North Dakota couple chases Guinness record with vow renewals tour

A North Dakota couple traded a traditional aisle for a 60-foot waterslide in Wisconsin Dells, renewing their vows on June 23 at Land of Natura as part of a cross-country Guinness World Records chase. John and Keisha Lakoduk also spent about an hour in wedding attire riding the slide, and they reportedly went down it nine times in an effort to set a second mark.

The Lakoduks are pursuing the Guinness World Record for the most vow renewals in a 30-day period, and their route has turned into a rolling marriage tour across the country. Stops have included Idaho, Arizona, Las Vegas, North Dakota and Utah, and one account placed Wisconsin Dells as the sixth stop. Reports say they plan to keep going to Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Ontario, Canada, bringing more family and friends into the celebrations along the way.

Their stated goal is not just to chase a number but to make the experience their own. They told Good Morning America that they wanted something centered on what they wanted, not a traditional ceremony built around guests. That idea has made the trip part wedding, part road show, and part record attempt, with each stop doubling as both a personal ritual and a measurable feat.

Guinness World Records gives that ambition a formal framework. It recognizes categories for the largest marriage vow renewal ceremony and for the largest vow renewal ceremony across multiple venues, turning a private milestone into something that can be counted, compared and certified. The current benchmark for the bride water-slide category is reported as zero, which means the Lakoduks are effectively creating the contest as they go.

The scale of the modern record business is already visible in Guinness’s own marriage category. The largest marriage vow renewal ceremony involved 1,593 couples aboard the MSC World America on February 20, 2026, a record set by FamilyLife, a ministry of Cru. Against that backdrop, the Lakoduks’ waterslide stop in Wisconsin Dells fits a familiar pattern: a deeply personal event packaged into a public spectacle, then stretched across state lines in search of official recognition.