Close Menu
The Baylor Lariat
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    Trending
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects
    • Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines
    • Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18
    • Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting
    • How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings
    • Welcome Week leaders now paid in hopes of increasing numbers
    • 5 Baylor sports storylines to look forward to in 2025-26
    • About us
      • Spring 2025 Staff Page
      • Copyright Information
    • Contact
      • Contact Information
      • Letters to the Editor
      • Subscribe to The Morning Buzz
      • Department of Student Media
    • Employment
    • PDF Archives
    • RSS Feeds
    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    The Baylor LariatThe Baylor Lariat
    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz
    Sunday, July 6
    • News
      • State and National News
        • State
        • National
      • Politics
        • 2025 Inauguration Page
        • Election Page
      • Homecoming Page
      • Baylor News
      • Waco Updates
      • Campus and Waco Crime
    • Arts & Life
      • Wedding Edition 2025
      • What to Do in Waco
      • Campus Culture
      • Indy and Belle
      • Sing 2025
      • Leisure and Travel
        • Leisure
        • Travel
          • Baylor in Ireland
      • Student Spotlight
      • Local Scene
        • Small Businesses
        • Social Media
      • Arts and Entertainment
        • Art
        • Fashion
        • Food
        • Literature
        • Music
        • Film and Television
    • Opinion
      • Editorials
      • Points of View
      • Lariat Letters
    • Sports
      • March Madness 2025
      • Football
      • Basketball
        • Men’s Basketball
        • Women’s Basketball
      • Soccer
      • Baseball
      • Softball
      • Volleyball
      • Equestrian
      • Cross Country and Track & Field
      • Acrobatics & Tumbling
      • Tennis
      • Golf
      • Pro Sports
      • Sports Takes
      • Club Sports
    • Lariat TV News
    • Multimedia
      • Video Features
      • Podcasts
        • Don’t Feed the Bears
      • Slideshows
    • Advertising
    The Baylor Lariat
    Home»News»Baylor News

    From philosophy to rock climbing: Baylor professor breaks 2 Guinness World Records

    Ashlyn BeckBy Ashlyn BeckNovember 13, 2023 Baylor News No Comments3 Mins Read
    Baylor professor Dr. Alexander Pruss sets the record for the fastest mile climbed on July 15, 2023, at the McLane Student Life Center rock wall. Photo courtesy of Alexander Pruss
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    By Ashlyn Beck | Staff Writer

    What started as a father-son bonding experience has turned into two Guinness World Records for Baylor philosophy professor Dr. Alexander Pruss.

    Pruss, who has been climbing for the past eight years, broke the record for the longest distance climbed in one hour on Dec. 6, 2022, and the record for the fastest mile climbed on July 15. He broke both records on the McLane Student Life Center rock wall.

    After he came up a minute short on his first attempt to break the second record, Pruss said he trained for a few months before trying it again — this time with an audience. According to his personal blog, he was required to have volunteers to keep time, serve as witnesses and act as safety officers.

    “The final event was actually a lot easier in some ways because there was an audience encouraging me,” Pruss said.

    Even President Linda Livingstone and first gent Brad Livingstone happened to join the audience at one point, Pruss said.

    “By chance, after about 45 minutes of climbing, the Livingstones came to do a workout and talked to the audience about what was going on,” Pruss said.

    On his second attempt, Pruss broke the record for the fastest mile climbed by eight minutes, with a final time of one hour, 42 minutes and 58 seconds. The previous record was held by Texas A&M alumnus Andrew Dahir.

    Pruss said he was intentional about which spot on the wall he climbed, choosing the simplest route.

    “It was probably the easiest part of the wall to climb, but the difficulty was going to be in the amount of time — and, well, I’m doing it 112 times,” Pruss said.

    According to the Campus Recreation website, the SLC rock wall, nicknamed “The Rock,” is 53 feet, and includes features like overhangs, slabs and crack formations.

    Rock wall manager Rachel Burduroglu said the Outdoor Adventure staff know Pruss and his son well because of how often they are at the rock wall.

    “I think we’re privileged to get to be his belayers and help him train and reach his goals,” Burduroglu said.

    Pruss said rock climbing is a fun way to stay active because it’s not just a physical challenge.

    “There’s a mental aspect of trying to figure it out,” Pruss said. “It’s like puzzle-solving. It’s like this puzzle that involves your body.”

    Pruss also said rock climbing is more varied than other sports and always provides a new challenge.

    “Unlike running or biking, it’s always different,” Pruss said. “It can always be different because they keep on changing out the arrangement of the holds on the wall.”

    Burduroglu said rock climbing at the SLC rock wall is a unique experience because it brings faculty, staff and students together.

    “It helps break down the barriers [between] students and faculty [by] being able to connect over a shared passion of rock climbing,” Burduroglu said. “My students love seeing professors that they know climb.”

    After breaking two Guinness World Records, Pruss said he is not eager to continue breaking records. He said the next step would be to climb the height of Mount Everest, which he isn’t ready for. For now, he will continue doing routes at the SLC rock wall to grow his climbing abilities.

    “I keep on finding new things to do,” Pruss said. “There’s routes on the wall that I can’t do, so there’s an ongoing challenge.”

    Alexander Pruss Baylor professors climbing Guinness World Records longest distance rock climbing
    Ashlyn Beck

    Ashlyn Beck is a junior University Scholar, with a secondary major in News-Editorial Journalism and a minor in French. As a University Scholar, she also has concentrations in Religion and Philosophy. After school, Ashlyn hopes to work as an international journalist and travel.

    Keep Reading

    Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown

    Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects

    Baylor graduate charged after killing cats with pellet gun, hanging bodies over utility lines

    Baylor Football’s Alex Foster dies at 18

    Board of Regents confirms budget, renovations, new leadership in May meeting

    How facilities responds to storms, flooding in campus buildings

    Add A Comment

    Comments are closed.

    Recent Posts
    • Students react to emergency alert following campus lockdown June 27, 2025
    • Baylor shelter-in-place lifted following police pursuit of robbery suspects June 26, 2025
    About

    The award-winning student newspaper of Baylor University since 1900.

    Articles, photos, and other works by staff of The Baylor Lariat are Copyright © Baylor® University. All rights reserved.

    Subscribe to the Morning Buzz

    Get the latest Lariat News by just Clicking Subscribe!

    Follow the Live Coverage
    Tweets by @bulariat

    Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn
    • Featured
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Arts and Life
    © 2025 ThemeSphere. Designed by ThemeSphere.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.