Four-day DJ sets new record

After 98 hours on air, Jones keeps awake on a bike

American DJ Glen Jones has set a new world record for continuous radio broadcasting by staying on the air for more than four days.

I didn't even take coffee in the first 36 hours because I knew I'd need it later

Glen Jones

Jones, 39, broke the previous record of 73 hours 33 minutes set last September by British DJ Greg Daines of Chelmsford Hospital Radio.

After passing his target on Monday, Jones celebrated by playing Frank Sinatra's My Way - and then stayed on the air until he reached a total of 100 hours and 40 seconds.

His achievement still has to be verified by Guinness World Records before it comes official.

"A lot of it was just sheer will and determination," he said after his marathon.

Strict rules

Jones set the record at WFMU, a station in Jersey City, New Jersey, where he has a weekly show.

"Zonked New Jersey fat boy" on the mix

Broadcasting every Sunday lunchtime to the greater New York area with his sidekick X-Ray Burns, he describes his show as a place where "a zonked pair of New Jersey fat boys mix Led Zeppelin with Sinatra while ranting about wrestling and the unmentionable".

To break the record, he had to follow a strict set of rules, monitored by a team of independent observers.

He was allowed a 15-minute break every eight hours.

He couldn't snatch a few minutes sleep by putting on unusually long tracks - the rules say no song can be longer than six minutes.

What record did I just play?

Quick naps during lengthy contributions from studio guests were also banned - Jones had to speak at least every minute during interviews.

Kiss front-man Gene Simmons was one of the on-air interviewees who kept the deejay going.

The first day was hardest, Jones said, but he kept going with a catholic music mix, ranging from The Muppets to the Grateful Dead.

"You can take anything you want, but I didn't even take coffee in the first 36 hours because I knew I'd need it later," he said.