|
Travelling NYC Subway in shortest time-world
record set by Matt Ferrisi and Chris Solarz
NEW YORK CITY, USA -- After 22 hours and 51 minutes,
468 train stations, 25 subway lines and a single potty break,
Matt Ferrisi, 30 and Chris Solarz, 28, ended their marathon
tour of all NYC Subway stations-seting the world record for
Travelling
NYC Subway in shortest time.
Photo: Matt Ferriss (l) Chris Solarz
(r) (enlarge
photo)
"We've been studying for six months - it's
not that complicated," said Ferrisi, a quantitative analyst
from Astoria. "It's only 468 factorial," he added - without
a hint of sarcasm - referring to the number of subway stations
in the system. They analyzed trillions of solutions and found
the single shortest route.
The longtime friends, who work at a Manhattan
investment firm, bested the previous
world record of 24 hours and 54 minutes which was held
by six former Manhattan high school classmates who set the
standard in 2006.
They used a computer program to navigate
the fastest route through the system. They developed simulation
software and analyzed "trillions of solutions" to devise the
best route to break the Guinness world record for the speediest
time through the rails.
Solarz, who works with Ferrisi at a Manhattan
investment firm, said the pair has painstakingly studied the
system, drawing maps of subway exits and - perhaps more importantly
- noting the locations of bathrooms. He spent 16 weeks developing
proprietary simulation software in order to analyze all conceivable
combinations of routes beginning at all 468 stations at each
of 1,440 different times (every minute in a single day).
Among the holdups, they said, were a suspicious
package at Union Square and a long 2 a.m. delay on the G line
at the Long Island City Court Square station. "We went from
having perfectly synchronized the trains to missing every
one," said Ferrisi, 28.
The two had trained early for the four-borough
ride by mapping out potential routes and putting in four weeks
of trial runs. Over the course of six weeks, Ferrisi and Solarz
painstakingly surveyed all 50 subway transfers, drawing maps
of subway exits for efficient transfers.
They crafted contingency plans and noted
which stations have bathrooms. They know exactly where on
each platform to wait for each train, and exactly when each
train is expected to arrive.
But as any straphanger can attest, the Metropolitan
Transportation Authority isn't always going your way.
"Everyone thought we were crazy, but
we made it," Solarz said, crediting three cups of coffee for
keeping him awake.
The new subway kings weren't about to share
their formula for crisscrossing the subway system in record
time. "The route is like our secret sauce," Solzarz said.
"We're keeping it to ourselves."
Related world records:
Most
countries visited-world record set by Kashi Samaddar
Youngest
to solo airplane and helicopters on same day-world record
set by Errick Smith
Longest
Stand Up Paddle board journey-world
record set by Justin DeBree
Longest
voyage by a wave-powered boat-world record set by Kenichi
Horie
Fastest
circumnavigation using Biodiesel-Earthrace sets world record
Longest
journey around the world -world record set by Rosie
Swale Pope
Fastest
vertical circumnavigation-Adrian Flanagan sets world record
Sunday,
January 25, 2009
|
