36 Hours Of Nonstop Trivia Could Make Plainfield Resident A World Record Holder

PLAINFIELD, IL — A Plainfield resident has set her sights on breaking a Guinness World Record.

On June 7, Jay Borsom plans to host trivia for 36 hours straight at Critical Grind Board Game Cafe in Shorewood. If achieved, she'll hold the record for "Longest Marathon as a Quiz Master."

Currently, the record is 34 hours, 35 minutes and 45 seconds, achieved in April 2023 in Romania.

"It spoke to me that there was a record for this," Borsom told Patch. "It seemed like a thing I was able to do physiologically, and I had a place to do it, and I had all the resources to be able to do it."

The catch is that in order to qualify for the Guinness World Record, at least two teams of four people must be present for the attempt at all times. Borsom will also be required to ask one trivia question per minute and will get 10-minute breaks each hour — that's just over 2,000 questions for the entire event.

Borsom said she is accustomed to faster-paced trivia games. She has owned an entertainment company, Liquid Kourage Entertainment, since 2003 and has hosted pub trivia since 2009.

At the time of publication, she is "about halfway through" prepping the content. And she's not in it alone: Borsom has the support of the Trivia Writers Cooperative, and independent trivia hosts and writers have poured out support for her endeavors by donating question sets to supplement Borsom's own.

Borsom will also be coming off a different trivia kick thanks to her well-timed — albeit unplanned — appearance on Jeopardy three days before the world record attempt.

"It's going to be an insane week for me," Borsom said. "I had no say in the timing of that. ... It worked out so beautifully."

To help, Critical Grind will be open for the event's duration to "keep snacks and caffeine flowing," according to owner Dana Buxbaum.

"As far as I know we are the only cafe in the area to have done anything like this, and I know we're the only board game cafe in the suburbs of Chicago, which is pretty cool," Buxbaum told Patch. "Mostly, I guess I'm just hoping that this event, aside from being such a great opportunity for Jay, that it'll bring more awareness of the cafe to people."

Borsom said that being a "huge fan" of the cafe, located at 852 Sharp Drive, is what prompted the partnership.

"I'm just a person who loves the place and loves the people that own it and was able to reach out to them friend to friend," she said. "I'm a big proponent of ideas like found family and third spaces, and this cafe has provided both of those to me."

Buxbaum said Borsom has been an "integral" part of the community since the cafe opened in 2022.

"To be able to be a part of this attempt for her … is really important for the cafe and for me personally," she said.

To be verified and secure the world record, Borsom will need to video-record the entire event, print every question that's asked, have two independent witnesses at all times and make sure two independent timekeepers are signing off on log books throughout the 36 hours.

Locals interested in participating can register for four-hour time slots for $25 per person. Borsom is donating 20 percent of each ticket sale to Tabletop Gaymers, a nonprofit that provides safeguards and certification for gaming venues verified as safe spaces.

"As a trans woman, trans rights and protections are incredibly important to me," Borsom said.

The game will be streamed on Twitch, and proceeds raised through the platform will be donated to Trans Lifeline, which Borsom said is "absolutely the most important cause in my life the last several years."