Nate
If you set a world record and no one’s there to photograph it, did it even happen? Without these photos, we’d probably never know who set these records.
Nowadays, you can call up the Guinness Book of World Records and have them certify your record-setting achievement, but back in the day, it was just a photo.
Here are some inspiring photos of record-setting moments that give meaning to the phrase “pics or it didn’t happen.”
1. Frank Samuelsen And George Harbo In The Boat They Used To Cross The Atlantic, Setting A Record That Would Not Be Broken For 114 Years, 1896
2. Abebe Bikila Breaking The World Marathon Record, Barefoot, 1960
3. Roger Bannister, First Athlete To Break The 4-Minute Mile, 1953
4. Jonathan (Left), The Oldest Living Tortoise At About 187 Years Old, 1886
5. Secretariat On The Way To Winning The Triple Crown, Setting A Record That Still Stands, 1973
6. The 1905 Black Sea Bass Record
7. Joseph Kittinger Setting Several World Records, Including Fastest Speed By A Human Through The Atmosphere, Jumping Out Of The ‘Excelsior III’, 1960
8. Roland “Rollie” Free Breaking The American Motorcycle Land Speed Record, 1948
9. The M-497 ‘Black Beetle’ Jet-Powered Train, Which Set The Still-Standing US Rail Speed Record, 1966
10. Wilbur Wright And Ralph Johnstone, Right Before Johnstone Set A New World Altitude Record, 1910
11. The “Beast Of Turn” Land Speed Record Car, 1910
12. Edward Llewellen After Catching The World Record Black Sea Bass, 1903
13. Roy Dunn And Tiger The Goat Setting A Record For Highest Jump For A Goat, 1905
14. Michigan Loggers And Their World-Record Haul Destined For The 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, Circa 1890s
15. Harry Bensley, Who Accepted The Largest-Ever Recorded Bet At The Time (£21k) To Walk Around The World Wearing The Helmet From A Suit Of Armor, 1908
16. Hans Langseth, Once The Man With The World’s Longest Beard, Circa 1912
h/t: Ranker