Image Via
The Tour de France is gaining new popularity thanks to thrill-seeking mountain bikers. These riders plan a perfect spot to leap off of, and time when the Peloton will make its way through. It’s set up so that as the professional cyclists ride by, a biker comes soaring above.
Valentin Anouilh, the 19-year-old mountain biker you’re about to see is quite the risk taker. In the video below, he crosses over a 16-meter gap in midair, flying high above the Peloton. When he finally lands, he comes down onto a steep slope, and seemingly does so with ease.
The video Valentin and his group have posted shows the impressive jump from a multitude of angles.
Pretty awesome right? While he came off the ramp fine, I was not expecting such a smooth landing. I find it funny how unphased the riders are as someone launches themselves overhead. Maybe they can’t see him from above, or maybe it goes to show how focused they are on their cycling. Either way it was awesome to watch, and especially gratifying at how proud and excited he was after the successful jump.
Luckily, it sounds like no one’s been hurt. But hopefully this doesn’t influence inexperienced bikers to try it for themselves. For now, as long as professionals are the ones making these dangerous jumps, it’s an awesome way to add excitement to the Tour de France.
