Kuiper’s grandpa is 12 in this video(!!), which we made in December 2017. Since August 2012, @cochiti_whippet has held the Guinness World Record for farthest jump by a dog in a dock jumping competition (31 ft, 9.44 m.)
On this day in 1955, the Guinness Book of Records was first published in Great Britain. The idea for the book was sparked by a fierce argument between Sir Hugh Beaver, managing director of Guinness Brewery, and his friends at a hunting party. Lacking smartphones, they were unable to determine whether the red grouse or the golden plover was the speedier game bird. Sir Hugh did some research upon returning home but couldn’t find the answer. He thus decided to make his own “pub trivia” book, hiring twin journalists Ross and Norris McWhirter to do the research.
Proving that some things never change, Guinness Magazine revealed in 1976, “When writing to an expert they did not ask for a direct bit of information, but stated a fact that they figured might be close enough to being right and asked the expert to correct it. ‘We found that people who have a total resistance to giving information often have an irresistible desire to correct other people’s impressions.'”
The initial plan was to distribute the book for free as part of a marketing effort for Guinness (the beverage.) The first thousand copies were given away, but the book became such a hit that Hugh, Ross and Norris decided to start selling it. Orders began pouring in and the first American version came out the following year.
The rest is largely history; over 138 million copies have since been sold. As for the grouse vs. plover debate, it was eventually settled but it took 35 years. In 1989 the red grouse was officially declared the winner with “recorded burst speeds up to 92.8-100.8 kph/58-63 mph over very short distances.”
Here’s hoping Kuiper can follow in Grandpa Cochiti’s footsteps!
Original post: https://www.instagram.com/p/BnACrJ8g25-/