22 Guinness World Records Broken By Californians In 2022

CALIFORNIA — World records were shattered across the Golden State in 2022, according to the Guinness World Record committee. Not every world record attempt ends with a prize, but that doesn't stop scores from trying.

Some hopefuls worked to retain records they already held, and others were determined to make their mark against the gold standard for measuring feats of strength, endurance, and out-of-this-world oddities. Others just got the whole gang together to do something fun.

Legendary Viewership

In November, the most watched League of Legends USA Event occurred in San Francisco.

"The grand final, which saw South Korean team DRX emerge victorious over fellow South Korean team T1, took place in the Chase Center in San Francisco, California on 5 November," according to a Guinness World Records spokesperson. "It saw a peak viewership (the maximum number of concurrent viewers) of 5,147,701, surpassing Worlds 2021’s 4 million peak viewers."

Stop? Go? Both?

In September, a group of UC Irvine Students participated in the world's largest game of Red Light/Green Light. Totaling 1,415 participants, the group also included the school mascot, Peter the Anteater, who served as the traffic light.

OZO Many Tacos

Who knew you could win a world record for lining up tacos? Ozo used their signature plant-based chicken to create the longest line of tacos — 2,333, in fact. Ozo won the award in Anaheim in March. Ozo's plant-based chicken was used in the tacos, which were then donated to the Boys and Girls Club of Anaheim, on hand for the event.

Printable People

The tallest 3D-printed sculpture of a human was achieved this year by Dr. Vinson Eugene Allen. The statue, reaching 19 feet, 10 inches tall, was constructed in February in Gardena.

Pushing A Quintuple Pram

California resident Chad Kempel, of Oakland, set the world record for the fastest half-marathon time for a man pushing a quintuple pram in March. According to Guinness, the award must be won by someone over 16 years old. Kempel's time was 2 hours, 19 minutes and 55 seconds. A Guinness spokesperson added that he has also won the world record for doing the same during a marathon.

"This was about having a great time running with my children (and wife) Amy cycling alongside us, and our older children and family greeting us at the finish line. One of the greatest days of my life," Kempel said.

The World's Oldest And Coolest Dog

Gino, 22, a Chihuahua mix, the world's oldest dog, according to Guinness, likes walks on the beach and hanging with his humans. Adopted by Alex Wolf in Boulder, Colorado, in 2002, Gino was verified to be more than 22 years old in November.

"I've taken great care of him over the years and he is still in relatively good shape," Wolf said. "He's really cute, which is surprising considering his age."

Lots And Lots Of Legos

San Diego resident Kyle Ugone still holds the title for having the most Lego mini-figures. Ugone has more than 9,079 Lego mini-figures, an adjudicator for Guinness confirmed this year. It took him more than four years to amass the collection, according to a spokesperson for Ugone. To be considered for the award, each Lego character must have a unique code registration to qualify as "unique." Kyle also has the record for the most extensive collection of Lego sets, which he earned in 2011.

How Tall Does Your Brussels Sprout Grow?

This year, California saw the world's largest brussels sprout plant growing in Hawthorne. The plant measured just under 11 feet at 10 feet 11.8 inches and was grown by Philip Dickerson.

According to the record, Philip embarked on an "adventure" to see how tall the plant would grow after seeing it outperform all the other plants in his yard. Soon after, he realized there might be a world record involved.

According to the specialist present at the attempt, the plant is not only big but very healthy!" they said. Happy eating!

Fastest Rubik's Cube Solving

Bay Area resident Max Park solved a 4x4x4 cube puzzle in record time — just over 16.75 seconds. Park was at the San Jose Speedcubin' 29 PM 2022 event in April. Park is a multi-record-breaking speedcuber, according to his record.

Tapping Her Way To A World Record

Los Angeles area choreographer Chloe Arnold earned a world record for doing the most tap dance pullbacks in one minute. She achieved 113 total pullbacks in 60 seconds on April 13, 2022, according to Guinness. Arnold, an Emmy Award-nominated choreographer, also holds a world record for the Most Tap Dance Wings in One Minute, totaling 123.

Telephone Game Confuses 58, World Record Achieved

The game of "telephone" has befuddled players for ages, but when 58 Los Angeles players joined in, the real fun began, according to Twilio, Inc., which sponsored the feat.

"Participants were provided local phone numbers to call to play the game," a Twilio spokesperson wrote. "When participants called these numbers, they were greeted with instructions of how to play the game and placed in a queue to wait for their turn to play."

