The Wackiest World Record Attempts at the 2016 London Marathon

Fastest marathon dressed as a 3-D dinosaur (male)
Time to beat: 7:00:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Ian Bates

On race day, which is Sunday, April 24, Ian Bates will attempt to cover 26.2 miles in this dino suit, which weighs 20 kilograms (approximately 44 pounds). In a press release, Guinness World Records described his creation as “arguably the finest costume ever to grace the circuit.”

According to this report, he attempted last year’s race in a similar getup that weighed twice as much, but he had to shed it at mile 9 after he tore a muscle in his shoulder. He went on to finish the race in only his socks, as his running shoes were built into the costume.

Update: Bates did not end up running in costume and finished the race in 5:20:10. 

Fastest marathon dressed in a full body dinosaur outfit (male)
Time to beat: 3:30:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Ben Evans, Mark Conlin

Bates won’t be the only one at the London Marathon dressed as a long-extinct creature. The tradeoff for a lighter costume is a much faster mark to beat—they’ll have to run at least twice as fast as Bates’s bare-minimum record time. What we want to know: Is the pterodactyl allowed to fly to the finish?

Update: Evans now holds the world record with a race time of 3:08:07.

Fastest marathon in a four-person costume (male)
Time to beat: 6:30:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Lee Small, James Lafferty, Michael Palmer, and Stevie Clifford-Tucker

This group of four firefighters from the London Fire Brigade will have a unique way to weave through a potentially crowded field—they can simply turn on the working sirens on their makeshift truck.

Update: The group set a new world record of 5:25:02. 

Fastest marathon three-legged (male)
Time to beat: 3:40:16
Who’s attempting it: Terry Midgley & John Robson, Damian Thacker & Luke Symonds

According to Kristen Ott, the public relations manager for Guinness World Records North America, this record attempt requires the participants to “either be tied at the ankle or wear a pair of three legged running trousers”—how British—and they must be tethered together at the wrists. That adds another level of difficulty.

Update: Thacker & Symonds snagged the world record with an impressive time of 3:07:57. From the other duo, Terry Midgley ran solo and finished in 2:54:28.

Fastest marathon dressed as a book character (female)
Time to beat: 3:39:49
Who’s attempting it: Naomi Flanagan (at left)

Fastest marathon dressed as a film character (female)
Time to beat: 3:45:15
Who’s attempting it: Faye Morse (at right)

Per Ott, Flanagan is running as Tinker Bell from the novel Peter Pan, while Morse is running as Tinker Bell from the movie Moulin Rouge!, hence the separate categories.

Update: Both women are now record holders. Flanagan came in at 3:08:34, and Morse edged out the old record with a time of 3:44:14.

Fastest marathon dressed as a plant (male)
Time to beat: 3:47:55
Who’s attempting it: David Ralph, Matthew Plant, Lee Goodwin

It’s tempting to root (yuk yuk) for the guy in the middle, whose last name is “Plant.”

Update: Though Plant completed the race in a very respectable 3:16:41, Goodwin established the new record, running 3:02:43.

Fastest marathon dressed as a fast food item (male)
Time to beat: 4:30:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Andy Hind, Ryan Deering

Interesting that two hot dogs will be competing in this category despite the fact that one could dress as “any food item prepared and sold quickly,” per the official rules. Hopefully, both of these gentlemen gleaned some useful tips from this article by the female fast-food record-holder.

Update: Deering was the hottest hot dog, taking the record in 3:57:17.

Fastest marathon dressed as an astronaut (male)
Time to beat: 3:08:45
Who’s attempting it: Martin Hewlett, Phill Minns

Fastest marathon wearing a replica astronaut suit (female)
Time to beat: 5:00:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Libby Jackson

So, what’s the difference between these two record categories? “For the purpose of fastest marathon wearing a replica astronaut suit, the astronaut suit used can be designed for wear inside a space-shuttle or one that is suitable for space-walks,” Ott says. “If the participant wishes to attempt a record in a lightweight, non-accurate representation of an official astronaut suit, this is monitored under a separate category—fastest marathon dressed as an astronaut.” Okay, then!

