Fastest texter-world record set by Elliot
Nicholls
[Nov 18]DUNEDIN,New Zealand--Elliot Nicholls, 17, broke the world
record in Dunedin yesterday,not once but twice, texting a 160-character
message blindfolded and finishing in 51 seconds on his second attempt
and then 45 seconds on his fourth try.
"I've been practising about 20 minutes every day
for the past week, I knew I could do it, I just had to get the phrase
into my brain."
Elliot is on his seventh phone, having driven
over one, lost two and worn out the keypads on the others. He has
texted since he was 12 and wears a wrist support but claims it's
because of a boxing injury.
The previous world record for the fastest texter
was set by an Italian, set in September last year at one minute
and twenty three seconds.
His father, Daniel Nicholls, who watched the record-
breaking attempt, always got Elliott a copy of the Guinness Book
of Records each Christmas so he wasn't surprised by his son "attempting
something quirky"
Elliot, a Year 12 student at Dunedin's John McGlashan
College, decided to attempt the world record after seeing the texting
record onthe Guinness website.
Elliot has had to fit his training schedule in
with his studies, but estimates on average he sends about 50 texts
a day.
For the past fortnight he has had to memorise
and practise the world record attempt text - "the razor toothed
piranhas of the genera serrasal musand pygocentrus are the most
ferocious freshwater fish in the world. in reality they rarely attack
a human".
Elliot's text message had to match it exactly,
including spaces, punctuation and spelling with no mistakes. He
was blindfolded while doing it.
Check out this
video from a New Zealand news station to see Elliot in action.
