We're fascinated by people with talent — just look at the popularity of competitive sports and the success of reality shows such as "American Idol," "America's Got Talent" and "So You Think You Can Dance."
Even more telling is that "Guinness World Records" is the world's best-selling copyright book — with more than 100 million copies sold since the first edition, then called "The Guinness Book of Records," hit shelves in 1955. The book still receives around 65,000 record claims each year, many from events such as today's Guinness World Records Day.
Whether people do it for fame and fortune or for personal fulfillment, developing talent takes time, persistence and sometimes a little bit of geekiness, admitted Tucsonan Patrick Caffrey, a boomerang aficionado who has won citywide competitions in such diverse areas as yoyo tricks and ice carving.
Brent Morgan set a World Cube Association record last year by solving more than 3,000 Rubik's Cubes in 24 hours. Before heading to the World Rubik's Cube Championship in Budapest last month — his third — the University of Arizona student practiced several hours a day for weeks.
People are also reading…
While their areas of expertise may be a bit off the beaten path, there is nothing unusual about these Tucsonans' drive to develop talents, hidden or not — that's an important part of life, said Robert Bechtel, a professor of psychology at the University of Arizona. People feel better about themselves when they believe that they have talent. In fact, developing a skill can actually make you happy, added Bechtel, who has taught "Psychology of Happiness" since 2001.
Licensed psychologist Miki Paul agreed.
"We all need a little diversion from all the stress in life," said the lifelong hula-hoop enthusiast.
People interested in developing a new talent should explore anything they think they'd enjoy, said Bechtel.
"Many times it's something they did in childhood that they never went back to, or it could be something totally new," he said. "Some people develop talents when they're in a situation in which they're forced to do something that they never thought about before."
That was the case for Derek Bathe, who discovered a mind-boggling ability with numbers in sixth grade when he won a competition by reciting from memory the mathematical formula pi to 469 decimal places.
"It blew my mind because I didn't realize he had that kind of capacity," said his mother, Renee Bathe.
The key is to not rule out anything you find interesting — whether or not you excel at it immediately. And don't get caught up on the word "talent," Bechtel stressed.
"When you say 'talent,' sometimes that scares people away because they think they have to be Einstein or Tchaikovsky," he said. "This whole fear of not being great is what prevents a lot of people from doing things like painting and sculpting."
So what should the timid do?
"Go ahead anyway," he said. "Most people just don't realize that the world is full of all kinds of interesting things to do."
W. Clayton Magill
• Age: 47.
• Occupation: Dentist.
• Hidden talent: Riding a unicycle.
• What: At age 11 Magill saw someone playing basketball on a unicycle and was hooked. He got one for Christmas that year and hopped on despite 16 inches of snow on the ground. It must have been quite the sight.
"The first time I rode it I actually caused a car accident," he said.
His longest ride ever was 12 miles, but more often he used a unicycle to commute about a half-mile to work.
It's more convenient than a bike because it fits in any vehicle's trunk and you have your hands free, he said.
"When my kids were little, I'd carry them around on it," he added.
Unicycling is simply part of his philosophy of life.
"I've always thought it was fun," he said. "Bottom line: I've never grown up."
• Secret to success: "You have to learn to fall gracefully without hurting yourself."
• More: Visit www.unicycling.org or check out the unicycles at Ordinary Bike Shop, 311 E. Seventh St., 622-6488; or Ajo Bikes, 1301 E. Ajo Way, 294-1434.
Beth Sanders
• Age: 25.
• Occupation: Paralegal for the Asylum Program of Arizona.
• Hidden talent: Highland dancing.
• What: From a young age, Sanders began studying Highland dance, a traditional Scottish style of dance. Usually done solo, it involves acrobatic leaping and graceful twirling.
"I competed all over the Northwest at Scottish Games," she said. "I definitely won sometimes."
She stopped formal training in high school, but she still dances on occasion — most recently in a local talent show. For the most part, though, "very few people know about it," she said.