It took 30 minutes to get through all of the participants and earn the record.

How Much Does Your Jack O'Lantern Weigh?

A Jack o'lantern in Half Moon Bay weighed in at 2,560 pounds. It was confirmed at the 49th Safeway World Championship Pumpkin Weigh-Off in October. Travis Gienger grew the giant gourd which he nicknamed "Maverick." The pumpkin was later hauled to Minnesota, the 'Halloween Capital of the World,' where it was transformed into an eagle for the celebration.

"'Maverick' is the heaviest-ever pumpkin grown in North America as confirmed by the Great Pumpkin Commonwealth," a Guinness spokesperson said.

Tree Huggers Unite For World Records

This year, a record of the most pictures of people hugging trees uploaded to Instagram in one hour was added. A total of 593 people loaded their favorite tree-hugging photos tagging the Sempervirens Fund. According to Guinness, the fund represents California's oldest land trust, and its mission is to protect coastal redwood trees in the Santa Cruz mountains.

The attempt took place on Earth Day in April.

Highest Box Jumps Using Only Hands

A Los Angeles man born without legs has made it his mission to win world records. This year, Zion Clark won the award for the most diamond pushups in three minutes, according to Guinness. In October, he conducted 248 diamond pushups in 180 seconds. He has also achieved records for the fasted 20 meters walking on his hands and the highest box jump using only his hands.

Toast To The Tallest Prosecco Flute

Stella Rosa Wines completed the world's tallest flute of Prosecco in June at the iHeartRadio Theater in Burbank, according to Guinness.

"The event included a performance by Ava Max, a donation to Volunteers of America, and an additional attempt for Most videos of people toasting uploaded to Instagram in one hour," they said.

Temecula residents and visitors also attempted the toasting feat but fell short in 2022, but not for lack of trying.

Slackline Traveling While Juggling Knives

On World Circus Day, Edgar Yudkevich juggled three knives for a distance of over 34 feet while navigating a slackline in Coronado, a Guinness spokesperson said.

As a local coach and performer, Edgar hopes to inspire his students and the community to pursue their circus dreams.

World Record That Could Change The World

In Livermore this December, the first successful nuclear fusion ignition reaction was achieved, Guinness acknowledged. The ignition was conducted at the United States National Ignition Facility.

Of the event, Guinness remarked: "The successful experiment saw the first instance of nuclear fusion where more energy was released from the reaction than was inputted. This is the first step to harnessing nuclear fusion, which is the reaction that powers stars, including the sun."

Wonder Woman Rollercoaster Wows As Tallest Coaster

Six Flags Magic Mountain now holds the record for the tallest singe-rail rollercoaster: Wonder Woman Flight of Courage. The coaster is 131 feet tall and opened in July.

"'Wonder Woman Flight of Courage' was built by Rocky Mountain Construction, an American engineering firm specializing in rollercoasters," Guinness said. "It is based on a patented design of theirs called the Raptor, in which the track is a strong structural element, which dramatically reduces the number of supports required compared to a conventional steel rollercoaster."

Most X Games Gold Medals Won In BMX Street

The most X Games gold medals won in BMX Street by a male rider was achieved in 2022. Garrett Reynolds earned 13 gold medals between 2008 and 2022.

"Reynolds has also won two silvers (Los Angeles 2013 and Minneapolis 2018) and two bronze (Sydney 2018 and Chiba 2022) in BMX Street," Guinness reported. "He is yet to finish off the podium in the event. His total of 15 X Games golds is equal with Shaun White for the most by any athlete."

Taking Many Dips To Win This Award

A Costa Mesa man earned the Guinness World Record for taking the most ring dips in one minute while carrying a 100-pound pack.

Jake Rintoul tried and succeeded with 14 of the weighted ring dips. He wanted to inspire others not to let injuries discourage them from achieving their goals, he said.

How Many Grains Of Rice Can You Eat In A Minute?

It took a Stanford student to beat this world record. Teland La ate a total of 27 grains of rice in one minute using chopsticks to do it. La achieved this record while at his college campus to the delight of the crowd, Guinness reported.

This Award Has The Most Heart Of All

A Palo Alto man has lived for 34 years and 108 days on a total heart-lung transplant, Guinness announced in April.

Steve Rasmussen was the first person on which Stanford University Hospital successfully performed a domino transplant, according to Guinness. At that time, he received a healthy heart and lungs that lasted through July. That month, Rasmussen underwent a second heart transplant, ending the record.

See all the awards won in California in 2022 on the Guinness Website.