Update: Hewlett beat Minns and took the record in 3:06:26. Jackson’s time of 5:58:26 was not fast enough to set the record. 

Fastest marathon dressed as a chef (male)
Time to beat: 4:47:51
Who’s attempting it: Adrian Penfold, Phil Olson

Lest you consider this a soft record, know that the record-attempter must wear “trousers and an apron, which may restrict movement,” Ott says. In addition, the runner must carry a three-kilogram (approximately seven-pound) cooking utensil. Over 26.2 miles, that would start to feel pretty heavy.

Update: Phil Olson’s new world record of 4:07:17 took more than 40 minutes off the previous best. 

Fastest marathon dressed as an organ (male)
Time to beat: 3:36:42
Who’s attempting it: Michael Stevenson, Steve Colley

It’s hard to tell from this photo, but the man on the right is an eyeball and the man on the left is a…prostate gland.

Update: Stevenson’s prostate was the faster organ. He finished the race in 3:13:20 and now holds the world record.

Fastest marathon dressed as an elf (male)
Time to beat: 3:54:05
Who’s attempting it: Petr Hruska, Russell Codd

How many spectators will make some kind of joke about these two guys being lost and the North Pole is thatta-way?

Update: Hruska was one speedy elf, knocking almost 35 minutes off the record time, and completing the race in 3:19:15

Fastest marathon in an animal costume (female)
Time to beat: 3:18:09
Who’s attempting it: Katie Godof

Fastest marathon in an animal costume (male)
Time to beat: 2:48:29
Who’s attempting it: Tom Pope

Both of these records are relatively speedy. Hopefully this turtle is faster than turtles are usually known to be. (And, in case you were wondering, the guy on the right is a chameleon running for Chameleon International, a group that raises money for MS awareness.)

Update: Godof’s un-turtle-like 3:15:39 finish clinched her the world record, but Pope’s 3:03:35 wasn’t fast enough.

Fastest marathon in film character costume (male)
Time to beat: 2:42:52
Who’s attempting it: Sean Fitzpatrick

Elsa (from Disney’s Frozen) will attempt to unseat current record-holder David Stone, who dressed as Jack Sparrow (another Disney character) when he set the record.

Update: Fitzpatrick moved like he was ice skating and came in at 2:39:09, taking the record.

Fastest marathon in a Ghillie suit (female)
Time to beat: 4:00:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Corin Leach

A Ghillie suit is an elaborate camouflage getup that also looks quite warm and difficult to breathe through and see out of.

Update: Leach is now a world-record holder, completing the marathon in 3:59:13.

Fastest marathon dressed as a bottle (male)
Time to beat: 3:16:58
Who’s attempting it: Charlie Long

A giant beer up ahead: the fantasy of many a marathoner late in the race, and the reality for many London Marathoners if this fellow successfully breaks the record.

Update: Maybe all those beer-chasing marathoners were motivation. Long set the record with a time of 3:09:37. 

Fastest marathon dressed as a crustacean (male)
Time to beat: 3:34:22
Who’s attempting it: Greg Trevelyan

The red suit beneath the lobster getup seems like it’ll be boiling hot.

Update: Hot or not, Trevelyan handily established a new record, shaving almost 32 minutes off the old mark with his finishing time of 3:02:39.

Fastest marathon dressed as a gingerbread man (male)
Time to beat: 3:42:20
Who’s attempting it: Richard Kell

Run, run, run as fast as you can to avoid getting passed by this ridiculous-looking fellow.

Update: Kell passed a lot of surprised-looking runners to come in at 3:29:21 and take the record. 

Fastest marathon wearing chainmail (upper body)
Time to beat: 5:49:07
Who’s attempting it: David Cooke

We can’t imagine the chafing.

Update: That stuff does not look light. Despite the weight, Cooke managed to finish in 5:45:51, squeaking in under the previous world record.

Fastest marathon dressed as a circus strongman (male)
Time to beat: 3:30:00 (new record)
Who’s attempting it: Steven Reading

We’d be impressed if he broke the record. We’d be really impressed if that barbell were real.

Update: Color us impressed. Reading set the record with a time of 3:19:30. We’re pretty sure the barbell isn’t real, though.