• Secret to success: "I was always really into dance from a young age — and it's my roots. I'm not purebred Scottish, but definitely on at least my dad's side we have Scottish family. We have a clan."
• More: Take a Highland dance class with Tricia Nuzzo, 591-8257. Attend the Arizona Scottish Gathering and Highland Games in Phoenix, Feb. 23-24, www.arizonascots.com.
Miki Paul
• Age: Later 50s.
• Occupation: Licensed psychologist and chair of the Arizona Board of Psychologist Examiners.
• Hidden talent: Hula-hooping.
• What: When Paul tried her first hula hoop at the tender age of 4 or 5, it was love at first sight. She's maintained the skills she honed as a child.
"It's a natural talent," she said. "It's a hidden passion."
Whenever there's a hula-hoop competition at a party, she's the one to win it, she said. When friends come over, she always invites them to take a turn. Paul has six hoops, but she's always on a hunt to find one that feels right. Weight is important — it can't be too light or heavy, she said.
• Secret to success: "I put the least amount of energy into it — it's just a really subtle movement but enough to keep it going."
• More: Go to www. hooping.org or pick up a hula hoop for $3.99 at The Sports Authority, 4225 N. Oracle Road, 292-6955; or 7110 E. Broadway, 722-5709.
Brent Morgan
• Age: 20.
• Occupation: Third-year University of Arizona student double-majoring in engineering physics and math.
• Hidden talent: Speedcubing.
• What: Morgan never met a Rubik's Cube he couldn't solve. Since picking up his first cube as a University High School sophomore, he's worked to reduce the time it takes to solve the puzzle from three days (his first try) to 9 seconds (his personal best).
"Anyone can learn to do it," he said. "It's just a matter of time."
Morgan has competed in the World Rubik's Cube Championship three times — most recently last month's 2007 championship in Budapest, where he placed 20th among 250 competitors from 33 countries. He also set a record in 2006 for solving 3,141 cubes in 24 hours.
"It's just a hobby right now," said the UA's Rubik's Cube Organization president. "I might look into the mathematics of it later. It's interesting."
• Secret to success: "What I do is based on algorithms. When you get really fast, it's based on intuition. There are so many patterns, you can't memorize them all."
• More: Get a Rubik's Cube at Yikes! Toys, 2930 E. Broadway, 320-5669. Check out www.speedcubing.com or www.rubiks.com. Morgan offers tips at www.freewebs.com/brents_universe.
Sean Pershing
• Age: 32.
• Occupation: Humane Society of Southern Arizona training manager.
• Hidden talent: Skateboarding.
• What: Pershing's high school movie club showed a skateboarding film 18 years ago, and Pershing hasn't looked back since. He's a board member of the Tucson Concrete Skate Park Alliance, a grass-roots advocacy group; and he hits the Ott Family YMCA Skate Park several times a week in pursuit of big air.
"For me, it's all about going as high as possible," he said. "I still think of myself as a guy just having fun, but kids are always coming up to me and asking if I'm sponsored."
Pershing, also a third-level tae kwon do black belt, said skateboarding is a great way to deal with stress.
"When I'm skating, it's like I'm 14 again," he said with a grin.
• Secret to success: "Consistency and not being afraid to try something. You just have got to get out there and do it. It helps to have a group of people who support each other."
• More: Pick up a board at Starr Skates, 1927 E. Grant Road, 327-0217. Check out the Tucson Concrete Skate Park Alliance at tucsonskaters.org.
Patrick Caffrey
• Age:46.
• Occupation: Food-service director at a retirement community.
• Hidden talent: Throwing boomerangs — and making them come back.
• What: Caffrey bought his first boomerang at a toy store 30 years ago and has been perfecting the toss ever since. When conditions are right, he can consistently throw and catch one about 30 times in a row.
"I enjoy doing wacky things," said the father of two who also won a citywide YoYo contest in 1970 (and was runner-up in 1972), a citywide top-spinning contest in 1974 and an ice-carving contest in 2002.
