Never has a Guinness World Records had such a powerful background. It is the case of Doogie Sandtiger, who managed to appear in the pages of this book after achieving a collection of over 3,500 pairs of shoes from the well-known brand Crocs. A resident of Wethersfield, Connecticut, he has been nicknamed the ‘King of Crocs’, and he shared with NBC his difficult childhood and the reasons that led him to want to achieve this record.
After going through multiple foster homes in Connecticut, he was never taught to tie his shoelaces, so he opted for footwear without laces and with Velcro straps. He spoke about the lack of continuity on Colorado Public Radio, referencing the many details that are lost about the little ones and young people who jump from house to house. After being bullied in high school for wearing Velcro shoes, he discovered Crocs, and that was the beginning of his collection. He/She now works in the Connecticut Department of Children and Families, raising awareness about the U.S. foster care program.
Guinness World Records
The Guinness World Records is an international organization that verifies the most extraordinary and unique human achievements and natural phenomena in the world. All of them are collected in the Guinness Book of Records, one of the most well-known globally. The way this book originated is quite curious, as it was the result of a debate in a pub in 1950, in response to discussions about interesting facts and to promote the Guinness beer brand. What started as a proposal has turned into the leading authority in verifying world records, with a database of achievements in various categories.
“The King of Crocs”
One of the most recent additions that will be published in the 2026 Guinness World Records is the case of Doogie Sandtiger. This man, originally from Wethersfield, Connecticut, has a collection of over 3,500 pairs of Crocs shoes, earning him the title of ‘the King of Crocs.’ On his life checklist, he included adopting a dog or traveling to Paris, but he also aimed to break or set a Guinness world record, and see his photo in the book of global records. After 18 years, he achieved both with a single record.
Why create a collection of shoes from the brand Crocs?
The story behind this protagonist gives it all the meaning. Sandtiger grew up in the foster care system in Connecticut, where he jumped from one home to another. “When you go to different temporary foster places, you lose a lot along the way. There isn’t much attention to continuity, as each home doesn’t know what you learned in the previous one,” Doogie told Colorado Public Radio.
With this, he refers to the fact that he was never taught how to tie his shoelaces, and he never dared to ask an adult for help due to his insecurity. For this reason, he only wore Velcro shoes, which led to bullying in school. However, when he discovered Crocs, he found an alternative that made him feel comfortable and he planned to buy one for each day of the year. Thus, almost without realizing it, he began to create the collection that would one day give him a world record.
Support for the community
Currently, he is a very active member of his community. He works in the Connecticut Department of Children and Families, where he started an awareness campaign for the U.S. foster care program, which he funded with the income received from his Guinness record. I don’t know about you, but it seems to me that Doogie Sandtiger chose a good reason to appear in the Guinness Book of Records, and that his work with the foster program is commendable.