Both jumpers set world records on ramps over a foggy San Diego Bay.
Motorcyclist Robbie Maddison and snowmobiler Levi LaVallee prepare to land after jumping over a water gap as part of the "Red Bull: New Year. No Limits" series on Saturday in San Diego. By BERNIE WILSON
SAN DIEGO — Levi LaVallee and Robbie Maddison flew through the fog and across a 300-foot water gap to set world records for the longest snowmobile and motorcycle jumps on Saturday night.
LaVallee's jump of 412 feet, 6 inches on his snowmobile shattered his own record of 361 feet set in December 2010, hours before he was seriously injured in a crash while training.
Maddison wanted to hit 400 feet but landed at 378 feet, 9 inches, which organizers said broke his certified world record of 351 feet, 3 inches.
LaVallee jumped off his sled and raised his arms in the air and Maddison popped a wheelie after they'd landed safely.
For both riders, that was the important thing.
LaVallee, of Longville, Minn., was scheduled to attempt his snowmobile jump last New Year's Eve in snowless San Diego but crashed during practice two weeks before, fracturing his pelvis, breaking several ribs and collapsing both lungs.
When LaVallee arrived at the massive setup earlier in the evening, he couldn't see from the roll-in ramp to the landing ramp across the water. About a half hour before the jump, the fog cleared somewhat and the visibility improved.
"When the fog rolled in, that's an unexpected thing that could have altered the jump and it turns out we ended up hitting it faster and going farther," LaVallee said on the landing ramp shortly after the jump.
"It's just exciting to not only safely make it here but go over 400 feet. Just making it over here safely and riding away, I mean, that's the biggest feat in itself. After last year, crashing, that was scary. I was lucky to be here today, let alone jumping. It's redemption, for sure, just being able to come back and face this head on and be able to accomplish this."
The two daredevils roared down long run-in ramps at around 100 mph and cleared the water gap at Embarcadero Marina Park on San Diego Bay.
Maddison was several feet ahead of LaVallee when the two went airborne. They needed separation for safety and also because the stunt was being filmed from the side.
Maddison was hoping to land a bit farther down the ramp than he did.
"It didn't happen tonight but we got the world record regardless and I was just trying to better it," Maddison said. "The conditions were foggy and the run-in was a little bit tricky. For what I need to go 400, I think I need a bit more room. To go as far as we did tonight and land safety is kind of a happy New Year for me."
It was the latest in the "Red Bull: New Year. No Limits" series.
Maddison kick-started the Red Bull series in 2007 by jumping his motorcycle 322 feet in Las Vegas. The following year, he jumped onto and then off the 96-foot high scale version of the Arc de Triomphe at Paris Las Vegas.
Maddison has jumped the 279-foot wide Corinth Canal in Greece, at a height of more than 300 feet above the water, and did a no-handed back flip over the open span on London's Tower Bridge.