Monday, April 29, 2013

  Longest picnic: Kitchener breaks Guinness world record (VIDEO)

KITCHENER, Ont., Canada -- Around 5,000 people came out to eat their lunches on picnic tables set up in a long line through the city's downtown; the tables stretched for nearly 2.3 kilometres, which broke the Guinness world record of 1,979 metres held by a 2009 picnic in Halle, Germany and sets the new world record for the Longest picnic, according to the World Record Academy: www.worldrecordacademy.com/ .

  Photo: Zehr's World's Longest Picnic Attempt. Photo: City of Kitchener/WRA ( enlarge photo )

 The Guinness world record for the longest picnic line measures 2, 277 metres (7, 470 ft 4 in) and was organised by the City of Kitchener: as part of the Centennial Celebration of Cityhood in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.

  Guinness World Records also recognized the world record for the largest picnic; it was set by 22,232 people and was organized by Realizar Impact Marketing and Modelo (Portugal), at the Parque da Bela Vista, in Lisbon, Portugal.

  "We needed the community to pull together to break a world record and Kitchener stepped up to the plate," said Coun. Kelly Galloway-Sealock in a news release.

  "What an amazing feat for our city, and a true testament to the remarkable community spirit that we have."

  Nearly 5,000 people were in attendance at the July 2012 picnic, which broke the Guinness world record of 1,979 metres held by a 2009 picnic in Halle, Germany.

  Jeff Young, manager of special events for The City of Kitchener added, "Thank you Kitchener; our city staff, countless volunteers, community partners, organizers and citizens who all worked together to create a massive community event that made it into the record books."

  Presented by Zehrs, the picnic stretched down King and Duke Streets from Francis to Eby Streets, a span covering nearly 2.5 kilometers.