English/Nat Here we go again - American teacher Richard Rodriguez is continuing his rollercoaster marathon in England's Blackpool beach resort. After 32 days, he was due to end the ultimate ride on Thursday - having broken his own world record of 549 hours more than a week ago. But instead, he decided to continue until he reaches the one-thousand hour mark. For Richard Rodriguez - the ride of a lifetime continues. For more than a month, the 39-year-old teacher from Miami has been spending 22 out of every 24 hours going round Blackpool's famous "Big Dipper" rollercoaster - with only a five minute break every hour. And after 32 days living, eating and sleeping on the 75-year-old ride, he was ready to call it a day on Thursday afternoon. After all, he had already broken his previous record of 549 hours 10 days ago and had only decided to stay on board to make sure he beat a simultaneous rival attempt. Canadian Normand St Pierre was two days behind on Le Monstre ride at the Parc des Iles in Montreal but gave up early on Thursday. Being the ultimate thrill seeker - Richard celebrated his new world record in style - by deciding to stay on board for another 11 days. He said he would stay on the Big Dipper to make it to the one-thousand hour mark. SOUNDBITE: (English) "People have asked me that already, what about the thousand hour mark, and you know it's funny but I've always said this would be the last, a retirement marathon." SUPER CAPTION: Ricard Rodriguez, World Record Holder Blackpool is a traditional British seaside town. And its people and visitors are not quite used to such record attempts. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Well I went on this one yesterday and I don't know how he can walk after it. It's a bit of a boneshaker, isn't it." SUPER CAPTION: Voxpop SOUNDBITE: (English) "I think he's marvelous. Do you not? I wouldn't go on it once." SUPER CAPTION: Voxpop SOUNDBITE: (English) "Mad. Absolutely mad." SUPER CAPTION: Voxpop Rodriguez says the main problem on the ride is thinking about relaxing in a comfortable hotel room watching TV. He rides with the public during the day and passes the time listening to his Walkman, talking on his mobile telephone and writing postcards. At night, he puts extra padding in the car and manages to get four or five hours' sleep. The feat has been that much more challenging because Richard is also a diabetic. The attempt has also involved a massive operation by the Pleasure Beach, which has to keep two operators permanently on the rollercoaster and medical staff on standby. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/06fcf7dd9bf591138451aedeb49b1833 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork
Visibility: 1615
Duration: 2m 19s
Rating: 2