New World Record
David takes on Goliath
For well over a year 1st Gt Eccleston Scouts tried to get into the record books with a trebuchet, and finally after a considerable amount of hard work it all paid off witha new Guinness World Record.
Let me explain, I am the Scout Leader for 1st Gt Eccleston Scouts, we are a small village group in the Wyre District of West Lancashire. small we may be, but that has not stopped us from becoming a very successful Group holding a number of Scouting records at County and Regional level; yes we are a very active Group. But one of our more prestigious records, started some time ago when the scouts were invited to build their first ballista (ancient military engine for hurling great stones etc) at a District camp. Everybody was so impressed by it we wondered if it was a record?
So some time later we contacted the Guinness Book of Records to see if it was, and if not, was it possible for us to go for a record attempt. But after looking into it, one of their Record Researchers informed us that there was no Guinness World Record for a trebuchet (military engine for throwing stones) at that time, and that they would consider compiling some record criteria for that particular category, and perhaps we should continue perfecting ours until they came up with something for us to work to. so with this in mind we started to build them once more, the thing is they got bigger, so much, so, that at the next District camp we built an 11 metre tall monster, with an estimated metric ton of thrust.
Finally in September of 2004 two categories were approved. Largest trebuchet (with a projectile of 20 kg and over) So now having something to work to, (Power output and not size/height) the Scouts started to re-design things concentrating on efficiency, and going for the less than 20 kg record.
The best was yet to come, because during the school holidays a number of Scouts were determined to build something capable of getting themselves in the record books. So starting small at first, and perfecting the design they once more built up to one just over 8m tall but this time with a grater horsepower, and a lot
more efficient, capable of throwing things a greater distance. It was quite a learning curve, and the scouts had a great time throwing various objects across the field. The problem was they were able to throw things into the cricket field beyond, and out of the area in which they started, leaving them with no alternative but to practise when nobody was playing cricket less they scored a six and disrupted a cricket match.
To cut a long story short, on the 24th of August 2004, the Scouts of Gt Eccleston went for a Guinness World Record (“the largest Trebuchet with a projectile of less than 20kg,”) The result of which now entitles the Scouts to say, they are the holders of the first world record. With a trebuchet that created a power output of 170.8kgm (1,240lb.ft)
Tying knots is supposed to be boring isn’t it? Pioneering is more than just tying knots, its building things the Scouts can take a pride in, climb on, walk over, and play on or break world records with, above is the world record trebuchet with thee of the scout who built it.