Buzz
What’s an activity you think you could do forever? Chances are, most people reading this can come up with at least one activity they love or excel at. What’s yours? There might even be a world record for whatever it is you mentioned.
From bouncing on a pogo stick to hanging from a rope, there are endurance records for just about everything — except for the longest Netflix binge. Here are ten of the most bizarre and, at times, life-threatening endurance challenges people have participated in.
10. Touch The Truck
Many people dream of owning a brand-new vehicle, but certain competitions push this desire to extreme levels. In various events, a truck or car is placed somewhere, and participants are invited to touch it for a chance to win it. (One example from Texas is shown above.) The catch? Once you place your hand on the vehicle, you can't stop touching it — except during designated breaks. The last person keeping their hand on it wins the vehicle.
It sounds simple, but most participants have trouble with one of the competition's rules—you cannot fall asleep. In 2001, a variation of this event called Touch the Truck aired on British TV. Despite the host claiming, 'It’s the most fun you can have with your right hand,' the show’s ratings were disappointing. It seems the sight of people mostly standing still didn’t engage the audience as expected.
After 81 hours, 43 minutes, and 31 seconds, Jerry Middleton emerged victorious and won the truck. However, as an anti-car activist, he sold the truck and used the proceeds to fund a new political party. When Middleton later ran for a seat in the UK Parliament, he garnered just 54 votes.
9. Hold Your Pee
Legend has it that 16th-century astronomer Tycho Brahe died from a ruptured bladder after holding his urine during a banquet, believing it would be improper to leave the table. In one tragic case from 2007, a woman didn’t die from the act of holding it, but from the rules of a contest.
Jennifer Strange entered a competition called 'Hold Your Wee for a Wii,' hosted by KDND 107.9 radio in California. To win the Nintendo console, all participants had to do was avoid using the bathroom for as long as possible. The last person standing with their legs crossed would claim the prize. To make it more challenging, participants were required to drink bottles of water every 15 minutes. Strange told those at the event she was doing it for her kids. She finished in second place but later called in sick with a headache. While people heard her crying, that was the last time anyone heard from the mother of three, who tragically passed away shortly after.
Strange tragically passed away from water intoxication in her home, a condition in which an excessive amount of water disrupts the balance of electrolytes in the body. A jury later determined that the radio station was negligent in her death and awarded her family $16 million in damages.
8. Longest Kiss
For anyone deeply in love, a kiss might feel timeless, as though it could last forever. Yet some individuals aim to take it further, striving to measure the exact duration of their passionate kiss.
Those looking to break the world record for the longest kiss must adhere to several rules. Most importantly, the couple's lips cannot part once the kiss begins. Other stipulations are less romantic, such as disqualification if one person falls asleep during the kiss, and an official must accompany them to the bathroom to ensure the kiss is not interrupted. Additionally, items like diapers or incontinence pads are prohibited for competitors.
The record for the longest kiss is currently held by Ekkachai and Laksana Tiranarat from Thailand, who managed to keep their lips locked for 58 hours, 35 minutes, and 58 seconds on Valentine's Day in 2013 (pictured above).
7. Danceathons
Another potentially romantic challenge that could give you more time with your partner than you'd ever expect is the marathon dance. The rules are straightforward: keep moving to the rhythm, or at least shuffle your feet, for as long as possible without a break.
In the United States during the 1920s and 1930s, marathon dances became a popular trend. Couples could be seen dancing endlessly, striving to outlast one another. As long as one person continued actively dancing with their partner, they remained in the contest. This resulted in some strange and even disturbing scenes, including a man desperately swinging his unconscious partner around to stay in the race. Unfortunately, not all contestants survived the grueling challenge; one man perished after 87 hours of continuous dancing.
For those who can't find a partner willing to dance for hours, individual dance records are an option. The current record is held by Bandana Nepal, who danced non-stop for an incredible 126 hours.
6. Sauna Championships
What could be more soothing than a warm sauna? In Finland, saunas are taken very seriously, so it’s no surprise that the country turned sauna bathing into an intense endurance challenge.
The sauna contest began in 1999 in Heinola, Finland. While typical sauna temperatures hover around 80 degrees Celsius (176°F), the contests were held at a much hotter 110 degrees Celsius (230°F), which exceeds the boiling point of water. Contestants simply had to endure the heat for as long as possible. In 2009, the male champion lasted 3 minutes and 46 seconds.
However, tragedy struck in 2010. Timo Kaukonen, the previous year's winner, was pulled from the sauna after six minutes with severe burns when organizers realized something had gone terribly wrong. Both Kaukonen and his opponent, Vladimir Ladyzhenskiy, were removed, but Ladyzhenskiy did not survive. After this, the competition was discontinued.
