New Records (May 2008)

1st May is a special date in calendar around the globe - known mainly as a worker’s day to celebrate the achievements of the labour movement. As a day of celebration, however, there are many reasons to celebrate all over the world - from Love Day in the Czech Republic to Beltane for Celtic people and Maharashtra Day in India. It is also the celebration day for 9 Christian saints! To honour this extraordinary date, here are some of our favourite records achieved on May Day.

First solo expedition to the North Pole
Naomi Uemura (1941 - 84), the Japanese explorer and mountaineer, became the first person to reach the North Pole in a solo trek across the Arctic sea-ice at 4:45 a.m. GMT on 1 May 1978. He had travelled 725 km (450 miles), setting out on 7 March from Cape Edward, Ellesmere Island in northern Canada.

Heaviest vehicle pulled by hair
The heaviest vehicle to have been pulled by the hair alone over a distance of 30 m (98 ft) is a double-decker bus weighing 7,874 kg (17,359 lb), by Letchemanah Ramasamy (Malaysia) at Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground, Leicestershire, UK, on 1 May 1999.

Largest cheerleading cheer
A total of 904 cheerleaders performed a cheer in full uniform with pom pom and baton in Voves, France, on 1 May 2007.

Largest collection of teddy bears
The largest collection of teddy bears belongs to Jackie Miley of Hill City, South Dakota, USA, with 5,029 different teddy bears, as of 1 May 2007, which she has been collecting since 2002.

Largest parade of Volkswagen (VW) cars / Longest single-model vehicle parade
A total of 2,728 VW Beetles took part in a parade organised by the Volkswagen Aficionado Club of Brazil on a race track near Sao Paulo, Brazil, on 1 May 1995.

Longest frame in a snooker World Championship match
The longest frame recorded in a snooker World Championship match is 74 minutes in the final match between Peter Ebdon (UK) and Graham Dott (UK) at the Crucible in Sheffield, UK on 1 May 2006.

Longest sari / saree
The record for the longest saree offered to Goddess Padmavathi measured 642.3 m (2,106 ft 10 in) and was achieved by His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vasanth Gurudev Shakthipeetadhipath, founder of Sri Parshva Padmavathi Seva Trust in Chennai, India on 1 May 2007.