Austin, TX
Dribbling into the Record Books – This Austin Man Set an Unusual World Record
The world is full of some very weird world records, some of those set in Texas. Stuff like longest fingernails, biggest mustache or largest book ever published have plaques for the records they set. There are some unusual world records out there like biggest video game collection, largest collection of Funko Pop! or largest pair of cowboy boots. There is almost a world record for anything. Over the weekend, an unusual world record was set in Austin during a marathon that involved an Austin man and a basketball.
Ben Duong
Ben Duong attended McNeil High School just outside of Austin where he ran track and cross country. While attending Dallas Baptist University in Dallas, he also ran track and cross country while pursuing his bachelor’s degree. His is also a huge fan of the National Basketball Association’s San Antonio Spurs. The team decided to sponsor Duong during his run in the Austin Marathon on Sunday as he attempted to break a Guinness World Record.
It doesn’t feel real. I’m honestly in disbelief. I’m shaking. We’re here. We made it here. I couldn’t have done it without all my family, all my friends. Everyone who’s supported me. – Ben Duong to the Statesman
1 Hour, 21 Minutes, 38 Seconds
Duong wanted to break the world record for fastest person to finish a marathon while dribbling a basketball. Sounds simple, right? Okay. Go outside and dribble a basketball. Yeah, it’s not as easy as you might think. The San Antonio Spurs, his favorite basketball team, decided to sponsor him as he attempted this world record run. The previous record was 1 hour, 25 minutes. Duong finished the Austin Marathon in 1 hour, 21 minutes, 38 seconds, shattering the old record.
To Break the Record
To successfully break the world record, Duong had to dribble the basketball without picking it up for the entire 13.1 miles of the half marathon. If he lost control of the basketball, he had to retrieve the ball then go back to the spot he lost it and start dribbling it again.
The Coyote was Waiting
Since the San Antonio Spurs sponsored Duong with this world record attempt, the Spurs mascot The Coyote was waiting at the finish line to congratulate Duong. No word on if Duong will be attending a Spurs game anytime soon to either meet the players or be recognized on the court, or both.
Congratulations Ben Duong on breaking this world record.
Paris and Grand Saline Hold 2 Unique Guinness Book World Records in Texas
Texas is known for a lot of things including many different Guinness Book World Records. East Texas has a claim to two of those unique world records that still stand today.
Gallery Credit: Guinness World Records, Object History, Wayne W, World Record Academy, Texas Country Reporter, DallasObserver, CNN Business, Bike N’ Bird all via YouTube, Guinness World Records via Twitter, unsplash.com
WARNING: Texans Should Never Carry These 11 Items in Their Wallets
We have those required items to carry around in our wallet or purse. We have to be vigilant with the extra stuff that’s in there because it could make us a bigger target for thieves.
Gallery Credit: Getty Images, unsplash.com
There’s Some Big Jackpots That Could Still Be Won With These 26 Texas Lottery Scratch Offs (Accurate as of February 15, 2024)
Texas Lottery scratch offs are fun to play and 26 of these tickets could still pay out a huge jackpot to a lucky scratcher.
Gallery Credit: Texas Lottery
Austin, TX
Man arrested, charged for deadly shooting at downtown Austin hotel
AUSTIN, Texas – A 20-year-old was arrested and charged with murder for a deadly shooting at the Cambria Hotel in downtown Austin, police said.
What we know:
Police said on Monday, Jan. 5, around 6:55 a.m., officers responded to a report of a gunshot at the Cambria Hotel at 68 East Avenue #824. The caller said a person had been shot.
When officers arrived, they found a man with injuries. He later died at the scene. He was identified as Luke Bradburn.
The investigation revealed that Bradburn drove and crashed a car that belonged to 20-year-old Maximillian Salinas. After the crash, Bradburn and the other people in the car left and went to the Cambria Hotel.
Salinas went to the hotel and shot Bradburn.
On Jan. 6, Salinas was arrested and charged with murder.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Austin Police at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or calling 512-472-8477.
The Source: Information from the Austin Police Department
Austin, TX
Austin activists hold anti-ICE protests following the death of Renee Good in Minneapolis
Chants of “shame” and “ICE out of Texas” rang through the street as Austin-area activists joined thousands across the nation in protesting the killing of Renee Nicole Good, who was fatally shot Wednesday by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis.
The protest was held in front of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security building in Pflugerville.
Good, 37, was shot in her SUV while attempting to drive away from several ICE officers who ordered her to exit her vehicle.
Scarleth Lopez with the Party for Socialism and Liberation, the organization that led the protest, said the videos of the shooting in Minneapolis were “sickening.”
“Trump has lied and and said that Renee was a terrorist. She was a mother. She was an innocent bystander,” Lopez said. “We must organize to stop these people from kidnapping and murdering.”