5. Cold Endurance
The agony of extreme cold is often likened to the pain of burning. Submerging your hand in ice-cold water becomes unbearable in less than a minute. Unlike extreme heat, which can kill quickly, the cold allows people to endure for much longer, making cold endurance records a highly competitive and challenging feat.
In 2014, Jin Songhao set the record for the longest time anyone has remained in direct contact with ice. He endured for 1 hour, 53 minutes, and 10 seconds while sitting in a box as ice cubes were poured over him. He also holds the world record for standing barefoot on ice. In 2019, Josef Koeberl (pictured above) surpassed Songhao’s ice-submersion record, enduring 2 hours, 8 minutes, and 47 seconds in a box of ice while wearing only a bathing suit.
Wim Hof, often considered the greatest cold endurance champion, has developed the ability to raise his body temperature through mental control, enabling him to survive freezing conditions. Hof holds multiple records, including the longest swim under ice, running a half-marathon in the Arctic Circle barefoot, and scaling tall mountains wearing only shorts.
4. Pipe Smoking
Fortunately, it's now a rare occurrence to walk into the unpleasant haze left behind by a pipe smoker in the street. Some individuals have chosen to carry around their personal bonfire, turning entire roads into clouds of smoke. But for some, this foul habit is transformed into a test of endurance.
Slow smoking competitions give participants a fixed amount of tobacco and challenge them to make it last as long as possible. These events have intricate rules in place. Competitors are permitted to briefly remove the mouthpiece from their pipe to clear any liquid by tapping it on paper or blowing through it, but they must never blow through their nose into the pipe’s bowl—doing so results in immediate disqualification.
One of the most severe offenses in these contests is burning the bottom of the pipe. If competitors use up all the tobacco and start inhaling the fumes from the pipe’s wood, they are disqualified from the event.
3. Flagpole Sitting
One of the final two contestants in the Noun and Verb Rodeo was a prominent participant in one of the most iconic endurance events of its time—flagpole sitting. This activity was exactly as it sounds: people would climb up a flagpole and remain seated for as long as they could. Although it might seem like a contemporary event, modern flagpole sitters were following in the footsteps of historical figures like Saint Simeon Stylites, who spent years perched atop pillars.
Flagpole sitting began in 1924, when Alvin 'Shipwreck' Kelly scaled a pole in Hollywood and remained seated for 13 hours and 13 minutes. He was paid by a theater seeking to draw in a crowd. The stunt was a success, and soon Kelly, along with many others, was earning large sums to do nothing—except sit at great heights.
Before long, flagpole sitting contests were spreading across the United States, with participants sitting for days on end. By the late 1920s, the record stood at an astonishing 51 days. However, the fad faded as the Great Depression took hold.
2. Noun And Verb Rodeo
Some of the most frustrating individuals are those who can't seem to stop talking. Listening to them ramble endlessly can drive anyone mad. Perhaps that’s why the 'Noun and Verb Rodeo'—an event where participants had to talk non-stop for as long as possible—was a total failure.
Held in New York in 1928, the Noun and Verb Rodeo was yet another of the endurance challenges that captivated the United States during the 1920s. Contestants were given a platform to speak from, with only one rule: no profanity. Their speeches didn’t even need to make sense, as long as they kept talking. The contestant who spoke the longest would win $1,000. Thirty-five participants took on the challenge.
After a few disqualifications, it seemed like two contestants would reach the four-day mark. However, the event’s organizer, a man known for hosting marathon dances, stepped in. With attendance low and a loss of $10,000 already, he ended the contest 15 minutes before the four-day limit. Declaring it a draw, he decided that no one would claim the prize. That marked the end of the Noun and Verb Rodeo.
1. Ferret Legging
One version of the origin of ferret legging suggests that it began when only the wealthy were permitted to own ferrets for hunting. When a poacher was about to be caught with a ferret, he would hide it in his trousers. While this tale seems dubious, some believe the sport emerged from drunken pub wagers, with people betting on how long a ferret could be kept in trousers.
Regardless of its origins, ferret legging is a straightforward contest. A ferret is placed inside a pair of trousers while the contestant is still wearing them. The individual must then endure the ferret’s biting and scratching without removing it. As an added challenge, competitors are not allowed to wear underwear.
One former ferret legging champion chose to wear white trousers so that the blood from his wounds would be more visible. Starting with a mere 40 seconds in 1972, the world record was eventually stretched to an impressive 5 hours and 26 minutes by 1981. That record still holds to this day.
