When records in athletic events like the Olympics started to bring people fame and fortune, the common people of the world started doing endurance tests to gain the same record breaking notoriety as athletic achievements. The 1920's was a breeding ground for trends and fads that would be built on human endurance. Flag pole sitting, foot races, and marathon dancing would start to become news stories across the modern invention of radio broadcasting, and advertisers were first in line for the drama built around the contests, but after the stock market crash and the Great Depression swept across America these tests would become much more than simple games of fame and fortune. Part 1 of 2