Aurora rocks to headbanging world record

ByJesse Kirsch WLS logo
Wednesday, July 5, 2017
wayne's world snack
Nothing says "party time, excellent," quite like Independence Day.

AURORA, Ill. (WLS) -- Nothing says "party time, excellent," quite like Independence Day. And to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Wayne's World movie, Aurora notched up its party by trying to set the Guinness World Record for headbanging at RiverEdge Park Tuesday night.

Just before the fireworks show, concert goers heard Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven--a signal from the Fox Valley Orchestra that the real party was about to begin. The build up continued with the 1812 Overture.

Then, the orchestra began playing another iconic song: Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. As the whimsical melody flowed from the stage, the crowd readied itself for the headbanging crescendo. When the electric guitar overtook the rest of the strings, Aurora had its chance to shine.

People in a sea of flannel and bandannas shook their heads up and down, emulating Wayne and Garth as they drove through town in the 1992 film.

According to the Guinness World Records website, a group of Australian teens set the record at 320 people in 2014.

Aurora organizers believe they shattered that record on Tuesday night with 1,000 people head-banging in unison, including Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin. The city had said it would cut off participation at 1,000 people.

Local officials and volunteers monitored the participation to ensure it would count for the record book. Guinness World Records has not yet certified these results.