Lorianne Willett
/
KUT News
Elizabeth Bope, a retired Pflugerville ISD teacher, said the claims from federal and state lawmakers that Good was attempting to strike the ICE agent with her vehicle inspired her to attend the protest.
Such claims were posted online by Vice President J.D. Vance and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. Attorney General Ken Paxton reposted a statement from DHS on X, formerly known as Twitter, that said the ICE agent “relied on his training and saved his own life.”
“It’s beyond really any words that they killed this woman for no reason, but also that they’re lying about it,” Bope said. “I’m not even a radical left person, I’m just a regular old Democrat.”
Other key Texas leaders, including Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, have not commented on the shooting.
Lorianne Willett
/
KUT News
Doug Tickner, who said he works for a home building company in Austin, said he felt it was important to show up in person for Good.
“I don’t really think of Minneapolis as being that far from here, and it’s not like what happened in Minneapolis was some sort of one off unique event,” Tickner said. “This is part of a pattern, and I feel folks better wake up and realize that this is becoming more and more serious.”
The news that federal immigration officers shot and wounded two people in Portland, Oregon, broke hours before the protest.
The gathering in Pflugerville is among the first of four anti-ICE demonstrations planned across the Austin area over the next few days.
Earlier on Thursday, protesters gathered at the intersection of 45th Street and Lamar Boulevard during rush hour. A protest on Friday will be held at the Capitol and another will be held Saturday at City Hall.
Lorianne Willett
/
KUT News
State and federal leaders are now sparring over who should conduct an investigation into the Minneapolis shooting, according to NPR.
Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which was originally asked to conduct a joint investigation with the FBI, said in a statement it was later told the investigation would be led solely by federal authorities.
Austin, TX
Flesh-eating screwworm may be moving closer to Texas on its own, ag commissioner says
AUSTIN, Texas – A Texas agency is concerned that the flesh-eating New World screwworm could be getting closer to Texas without commercial livestock movement.
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is sounding the alarm again for livestock owners to remain vigilant in watching for signs of the parasite in their animals.
Screwworm sighting near Texas
The latest:
Miller said in a Thursday release that a screwworm had been detected in a cow in González, Tamaulipas, a little more than 200 miles from the southern Texas border.
According to the commissioner, the cow had no reported history of movement outside Tamaulipas, and is the third active case reported there.
Officials in Mexico have not reported a known population of the worm in Tamaulipas. They’re working with U.S. authorities to investigate further into the new case.
What they’re saying:
“The screwworm now may be moving closer on its own, with no apparent link to commercial animal movement,” Commissioner Miller said. “Texas producers must act now—stay informed, stay vigilant, and prepare immediately. We cannot drop our guard for even a moment.”
Inspect livestock for screwworm
What you can do:
Miller urged immediate action from ranchers along the Texas border.
“Inspect your animals daily,” Miller said. “Check every open wound. If anything looks suspicious, report it right away. Better a false alarm than a delayed response—early detection and rapid reporting are our strongest defenses against this devastating pest.”
U.S. plan to fight screwworm in Texas
Big picture view:
The threat to cattle has been deemed so potentially devastating to the U.S. food supply that the federal government is committing $850 million to fight it.
Most of that money will be spent on building a sterile male fly production facility near the border.
The facility will produce 300 million sterile male flies a week to be dropped into target areas where the screwworm is now. Those male flies help to reduce the population size through mating without reproducing.
A much smaller portion of the funding will be used for screwworm detection technology.
In addition, the federal government has already spent $21 million on a sterile fly production facility in Mexico.
What are New World screwworms?
Dig deeper:
The insect gets its name because it’s only found in the Americas.
It lays its eggs in the open wounds of animals, and its larvae become parasites, threatening livestock, domestic animals, and even people.
The screwworm was mostly eradicated in Texas and the rest of the United States in the 60s. But now, it’s moving north up from Panama and has a known presence a little over 300 miles south of the Texas-Mexico border.
The Source: Information in this article comes from Sid Miller.
-
Detroit, MI6 days ago2 hospitalized after shooting on Lodge Freeway in Detroit
-
Technology4 days agoPower bank feature creep is out of control
-
Dallas, TX5 days agoDefensive coordinator candidates who could improve Cowboys’ brutal secondary in 2026
-
Health6 days agoViral New Year reset routine is helping people adopt healthier habits
-
Dallas, TX1 day agoAnti-ICE protest outside Dallas City Hall follows deadly shooting in Minneapolis
-
Iowa3 days agoPat McAfee praises Audi Crooks, plays hype song for Iowa State star
-
Nebraska3 days agoOregon State LB transfer Dexter Foster commits to Nebraska
-
Nebraska4 days agoNebraska-based pizza chain Godfather’s Pizza is set to open a new location in Queen Creek