November 09, 2000
A Guinness World Record for the loudest outdoor stadium sports crowd will be challenged Saturday during the Texas A&M/Oklahoma football game at Kyle Field.
Organized by Mason Brand (A&M class of '99), Andy Richardson (A&M class of '87), and the A&M Athletic Department, crowd noise levels will be monitored using sound meters operated by the A&M Environmental Health & Safety Department.
Fans at Kyle Field will be able to monitor the sound meter via the JumboTron video screen during peak levels. Organizers would like to set the record for loudest roar during A&M's first defensive possession of the game.
The record for the loudest outdoor stadium sports crowd was set at 128.7 dBA and was recorded during the Denver Broncos versus New England Patriots NFL game on October 1, 2000 at Mile High Stadium in Denver, Colo.
The measuring device used was pointed towards the south stand crowd at Mile High as 76,123 spectators were present overall.
During Saturday's Big 12 Conference football game at Kyle Field, an instrument called a Quest Integrated Sound Level Meter using an "A"-weighted scale will be on hand. The instrument is designed to mimic human hearing. It is normally used by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to determine safe and unsafe levels of sound in working industrial environment, but this week it will be used to measure the noise level of what organizers hope will be the largest crowd ever to see a football game in the State of Texas, more than 86,000 fans.
"There is no question that Kyle Field is one of the toughest road venues in the nation, and the support of our fans is big reason for that," said A&M Athletics Director Wally Groff. "It's very evident that our fans, the 12th Man, are an integral part of the gameday atmosphere at Kyle Field. They arrive early and are yelling for the Aggies until the game is over. We are excited about the opportunity to challenge for this world record."
The measurements will be taken by Brent Mattox, who is the manager of industrial hygiene in the A&M Environmental Health & Safety Department. Mattox is a certified industrial hygienist and a certified occupational hearing conservationist. He will be assisted by James Rainer, who is the assistant for fire and life safety in that department.
The project is the idea of Mason Brand, a member of the Class of '99 and a graduate assistant in the Athletic Media Relations Office at A&M, and of Andy Richardson, a member of the Class of '87 and the television production manager for A&M Athletic Video Productions.
A&M Athletic Department officials have already contacted Guinness World Records Limited and have the appropriate record documentation on hand. The project will be documented with video readings of the devices, written readings of the devices, and printed reports from the device.