More than 20,000 toothpicks and 400 glue sticks later, a Naperville teen appears to have broken the Guinness World Record for the tallest toothpick tower.
17-year-old Eric Klabel set the new, still-to-be-certified record last Friday with his 17.32 foot structure of the Eiffel tower, measured by a professional land surveyor.
With the guidance of his father, Brian, an engineer, Klabel spent nearly 100 hours building the structure to beat the previous record of 16.7 feet.
“I’m feeling great. I’m really proud of my work. I finally I’ve done it. I’m really excited. I’m really happy,” he said.
Klabel achieves second world record
But Klabel is no stranger to setting records. An avid builder, the teen set his first world record in 2021 with the world’s tallest popsicle stick tower, which stood at 20-feet-tall. This year, he was motivated to take his passion this new heights and try for another record.
The process began with an application to Guinness World Records, stating an interest in breaking the record. He then had to wait for their approval before taking on the tower…