It is commonly said that there aren’t many things a parent wouldn’t do for their children and that includes achieving a Guinness World Records title.
Dad-of-two, Ted Hastings of Ontario, Canada, has done just that by setting a new record for the most T-shirts worn at once with 260.
The idea came after Ted was looking through Guinness World Records 2019 with his children, Avery, 14, and William, 11, when his young son asked him whether he could set an official Guinness World Records title.
Seeing this as a great opportunity to teach his children an important lesson about hard work, commitment, and follow through, Ted replied optimistically and set out to transform this idea into a reality.
The first step to this was figuring out which records they could possibly attempt.
While looking through hundreds of records, they stumbled upon one that caught their attention, most-shirts worn at once, and decided this would be the perfect record to attempt.
The next task they faced was determining all the steps involved toward achieving their goal and beating the existing record of 257.
Once their plan was in place, they connected with Guinness World Records and organised an event to host their official attempt, which would take place at the Polsky Strength and Conditioning gym in Ontario.
The record attempt would also help raised funds for Bridgeport Public School which both of his children attend.
Prior to the attempt, Ted practiced and even did a full test run in December in which he was able to put on a total of 121 shirts – while an impressive number, it wouldn’t be enough to surpass the record of 257.
On the day of the event (17 February), Ted's family, along with over 150 community members, came out to witness the greatly anticipated attempt. With an official adjudicator onsite, the attempt began and Ted proceeded to place one t-shirt on after the next.
After he had on 20 shirts, he began to need assistance with placing the t-shirts on and by the 120th shirt, he had accumulated a full team of helpers.
Once he approached the 150th shirt, he was afraid that breathing might become an issue due to the weight of material on his body, but the attendees in the crowd kept him motivated and his spirits high and he was able to continue, eventually donning 260 shirts to set a new record!
The adjudicator on site confirmed the results and presented Hastings with an official record holder certificate where he reunited with his family and celebrated his accomplishment.
While an inspiring story on all accounts, the success of this attempt was only icing on top of the cake for Hastings who hopes this experience will serve as a valuable lesson to his children about turning what may seem like a crazy idea into a reality with a little fun, optimism, and perseverance.
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