Dagupan girds for new world’s longest grill bid

DAGUPAN CITY — This city will use 24,000 certified Bonuan bangus (milkfish), weighing a total of 8,000 kilos, 500 sacks of charcoal and 1,000 grills as it attempts to reclaim the Guinness record for the world’s longest grill during the Kalutan ed Dagupan (Grill in Dagupan) on April 30.

Councilor Michael Fernandez, executive committee chairman of this year’s Bangus Festival, told The STAR that they are keen on breaking the existing world record held by Turkey.

Dagupan City, home of the world’s tastiest bangus, wrestled the Guinness feat from Peru when it staged a 1,100-meter bangus grill in 2003, besting the Latin American country’s 600-meter record.

Dagupan’s feat was validated by the Guinness Book of World Records in November 2003 and the city was subsequently issued a certification which it, however, held for only two months.

It turned out that Turkey recorded a 1,600-meter grill during its Anchovies Festival in December 2000, but only submitted its Guinness bid belatedly. It grabbed the world’s title in January 2004.

Fernandez said they are expecting about 250,000 people to witness its third Guinness attempt on April 30. The first, in 2002, fizzled out due to lack of charcoal; the city finally succeeded the following year although rains cut short the rejoicing.

The Kalutan is the highlight of the annual week-long Bangus Festival which coincides with the crowd-drawing Pista’y Dayat (Sea Festival) held every May 1 in the province’s coastal towns.

With the help of geodetic engineers, the April 30 feat will be documented aerially and on the ground.

There will be dry-runs this week and next week to perfect the staging of the new Guinness attempt along the two-kilometer stretch from A.B. Fernandez East to A.B. Fernandez Avenue West, Fernandez said.

Originally, organizers planned to install the grills along A. B. Fernandez Avenue and Perez Boulevard, but Guinness people require a straight line, he said.

"We are very optimistic we can grab again the title. We hope the weather will cooperate," Fernandez said. "This is like the Pacquiao-Morales boxing fight which was unpredictable."