Springing to record achievements

By David Mullen

Most world record holders pursue a particular achievement. If one is a competitive sprinter, competing in a marathon is miles away from consideration.

Ben Jacoby set out to do both and does so with a spring in his step.

The 31-year-old Jacoby — nicknamed “Bam Bam” — is a self-proclaimed “adventure seeker, risktaker and entrepreneur.” He is the Guinness Book of World Records holder as the fastest man to run 100 meters on spring-loaded stilts and is now training for a marathon, hoping to become the first athlete to complete the 26.2-mile race this fall on springs. 

Born in Chicago, Jacoby moved to Israel at an early age, served his duty in the Israeli military, has traveled to 40 different countries and backpacked through Southeast Asia. He maintains dual citizenship. “My father used to travel all the time, so we bounced around a lot,” Jacoby said, literally.

He got hooked on springs on a whim. “It didn’t come from the athletic side of me,” Jacoby said. “I was in Australia, I had these stilts and I would perform at festivals for fun. We have this holiday in Israel [called Purim] that is like Halloween and I was looking for a costume to wear. And I thought it would be fun to dress like a kangaroo and wear these [spiring loaded stilts]. So, I bought them and that’s how it all started.

“I started running on them, I could get some height and run pretty fast on them. I wondered if there was a record and there was [14.3 seconds for 100 meters] and I said: ‘If I put my mind to it, I could break the record.’ I hired a coach and went for it.” 

Jacoby harkened back to his early carefree attitudes in the 2010s. “I was a free spirit traveling around America and I found myself at this place [Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada] where I felt very comfortable. People could express themselves as they like. It was very experimental. It was a week that people prepared for all year. I went from 2012 to 2019. It all sprouted out of there.”

He founded a group with Israeli friends called “The Flying Falafels” and would give out “falafel balls” at the event each year. It was at Burning Man in 2018 where Jacoby set the world record for the 100-meter sprint on spring loaded-stilts. He later logged an even better time at that distance — 13.4 seconds — in Boulder, Colo. a few months later.

When not springing to new heights, Jacoby is grounded in home and business security, garage door installation and is an accomplished locksmith, a trade he learned in Israel. His business is safety, yet he is a risktaker. “Calculated risktaker,” Jacoby clarified. “You can be relentless and not reckless.” He has started a management company focusing on marketing and remains in contact with his business team and team of friends through video calls.   

Ben and friend’s next “excellent adventure” is to complete the London Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 3 on his spring-loaded stilts, becoming the first to ever accomplish the feat on his faux feet. “I’m not sure if it is going to happen in October or next April. I have a group of people traveling with me and I don’t want to have people travel when circumstances are tougher.” Jacoby also wants to hit the English ground bouncing and not participate in a virtual marathon.

“Guinness sends officials to the London Marathon because they collaborate with them,” Jacoby said. There must be nothing like pounding a pint of Guinness Stout after running non-stop for more than three hours. “They would love to feature it, but a lot of things are not happening the way they would want them to happen because of the current situation. Someone has run a marathon [more like a walk] on stilts. But no one has ever run a half-marathon or marathon on spring-loaded stilts.”

Another current situation has put the chronicle of his achievement on a brief hold. A documentary on his record-making sprint at Burning Man, which was due to be released on YouTube on May 15, has been temporarily tabled because of the unrest in the Middle East. “Because of everything going on in Israel,” Jacoby said, “it seemed like the wrong time to release the video. We are just going to wait until the situation calms down. I put a lot of effort into the production of it.” 

Although currently living in the Hollywood Hills of Los Angeles, Jacoby said: “I’m not committing to anything. I think the world is going to become a smaller place, especially with all the things being made to fly around the world. I saw something that said, ‘Fly around the world anywhere is less than four hours for $100 dollars.’” That is far less time than he could bounce around the world on his own. He has given up snowboarding in the Alps without a helmet and is “currently not actively” skydiving for thrills. He did suffer one knee injury that he has since recovered from. “Just like a lot of extreme sports athletes, as time goes on, you weigh your options,” Jacoby said. “It’s not that I gave up on everything, I just needed to stop doing stupid things.” Somehow, running a marathon on spring-loaded stilts seems almost responsible.      

  Featured