Man releases 91 animal traps on his body in under one minute to reclaim painful record
Yes – we know this looks painful.
But for record breaker and side show performer Casey Severn (USA), releasing animal traps on his body is – oddly enough – all in a day’s work.
This March, the trained performance artist took to the stage to reclaim a hotly contested record from fellow self-trapping enthusiast Sweet Pepper Klopek (Canada) for the most animal traps released on the body in one minute. And the show-stopping entertainer was determined to go all-out, saying that he “wanted to break this record for personal achievement.”
He ended up taking the title handily (get it!) with an incredible total of 91 traps, for a task which required him to fight through the pain to emerge a champion.
And if you haven’t caught on already, these attempts can be very painful, so please don’t try them at home – Casey’s a trained professional!
The day of the attempt, a booth was set up in a corner of the Villain Arts Tattoo Festival in Baltimore, Maryland with over 100 clamping metal animal traps, each lined with rows of sharp silver teeth that would soon clasp on to the skin of Casey’s fist.
The thick-skinned performer – who also works as a sword swallower with a former apprenticeship in falconry – would need to beat Sweet Pepper Klopek’s 2024 record of 85 traps if he wanted to take the title. But Casey had claimed the record before in 2023 with 58 traps, so he was familiar with the pressure of the event.
And at 4:15 p.m. on 8 March, the whistle sounded – and Casey began his attempt in front of a crowd of amazed spectators.
He bravely punched downward into the traps with his right hand, picking up the trap to show the camera that it was properly released, before flinging it off or removing it with his left hand.
And at first, Casey looked shockingly unphased by the gnash of the closing traps – but as the seconds flew by, he began to grit his teeth as the metal clamps drew blood.
Nevertheless, he was cheered on by the enraptured crowd, which motivated him to fiercely repeat the process until the final whistle.
Read more stories about record breakers crushing physical titles in our Human Body section!
After he was told to stop, Casey pumped his bloody fists enthusiastically, and waved his arms in front of the awed crowd.
Yet the performer was honest despite his excitement, and drew attention to the fact that even though 94 traps were released, two misfired and one occurred after the final bell, bringing his total to 91.
That amount still let him reclaim the record by a total of six traps, and Casey was thrilled to finally have the certification back in his (bloodied) hands.
This is the third title for the brave entertainer, who also holds the record for the most mouse traps released on the tongue in one minute, with 63, and the most rat traps released on the tongue in one minute, with 13.
We took a closer look at his mouse trap title in a special edition of Guinness World Records Spotlight section, so be sure to see more of Casey’s past attempts there.
Congratulations on the new record, Casey – you’re Officially Amazing!