Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Soon-to-be Guinness World Record for Joggling 800m

Success! Sort of.

I ran. I juggled. I didn't drop. I set what will likely be a new Guinness World Record for the fastest joggling 800m (pending verification) with a time of 2:15.61, but fell short of the overall best recorded time of 2:13.24.

It's important to stick your tongue out when joggling at high speed. Photo: Doug Smith.


Ontario Masters Athletics organized a special joggling exhibition race for me at the Relay Ruckus this past weekend at York University in Toronto. Since there were no other jogglers around and I had no pacer this time, I ran the race solo.

Under near-perfect conditions, I took off at a solid pace with a 64.5-second first lap – right on target. I was hoping to hold on for a 66- or 67-second second lap, but things started to fall apart with about 200 to go. At this point in an 800m race, you really need to dig deep and go for it with everything your body has to give, but when you add juggling into the mix, this becomes absurdly difficult.

The last time I attempted this record indoors, I dropped with 100 to go, and now that I've tried this a second time, I know why: the full-body fatigue messes with your motor skills. Juggling three balls is really easy standing still, but at this point I had to concentrate on every toss and catch as if I were just learning how to juggle.

I slowed down, but didn't drop, and crossed the line in 2:15.61. Now to send off my documentation to the good folks at Guinness.

Friday, August 9, 2013

Guinness World Record Attempt for Fastest Joggling 800m

Let's try this again, shall we?

On August 25, I'm going after the Guinness World Record for the fastest 800m while joggling. The unofficial record for the distance is 2:13.24, but Guinness tells me that there is no official mark logged with them. This means I basically just have to finish the thing, sort out my paperwork and video evidence, and I'll be guaranteed the record. Not a bad deal.

When I tried to break 2:13 earlier this year indoors. I dropped the ball near the end and never bothered to log my time as a record. The thing about drops is the more you think about them, the more likely you are to drop. So I'm not going to think about it.

What: Guinness World Record attempt for the fastest joggling 800m
Where: Toronto Track and Field Centre, York University, Toronto
When: Aug. 25, 12 p.m.
Open to public: Yes
Admission: Free
Kicking of joggler's balls: Not permitted