Cowabunga! Largest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles gathering world record smashed in Minnesota

Seeing green on St. Patrick's Day 2012? Visitors to Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, USA, didn't see leprechauns: they saw turtles. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!

For more than 20 years, the Turtles have thrilled viewers with a blend of action and comedy, and now Nickelodeon is relaunching the franchise with a brand-new animated series.

As part of the festivities, the Nickelodeon Universe theme park unveiled the new Shell Shock ride and invited hundreds of fans to set a new Guinness World Records achievement for largest gathering of people dressed as Ninja Turtles.

The previous record stood at 786 people at Rutgers University in New Jersey, USA, meaning a massive group would be needed for certification as "heroes in a half shell."

While all participants received a green TMNT t-shirt and coloured mask, many attendees brought their own home-made costumes matching their favourite of the four brothers.

In addition to the passionate fans who drove overnight for a spot in line, a troop of Girl Scouts and a contingent of mall walking seniors made the trek to the Mall of America for a chance to set a new record.

With everyone gathered, the official 10 minute countdown began, and the crowd danced along with Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael.

After a final tally of the numbers and with a huge "cowabunga," I was happy to announce that with a total of 836 people, a new Guinness World Record achievement was set for Most People Dressed as Ninja Turtles.

For these TMNT superfans, 17 March 2012 truly was a day of "turtle power!"