On June 18, 2022, Luke Lorick from Tailgating Challenge set a Guinness world record for the “Longest Backward Cornhole Throw”. Who knew such a record even existed? So, in the interest of all things related to tailgating, Tailgater Magazine had a Q&A session with the record holder himself.
TM: How in the world did you determine if there was even such a record to be broken and what possessed you to want to break it?
LL: I’ve always wanted to set a Guinness world record. I wasn’t sure how or what, but it was a goal I’ve had since I was a kid. In late 2021 I decided I was going to take the plunge and figure out what record I could set, or break. After scrolling through Guinness World Records I found a record that was right up my alley: Longest Backward Cornhole Throw. Given my love of yard games and tailgating this was the record I set my sights on.
How To Apply To Set A Guinness World Record
TM: How does one go about applying to set a Guinness world record?
LL: As mentioned, I visited Guinness World Records and was able to search through thousands of records that I could attempt. I filled out the Guinness application to let the Guinness team know of my interest in setting this world record. They messaged back within a few days advising me that they approved of my attempt and the laundry list of evidence that would have to be supplied to make the record official.
Practice, We’re Talking About Practice!
TM: So, what happened next?
LL: All world records require some practice including the longest backwards cornhole toss. This was a record that had not been “officially” set before and had to be 30 feet or greater for Guinness to qualify this as a new world record.
I set my board up and started letting the bags fly. I started at 30 feet, and surprisingly I made it in less than 10 minutes. Then I moved back to practice from a longer range. I did this, as there was no guarantee that when I attempted the record that someone else may have already set it and I’d need to go longer than 30 feet.
I trained and made shots up to 50 feet in distance. Once you get over 40 feet it gets exponentially harder to get the bag to the board. One tip for tossing backwards is to have some bend in your knees and when you toss push up on the balls of your feet put a slight arch in your back.
Game Day
TM: So, you’ve made it to this point, how does everything come together from here?
LL: Coordination is key, as I had to hire a professional surveyor that could attest to the official measurement. I then had to bring in an official cornhole referee. This is needed to attest that the boards and bags are regulation. They also had to confirm that the throw and actions are legal within the rules of cornhole.
Guinness requires that your attempt take place in a public venue, and I took it one step further by convincing the city where I live – Loveland, CO – to give me a green space in the center of downtown. This way anyone that wanted to watch the attempt could easily stop by and view. Witness statements must be obtained from at least two independent witnesses.
Finally, you must have multiple camera angles, slow motion videos and photos, as part of the evidence requirements. We had cameras set up behind the board and from where I was throwing. In addition, we also had a drone in the sky to capture it from above.
The Record
TM: Ok, you managed to meet all the requirements and stipulations, when did you actually “break” the record?
LL: After 10 minutes of tossing the world record shot was made. The bag came out of my hand clean and as I turned around, I saw it airmail into the hole. The crowd started to cheer, and my hands went up in the air. I had the unofficial world record at 36 feet 7 inches.
Then it was time to gather all the information and submit this to Guinness to review for approval of the record. After a month of chasing down information and uploading it all to Guinness I had to sit back and wait three months to see if they would verify the record.
Almost three months to the day that I submitted the information, I got an email stating that the record was accepted, and I was the new world record holder for the World’s Longest Backwards Cornhole Toss.
TM: So, what’s next?
LL: Will someone beat my record? There’s no doubt about it. I get messages from people saying they have tried and either gotten close or beat it already. The thing is making any attempt “official” with Guinness is one of the hardest parts with all the red tape and expenses to make it official. Will it be officially broken one day? Of course, it will and I will high five whoever that person is, as I understand the amount of work that goes into achieving a Guinness World Record.
Getting the first Guinness World Record was so satisfying I may have to try another one in 2023. While I can’t say what it is, I have two in mind that I will continue to push forward with. Have no doubt both will have a tailgating theme.