 |
| Team members, their families and fans participate in setting a new Guinness World Record for “Most People Blowing a Bubble Gum Bubble Simultaneously” at the beginning of the Cal Ripken World Series in Abeerdeen, Md., on Aug. 8. Photos provided. |
It took all of thirty seconds, but an earnest crowd of 721 baseball fans from around the world managed to blow a bubble gum bubble together and hold it for half a minute to break the previous world record.
Sponsored by Big League Chew bubble gum, the event inaugurated the Cal Ripken World Series, which began Aug. 8 in Aberdeen, Md.
Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr., along with executives from Ford Gum, the maker of Big League Chew, were there to accept the official notification and certificate from a Guinness World Records adjudicator for “Most People Blowing a Bubble Gum Bubble Simultaneously.” The previous record involved 544 people and was set June 6, 2013 by the Lester B. Pearson School in Aurora, Ontario, Canada.
 |
| Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. (left) along with “George Stege (right), president of Ford Gum, accept the official Guinness World Records certificate from adjudicator Alex Angert for “Most People Blowing a Bubble Gum Simultaneously.” |
“Babe Ruth League Baseball and Big League Chew bubble gum are a classic summer combo, so it was an exciting day to bring this title to the United States where Big League Chew is made,” says George Stege, president of Ford Gum. “As the official bubble gum of Ripken Baseball, I can think of no better time or place to make history than at the opening day of the 2014 Cal Ripken World Series.”
Each of the 18 qualifying World Series teams took part in the record-making event, along with fans in the stands. It required:
"This was fun and the fact that the Guinness World Records officials were on hand to verify the record made it that much more special. We want to thank Ford Gum and Big League Chew for kicking-off our World Series with this event, they are terrific partners," said Ripken, Jr.
Big League Chew bubble gum is the No.1 shredded bubble gum in the United States, created by former Minor League Baseball pitcher Rob Nelson. It’s manufactured in Akron, N.Y. and since its 1980 introduction, more than 500 million pouches have been sold.
Established in 2001, Ripken Baseball, Inc. is a sports entertainment company based in Baltimore, Md. created by Cal Ripken, Jr. and Bill Ripken. Its mission is to inspire athletes through remarkable experiences and prepare them for life beyond the diamond through The Ripken Way. The 2014 Cal Ripken World Series takes place August 8-16, 2014.
With more than 30 years experience in B-to-B reporting, writing and editing — the bulk of which was dedicated to covering the bakery, confectionery and snack industries — Pacyniak has chronicled changes within the food industry since the early 1980s. A Boston University journalism degree graduate, he worked for a variety of publications before joining BNP Media in 1994 as editor of Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery magazine. In 2001, he took over as editor-in-chief of Candy Industry until 2018.
Connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, or LinkedIn to receive updates and to network with other industry professionals just like you!
See More Products
Ford Gum & Machine Co. is a leading U.S. manufacturer of retail confectionery and gift products, private label gum, and bulk vending confections and toys. Ford Gum specializes in both sugar and sugar-free products including Big League Chew bubble gum, Jelly Belly sugar-free gum, Smarties gum and candy, WARHEADS gum and candy, and Carousel gumball machines.
Caotech b.v. is located in Wormerveer, the Netherlands (next to Amsterdam and close to the world leading cocoa processing factories). We like to introduce ourselves as a manufacturer of ball mills for processing cocoa, chocolate and compound, ice-cream and bakery industry. In this respect we supply worldwide turn-key projects. The range of machinery we are manufacturing are listed below; • Continuous beater blade mills for the pre-grinding of cocoa nibs and/or hazelnuts capacities up to 6.000 kg/hr. • Continuous ball mills for the fine grinding of cocoa liquor, capacities ranging from 400 up to 5.000 kg/hr • Continuous and batch wise ball mill systems for the fine grinding of chocolate and chocolate related products, capacities ranging from 5 up to 2.000 kg/hr • Storage tanks and mixers for cocoa liquor, chocolate and chocolate related products • Pumps for the cocoa and chocolate industry
Leaf Brands brings the FUN back to the candy and snack industry. Founded by the Leaf family in the 1920’s, Leaf quickly became the 4th largest candy company in the US. We brought back immensely popular nostalgic products such as Astro Pops, Wacky Wafers, Bonkers! Big Buddy , tart n' tinys, and Hydrox cookies.
