Going For Guinness

By Carolyn Sayre

Call them crazy, but there's a group of very special people who have something you probably don't: a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records. Last week aspiring record breakers participated in Guinness World Records Day, trying to beat the deadline for the 2008 edition. A look at four of our favorites.

Big Mouth

Jackie Bibby, a.k.a. "The Texas Snake Man," had four records, including sitting in a bathtub with 81 rattlesnakes and sharing a sleeping bag with 109. He earned a fifth last week, holding ten 212-ft. Western diamondback rattlesnakes in his mouth for 12.5 sec.

French Kisses

Paris tried to break the record for the world's largest lip lock, but only 1,188 people showed up for smooches. Frankly, we expected a little bit more from a city so famed for its amour, its romance, its va-va-voom. Budapest--Budapest!--still holds the record with 11,570 simultaneous kissers.

Extreme Lengths

Is there a record for the nation with too much free time? Canadians rocked the book this year, shattering more than 100 world records. Among them: Peter Charney, 17, who last week broke the record for the most indoor bungee jumps in a 24-hr. period by completing 106. The old record was a measly 70.

It's Teatime

Japan organized the world's largest tea party in Nishio, a city famous for its green teas. Precisely 14,718 people simultaneously sipped while sitting barefoot on 1.5 km of red carpet, smashing the previous mark of 7,250. No word on whether they also broke the record for longest port-a-potty line ever.