Kansans try again to set Zumba world record

Get ready for the next attempt by Kansans to get into the Guinness Book of World Records.

This evening, Emporia State University students will try to set a world record with the most people participating in a Zumba class.

They’ve tried it before – last September when Kansas was in the midst of that record-breaking hot spell. At that time, 1,036 Kansans showed up in Emporia and sweated at a Latin-inspired calorie-burning “fitness party.”

They were hoping to best the record of 1,233 people set in 2011 by the city of Brownsville, Texas, and the University of Texas Houston School of Public Health.

But this time, Emporia State organizers say, they hope the exercise gods are with them and at least 1,500 people will participate in a Zumba class taught by Zumba jammer Amy Hayden of Emporia.

The event is scheduled for 7 p.m. today at Jones Field at Emporia State’s Welch Stadium.

Doors open at 6:15 p.m. Participants will be given wristbands. The class runs for an hour.

The event is free and open to everyone.

For more information, call the Emporia State rec center, 620-341-5944, or visit www.emporia.edu/recsport.

This story was originally published April 10, 2012 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Kansans try again to set Zumba world record."