Lewis Center 'elf' makes winning run for Guinness World Record
If Jason Homorody was to paraphrase one of his favorite holiday movie characters, Buddy the Elf, he might proclaim, "Running is my favorite!"
But while Will Ferrell's blithely naïve North Pole transplant certainly enjoys smiling, it's not a skill that will set a Guinness World Record — which Homorody's fleet feet did earlier this year.
When the 50-year-old Lewis Center resident crossed the finish line at Warm Up Columbus, a 13.1-mile half marathon held in Dublin on Feb. 4, he was elated to learn he'd clocked in at 1 hour, 25 minutes and 44 seconds, taking the top spot in the men 50-54 division.
And he did it while dressed as Buddy.
"I'd seen the London Marathon was famous for having people break records in different categories. I have the kind of personality that people in my running group said, 'You should look into this, it sounds like something you would do,'" said Homorody, an instructor at Elysium Tennis in Plain City.
"The more I looked into it, the more I thought, 'Here is a record I could go for.'"
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So last November, Homorody applied to Guinness to make a run for the title of fastest half marathon in a film character costume (male). Conveniently, he already had a Buddy costume that he'd bought for a Halloween party.
"I've used it way more than the one or two times I thought I would. It's the perfect costume for me because I'm a giant child. I've gotten the most out of this one costume than I've ever seen. It's the best $40 I've ever spent," he said.
At the time Homorody applied to Guinness, the record-holding time was 1:30:42. "My best (half marathon) time was 1:19, so I knew I could run that easily unless there was some crazy circumstance, like if it was blazing hot that day," he said.
Homorody's green get-up turned heads, including those of fellow marathoners. One in particular took notice. "It just so happens, a random guy from Cincinnati started running with me to help me out at the beginning of the race.
"He turned out to be Harvey Lewis, probably the best-known ultramarathoner in the United States," he said.
Lewis, who holds the Guinness World Record for most laps completed in a backyard ultramarathon (108), provided a witness statement for Homorody, which is required by Guinness as proof of participation.
"The race director also was a witness. I had to have a person with me at all times taking pictures at each mile marker to verify I ran the race. You have to have a lot of evidence that you ran the race," he said.
That's just one stringent part of the application process. Homorody's costume also had to be approved. "For this record, the movie character can't be based on a book, like Harry Potter. It has to be an original movie character," he said.
"It's a lot more detailed work than people think; it’s insane. I had to read an extensive rule guide. At least they didn't make me wear green elf shoes."
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Guinness reps were unavailable to answer questions, but a spokesperson said the application review process can take up to 12-15 weeks after submission. Once received and reviewed, the records management team then confirms the success or failure of the record attempt.
A husband and father of two college-athlete daughters, Homorody got confirmation of his record and was awarded an official, framed world-record proclamation in May. His achievement made the news, including an article in Runner's World.
Homorody has completed more than 50 marathons, including New York, Boston and Dresden, Germany, a sister city of Columbus. While competing in the New York City Marathon a couple of years ago, he had moments when life imitated art.
"I wore my costume to the marathon and people were cheering, 'Good luck finding your dad, Buddy!'" he recalled, referring to the elf's onscreen search for his biological father.
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Homorody even convinced the crowd at Rockefeller Center to join him in a rousing rendition of "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town," just as Buddy did in the movie.
"'Elf' is probably my second-favorite Christmas movie. It's literally a perfect movie for me (because) even though I'm a healthy runner, I eat an enormous amount of candy; I'm like an adult child and I eat a ton of pancakes with syrup," he said.
"There's not a more perfect person to be wearing that costume. And I love Christmas!"
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Jason Homorody sets Guinness World Record dressed as Buddy the Elf
