Every so often, when personal finance teacher Brendan Dudas mowed the side of his house, he would encounter a large rock sticking out of the grass.
After finally digging up what constantly got in his way, not only did he discover the true size of the boulder, but he also found a way to actively share his findings with people all around.
“It’s a story I’ll be able to tell everybody for the rest of my life,” Dudas said.
Dudas discovered a large boulder in his yard and created social media content that went viral surrounding its excavation.
He began digging his yard in late June, but left the boulder project unfinished because he had to leave for a muscular distribute camp, where he helped kids suffering from muscular dystrophy experience a normal summer camp.
After returning from camp, he received help from his nephew, Tristan Keefe, and the two continued digging with no thought of how large the rock could really be.
“It was a very big job,” Keefe said.
But eventually they could no longer do the digging alone. They had to rent a crane to pick up the boulder.
After carefully picking it up from the ground, the small garden rock turned out to be a massive prehistoric boulder.
“I was a bit panicked,” Dudas said
The boulder measured out to be about seven feet long, four feet tall and four feet wide. The total weight ultimately ended up at 10,300 lbs.
Throughout the procedure, Dudas’s wife, Maddie Dudas, questioned why he wasn’t filming and uploading the process online and encouraged him to begin creating content.
“Thank goodness she (Maddie) did, because it obviously went really wild,” Dudas said.
Little by little, he would upload digging updates on his TikTok account, @buildsbybrendan, and he eventually made a picture slideshow on the app showcasing his progress.
To his surprise, that TikTok instantly blew up and received over 10 million views. His follow-up video doubled in views. He says his boulder videos have over 100 millions views in total on all platforms he’s posted.
Dudas gained popularity around SHS, with students and staff constantly showing interest in his discovery.
“It’s like a double-edged sword,” Dudas said. “Equal parts overwhelming and cool at the same time.”
He’s been successful enough to receive brand deals and collect revenue on the side, but he doesn’t allow himself to prioritize social media over his life outside of the boulder.
He finds it stressful to continue having the internet’s attention. When doing any work in his yard, he feels as if he’s obligated to bring out the camera and record himself.
“It’s turned what’s supposed to be enjoyable into a burden,” Dudas said.
Regardless of all the media attention, Dudas claims he will do his best maintaining his online presence with his personal life.
He now hopes to continue creating content beyond the boulder by creating DIY projects in his yard. With the weather getting colder, he plans to shed some light on his creations inside the house whether that’s ripping up carpet, refinishing hardwood floors or remodeling the bathroom.
Despite his obstacles with social media, Dudas remains ambitious about this future towards more content creation, and he looks forward to moving past his experiences with the boulder.
“It was really fun to bond over the silliness of the entire project,” Dudas said.
