Sean’s Story

This is a story about a 12-year-old boy who had a rope swing in the middle of a small town in East Rochester, NY. His father put it up when Sean was about three years old, and it has been Sean’s “happy spot” since then. It soon turned into the town’s “happy spot” when they would drive by that corner and see Sean enjoying his swing no matter the time or weather. They were always given a smile and a wave by the kid on the swing.

During the Coronavirus pandemic of 2020, Sean discovered there was a Guinness World Record for the longest time on a swing. He asked his mom if he could try to beat it, and she said sure, if that is what you want to do, we will support you.

They filled out the application and forgot about it after quite a few months of not hearing back. On the application, Sean’s mom noted that Sean was a 12-year-old boy and that his parents permitted him to try to beat this world record even though it could have some safety issues.

The application came back approved, and the planning went into full gear. They wanted the “event” to occur before the school year, starting in September. The date that was picked was Thursday, August 26th-Friday, August 27th.

The current Guinness World record was 32 Hours, 2 Minutes, and 1 second. There was also an Unofficial Record of 33 Hours. Both of these were set in New Zealand. Sean’s goal was to make it to 34 hours. Remember, this is a 12-year-old boy!!!

All Guinness Regulations were followed, including having a digital clock displayed at all times. There needed to be two witnesses (not related) viewing the event the entire time. They would take 4-hour shifts during the event and log what they saw. We had an official photographer on hand to capture the milestone moments. BIGGEST QUESTION WE RECEIVED—-how he goes to the bathroom. Sean would swing for 4 hours straight and then take a 20-minute break to take care of business. His break schedule was written out, and the witnesses kept him to it. The entire event needed to be recorded for documentation. His mom’s biggest fear was that this wouldn’t work out, but thankfully it did, and they have 149 Gig file to prove it. A bell was rung at the start of the journey, and every hour was complete along with breaks, starts, and stops.

In the pages on this site, we will share the event as it turned out to be something so fun for our little town of East Rochester and Rochester in general. People from all over the US and even Canada followed our fun on Facebook, and positive vibes were sent to Sean. The school administrators, teachers, ER Police/Fire Department came, and local news/radio stations helped spread the word.

This event was amazing. To think a young 12-year-old boy with a love of his rope swing could bring so many people so much joy was incredible. At 5 pm on Friday, August 27th, 2021, Sean Lewis set the World Record for the Longest Marathon on a Swing. 34 Hours 02 seconds! He was determined and worked through many emotions and physical issues to reach his goal.