Students Receive Confirmation Of Guinness World Record

By Susan Coney

Newtown High School seniors Chris Nuelle and Peter Oggeri were ecstatic when they received official notification from the Guinness World Records this month that they and fellow classmate Mike Rambone, now a freshman at the University of Connecticut, broke a world record last June. The three friends set a world record by organizing an event having 265 people simultaneously roll  tires. The previous record was 237.

Last year the boys were sitting in the school media center during a study hall browsing through an edition of The Guinness Book of World Records when they envisioned themselves as world record holders. The friends brainstormed what sort of stunt they could pull off to win a world record and possibly be featured in the highly popular book, which often portrays bizarre and mind-boggling events.

The students arranged to get almost 500 used tires, donated by Town Fair Tire, and transported them in their cars — a few at a time — to a site at the school where the event was to take place. Chris, Peter, and Mike advertised the event, coordinated volunteers, and filed out required documentation to assure the success of the event.

The students had to provide proof that the event was held under the requirements stipulated by the Guinness organization and submitted the list of participants, pictures of the event, video documentation, news clippings, and letters of reference from school officials.

Each of the 265 participants paid a $5 entry fee, which covered admission and a tire to roll. Water, snacks, and T-shirts were also sold with the combined proceeds in the amount of $1,700 being donated to cancer research.

Organizer Chris Nuelle said he couldn’t quite believe it when he received the official notification from Guinness.

“When we thought of it; we broke a record! It was kind of the ultimate pay off,” he said. “We put a whole lot of work into it. Beforehand we thought, well even if we don’t win it is like the icing on the cake because we still raised approximately $1,700 for the American Cancer Society.”

Fellow organizer Peter Oggeri said, “I couldn’t believe it when Chris called me. I still can’t believe it all started one day when we were bored in the library at school.” The friends contacted Mike Rambone to tell him they had set a world record. Chris commented, “He didn’t believe us at first and we had to send him a copy of the email we received from Guinness.”

Chris and Peter admitted that they had received great personal satisfaction from organizing and running the highly successful event. Both boys will be heading off to college next fall and used the experience as the subject of their senior essay, which is often a requirement in the college application process. “It was so easy to write about something you are so passionate about,” Chris said.

Chris would like to major in business management but is undecided as of yet where he will attend college in the fall. Peter has been accepted to Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston and has decided to major in construction management. Mike Rambone is a history major at the University of Connecticut.

All three friends were extremely grateful for the support of the volunteers, participants, and Town Fair Tire in Danbury for making the event a success, helping to raise a substantial amount of money for cancer research and to help set a world record.

While breaking the previous record of 237 tires being simultaneously rolled with a new record of 265 does not automatically mean inclusion in to the newest edition of The Guinness Book of World Records it is another claim to fame for Newtown, said Chris.