Pogo stick record smashed! South Boston resident jumps more than 100,000 consecutive times in 10+ hours
James Roumeliotis hopped out of an 8-year retirement and straight into the record books.
The Tewksbury native jumped more than 100,000 consecutive times on a pogo stick at Medal of Honor Park in Southie on Saturday, shattering what had been the world record of 88,047.
Roumoeliotis, who goes by the nickname “Pogo,” showed no signs of letting up as the clock struck 6 p.m., a whopping 10 hours after his day of jumping began.
Saturday’s quest was Roumoeliotis’ first attempt at breaking the world record since he lost the title to Jack Sexty, of the United Kingdom, during Pogopalooza 2015 in Philadelphia.
Roumoeliotis, now a Southie resident who works in medical technology software development, previously broke the record in 2017, raising money for medical research. But Guinness World Records allowed a five-minute break every hour back then, with Roumoeliotis recording more than 186,000 bounces in 20 hours.
One time, “Pogo” hopped for around 23 miles, good enough for a world record of its own.
Medal of Honor Park played host to the hours-long pogo-sticking effort, with spectators coming and going throughout the day to cheer Roumoeliotis on.
It wasn’t just to reclaim the world title that drove Roumoeliotis to spend the entirety of his Saturday on a pogo stick, but a larger motivation compelled him to set out on the journey: raising money for veterans.
Roumoeliotis partnered with the New England Center and Home for Veterans, raising more than $10,230 from more than 120 donors.
NECHV is home to 300 veterans on any given night and supports over 1,000 individual veterans each year by providing housing, clinical support, education, and employment services.