Fastest mile blindfolded (male)

The fastest mile blindfolded (male) is 5 mins 23.75 seconds and was achieved by Ted Simmons (USA) in North Baltimore, Ohio, USA on 13 December 2020.

When Ted was young, frequenting the elementary school library, he would gravitate towards the Guinness World Record books, with their alluring covers, curious if he could one day achieve such an accomplishment. Fast forward nearly 20 years and that same curiosity, paired with supportive friends/family, and the desire to raise awareness to Mission Possible, inspired him to step (run) outside of his comfort zone.

'The Fastest Blindfolded Mile (male) record was chosen, after scanning pages of records, as I believe it paired well with my skill set, while also having a relatively breakable time and reasonable documentation requirements. Plus, most people have an understanding of what a respectable un-blindfolded mile time is, and I wanted to see if we could do a little better than that, while blindfolded.'

Several months before the attempt Ted began to incorporate more distance and speed work into his training. Once sound in running, they introduced the blindfold. The first attempt was on a narrow gravel path, with water on one side, and a steep hill on the other. 'In hindsight, this may not have been ideal, but through trial and error, throughout those 4-miles, my guide and I landed on a communication method that effectively kept me on track. Finally, we practiced numerous full-length attempts at our chosen venue to ensure things went smoothly day-of, dropping time each attempt.'

The physical aspect of the training was rewarding for Ted. 'It was enjoyable to once again have a goal to work towards, watching times improve week by week. The trust portion of the training, in running completely blind led only by your friend and guide, was much more challenging. With that, I’d say these challenges helped us both to grow, physically, and in our friendship.'

Following the attempt, it took several days for Ted to fully recover, as it had been some time since he had given everything he could muster to run 1-mile. 'Plus, I’m not as young as I once was.'

Even though Ted is over the moon with his Guinness World Records title he would like to support his friends in achieving Guinness World Record titles rather than breaking any more of his own. 'In sharing this attempt with my friends, I know of at least one other individual who is interested in setting a Guinness World Record. I’m not sure whether or not I will plan on personally attempting any further records, but I would love the opportunity to help anyone I can to achieve their goals.'

'Becoming a Guinness World Records title holder would show that through Faith we can achieve anything we set our mind to. This accomplishment would bring my Elementary school curiosity as to whether I could ever set a Guinness World Record full circle, and would complete a bucket list item I’ve aspired to for years. Finally, I hope this inspires others to pursue their goals, while most importantly, raising awareness to a worthy local ministry.'