Virginia Bowler Breaks Record with 135-Hour Marathon

A bowling alley employee in Covington, Virginia just proved that world records are made of equal parts grit and strikes.

Josh Anglin set a new Guinness World Record on Thursday for the longest consecutive bowling session, surpassing 135 hours at Thunder Alley Bowling Center where he works. He completed more than 600 games over six days, knocking down an estimated 45,000 pins on just five hours of total sleep.

The record attempt started with a simple conversation between Anglin and his boss, Cameron Fry. They were brainstorming challenges they could tackle when they stumbled across the bowling endurance record, and Anglin decided to go for it.

"I said, listen man, I'd back you the whole way," Fry recalled. "And here we are."

The final stretch tested everything Anglin had. Friends reported he began hallucinating as exhaustion set in, but he kept rolling ball after ball. "It was just one simple question: how bad do I want it?" Anglin said. "And I told myself I wanted it more than anybody else did."

When game 597 officially secured the record, the crowd at Thunder Alley erupted into chants of his name. Anglin's mother, Kim Mullins, who stayed by his side throughout the entire attempt, fought back tears of pride in that final hour.

"I didn't want to cry," Mullins said. "But we're getting it done. I'm so proud of him."

Why This Inspires

Anglin's journey shows what happens when a wild idea meets unwavering support. His boss didn't just say yes; he backed him every step of the way. His mom didn't just watch; she stayed present for the entire six-day marathon. And his community didn't just observe; they showed up to cheer him across the finish line.

The record itself is impressive, but the real victory lives in Anglin's message to others.

"Just use this as inspiration," he said after breaking the record. "If you put your mind to it, no matter what, you got it."

Sometimes the path to extraordinary achievement starts with an ordinary conversation and ends with 45,000 fallen pins and a name in the record books.