Long-Distance Bed Pushing
Whatever happened to long-distance bed pushing? It was a craze that swept across colleges in 1961. Time magazine (Feb. 24, 1961) reported on it:
I found reports of students continuing to push beds long distances as late as 1979 when a new world record was set (1,980 miles by students from Pennsylvania's St. Vincent College who pushed a bed in laps around a shopping center). But then the fad seemed to fade away. At least, I haven't been able to find reports of more recent updates to the record.
The picture below shows students from Ontario Western University pushing a bed along a highway back in 1961.
The latest caper in Canadian colleges is bed pushing. Born at the University of Rhodesia, and perfected—as was last year's college craze, phone-booth stacking —at South Africa's University of Natal, it spread over some sort of Commonwealth bush telegraph. Last week Canadian college students from Nova Scotia to British Columbia were indefatigably mounting beds on wheels and pushing them over highways, prairies and frozen lakes. The current world's record of 1,000 continuous miles is claimed by a team from Ontario's Queens University, which kept its Simmons rolling day and night for a week.
I found reports of students continuing to push beds long distances as late as 1979 when a new world record was set (1,980 miles by students from Pennsylvania's St. Vincent College who pushed a bed in laps around a shopping center). But then the fad seemed to fade away. At least, I haven't been able to find reports of more recent updates to the record.
The picture below shows students from Ontario Western University pushing a bed along a highway back in 1961.
Comments
Q: And what did you students learn in your 1980 mile trek?
A: Beds aren't meant to be pushed 1980 miles!
(A doctorate was awarded, on the spot to each team member, except the girl who road in the bed as her tuition fees weren't government subsidized.)
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Damn! One more thing I missed out on by joining the Navy. Sigh :down:
A: Beds aren't meant to be pushed 1980 miles!
(A doctorate was awarded, on the spot to each team member, except the girl who road in the bed as her tuition fees weren't government subsidized.)
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Damn! One more thing I missed out on by joining the Navy. Sigh :down:
Posted by Expat47 in Athens, Greece on 03/21/13 at 11:22 AM
I always admired those who put skis on a bed and rode it downhill. Crashes like that are really spectacular and the risk of broken limbs and even death was worth watching.
Posted by KDP on 03/21/13 at 12:41 PM
We have a annual bed race in our Three Rivers Festival here.
On a side note Patty thinks Drew over at Fark should have a men's site for women since he has the FOOBIES dot com one for us guys.
On a side note Patty thinks Drew over at Fark should have a men's site for women since he has the FOOBIES dot com one for us guys.
Posted by BrokeDad in Midwest US on 03/21/13 at 04:05 PM
Fair is only fair you know! 😝
Posted by Patty in Ohio, USA on 03/21/13 at 08:43 PM
I guess this fizzled out when drugs and other entertainment became acceptable college pursuits.
Posted by dumbledoor on 03/22/13 at 07:03 AM
This reminds me of the opening from the tv show "The Monkees"
Posted by odschneider on 03/22/13 at 08:45 AM
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Category: Fads | World Records | 1960s