102-year-old celebrates birthday by setting world record for zip-lining

When you go skydiving for your 100th birthday, it's hard to go back to just having some cake and ice cream.
Glenn Quillin of Carlsbad, California, turned 102 in January, and on Saturday he decided to celebrate by setting the Guinness World Record for oldest person to ride a zip line. Joined by family, friends, and staff members of the retirement community where he lives, Quillin set off on three zip lines, going up to 50 mph as he zoomed over canyons. "I am always amazed at my dad," his daughter, Roxane Smith, told The San Diego Union-Tribune. "He's just a fantastic guy who always does things that are fun, exciting, and different."
Quillin said he's always been a thrill seeker, and he used to race cars and motorcycles. During World War II, he worked on the Manhattan Project in New Mexico, and later worked for Hughes Aircraft in Los Angeles before opening a real estate agency with his late wife. He's already looking ahead to his 103rd birthday, when he wants to go jump out of a plane again with his grandson so he can break a record for world's oldest skydiver. "I have my eye on that airplane," he said. "I wouldn't mind doing that again, not one bit." Catherine Garcia
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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