• Secret to success: Face so that the breeze blows on your left cheek, and then throw the boomerang 90 degrees to the breeze. Catch it sandwiched between your two hands.
• More: Go to www.boomerangs.org or pick up a boomerang at Yikes! Toys, 2930 E. Broadway, 320-5669.
Norm Marini
• Age: 45.
• Occupation: Baker at La Baguette Parisienne, 7851 E. Broadway.
• Hidden talent: Magic.
• What: Though he puts in 12 hours a day, six days a week, at the French bakery his parents opened 25 years ago, Marini has still found time to perfect the craft he fell in love with at age 11. He's a member of the Society of American Magicians and performs a comedy magic show a half-dozen times a year at the Gaslight Theatre.
"It's just a lot of fun," he said. "It's really fun to make an audience laugh and have a great time. They love you by the end of the show."
• Secret to success: "I don't have a formula," he said. "I have got a killer trick that's gotten me a lot of jobs." (It involves a signed $100 bill, a zip- lock bag and a lemon — you'll have to see a show to find out more.)
• More: www.normmarini.com and check out Williams Magic & Novelties, 6528 E. 22nd St., at 790-4060 or www.williamsmagic.com.
Derek Bathe
• Age:18.
• Occupation: Catalina Foothills High School senior.
• Hidden talent: Effortlessly memorizes numbers.
• What: When he was in sixth grade at Esperero Canyon Middle School, Bathe won a competition by memorizing and reciting pi — the infinite formula for the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter — to 469 decimal places. The previous year's winner tapped out at around 100.
"It was just as much as I could memorize in a weekend," he said, but admitted that he was surprised. "I knew I had a good memory, but I didn't know I could do that."
Six years later he stills remembers about 50 places, "and I think I will for the rest of my life," he said.
Bathe actually has another talent that's even more hidden.
"I guess you could say it's the thing I'm most talented in," he said of playing the piano. "I'm very, very self-conscious about it. Until it's perfect, I won't play it for anyone."
• Secret to success: He doesn't know exactly — when he's reciting numbers they run across his mind's eye like a ticker tape — but finding patterns helps.
• More: Type "pi" into a Web browser to see the formula calculated to an amazing number of digits, or watch the 1998 sci-fi thriller "Pi."
Guinness World Records Day
Talented people the world over are attempting fantastic feats today as part of Guinness World Records Day. You have until Monday to be part of it, too.
By choosing to attempt a record as part of Guinness World Records Day, you will receive limited-edition Guinness World Records swag, be featured on www.guinness worldrecords.com and could be included in the book next year.
All you need to do is register your record claim through the "Break A World Record" section of the main Web page and choose the GWR Day section of the pull-down menu.
If you're not quite ready for an attempt, you can try one anytime. Visit the site, log on to the members area and complete the online application form found in the "Break a World Record" section.
If you'd rather read about wacky feats, check out "Guinness World Records 2008" ($28.95). The edition includes more than 1,500 new and updated records, and a behind-the-scenes look at how the organization approves records.
DID YOU KNOW?
Three Guinness World Records involve Tucson:
• Most back somersaults on flying return trapeze — A quadruple back somersault record was achieved by Miguel Vásquez of Mexico to Juan Vásquez at Ringling Bros and Barnum & Bailey Circus in Tucson on July 10, 1982.
• Longest career as Santa Claus — Dayton C. Fouts played Santa Claus every year from 1937 to 1997. He first appeared as Santa for 55 years in Harvey, Ill,, and continued the tradition in Tucson, with his last event at a Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus concert.
• Largest lens — The largest refracting optical lens in the world measures 5.99 feet in diameter. A team led by Thomas Peck at the Optics Shop of the Optical Sciences Center of the University of Arizona completed it in January 2000. It was built as a test for the secondary mirror of the 21.3-foot MMT Telescope on Mount Hopkins.
— Courtesy of Guinness World Records.
