Thursday night at Mammoth Mountain was epic!  Professional mountain bike rider Cameron Zink stuck a new Guinness Book World Record for a dirt to dirt backflip on a bike!!!

This amazing event was televised live on ESPN as part of the X-Games:
http://xgames.espn.go.com/video/11381579/numbers-mammoth-flip

It was quit the event as Mammoth locals and tourists alike gathered at Canyon Lodge where a massive dirt runway was built leading into a huge takeoff ramp.  About a 100 feet across an empty was Cam’s transitions.  Around 7pm Cam attempted the backflip and made it look buttery smooth!

The event was also sponsored my Monster Energy Drink, and hosted a live band.

In testing the jump the week or two before, they held off on building the transitional landing and used airbags for Cam to land in.  They calculated that the optimal speed (targeted velocity) needed to set the new world record was approx. 50MPH.  To reach that speed they built a 910 foot runway approach (more than three football fields) with a 14 degree slope.  To make the backflip they then calculated that Cam would lean back as he went off the lip of the jump that was built at a 32 degree angle.

Cam’s wife and child were there to spectate the event.  Can you imagine their nerves as he rode into that jump at 50MPH in front of all those people and cameras?  But amongst his peers, Cam is known in the mountain bike world as perhaps the most confident man in the sport…..and rightfully so!

So if you were there, you know how awesome this was.  And if you weren’t, click around on the links above to see more photos and videos of Cameron Zink’s new 100 foot world record backflip!

Written by Eric Leach / leacheric22@gmail.com / 800-921-6520