world's largest speed dating event Chicago Record | USA
Despite what the movies might say, love doesn’t always come at first sight.
Evidently, neither does record breaking.
In a true display of “if at first you don’t succeed…,” the online discount-offering organization Groupon smashed the previous Guinness World Records achievement for organizing the largest speed dating event only six months after falling short in its first attempt at the very same record.
While its effort in New York in August of 2010 ended unsuccessfully, Groupon teamed up with local social club Players Sports Group and dating organization HurryDate, this time at Chicago’s Paris Club on 8 February, to break the previous record of 313 participants speed dating. The result was an impressive new total of 412 singles looking for love in an evening-long race against the clock.
Speed dating, for the uninitiated, consists of eligible bachelors and bachelorettes going on a series of short, quick, timed “dates” in a common venue. The guidelines for this record required that each person date at least 20 other people at the same event and that each date last at least 3 minutes. All participants also had to keep a log of who they dated to submit at the end of the night.
I was lucky enough to adjudicate both last summer’s unsuccessful attempt and this record-breaking one and it truly was a case of learning from one’s mistakes to improve on a second try. The subtle changes in venue layout, organization and itinerary ensured an event that even cupid could be proud of.
With lines forming around the block of the venue an hour before the event and organizers needing more than 60 minutes just to seat all participants, the event was nothing short of a smashing success. Considering that wind chill temperatures sat right around 10 degrees below zero (F) at the beginning of the night, St. Valentine must have definitely had a hand in the minor miracle that occurred so close to the most romantic day of the year.
And even if none of Chicago’s finest singles found Ms. Right or Prince Charming that night, they all went home knowing they were record holders of the highest romantic order.
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