Naperville Teen's Popsicle Stick Hobby Becomes A World Record

NAPERVILLE, IL — Eric Klabel has always been a bit of purveyor of Popsicle sticks, using the wooden objects as an extension of his vivid imagination. But never in his wildest 13-year-old dreams did the Naperville seventh grader ever think that the tools of his boyhood trade would land him in the company of Guinness Book Of World Record holders.

But three years after he first reached out to the London-based keepers of amazing feats about using Popsicle sticks — 1,750 of them, to be specific — the local teenager who has always had a penchant for building things is the owner of a world record of his own.

Eric, a seventh grader at Crone Middle School, recently learned that his name is now entered in the Guinness Book of World Records for the tallest ice lolly (Popsicle) stick structure, which stands over 20 feet tall. The pyramid-based tower beat the former record by more than 5 feet and is held together by 2 pounds of wood glue.

The fact that Eric’s name is included in a book he read as a youngster is just beginning to sink in after he recently received official notification from Guinness Book officials, along with a certificate. When Eric searches his name on Google, he finds himself along with the accomplishment that he never imagined pulling off while quarantined at home in the midst of a global pandemic.

“It’s crazy to think about,” Eric told Patch in a telephone interview Thursday. “You hear people say, ‘Oh, this cool guy built the tallest building in the world.’ And now, I can say, ‘Oh, I built the tallest Popsicle (stick) building, and I actually got a Guinness World Record, too. I’m one of those people.'”

Eric’s tower came together over a month’s time. After constructing the pyramid base, Eric gradually added on while ensuring that that his creation was structurally sound at every turn. As the structure grew, Eric moved it from place to place “pretty much anywhere it would fit,” he said, hoping all along to avoid seeing his tower break and shatter his dreams in one fell swoop.

Without ever putting his ideas down on paper as a blueprint, Eric kept his plans in his head and used the building know-how that was passed down from his father, Brian, to keep the project on pace and to specifications that would keep the structure in one piece. Without having the distractions of normal everyday activities to worry about because of the coronavirus pandemic, Eric finally got the tower to the point where it could contend for the world record.

Turns out, his work was just getting started.

After coming up with the initial idea to chase after the record, Eric had to submit an application to the Guinness Book of World Records — a process that began three years ago. After a 20-month wait, Eric and his father received word from London that their application had been received. Nine months later, in September 2020, they were notified that Eric’s attempt at a new world’s record had been accepted.

Brian Klabel said he was always in favor of his son pursuing his dream.

“You’ve got to go big,” Klabel told Patch. “You’ve got to try it. I mean, he’s always making things out of Popsicle sticks and so why not go after a world’s record? I had full confidence and no doubt it was going to happen.”

After finishing the structure in November, Eric uploaded 80 videos, 20 photos, the surveyor’s documentation and 42 gigabits of data to finish his portion of the project. In order to maintain the integrity of the project, Eric had to record the entire thing to document every step for certification. Once he finished, a licensed surveyor had to measure the structure’s height, and two witnesses needed to be there to signify that Eric was indeed following all the requirements.

On March 19, the email arrived declaring Eric the new world record holder, although Guinness Book officials determined that he had pulled the feat off last November.

The structure is now hanging from wire inside the Klabel family garage to prove that what once seemed like a crazy dream is now, in fact, a reality.

“There’s still a lot more to learn about building,” Eric said. “I can still probably make some better stuff. I still have to work on that. But I was always (building things) as a hobby; now that I actually went for something is pretty cool.

“I’m proud of myself.”

Eric certainly isn’t alone in that regard nearly six years after beginning his obsession with making gifts, toys, little wooden boxes, houses and motorized remote-control cars out of the Popsicle sticks.

“It was a big surprise,” Eric’s mother, Helen said. “We never knew he could be a world record holder.”