, the application was processed quickly, and certification was easy.
Now they do not answer any questions, and I’ve had an application waiting for months (for an existing category) which they won’t release. Then I had to resubmit after their website lost the application after an upgrade. I also had to fight to get my 12hr and 24hr records approved due to various technicalities.
Guinness are probably a victim of their success- too many people applying and not enough staff. Whether you have your record approved seems to depend on who is processing the record. When I submitted, the technicality that one staff member had issue with was completely different to the next person responding to my queries.
Your best bet is to do a paid GWR attempt, although there is a risk you end up paying and they fault you on a technicality. I suspect they are intentionally trying to frustrate people who apply for a regular attempt (eg not answering questions) so they are forced to upgrade to a paid attempt.
Regarding V-frames- that’s the reason I didn’t use my custom V-frame unicycle- that rule was open to interpretation and they ignored the questions I submitted before the attempt.
They are still ‘true records’, just owned by Guinness rather than the IUF- you have to submit to Guinness. They are not going to chase the IUF for the latest record. According to them, I still hold the Guinness Hour Record from 2009, but the IUF record was surpassed years ago.
For ‘dumb records’- many of these are definitely in the fun or promotional category. I think it has a place- we shouldn’t disparage people who make these attempts.
The next IUF World Record guideline is moving away from non-IUF competition records. As a result, there will be a lot of records that, as a community, may be important to us, but won’t be certified by the IUF. For instance, the tallest unicycle record, or the farthest-distance-without-dismount record. Expedition records like the Round-the-World Record, or specific routes like LEJOG are unlikely to be included as an IUF record. So for them, Guinness remains important.
Guinness also has brand recognition. If you told people you have a Guinness World Record- they instantly know what it is, but the general public will not know about the IUF. Also, you get a nice certificate, although the new IUF World Record Guideline will require new record holders to be given an IUF certificate.