Pole sitting is the practice of sitting on a pole for extended lengths of time, generally used as a test of endurance. A small platform may be placed at the top of the pole.
The world record for pole sitting was set during the World Championship by Daniel Baraniuk, from Gdansk, Poland, who sat on a 16 by 24 inch platform on an 8 foot pole for 196 days from May 15 2002 to November 26 2002. Short breaks were allowed every 2 hours. [1]
Flagpole sitting was a fad from 1924 to 1929. The fad began when a friend dared stunt actor Alvin "Shipwreck" Kelly to sit on a flagpole. Shipwreck's initial 1924 stunt lasted 13 hours and 13 minutes. It soon became a fad with other contestants setting records of 12, 17 and 21 days. In 1929, Shipwreck decided to reclaim the title. He sat on a flagpole for 49 days in Atlantic City, New Jersey, setting the enduring record. The fad died out after 1929. [2]
Pole sitting is related to the ancient ascetic discipline of Stylitism, or column-sitting. Famous column-sitters include St Simeon Stylites the Elder (c. 388-459) of Antioch (now Syria) who sat on a column for 36 years. [3]