Canadian Man Sets New World Record For ‘Beer Mile’ Run

Canadian runner James Nielsen recently set a new world record for the fastest beer run (no, we’re not joking). His time of 4:57 annihilated the previous record of 5:09 set by Jim Finlayson, winning him a spot in the record books.

What The Heck Is a Beer Run?

If you aren’t familiar with the concept of a ‘beer mile,’ let me break it down for you: it’s a sport where you run a mile on a standard track while chugging a 12-ounce beer after every lap. Assuming each lap is a typical quarter of a mile, this translates into a total of 4 beers throughout the run.

Beer run is a sport that combines two of the best things in life: running and beer. While most people typically don’t combine them together, the beer run takes a different approach by forcing participants to chug a beer after each 400-meter lap.

According to BeerMile.com, the roots of the beer mile date back to the 1980s.

“The roots of the beer mile family tree can accurately be traced back to parts of Florida and New England college campuses in the U.S., Hash House Harrier events in Indonesia, and to many places (most notably Ontario) in Canada. The earliest documented races (whose records still exist today) occurred in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s.”

Of course, Nielsen isn’t a newcomer to running (although he might be new the beer mile). Back in his college days, he was a NCAA runner for UC San Diego where he won two different 5,000-meter tournaments. Nielsen apparently tapped into his college running skills to catapult him to the top as the world’s fastest beer mile runner. It’s unclear whether Nielsen possesses any exceptional beer-drinking skills, however.

If you think you can beat Nielsen’s 4:57 beer mile, you are free to do so — assuming you 21 years of age or older. Before you pick up a 6-pack from the local gas station and head to the nearest track,though, there are few rules you should know about.

Beer Mile Rules:

• Each participant must drink four cans of beer while running four track laps (one beer per lap).
• Participants must drink the beer before starting a new lap.
• The race begins with the drinking of the first beer in the last meter of the transition zone.
• Cans must contain a minimum of 12 ounces of beer.
• Must be standard cans with no extra-large mouths or other features.
• Tampering with beer cans is not allowed.
• Beer must possess a minimum of 5% alcohol by volume (ABV).
• Beer cans can only be opened in the transition zone.
• Vomiting results in an extra penalty lap.