Holder of most records breaks his latest in O.B.
Queens man pushes Ford more than 17 miles at local drag strip
BY JESSICA SMITH Staff Writer
Pushing a car is one of the last things most people would want to end up doing on a chilly Saturday. But then, Ashrita Furman is not most people.

JEFF GRANIT staff Ashrita Furman, 53, pushes a Ford Festiva along the strip at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park on March 6, when he broke the world record for the longest distance pushing a car. The former record was 12 miles; he made it 17.

The 53-year-old New Yorker pushed a Ford Festiva more than 17 miles in a little over six hours last week, breaking the Guinness World Record. The previous record was just under 12 miles.

"It went great," Furman said. "I pushed the entire time."

This newest achievement adds to the list that makes Furman holder of the most Guinness Records. He holds 80 current records, and has set a total of 187 since he started in his 20s.

The car-pushing record seemed a logical choice, Furman said, because he already holds the record of pushing a 4,000-pound van for the fastest mile - 21.8 minutes, to be exact. To prepare, he started practicing in Howard Beach about a month and a half ago.

"Every time I would practice there, people would stop and say, 'Hey, you need a jump? You need some help?'" Furman said.

As the challenge drew closer, Furman began practicing at Old Bridge Township Raceway Park, Pension Road. It is required that the car pushing be done on a completely flat loop track, so the effort required is equal for each potential recordbreaker to try it. Though Furman said it was a little lonely practicing at the track for hours at a time, he always had a companion, who sat steering the 1,600-pound car as he pushed.

"This endurance training has put me in much better shape," Furman said.

Furman credits the practice of medi tation for allowing him the ability to break so many world records. He said it all started when he decided to compete in a bicycle marathon at the age of 23. After training for less than two weeks, he made it over 400 miles in 24 hours, and came in third.

In 1979, Furman broke his first Guinness record, doing 27,000 jumping jacks in five hours.

"It was all connected with the meditation, because I was not good at sports as a kid," Furman said. "In fact, I was more of a nerd. This has nothing to do with my body. It has everything to do with my spirit."

Furman studied meditation under the late Sri Chinmoy, and continues not only to practice it, but to treat it as his life's philosophy. Part of this includes refraining from eating food that comes from animals, giving selflessly and keeping God at the forefront of one's mind, he said. Through following his spiritual path, Furman said he is able to get beyond the limitations of his mind to reach a state of "self-transcendence."

"When you can do that, there's nothing you can't do," Furman said.

Those who might not give credence to Furman's claim only have to take a look at his list of records for proof. The Jamaica, Queens resident and owner of Guru Health Foods has achieved his records in just about every part of the world. In Guatemala, Furman stiltwalked a mile in less than eight minutes. In Turkey, he balanced a 54-foot pole on his chin. In England, he jumped a mile on a pogo stick in 12 minutes. And the list goes on.

For a record to be official, Guinness requires two witnesses to be present during the event. The individuals cannot be friends of the record breaker, and must be respected in their communities, Furman said. The witnesses document the feat, ensuring that it indeed broke the previous record.

Many of Furman's records, which have been verified by Guinness, require a large measure of physical endurance, like the one he considered his greatest challenge - doing forward rolls for a 12-mile distance.

"The unofficial rule is, they have to be continuous, but you can stop to throw up," Furman said. "I had four slices of pizza the night before. . . so it was really messy."

Some of Furman's other records were not so physically taxing, but required focus, nonetheless. Balancing 700 eggs on end simultaneously, for example, and catching 77 grapes in his mouth within a minute, were not exactly easy feats.

"I know a lot of these things are very silly. . .but because it's the best in the world, it requires a lot of training and practice," Furman said.

At any given time, Furman is training to challenge or set four to five records, he said. His dedication to the challenges has nothing to do with making it into the Guinness Book of World Records - now, many records are left out of the book. In fact, record-breakers receive nothing more than a certificate to mark their efforts, Furman said.

The one thing that makes it all worthwhile for Furman, he said, is his hope to teach others about meditation, and the limitless possibilities that can be found in it.