We travel to Wales with Kiwi surveyor Toby Stoff as he tries to reinstate Dunedin's record for world's steepest street. After the Guinness World Records stripped Baldwin Street of the title earlier this year, he has travelled 19000km to overturn the result.
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Dunedin is once again on top of the world as home of the world's steepest street.
On the morning of November 7, Kiwi surveyor Toby Stoff took his theodolite to overturn the current ruling that places the world's steepest street in Wales.
In July the Guinness Book of World Records awarded Ffordd Pen Llech in Wales the title of "world's steepest street" pushing Dunedin's Baldwin Street into second place.
Welsh surveyors found the steepest point of the street to be a severe 37.5%. Baldwin Street has a gradient of just 35 per cent.
"When push comes to shove, we'll travel half way around the world," said Stoff, arriving in the UK. "We're not scared"
Fford Pen Llecht runs down from the 13th century Harlech Castle. Photo / Thomas Bywater
Having started a crowdfunding page titled "Save Baldwin St", Stoff was able to raise $8,325 for the cause with generous donations from the Otago "class of 92" with whom he studied his craft. Traffic management was arranged to block off the small back road in Harlech and it took him less than an hour to measure the 10 metre stretch under contention.
Stoff and fellow University of Otago alumnus Sam Harman found the average line of the road to have a far gentler gradient of 29 per cent - 6 per cent shallower than Baldwin Street.
Stoff says you don't need a theodolite to tell which street should have the title: "When you look at it [Baldwin Street], it's just fierce."
Class of 92: Otago alumnus Sam Harman helps survey Fford Pen Lech. Photo / Thomas Bywater
He hopes Guinness will take into account their measurements and overturn the decision, saying "it will be an indicator that they are willing to listen to experts."
"They're the authority on records but they're not the authority on streets and this is like roading 101."
Five hours drive from London, three from Cardiff, the town of Harlech in north Wales is close to the slate mining towns and just 30 minutes from Snowdonia national park. The street which leads down from the 13th century castle is now covered in signage denoting the record. It has also become a popular route for cyclists.
"We gave you the Rugby play offs, don't take our record," quipped one local in the Blue Lion tearoom.
'You don't need a theodolite to tell': Toby Soff takes measurements. Photo / Thomas Bywater
Stoff and his team have filed their findings with Guinness and are waiting for a response.
Guinness World Records told the Herald they are "aware of an appeal against the decision to award the Steepest street record to Ffordd Pen Llech, Wales."
In a statement regarding the remeasuring Guinness said: "As with any appeal, we are taking it seriously and look forward to receiving and reviewing materials in due course."
Just 40km north the town of Llanfairpwllgwyngyll is home to another poached world record. The town's full name which consists of 58 characters was previously longest place name in an English-speaking country until it was surpassed by a hill in hill Porangahau with an impressive 85 letters.
Article originally published by nzherald.co.nz on 8 Nov, 2019
