[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=7rBAwFD2EvQ]
On a scale of zero to infinity, how silly would you rate a world record for “tightest parallel parking”? Far side of the Buzz Lightyear catchphrase?
(MORE: Mansion Caretaker Sued for Drinking $102,000 of Historical Whiskey)
Still, it’s interesting because we’ve all been there, right? How many times have you had to play “bumper chrome” because some people have rudely decided their place in a parking spot should include half of another? So we could probably learn something from the mad auto-maneuvering adroitness of these two U.K.-based brothers, who each managed to consecutively one-up the previous world record for the trickiest bit of fender-bender-free parallel parking in recorded history.
According to Guinness World Records, Gloucester natives Alastair and John Moffatt managed to slide a couple Mini Mayfairs between two other cars with just 13.1 centimeters to spare — a tick more than the diameter of a compact disc. That made it a world record at nearly a full centimeter less than prior record-holder, Ronny Wechselberger, whose feat stood at 14 centimeters.
The craziest part? To challenge the record, the brothers had to speed toward the parked vehicles, then spin-slide their cars into place sidewise, keeping everything in tight alignment back to front and avoiding touching the curb, all of which looks just as crazy as it sounds in the video. Remarkably, no cars were harmed during the attempt — though you’ll spot a few minor bump-ins and nudges during the initial failed attempts, there’s nary a scratch or dent on the bookending vehicles.